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Lajoie and Lagha reach new heights at ISU World Juniors

TAIPEI CITY – Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Greenfield Park, Que., showed a giant improvement from one year ago in their sixth place finish in ice dancing on Saturday to conclude the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons of the U.S. won the gold medal with 164.83 points, Alla Loboda and Pavel Drozd of Russia were second at 164.37 and Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko of the U.S. were third at 154.68.

Lajoie and Lagha, fifth after the short dance on Thursday, earned a personal best 148.26. They improved from a 13th place finish last year.

‘’It was something special to warm up with the final group of skaters and we felt we did our job,’’ said Lagha. ‘’We wanted to show that we deserved to be among the top teams.’’

‘’We are super happy, we really managed our stress levels and produced a strong skate,’’ added Lajoie.

Ashlynne Stairs of Calgary and Lee Royer of St. Albert, Alta., were 14th.

‘’Our technical scores weren’t what we wanted them to be,’’ said Stairs. ‘’So that’s something we really want to improve upon. We got a great idea this week of what we need to strive for in the future.’’

‘’The biggest improvement we need to make is on our turns and our flow on the ice,’’ added Royer. ‘’The best teams here were a lot faster.’’

In women’s competition, Alina Zagitova of Russia won the gold ahead of Japanese skaters Marin Honda in second and Kaori Sakamoto in third.

Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C. gained two spots in the standings for 17th place.

‘’It definitely wasn’t my best but I’ll take this experience and learn from it,’’ said Tamura. ‘’To compete against the best in the world, you can’t make any mistakes in your program.’’

Canada was shutout of the medals at the world juniors this week. The best result was a fifth place finish for Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., in pairs on Friday.

‘’Our long program is our absolute favorite,’’ said Michaud, who joined forces with his partner less than a year ago. ‘’Even in training we enjoy showing it off so we just wanted to do the same here. We were really calm and relied on each other the entire time.’’

‘’We’ve been in a fast lane learning curve and it’s been super fun,’’ added Walsh.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/wjc2017/index.htm

Walsh and Michaud crack top-five at ISU World Junior Championships

TAIPEI CITY – Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Strathroy, Ont., climbed to fifth place in pairs on Friday for Canada’s best result so far at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Ekaterina Alexandrovskaya and Harley Windsor of Australia didn’t win either the short or long programs but emerged with the gold medal with 163.98 points. Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii of Russia, first after the short, were second at 161.93 and Yumeng Gao and Zhong Xie of China third at 161.09.

Walsh and Michaud improved their personal best score to 150.74.

Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que., were ninth.

In women’s competition, Alina Zagitova of Russia is first after the short program with Marin Honda of Japan second and her compatriot Kaori Sakamoto third.

Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C., is 19th in her second career appearance at the world juniors.Competition ends Saturday with the free dance and women’s free skate.

Full results: ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2017

Canadian juniors travel to Dresden for final event of ISU Junior Grand Prix

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will send seven entries, for a total of eleven skaters to Dresden, Germany, for the final event of the 2016-2017 ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. Canada will send two entries per discipline in men’s, pair and ice dance, and one entry in ladies to the competition taking place from October 5-9, 2016.

Conrad Orzel, 16, Woodbridge, Ont., finished fourth in St. Gervais, France at the first event of the 2016 season, which also marked his debut on the junior circuit. Orzel also placed fourth at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in the junior category, and third in the junior category of the 2016 Coupe de Printemps. He is coached by Eva Najarro and trains in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Iliya Kovler, 13, Richmond Hill, Ont., is the second Canadian entry in men’s. Kovler earned his first international medal, a bronze, at the 2016 Autumn Classic International. Last season, he placed fourth in the novice category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. He is coached by Andrei Berezintsev in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Sarah Tamura, 15, Burnaby, B.C., will represent Canada as the lone female entry. Tamura will be competing in her second ISU Junior Grand Prix event of the season after finishing eighth in Slovenia. After capturing the 2016 Canadian junior title, Tamura earned a berth at the 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary, where she placed 13th. She is coached by Joanne McLeod in Burnaby, B.C.

