National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

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Skate Canada observes the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. We join those who mourn, listen, and learn with Indigenous communities.

Whether you dedicate hours educating yourself or simply encouraging your network to join in on Orange Shirt Day, taking some form of action is better than no action at all.  Here’s what you can do:

Let us remember that this is not the end but the start towards healing.

About National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Each year, September 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The day honours the children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. Public commemoration of the tragic and painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process. This federal statutory holiday was created through legislative amendments made by Parliament.

Six Canadian Skaters to Represent Canada at the Finlandia Trophy

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OTTAWA, ON (September 29, 2022) – After successful stops in the United States and Germany, Team Canada is sending a team of six skaters to the 2022 Finlandia Trophy as part of the 2022-23 Figure Skating Challenger Series. The event is set to take place from October 5-9, 2022 in Espoo, Finland. 

Highlighting the women’s category will be 18-year-old Lia Pereira, who returns to international competition after opening the season with a gold medal at the 2022 Cranberry Cup International and finishing 6th at the Courcheval Junior Grand Prix.  

National Team member Conrad Orzel will be the sole man representing Canada at the event. Orzel showcased his talent last season, finishing among the top-10 at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and claiming gold at the 2021 Autumn Classic International. 

Making their senior international debut are promising youngsters Brooke McIntosh and Benjamin Mimar who will be competing in the pair discipline. The duo had a breakout season last year, stepping on the podium at every event they competed in, including winning the top honors at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and finishing third at the 2022 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships®.    

Olympic ice dancers Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen will bring experience to the Canadian contingent, with the duo finishing 10th at the Beijing Olympic Games earlier this year. The pair also claimed a silver medal at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and a bronze medal at 2021 Skate America. 

Team Canada 

Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location 

Women
Lia Pereira | 18 | Milton, Ont. | Nancy Lemaire & Derek Schmidt | Milton, Ont.  

Men
Conrad Orzel | 22 | Toronto, Ont. | Ravi Walia | Edmonton Alta. 

Pair
Brooke McIntosh | 17 | Toronto, Ont. & Benjamin Mimar | 21 | Terrebonne, Que. | Andrew Evans & Alexander Sheldrick | Toronto Ont. 

Ice dance
Laurence Fournier Beaudry | 30 | Montreal, Que. & Nikolaj Soerensen | 33 | Montreal, Que. | Marie-France Dubreuil & Patrice Lauzon | Montreal, Que.  

Team Leaders – Mike Slipchuk & Shae Zukiwsky 
Medical Team – Josiane Roberge
Officials – Andrew Bosco & Patty Klein  

For more information and results click here 

Canada Sends Ten Skaters to Poland for the Fifth Junior Grand Prix

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OTTAWA, ON (September 26, 2022) – Canada’s next generation of skaters are scheduled to compete in Gdansk, Poland from September 28 to October 1, 2022, which marks the fifth stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. The fourth stop of the series, initially set to take place from September 21-24, was cancelled by the ISU due to safety concerns. A total of ten athletes will be competing at the event, including one woman, three men and three ice dance teams. 

First-year junior and 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships silver medallist Kara Yun will be leading the line for Canada in women. Despite being a newcomer to the junior stage, Yun has previously competed internationally, finishing fourth at last year’s Egna Spring Trophy.  

The men’s team will be led by Alec Guinzbourg, who has competed at several ISU Junior Grand Prix events since joining the Canadian NextGen team and finished just shy of the podium in 2019. Rio Morita will be making his Grand Prix debut in Poland after placing fourth at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships last season, while 2022 Egna Spring Trophy bronze medallist David Bondar will be rounding out the team. 

The experienced ice dance duo of Nadiia Bashynska and Peter Beaumont will be competing for the first time this season after a breakthrough 2021-2022 season that saw them win silver at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and bronze at the 2022 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships. They will be joined by veterans Hailey Yu and Brendan Giang, as well as 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships novice silver medallists Dana Sabatini-Speciale and Nicholas Buelow.  

The competition starts on Thursday, September 29 with the women’s, pair and men’s short programs. On Friday, pair and women will complete their free program, while ice dance teams will perform their rhythm dance. The event concludes on Saturday with the men’s free program and free dance. The full schedule and results can be found here. 

Team Canada 

Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location 

Men 
Alec Guinzbourg | 17 | Aurora, Ont. | Lee Barkell & Jeffrey Buttle | Toronto, Ont. 
Rio Morita | 17 | Thornhill, Ont. | Tracey Wilson & Ernest Pryhitka | Toronto, Ont. 
David Bondar | 15 | Richmond Hill, Ont. | Tracey Wainman & Gregor Filipowski | Richmond Hill, Ont. 

