Canadian ice dancers fourth at ISU Junior Grand Prix

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YOKOHAMA, Japan – Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Greenfield Park, Que., took fourth spot in ice dancing on Sunday to conclude the third stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

Rachel Parsons and Michael Parsons of the U.S. took the gold with 160.42 points, Anastasia Shpilevaya and Grigory Smirnov of Russia were second at 151.50 and Angelique Abachkina and Louis Thauron of France third at 148.76

Lajoie and Lagha, world junior team members last season, followed at 137.14, their best-ever international score.

“Both programs went very well,’’ said Lajoie. “We are happy with our result and fell we are on the right track.’’

Olivia Han of Waterloo, Ont., and Grayson Lochhead of Sweaburg, Ont., were eighth.

Japan swept the podium in women’s competition: Kaori Sakamoto took the gold, Marin Honda the silver and Mako Yamashita the bronze.

Fourteen-year-old Emily Bausback of Vancouver produced the eighth best free skate to climb from 13th after the short program to 10th overall in her Junior Grand Prix debut.

On Saturday, Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., landed his first career quadruple jump on international ice and was fifth. Eric Liu of Edmonton was 14th.

The fourth stop on the circuit is this upcoming weekend in Saranks, Russia.

Full results: ISU JGP Yokohama 2016

Roman Sadovsky lands quad jump, places fifth at ISU Junior Grand Prix

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YOKOHAMA, Japan – Roman Sadovksy of Vaughan, Ont., landed a quadruple jump for the first time on international ice and took fifth spot on Saturday in men’s competition at the third stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit in figure skating.

Juan Hwan Cha of South Korea was the winner with 239.47 points. Vincent Zhou of the U.S. was second at 226.39 and Alexey Erokhov of Russia third at 216.91. Sadovsky, fourth after the short program, finished with 211.56.

‘’I’m pretty happy with my free skate,’’ said Sadovsky, a double medallist last year on the circuit. ‘’Getting that quad jump was definitely a step up for me. For me to move up in the standings I need to land the triple Axel and I also hope to another one in the program as well. Little disappointed I missed it here today.’’

In ice dancing, Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of Greenfield Park, Que., are in fourth place after the short program just under four points from the podium position. Olivia Han of Waterloo, Ont., and Grayson Lochhead of Sweaburg, Ont., are eighth.

In Friday’s women’s short program 14-year-old Emily Bausback of Vancouver stands 13th in her junior Grand Prix debut.

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

Full results: ISU JGP Yokohama 2016

Skate Canada Fund donors recognized at “Breaking The Ice” evening

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TORONTO, Ont. – It was an evening to say “thank you.”

On Thursday, September 1st, 2016, Skate Canada Fund donors and guests attended Breaking The Ice, an exclusive event with Canada’s national team kicking off the 2016-17 skating season. Held in conjunction with the Skate Canada High Performance Camp, the event was an opportunity for select donors to meet and mingle with the nation’s premier skaters.

“ ‘Breaking The Ice’ was a tremendous success, with our generous donors getting the unique opportunity to interact with members of our national team,” said Dan Thompson, Skate Canada’s Chief Executive Officer.

“The evening was about recognizing our donors for their contribution to the Skate Canada Fund, and our way of thanking each and every one of them. Every donation represents a commitment to the future of skating in Canada, and Skate Canada is extremely appreciative of their generosity.”

The night kicked off with a special reception where donors and guests met national team members, posed for photos and discussed the upcoming season.

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The evening continued with “As the Blade Turns”, an entertaining talk show where national team athletes interacted with skating commentator and journalist P.J. Kwong and Paul Dore, the son of former Canadian and international skating pioneer David Dore.

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The David Dore Mentorship Fund is one of the five pillars of the Skate Canada Fund. A silent auction was also held to benefit the Skate To Win Athlete Fund.

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Three impressive exhibits, honouring David Dore (Builder), Joe Geisler (Builder) and Liz Manley (Athlete), were also on display at the event.

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In its short tenure, donors have contributed more than $22,000 to the Skate Canada Fund.

Skate Canada would like to thank the Canadian Olympic Committee, along with the evening’s silent auction donors: Hillberg & Berk; Flat Rock Winery; Golf Ontario; PJ Kwong; Oliver and Bonacini Restaurants; Artistry; and Bloomex.

2016 Skate Canada International Single Event Tickets On Sale Friday

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TORONTO, ON: Single event tickets for the 2016 Skate Canada International will go on sale this Friday, September 9 at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The event will take place from October 27-30, 2016 in Mississauga, Ontario at Hershey Centre.