Justine Brasseur, 15, Brossard, Que., and Mathieu Ostiguy, 19, Sainte-Angèle-de-Monnoir, Que, are one of two pairs representing Canada at the event. The pair finished eleventh at their first assignment of the season in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Last season on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit, Brasseur and Ostiguy finished sixth in Latvia and fourth in Austria. The duo from Quebec also finished fourth in junior at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and placed seventh at the 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. Brasseur and Ostiguy train in Saint-Leonard, Que., and are coached by Richard Gauthier and Bruno Marcotte.

Evelyn Walsh, 15, London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 20, Strathroy, Ont., are the second Canadian pair competing in Germany. Earlier this season, the pair competed in their first Junior Grand Prix event together in Estonia and placed 11th. Walsh and Michaud are coached by Alison Purkiss and Margaret Purdy, and train in London, Ont.

Marjorie Lajoie, 15, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 17, Greenfield Park, Que., are the first of two Canadian ice dance entries. They will be competing at their second ISU Junior Grand Prix event of the season, after finishing fourth at the event in Japan. Last season, Lajoie and Lagha claimed the silver medal in junior at the 2016 national championships and placed 13th at the 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. The ice dancers train in Montreal, Que., with coaches Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer and Pascal Denis.

Alicia Fabbri, 13, Terrebonne, Que., and Claudio Pietrantonio, 19, Laval, Que., are the second Canadian entry in ice dance. This will be their second ISU Junior Grand Prix assignment, having placed fourth in Russia earlier this season. Last season, they won silver in the novice category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. Fabbri and Pietrantonio are coached by Julien Lalonde, Mylène Girard and Lynn McKay.

André Bourgeois, Skate Canada NextGen Director, and Nathalie Martin of Montreal, Que., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Erika Persson of Edmonton, Alta., and Karen Seymour of Toronto, Ont. will be the Canadian team medical staff on site. Susan Morriss of Victoria, B.C., and Sylvain Guibord of Brossard, Que., will be the Canadian officials at the event.

The ISU will be live streaming the competition via the ISU Junior Grand Prix YouTube channel. For results and full entries please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT ISU JGP #7 – Dresden, Germany

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Mens Conrad Orzel 16 Woodbridge, Ont. York Region Skating Academy Eva Najarro
Mens Iliya Kovler 13 Richmond Hill, Ont. Richmond Hill FSC Andrei Berezintsev
Ladies Sarah Tamura 15 Burnaby, B.C. Champs International SC Joanne McLeod
Pairs Justine Brasseur / Mathieu Ostiguy 15/19 Brossard, Que. / Sainte-Angèle-de-Monnoir, Que. CPA Brossard / CPA Saint-Césaire Richard Gauthier / Bruno Marcotte
Paris Evelyn Walsh / Trennt Michaud 15/20 London, Ont. / Strathroy, Ont. London SC / Prince Edward SC Alison Purkiss / Margaret Purdy
Ice Dance Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha 15/17 Boucherville, Que. / Greenfield Park, Que. CPA De Boucherville / CPA St. Lambert Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon / Romain Haguenauer / Pascal Denis
Ice Dance Alicia Fabbri / Claudio Pietrantonio 13/19 Terrebonne, Que. / Laval, Que. CPA Terrebonne / CPA Laval Julien Lalonde / Mylène Girard / Lynn McKay

Junior ice dancers Ashlynne Stairs and Lee Royer place fifth in Slovenia

LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA: The final day of competition at the ISU Junior Grand Prix event in Ljubljana, Slovenia finished with the women’s and the ice dance events.

Ice dancers Ashlynne Stairs, 16, Calgary, Alta. and Lee Royer, 18, St. Albert, Alta finished in fifth scoring 73.62 in the free for an overall score of 124.14

“Our performances this week were definitely a lot better than our last competition. It felt a lot stronger and we got our components higher,” said Stairs.