Women 
Kara Yun | 13 | Burnaby, B.C. | Joanne McLeod & Neil Wilson | Burnaby, B.C.  

Ice Dance 
Nadiia Bashynska | 18 | Ajax, Ont. & Peter Beaumont | 21 | Ajax, Ont. | Carol Lane & Juris Razgulajevs | Scarborough, Ont.  
Hailey Yu | 17 | Burnaby, B.C. & Brendan Giang | 19 | Burnaby, B.C. | Aaron Lowe & Megan Wing| Burnaby, B.C.
Dana Sabatini-Speciale | 16 | Springwater, Ont. & Nicholas Buelow | 15 | Barrie, Ont. | Mitchell Islam, David Islam & Kelly Johnson | Barrie, Ont.   

Team Leaders – Laura Baker & Shae Zukiwsky
Medical Team – Susan Massitti & Ghislaine Robert
Officials – Karen Howard & Erica Topolski  

For more information, please visit www.isu.org. 

67 Titles Awarded at ISU International Adult Figure Skating Competition

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OTTAWA, ON (September 26, 2022) – Over 180 skaters from ten different nations were represented over the weekend at the ISU International Adult Figure Skating Competition, which took place from September 21-24 at Ottawa’s Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex. The event hosted a wide range of categories, with athletes aged in their thirties all the way to their eighties competing.   

New Brunswick’s Pat Noddin, now 86 years of age, competed in the Bronze Women’s Artistic class V and left the crowd in tears as she competed on Thursday night. The event was a great showcase of the adult skating community and served as a great reminder that skating is a lifelong sport.  

1988 Olympic silver medalist Elizabeth Manley and 1960 Olympic bronze medalist Donald Jackson were on site as event ambassadors, with Manley also coaching certain athletes.  

“What I’m loving most about this event is that the athletes all love and support each other,” said Manley. “Normally at competitions you stay away from competitors, but these skaters are cheering each other on; it doesn’t matter if you’re from Canada, the United States or Mexico, everybody loves everybody.”  

Skate Canada will be hosting a Community of Practice webinar on October 11 around the topic of Adult Skating and Skating Pathways for all ages. To register, click here.  

The next ISU International Adult Competition will be held in Oberstdorf, Germany from May 15-20, 2023. For more information, visit the ISU website. 

Canadian Skaters Win Four Medals at 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy

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OBERTSDORF, Germany (September 24, 2022) – Canada’s Keegan Messing launched his 2022-23 season with a gold medal in men’s competition at the Nebelhorn Trophy, a stop on the ISU Challenger Series circuit, which concluded on Saturday. Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., added another victory as Canadians marched four times to the podium. Canada also won the Fritz Geiger Memorial Trophy as the top country at the competition ahead of Ukraine and Germany.

Messing was third after the short program but roared to top spot on Friday with the best free skate to finish with 245.74 points. Sihyeong Lee of South Korea took the silver with 235.71 and Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., won the bronze with 222.74.

‘’Tensions were high this week,’’ said Messing, a two-time Olympian. ‘’It was a constant battle to overcome the nerves. In the short program, the nerves won. In the free skate I was able to conquer them and put out a solid performance.’’

Sadovksy, 23, was first after the short program.

‘’I struggled with the short last season, so it was nice to start off with a really strong short,’’ he said. ‘’The long wasn’t quite what I wanted but I think I just need a little more mileage and, hopefully as the season progresses, it will improve.’’

In pairs, Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps, moved from second after the short program to win the gold with the top free skate totalling 192.74. Alisa Efimova and Ruben Blommaert of Germany were second at 186.17 and their compatriots Annika Hocke and Robert Kunkel third at 184.47.

‘’It wasn’t perfect, but we stayed together,’’ said Stellato-Dudek. ‘’We came here really prepared and we think we put out two really solid performances to start the season.’’

The fourth medal for Canada was won on Saturday by Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver, B.C., with the bronze in ice dancing. They totalled 73.23 points with Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Great Britain earning the gold with 85.80 and Allison Reed and Saulius Ambrulevicius of Lithuania the silver at 78.98.

‘’It’s nice to be back on the podium and it’s where I think we should be,’’ said Soucisse. ‘’We skated with confidence and attacked.’’

Molly Lanaghan and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Scarborough, Ont., were fourth. World championship silver medallist Loena Hendrickx of Germany won the women’s event with Canadian champion Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., placing fifth.

The Challenger Series provides opportunities for senior skaters to compete at an international level and earn world ranking points. Full results can be found here.