TICKETS
Single tickets range from $35-$60, plus applicable surcharges. A full list of event sessions with pricing and start times can be found on the event page. NEW! Family two-packs or four-packs, that include pre-paid food vouchers are now available! Please see the 2016 Skate Canada International event page for more details.

Tickets for the Thursday practices will be free to attend with tickets available at the Hershey Centre box office, first come first serve, up to capacity.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.ca, by phone at 1-855-985-5000 or in person at the Hershey Centre box office.

WHO TO WATCH
The line-up in Mississauga features Canadian favourites including two-time world pair champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford, three-time world champion Patrick Chan, and Canadian champion Alaine Chartrand. Fans will also get to witness the homecoming of Olympic ice dance champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir; they will make their return to competition after taking a two-year hiatus.

They will be joined by various current and former world champions including Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia, Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva of Russia, and Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy.

EVENT INFO
Skate Canada International is the second competition on the annual ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series. The other events take place in the United States (Skate America), Russia (Rostelecom Cup), France (Trophée Eric Bompard), China (Cup of China) and Japan (NHK Trophy). The top six from each discipline (men’s, ladies, pair and ice dance) qualify for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final to be held in Marseille, France from December 8-11, 2016.

Canadian skaters continue on ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit in Japan

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OTTAWA, ON: Canada will have five entries, for a total of seven skaters at the third ISU Junior Grand Prix of the season. The event takes place in Yokohama, Japan, from September 7-11, 2016. Canada will have one entry in ladies and two entries in men’s and ice dance. There will be no pair competition at the event.

Roman Sadovsky, 17, Vaughan, Ont., is one of two Canadian entries in men’s. Last season, Sadovsky won gold at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Slovakia, bronze at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Poland and placed sixth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix Final. He also placed fourth at the 2016 Youth Olympic Games and ninth at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in the senior category. Sadovsky is coached by Brian Orser and Lee Barkell.

Eric Liu, 15, Edmonton, Alta., will also represent Canada in men’s. Liu placed 15th at his first ISU Junior Grand Prix this season, in St. Gervais, France. Last season he placed seventh in the junior category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. He is coached by Ravi Walia at Ice Palace FSC.

Emily Bausback, 14, Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian entry in ladies. This will be her first ISU Junior Grand Prix assignment. Last season, she placed seventh in the novice category at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. She is coached by Joanne McLeod at the Champs International Skating Centre.

Marjorie Lajoie, 15, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 17, Greenfield Park, Que., are one of two Canadian entries in ice dance. Last season, the 2016 Canadian junior silver medallists placed seventh at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Spain, fourth at the 2016 Youth Olympic Games, and 13th at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. Lajoie and Lagha train in Montreal, Que., with coaches Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer and Pascal Denis.

Olivia Han, 14, Waterloo, Ont., and Grayson Lochhead, 16, Sweaburg, Ont., will also represent Canada in ice dance. The 2016 Canadian novice champions represent the Kitchener-Waterloo SC and Woodstock SC. Han and Lochhead are coached by Paul McIntosh.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director, will be the Canadian team leader. Physiotherapist Paige Larson of North Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Patty Klein of Mt. Royal, Que., and Susan Blatz of Burlington, Ont., are 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 #3 – Yokohama, Japan

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Mens Roman Sadovsky 17 Vaughan, Ont. Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club Brian Orser / Lee Barkell
Mens Eric Liu 15 Edmonton, Alta. Ice Palace FSC Ravi Walia
Ladies Emily Bausback 14 Vancouver, B.C. Champs International Skating Centre Joanne McLeod
Ice Dance Marjorie Lajoie / Zachary Lagha 15/17 Boucherville, Que. / Greenfield Park, Que. CPA Boucherville / CPA St-Lambert Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon / Romain Haguenauer / Pascal Denis
Ice Dance Olivia Han / Grayson Lochhead 14/16 Waterloo, Ont. / Sweaburg, Ont. Kitchener-Waterloo SC / Woodstock SC Paul McIntosh

Joseph Phan sixth in ISU Junior Grand Prix debut

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OSTRAVA, Czech Republic – Canadian junior champion Joseph Phan of Laval, Que., completed his first ISU Junior Grand Prix figure skating competition is sixth place in men’s singles on Saturday at the second stop on the circuit.

Dmitri Aliev of Russia won the gold medal with 232.83 points, Alexei Krasnozhon of the U.S. was second in 223.60 and Roman Savosin of Russia third in 207.64.

Phan, 15, was sixth both the short and long programs and totalled 189.78. Samuel Turcotte of Varennes, Que., also in his Junior Grand Prix debut, was 11th.