Americans Lorraine McNamara and Quinn Carpenter took home the gold with 148.62 points, Russians Sofia Polishchuk and Alexander Vakhnov won the silver with 144.76 points, and Anastasia Skoptcova and Kirill Aleshin also of Russia took bronze with 143.78 points.

Sarah Tamura, 15, Burnaby, B.C., finished in eighth place after scoring 89.99 in the free program for an overall score of 141.41.

“I fought through this program today, definitely was not my best but I know what to work on for my next junior grand prix in two weeks. It’s a start but I have a lot of things to work on. I am proud that I fought through it and didn’t give up,” said Tamura.

Rika Kihira of Japan took gold with 194.24 points, Marin Honda also of Japan won silver with 178.75 points and Alina Zagitova of Russia won bronze with 177.38 points.

On Friday, Joseph Phan, 15, Laval, Que., finished in fifth place in the men’s category.

Canada does not have an entry in pairs at this event.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/jgpslo2016/

Top-five finish for Joseph Phan at ISU Junior Grand Prix in Slovenia

LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA: Joseph Phan, 15, Laval, Que., finished in fifth place at the ISU Junior Grand Prix event in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The event was the fifth stop on the circuit. Phan was third after the short with 70.33 points. He scored 127.39 points in the free program for a total of 197.72.

“I gained a lot of experience at this competition. During my short program, I skated my all and I placed top three and I am really proud of that. During my practices I was feeling the ice and practicing well,” said Phan.

Alexei Krasnozhon of the US won gold with 211.18 points, Ilia Skirda of Russia took silver with 208.28 points and Japan’s Kazuki Tomono earned the bronze with 202.57 points.

Ice dancers Ashlynne Stairs, 16, Calgary, Alta. and Lee Royer, 18, St. Albert, Alta., are in fifth place after the short dance with 50.52 points.

Americans Lorraine McNamara and Quinn Carpenter are first with 62.60 points, Russians Anastasia Skoptcova and Kirill Aleshin are in second with 56.80 points and            Sofia Polishchuk and Alexander Vakhnov, also of Russia, are in third with 55.60 points. Ice dance will conclude tomorrow with the free dance.

On Thursday, Sarah Tamura, 15, Burnaby, B.C., skated her short program, she is in eighth place with 51.42 points.

Alina Zagitova of Russia is first with 68.09 points, Rika Kihira of Japan is second with 65.93 points and Alisa Lozko of Russia is third with 59.78 points. The ladies will skate their free program tomorrow.

Canada does not have an entry in pair at this event.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/jgpslo2016/.

Canadian junior skaters head to Ljubljana for fifth event of ISU Junior Grand Prix

Ottawa, ON: Skate Canada will send three entries, for a total of four skaters to Ljubljana, Slovenia for the fifth event of the 2016-2017 ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. Canada will send one entry per discipline in ladies, men’s and ice dance to the competition taking place from September 21-25, 2016.

Joseph Phan, 15, Laval, Que., the 2016 Canadian Junior Champion will be participating in only his second junior grand prix event in Ljubljana. Phan finished sixth at his first competition in Ostrava, Czech Republic, earlier this month. Last season, he won the silver medal in the junior category at the 2015 Autumn Classic International. He is coached by Yvan Desjadrins at the Club de Patinage Artistique Laval.

Sarah Tamura, 15, Burnaby, B.C., will be Canada’s lone female entry at the junior grand prix event in Ljubljana. Tamura will aim to build off a successful 2016 season where she captured the Canadian junior title. That performance helped earn her a berth at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Debrecen, Hungary where she placed 13th. Tamura also placed 13th at the 2015 Junior Grand Prix in Latvia. She is coached by Joanne McLeod at the Champs International Skating Centre in Burnaby, B.C.

Ashlynne Stairs, 16, Calgary, Alta. and Lee Royer, 18, St. Albert, Alta., will be representing Canada in the ice dance discipline. The duo finished seventh at the first stop on the 2016 ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit, in France. Stairs and Royer are coached by Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe at the Champs International Skating Centre in Burnaby, B.C.

Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que. will act as the Canadian team lead at the event in Slovenia, and she will be accompanied by physiotherapist Siobhan Karam of Ottawa, Ont. Also attending the event are Canadian officials Debbie Islam of Barrie, Ont., and Sabrina Wong of Toronto, Ont.

The ISU will be live streaming the competition via the ISU Junior Grand Prix YouTube channel. For results and full entries please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT ISU JGP #5 – Ljubljana, Solvenia

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Mens Joseph Phan 15 Laval, Que. CPA Laval Yvan Desjardins
Ladies Sarah Tamura 15 Burnaby, B.C. Champs International SC Joanne McLeod
Ice Dance Ashlynne Stairs / Lee Royer 16/18 Calgary, Alta. / Ft. St. Albert, Alta. Champs International SC / Champs International SC Megan Wing / Aaron Lowe

Canada’s Nicolas Nadeau completes spectacular comeback with silver at world juniors

DEBRECEN, Hungary – Nicolas Nadeau of Boisbriand, Que., soared from eighth place after the short program to win the silver medal in men’s competition on Friday at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

All three men’s medallists completed thrilling comebacks.  Daniel Samohin of Israel rocketed from ninth to first with 236.65 points for the gold. Nadeau, 18, followed at 224.76 and Tomoki Hiwatashi of the U.S. , sixth after the short, was third at 222.52.

‘’I’m a little surprised to move up that much, other skaters made a lot of mistakes,’’ said Nadeau, 25th at the world juniors last year. ‘’But I’ll take it. I did my job today and I’m really happy with how it turned out.’’

The top-three after the short were ousted from the podium including leader Dmitri Aliev of Russia who tumbled to sixth overall.

In the women’s short program, Canadian junior champion Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C., was 16th. Alisa Fedichkina of Russia is the leader.

‘’I felt really good about my performance,’’ said Tamura, 15, in her world juniors debut. ‘’It’s great to get this experience on the big rink. I had a lot of fun being here. For me it’s about doing my best and hopefully I can move up in the standings.’’

Competition ends Saturday with the women’s free skate and free dance.

Information: 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

Canadian Junior Skaters in Hungary for 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has eight entries, for a total of 14 skaters competing at the 2016 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships this week from March 14-20 in Debrecen, Hungary. Canada will have one entry per discipline in men’s and ladies, and three entries per discipline in pair and ice dance. Competition begins Wednesday, March 16 with the men’s and pair short programs.

Nicolas Nadeau, 18, Boisbriand, Que., is Canada’s entry in men’s. Last year, he placed 25th at this event. Earlier this season, he won silver in Croatia and placed fifth in Latvia at his ISU Junior Grand Prix assignments. Most recently, he placed fifth in the senior category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. Nadeau trains at École Excellence Rosemère and is coached by Yvan Desjardins.

Canadian junior champion Sarah Tamura, 15, Burnaby, B.C., is Canada’s lone entry in ladies. This will be her first time competing at this event. This season, the representative of Burnaby FSC placed 13th at her ISU Junior Grand Prix assignment in Latvia. Tamura is coached by Joanne McLeod, Jill-Marie Harvey, and Neil Wilson at the Champs International Skating Centre.

Canadian junior pair champions Hope McLean, 16, Newbury, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 19, Strathroy, Ont., will be the first of three Canadian entries in pair. This season, the representatives of Mount Brydges SC and Prince Edward SC placed sixth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Poland. McLean and Michaud are coached by Alison Purkiss at the London Competitive Skating Centre.

Bryn Hoffman, 18, Calgary, Alta., and Bryce Chudak, 20, Calgary, Atla., are the second Canadian pair entry. This season, they placed fourth at both of their ISU Junior Grand Prix assignments (United States and Poland). Most recently, the representatives of Calalta FSC won silver in the junior category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. Hoffman and Chudak are coached by Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay.