Two Canadian Skaters to Compete at Ondrej Nepela Memorial 2022

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OTTAWA, ON (September 23, 2022) – The senior figure skating season is well underway after a successful stop in the United States that saw Team Canada finish just shy of the podium. Two Canadian athletes, Ice Dance team Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha, now travel to Bratislava, Slovakia for the Ondrej Nepela Memorial 2022, taking place from September 29 – October 1, 2022.    

Olympians Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha will lead the Canadian contingent in ice dance. Lajoie and Lagha had a breakthrough 2021-2022 season, winning bronze at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and placing 13th at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games.  

Friday, September 30th will see the men complete their short program and ice dancers perform their rhythm dance. The competition concludes on the following day with the free dance and the men’s free program. For more information regarding the event, click here.     

Team Canada 

Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location 

Ice Dance 
Marjorie Lajoie | 21 | Boucherville, Que. & Zachary Lagha | 23 | Saint-Hubert, Que. | Romain Haguenauer | Montreal, Que.  

Team Leader – Mike Slipchuk
Medical Team – Karen Seymour
Officials – Laura Carr & Leslie Keen 

ISU International Adult Competition Kicks Off in Ottawa This Week

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OTTAWA, ON (September 19, 2022) – Over 175 adult skaters from around the globe will be converging in the nation’s capital this week for the ISU International Adult Competition, which will take place from September 21-24, 2022 at the Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex.

1988 Olympic silver medalist Elizabeth Manley and 1960 Olympic bronze medalist Donald Jackson will be attending the event as ambassadors, while newly elected ISU Vice President Benoit Lavoie will also be on site.

This competition is targeted at adult skaters who have reached the age of 28 and synchronized skaters who are between 25 and 78 years of age. The 2022 International Adult Figure Skating Competition will include the following categories:

– Women and Men Free Skating
– Women and Men Artistic Free Skating
– Pair Free Skating
– Pair Artistic Free Skating
– Ice Dance – Pattern Dance
– Ice Dance – Rhythm Dance
– Ice Dance – Free Dance
– Synchronized Skating

For more information including the schedule, please click here. All events will be live streamed and can be accessed through the event page or Dailymotion.com.

Skate Canada Statement on Cancellation of Yerevan Junior Grand Prix

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OTTAWA, ON (September 16, 2022) – The International Skating Union (ISU) has announced that the fourth stop on the Junior Grand Prix circuit, scheduled to take place in Yerevan, Armenia from September 21-24, 2022, has been cancelled due to safety concerns.

Skate Canada was set to send a team of six athletes, comprised of two men and two ice dance teams, to the event and will be working with the ISU to find solutions for the athletes impacted.

For more information, please read the full ISU statement here.

Nine Canadians to Compete at the 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy

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OTTAWA, ON (September 16, 2022) – After kicking off the season at the U.S. Figure Skating Classic earlier this month, nine members of the Canadian National Team will make their way to Oberstdorf, Germany to compete at the 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy from September 21-24, 2022. Team Canada will count one entry in women and pair, as well as two entries in both men and ice dance.

19-year-old Madeline Schizas will be the sole Canadian to compete in the women’s event. Schizas burst onto the international scene last season where she captured the hearts of Canadians with her outstanding performances in both the team and single women events at the 2022 Winter Olympics.

The men’s competition will be highlighted by veteran and current Canadian champion Keegan Messing, who also captured gold at the 53rd Golden Spin of Zagreb. He will be joined by Olympic teammate Roman Sadovsky, who secured a silver medal at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and placed fourth at the 2021 Rostelecom Cup.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek & Maxime Deschamps will be competing for Team Canada in the pair event. They had a fantastic showing last season finishing third at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and fourth at the 2022 ISU Four Continents Championships®.

The ice dance team will be led by Carolane Soucisse & Shane Firus. The duo had a consistent 2021-2022 season, placing fourth at both the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and 2022 ISU Four Continents Championships®. In their first season as members of the National Team, Molly Lanaghan & Dmitre Razgulajevs will be looking to gain valuable international experience after the duo was eighth at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

Competition starts on Wednesday, September 22, with the men, women and pair short program. The following day, men and pair disciplines complete their free programs, while ice dancers will tackle the rhythm dance. The event will conclude with the free dance and women free program on Saturday. For more information regarding the event, click here.

Team Canada 
Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location

Women
Madeline Schizas | 19 | Oakville, Ont. | Nancy Lemaire & Derek Schmidt | Milton, Ont.