‘’I tried to do like at home in practice and I think I achieved that,’’ said Phan. ‘’it was quite an experience being here and I felt proud to be skating amongst this kind of talent. It makes you want to go back home and work harder.’’

Turcotte,16, is also headed home satisfied.

‘’I felt the experience here was very valuable,’’ said Turcotte. ‘’I was really pleased how we prepared for this competition. I felt very ready.’’

Russia won two more medals in women’s competition with Anastasiia Gubanova earning gold and Alisa Lozko the bronze. Rika Kihira of Japan was second.

Alicia Pineault of Varennes took 10th spot in her debut on the circuit.

The third stop on the Junior Grand Prix is this Friday and Saturday Yokohama, Japan.

Complete results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/jgpcze2016/index.htm.

Whitley and Graham top Canadians at ISU Junior Grand Prix

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OSTRAVA, Czech Republic – Hannah Whitley of Barrie, Ont., and Elliott Graham of Angus, Ont., placed fifth in ice dance on Friday for Canada’s best result so far at the second stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit.

Lorraine McNamara and Quinn Carpenter of the U.S. took the gold with Nicole Kuzmich and Alexandr Sinicyn of the Czech Republic second and Arina Ushakova and Maxim Nekrasov of Russia third.

Whitley and Graham posted their best international score with 126.27 points to also improve on their seventh place finish from last year’s ISU Junior Grand Prix stop.

“We skated two of our best programs and we’re impressed to make the top-five,’’ said Whitley, 16, who sat out part of last season due to a shin injury. “We learned a lot and going home we have a lot to work on for our next competition. Our speed is one area in particular that needs improvement. For me it’s great to be back on the ice pain free.’’

Danielle Wu and Nik Mirzakhani of Burnaby, B.C., were seventh in their international debut.

‘’It was quite a learning experience,’’ said Wu. ‘’The short dance was a bit disappointing but we came back with a strong free. We are learning to connect together as a team and we can see a lot of improvement.’’

In pairs, Anna Duskova and Martin Bidar of the Czech Republic were the winners. Amina Atakhanova and Ilia Spiridonov of Russia were second and Chelsea Liu and Brian John son of the U.S. third.

Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Levis, Que., were sixth with a career-best 137.89 points while Justine Brasseur of Brossard, Que., and Mathieu Ostiguy of Ste-Angèle-de-Monnoir, Que., were 11th.

‘’We are very proud of our performances here,’’ said Ferland. ‘’We achieved our goals and proud with how well we did in our first Grand Prix. We had never measured ourselves against skaters from other countries so we kept our goals focused on our own performances.’’

In the men’s short program on Friday, Canadian junior champion Joseph Phan of Laval, Que., is sixth and Samuel Turcotte of Varennes, Que., 10th.

In Thursday’s women’s short program Alicia Pineault of Varennes is 10th.

The men’s and women’s free skates are Saturday.

Complete results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season1617/jgpcze2016/index.htm.

Week in Skating Photos: Lacing up our Skates

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Summer is winding down but that’s not stopping us from putting our skates on.

Last week our Canadian skaters had a busy week with HP Camp, training and the Breaking the Ice event.

Tessa and Scott during their SD “Prince” at the #HPCamp16 ?? This program is looking awesome already! I love it! Here we go again with their ability to make me fall in love with them once again… One move, a step.. all has a meaning, all is where it has to be.. Their precision, their musicality, their effortless to use those skates in edges to create something beautiful on the ice… and here I am staring at that beauty ❤ This whole post may sound confusing but I can’t really process right know… I’m still in awe, speechless and I’m just sooo happy to get the chance to follow two more seasons of these two.. It’s still surreal they’re really back ❤ Ice Dance world missed Virtue/Moir. *I* missed them. Welcome back guys ❤ #tessavirtue #scottmoir #tessaandscott #virtuemoir #figureskating #icedance

A photo posted by iceprincess (@niceiceprincess) on

 

Here’s a team throwback from HP Camp 2014.

Throwback to #HPcamp14! Looking forward to #HPcamp16 this week with the best team! #TeamCanada ??

A photo posted by Alaine Chartrand (@alainechartrand) on

 

She’s ready for the ice and looking great. Thank goodness for skate guards!

 

These six know how to R&R #jealous 

 

DSquared2 take off-ice training to a whole other level! (video)

 

We’ve all been there! (video)

Buenos días!!!! ???

A video posted by ROEX (@roex_bcn) on

 

His hand might be cold, but we love the move.

 

When the green thumb in your family is also a skater.

 

This little bird can fly…on ice.

 

If you’re visiting the city of love this winter, don’t forget your skates.

 

Follow Skate Canada on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more pics all week long!