Justine Brasseur, 14, Brossard, Que., and Mathieu Ostiguy, 19, Granby, Que., round out the Canadian pair entries at the event. They competed on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit earlier this season placing sixth in Latvia and fifth in Austria. The representatives of CPA Brossard and CPA Saint-Césaire also placed fourth in the junior category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, and most recently placed fourth at the Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway. Brasseur and Ostiguy train in Saint-Léonard, Que., with coach Bruno Marcotte.

Canadian junior champions Mackenzie Bent, 18, Uxbridge, Ont., and Dmitre Razgulajevs, 19, Ajax, Ont., are the first of three Canadian ice dance teams. In their first season competing together, the representatives of Uxbridge SC and Scarboro FSC won silver at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in the United States and placed sixth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Spain. They are coached by Carol Lane, Jon Lane, and Juris Razgulajevs at Ice Dance Elite at Scarboro FSC.

Marjorie Lajoie, 15, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 16, Greenfield Park, Que., will also represent Canada in ice dance. This season they placed seventh at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Spain, and won the silver medal at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in the junior category. Most recently, they placed fourth at the Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway, and won the bronze medal as part of the mixed National Olympic Committee (NOC) team event. Lajoie and Lagha train in Montreal, Que., with coaches Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer and Pascal Denis.

Melinda Meng, 17, Montreal, Que., and Andrew Meng, 19, Montreal, Que., are the third Canadian entry in ice dance. Earlier this season, they placed fifth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Latvia and fourth in Poland. Most recently, the representatives of CPA Laval won bronze in the junior category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. The Mengs are coached by Shawn Winter in Pierrefonds, Que.

Terra Findlay of Echo Bay, Ont., and Paige Lawrence of Kennedy, Sask., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Ed Pilat of Winnipeg, Man., and physiotherapist Mike McMurray of Oak Bluff, Man., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Karen Howard of Regina, Sask., and Pam Chislett of Grand Prairie, Alta., are the Canadian officials at the event.

Skate Canada High Performance Director Mike Slipchuk will also be traveling with the team.

For results and full entries please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT THE 2016 ISU WORLD JUNIOR FIGURE SKATING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Mens Nicolas Nadeau 18 Boisbriand, Que. CPA Boisbriand Yvan Desjardins
Ladies Sarah Tamura 15 Burnaby, B.C. Burnaby FSC Joanne McLeod / Jill-Marie Harvey / Neil Wilson
Pair Hope McLean / Trennt Michaud 16/19 Newbury, Ont. / Strathroy, Ont. Mount Brydges SC / Prince Edward SC Alison Purkiss
Pair Bryn Hoffman / Bryce Chudak 18/20 Calgary, Alta. / Calgary, Alta. Calalta FSC / Calalta FSC Anabelle Langlois / Cody Hay
Pair Justine Brasseur / Mathieu Ostiguy 14/19 Brossard, Que. / Granby, Que. CPA Brossard / CPA Saint-Césaire Bruno Marcotte
Ice Dance Mackenzie Bent / Dmitre Razgulajevs 18/19 Uxbridge, Ont. / Ajax, Ont. Uxbridge SC / Scarboro FSC Carol Lane / Jon Lane / Juris Razgulajevs
Ice Dance Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha 15/16 Boucherville, Que. / Greenfield Park, Que. CPA Boucherville / CPA St-Lambert Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon / Romain Haguenauer / Pascal Denis
Ice Dance Melinda Meng / Andrew Meng 17/19 Montreal, Que. / Montreal, Que. CPA Laval / CPA Laval Shawn Winter

Bent and Razgulajevs crowned junior ice dance champions

Junior Dance Podium National Skating Championships 2016

Junior – Dance

Junior Pair Podium national skating championships 2016

Junior – Pair

HALIFAX – First year partners MacKenzie Bent of Uxbridge, Ont., and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Toronto won the gold medal in ice dancing as junior competition concluded Thursday at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

Bent and Uxbridge totalled 145.31 points for the victory with Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha of Montreal second at 141.23 and Melinda Meng and Andrew Meng of Montreal third at 139.12. It was a second Canadian junior title for Bent who won with former partner Garrett MacKeen in 2014.

‘’We paired up in June and haven`t had a break so it’s been pretty crazy,’’ said Bent, a silver medallist with her new partner this past fall at an ISU Junior Grand Prix event. ‘’But it seems to have paid off. We are gaining confidence with each of our performances.’’

In pairs, Hope McLean and Trennt Michaud of London, Ont., were the winners at 154.45 with Bryn Hoffman and Bryce Chudak of Calgary second at 139.15 and Allison Eby and Brett Varley of Cambridge, Ont., third at 136.01.

‘’It’s just great to have that skate under our belts heading into the world juniors,’’ said McLean. ‘’We know what we are capable of and we just have to keep pushing.’’

Junior - Men

Junior – Men

Junior - Women

Junior – Women

In men’s competition, Joseph Phan of Gatineau, Que., took the junior crown scoring 189.30 while Edrian Paul Celestino of Montreal was second at 179.92 and Christian Reekie of Orleans, Ont., third at 164.65.

‘’I’m happy to win the title,’’ said Phan. ‘’I was more stressed during my long program because I didn’t have a very good warm-up. I was really struggling with my triple Lutz so it was a big moment when I landed it successfully in the competition.’’

Sarah Tamura of Burnaby, B.C., Alicia Pineault of Montreal and Megan Yim of Vancouver were 1-2-3 in women’s competition.

‘’I feel really good about my performances and the hard work is paying off,’’ said Tamura. ‘’I executed the two programs the way I was practicing them at home.’’

The senior competition concludes the nationals on Friday and Saturday.

More information: 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships

The future looks bright for Canadian novice champion Sarah Tamura

OTTAWA: Sarah Tamura and Megan Yim are Canada’s answer to the flood of triple-jumping, overachieving Russian woman who are dominating international competition.

Tamura is a 12-year-old who on Tuesday, just became Canadian novice champion, while her training mate, Yim, also 12, finished third.

Caught in between the two tiny dynamos is Kim Decelles, 15, of Baie-Comeau, Quebec who won the silver medal with 105.72 points. Tamura topped the list with 108.29 points while Yim was on Decelles’ heels with 105.31 points.

Tamura and Yim train together, push each other and are friends in the rink of Joanne MacLeod, coach of Olympic team member Kevin Reynolds. “This is a dedicated project I’ve had for five years,” MacLeod said. “I am trying to see if I can push the elements a little for young skaters.”

Both Tamura and Yim can do all of the triples, including Lutz and flip although they competed on Tuesday with the other three, Salchow, toe loop and loop. “When I looked at all those Russian girls, I got a little jealous,” MacLeod said. “I think we want to see that anything is possible.”

Both girls auditioned in front of MacLeod years ago for this special project. Yim is gifted musically, too, and has taken ballet. Not surprisingly, she skated to “Giselle” on Tuesday, wearing a white tutu and a white crown on her head.

“She has the “it” factor,” MacLeod said. “She’s quite an intelligent girl.” Besides, MacLeod says she has a wonderful relationship with the two: that’s important for development, she said.

“I do it because it’s really fun for me to skate and feel the speed, and feel the freedom and jump high and have fun,” Yim said.  On Tuesday, she got a rush from skating in the big rink of the Canadian Tire Centre.

Tamura, on the other hand, had a father who liked to race with her around the rink. With this, she developed a long stride. “I love her glide,” MacLeod said. “She’s got these beautiful knees.”  She landed a triple Lutz for the first time last October.

Tamura said she wants to go to Junior Grand Prix events. And both have lofty goals. Kim wants to stand atop the Olympic podium. Tamura wants to be a world champion. Together, they will keep MacLeod busy for some time.

Earlier in the day, Valerie Taillefer and Jason Chan won the novice dance title, he looking elegant in his long navy tails, she his tiny foil.