Men
Keegan Messing | 30 | Girdwood, USA | Ralph Burghart | Anchorage, USA
Roman Sadovsky | 23 | Vaughan, Ont. | Tracey Wainman & Grzegorz Filipowski | Richmond Hill, Ont.

Pair
Deanna Stellato-Dudek | 39 | Chicago, USA & Maxime Deschamps | 30 | Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que. | Josée Picard | Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.

Ice Dance
Carolane Soucisse | 27 | Châteauguay, Que. & Shane Firus | 28 | North Vancouver, BC | Carol Lane & Juris Razgulajevs | Toronto, Ont.
Molly Lanaghan | 23 | Doncaster, GB & Dmitre Razgulajevs | 25 | Ajax, Ont. | Carol Lane & Juris Razgulajevs | Scarborough, Ont.

Team Leader – Mike Slipchuk
Medical Team – Mireille Landry
Officials – Debbie Islam & Jacqueline Wickett-Warren

For more information, please visit www.isu.org.

Canadians Lauriault and Le Gac edged for bronze at U.S. International Figure Skating Classic

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LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (September 16, 2022) – Canadian ice dancers Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac came within less than four points of the podium to finish fourth on Thursday evening at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic, the opening stop on the ISU Challenger Series.

Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Great Britain won the gold medal with 190.80 points. Eva Pate and Logan Bye of the U.S. took the silver with 179.63, edging compatriots Lorraine McNamara and Anton Spiridonov who were third at 179.03. Lauriault and Le Gac ranked third for the free dance but it wasn’t enough to catch the bronze medallists, the Canadians finishing with 175.67 points.

“These are two programs we love to perform,’’ said Lauriault, 25, from Ste-Anne-des-Plaines, Que. “It was fun to perform it in public and we’re excited about the season.’’

The couple were married in 2015 and previously represented France internationally, where they placed 17th at the 2018 Winter Olympics. They announced in June 2021 they would skate for Canada. This past winter they were sixth at the ISU Four Continents.

Haley Sales of Kelowna, B.C., and Nikolas Wamsteeker of Langley, B.C., followed in fifth at 170.11.

“The fun part at this time of the season is the learning,’’ said Wamsteeker. “It’s fun to go out there and try different things and see what we can improve or go back to the drawing board with.’’

The pairs event was won by Italians Rebecca Ghilardi and Filippo Ambrosini ahead of three American couples. Kelly Ann-Laurin of St-Jérome, Que., and Loucas Ethier of Deux-Montagnes, Que., were fifth and Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Levis, Que., took seventh place.

In men’s competition, world junior champion Ilia Malinin of the U.S. won an historic gold with Kevin Aymoz of France coming in second and Camden Pulkinen of the U.S. third. Stephen Gogolev of Toronto was the top Canadian in sixth while Wesley Chiu of Richmond, B.C. was 10th. Chiu and Gogolev were fourth and fifth at the world junior championships last season.

There were no Canadian entries in women’s competition.

The Challenger Series provides opportunities for senior skaters to compete at an international level and earn world ranking points. Click here for full results.

Six NextGen Skaters Head to Armenia for the Fourth Stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix Circuit 

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OTTAWA, ON (September 15, 2022) – Following a successful trip to Riga, Latvia that saw Team Canada claim three medals in pair and ice dance, the next generation of Canadian skaters now head to Yerevan, Armenia for the fourth stop on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. Canada will be represented by two men and two ice dance teams at the event taking place from September 21-24, 2022.

No stranger to international competition, David Bondar will be skating in the men’s event after winning bronze at the Egna Spring Trophy last year. He will be joined by current Canadian champion Anthony Paradis, who bounced back from fourth to first in order to claim gold at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

The ice dance event will see a mix of more experienced skaters and newcomers, with Nadiia Bashynska and Peter Beaumont leading the team. The duo had a breakthrough 2021-2022 season as they won silver at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and a bronze medal at the 2022 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships®. Nicholas Buelow and Dana Sabatini-Speciale will be competing at their first international competition after claiming silver at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

Competition starts on Thursday, September 22, with ice dance rhythm dance. Men short program and ice dance free dance will take place on September 23, followed by the men free program on September 24. The full schedule and results are available here.

Team Canada 
Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location

Men 
David Bondar | 15 | Richmond Hill, Ont. | Tracey Wainman & Gregor Filipowski | Richmond Hill, Ont.
Anthony Paradis | 15 | Boisbriand, Que. | Yvan Desjardins & Ann-Julie Dion | Rosemère, Que.

Ice Dance 
Nadiia Bashynska | 18 | Ajax, Ont. & Peter Beaumont | 21 | Ajax, Ont. | Carol Lane & Juris Razgulajevs | