Posts

Canadian athletes gain valuable experience as World Team Trophy wraps up in Japan

OSAKA, Japan – The final chapter was written in an unprecedented figure skating season Saturday as the ISU World Team Trophy wrapped up in Japan.

As they did throughout the three-day event, Canadian team members enthusiastically cheered on their teammates from their team box as the pair and women’s free programs closed out the competition.

The Canadian team finished the three-day competition in sixth place with a total of 57 points. Team Russia secured the gold medal, followed by the United States with silver and Japan with bronze.

This week marked the seventh edition of the World Team Trophy, where team points were awarded by placement in each segment. Individual scores were then added together to calculate an overall team score. Canadian athletes that recently competed at the recent ISU World Figure Skating Championships did not attend the World Team Trophy due to Canadian quarantine rules.

“To have the opportunity for our athletes to compete in the World Team Trophy and in front of a live audience was a great way to end what has been such a difficult year,” said Skate Canada High Performance Director Mike Slipchuk. “For these athletes and those who represented Canada at the world championships in Sweden, it will be an invaluable competitive experience as they look to the Olympic season ahead.”

In seven trips to the World Team Trophy, Canada has finished on the podium three times, winning silver in 2009 and 2013, and bronze in 2012.

On Saturday, Alison Schumacher of Tecumseh, Ont. earned 111.98 to finish eighth in the women’s free program. Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, Ont. was 10th with 107.30.

Anna Shcherbakova of Russia scored 160.58 to win the event. Kaori Sakamoto of Japan was second while Russia’s Elizaveta Tuktamysheva placed third.

In the pair free program, Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que. finished in sixth spot at 101.83. Russia’s Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov were first in the segment followed by Americans Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier.

Team Canada was represented by Daleman, Schumacher, Matte and Ferland, Roman Sadovsky and Nam Nguyen (men) and Carolane Soucisse and Shane Firus (ice dance).

To view final results, please visit the ISU website.

 

 

Canadians stay in sixth spot after second day of World Team Trophy

OSAKA, Japan – Canada remained in sixth place Friday as the 2021 ISU World Team Trophy wrapped up its second day of competition.

The Canadian team has a total of 42 points and is 11 points back of Italy for fifth spot with one day remaining. This is the first international competition of the year for every member of the Team Canada.

Team Russia moved into first place Friday with 91 points, followed by the United States with 83. Japan holds down third with 78 points.

Team points are awarded based on finishing positions at the conclusion of each segment (12 points for first, 11 points for second, etc.…) Individual competitor scores are added together to calculate a cumulative team score.

The event, which started in 2009, is staged every two years. In six trips to the ISU World Team Trophy prior to this season, Canada has finished on the podium three times, most recently winning a silver medal in 2013.

The men’s event closed out Friday, with 2020 Canadian champion Roman Sadovsky earning 134.80 in his free program to finish 10th. Nam Nguyen of Ajax, Ont., a two-time national champion, scored 133.04.

A day after claiming top spot in the men’s short program, three-time world champion Nathan Chen of the United States followed suit by winning the free program with 203.24. Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu was second and Mikhail Kolyada of Russia placed third.

Carolane Soucisse (Châteauguay, Que.) and Shane Firus (North Vancouver, B.C.), the 2020 Canadian bronze medallists, also concluded their competition Friday, finishing sixth in the free dance.

World champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia won the free dance competition, followed by Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri of Italy. Americans Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker placed third.

In the pair short program, Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que. scored 54.91 and are in sixth spot. Russia’s Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov earned 73.77 to lead going into the free program.

The World Team Trophy competition concludes Saturday with the pair and women’s free programs. To view start times and results, visit the ISU website.

 

 

Canada in sixth spot after Day 1 of ISU World Team Trophy

OSAKA, Japan – Team Canada is in sixth spot after the opening day of the 2021 ISU World Team Trophy.

Canada accumulated 23 points on the first of three competition days and is two points behind Italy and three points back of fourth-place France.

Russia set the early pace with 49 points, followed closely by the United States at 47. Japan is in third spot with 42 points.

Competitors perform two programs each, and team points are awarded based on finishing positions (12 points for finishing first, 11 points for second, etc.…) Each team member’s scores are added together to calculate the total team score.

Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., the 2020 Canadian men’s champion, scored 89.61 in the men’s short program and is in sixth spot. Two-time national champion Nam Nguyen of Ajax, Ont. tallied 66.89.

Three-time world champion Nathan Chen of the United States leads with 109.65, followed by Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu (107.12) and American Jason Brown (94.86).

Competition kicked off Thursday with the rhythm dance, with Carolane Soucisse (Montreal, Que.) and Shane Firus (North Vancouver, B.C.) in sixth spot at 65.06. World champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia lead with 86.66.

In the women’s short program, 2020 Canadian silver medallist Alison Schumacher (Tecumseh, Ont.) scored 59.19 and is in ninth place. Two-time national champion Gabrielle Daleman is tenth with 57.22 points. A pair of Russian skaters hold down the top two spots, with Anna Shcherbakova leading followed by Elizaveta Tuktamysheva.

Canada’s last medal at the World Team Trophy was in 2013, when the team captured silver. The event, which began in 2009, is held every two years.

Competition resumes Friday with the pair short program, free dance, and men’s free program. For full results, please visit the ISU website.

 

Team Canada headed to Japan for ISU World Team Trophy

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send an eight-member team to the 2021 ISU World Team Trophy, taking place April 15-18, 2021 in Osaka, Japan. The Canadian team will consist of two men, two women, one pair and one ice dance team.

Hitting the ice in Osaka will be 2021 Skate Canada Challenge Champion and 2020 Canadian Champion, Roman Sadovsky; 2019 Canadian Champion and 2019 World Team Trophy member, Nam Nguyen; 2020 Canadian National silver medallist, Alison Schumacher; 2018 Olympic gold team medallist, Gabrielle Daleman, 2021 Skate Canada Challenge pair silver medallists, Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland, and 2020 Canadian ice dance bronze medallists, Carolane Soucisse and Shane Firus.

The countries ranked one to six on the ISU team standing qualify for the event. Team Canada is ranked fourth heading into this event. The other five countries, in order of qualification, are: Russia, USA, Japan, Italy, and France. China was qualified but will not be sending a team, therefore, France will be competing instead.

Canada has medalled three times at this event, claiming silver at the inaugural event in 2009, bronze in 2012, and silver in 2013.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director, will be the Canadian team leader at the event. Physiotherapist Shirley Kushner of Westmount, Que., will be the medical staff onsite. Karen Butcher of Greely, Ont., and Leslie Keen of Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian officials attending the event.

For results and full entries, please click here.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2021 ISU WORLD TEAM TROPHY

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Roman Sadovsky 21 Vaughan, Ont. York Region Skating Club Tracey Wainman/Grzegorz Filipowski
Men Nam Nguyen 22 Ajax, Ont. Richmond Hill Training Centre Robert Burk
Women Alison Schumacher 18 Tecumseh, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club Joey Russell/Tracy Wilson/Ghislain Briand
Women Gabrielle Daleman 23 Newmarket, Ont. Granite Club Lee Barkell
Pair Lori-Ann Matte/Thierry Ferland 21/23 Lévis, Que. /Lévis, Que. CPA St.Romuald-St.Jean Lévis/CPA St.Romuald-St.Jean Lévis Ian Connolly
Ice Dance Carolane Soucisse/Shane Firus 26/27 Châteauguay, Que. / North Vancouver, B.C. CPA Repentigny/CPA Repentigny Carol Lane/Juris Razgulajevs