Taillefer and Chan came from second place after the short dance to overtake Hannah Whitley and Elliott Graham, who had eyed a finish in the top 10, then found themselves tasting gold.

Taillefer, 14 of Montreal and Chan, 17, of Saint-Laurent, Que., won the free skate with 63.53 points to win the overall title with 90.54, more than three points ahead of Whitley and Graham.

In third were Megan Koenig-Croft and Jake Richardson with 80.54, exactly 10 points behind the gold medalists.

The new champs are in their third season together and are at the point where they want to distinguish themselves from others. They leave the ideas to coaches Elise Hamel and Shawn Winters and choreographer Shae Zukowsky. “We’ve been working on key points a lot during the year,” Taillefer said “We value that a lot.”

The twosome is fast friend, with Taillefer speaking French to Chan and Chan speaking English to his little partner. Both are bilingual. Their goals are to make a smooth transition to the junior ranks next year and perhaps land some Junior Grand Prix events.

They seemed an unlikely match at first: Taillefer didn’t like free skating. She always preferred dance and had a previous partner. Chan was a singles skater who had never considered ice dancing until he was coaxed into a tryout with Taillefer. Now he’s a national medalist.

Beverley Smith

Central Ontario dance duo continue smooth transition to novice ranks; Sarah Tamura leads after novice women’s short program

Hannah Whitley and Elliot Graham have fast feet.

And so far, at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, tiny Whitley, 13, of Barrie, Ont., and Graham, 15, of Angus, Ont., are bounding up the ice dancing ladder at the speed of light. After the Cha Cha Congelado and the Argentine Tango pattern dances, they are in first place with 27.18 points, just a hair ahead of Quebec team Valerie Taillefer and Jason Chan with 27.01 points.

Megan Koenig-Croft and Jake Richardson are in third place at 25.45.

Only last year, Whitley and Graham were pre-novice champions. With the big step up to novice, they figured they might finish in the middle of the pack. They’re exceeding their expectations.

“They skated with confidence,” said coach/choreographer Kelly Johnson. “They’re really capable of good transitions. They’ve got fast feet.”

They both started out in small clubs, she from Creemore, Ont., he from nearby Stayner, Ont., – from the same club as the current MiniBlades champions from Battle of the Blades. They teamed up when she was only seven, he nine. Already they have been together six years.

Both were singles skaters, too, but Whitley dropped singles skating last year, Graham two years ago to focus on dance at the Mariposa Club in Barrie, Ont. “I don’t like doing jumps,” Whitley said decisively. Graham likes the company on ice, someone to share the experience, to talk to.

They have come to this event with an extra skip in their step: they train with Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam, who just earned a spot on the Canadian Olympic team last weekend. They work with Islam’s father, David, head of the dance program at Mariposa.

“At first, it (dance) was just for fun,” Whitley said. “We grew into it and started doing better.”

On Monday, they preferred the tango to the Cha Cha, in which they missed a step. “It’s really hard to stay on time [in the Cha Cha],” Whitley said. “It’s a dance that people don’t normally do,” Graham added.

Later, the mittened crowd was treated to a tour-de-force performance by tiny Sarah Tamura – all of 12 years old – in the novice women’s short program. Tamura is leading with 42.48 points after she thrilled the spectators with her hand movements, her triple Salchow-double toe loop combination and a triple loop. Her layback spin was a thing of beauty. She showed extreme flexibility, laying over to the side first, then to the back, her head down her back like a pearl – and then it all changed into a beautiful Biellmann. The girl in the bright lime costume was coached by Joanne McLeod.

Kim Decelles of Baie Comeau, Que., was second with 41.38 points after doing a triple toe loop-double toe loop combination and a triple Salchow, earning a level four for a combination spin.

Megan Yim, another Joanne MacLeod trainee, was impressive in the warmup, but fell on a triple Salchow and put a step between the triple toe loop-double toe loop and is in third place with 39.72 points.

Beverley Smith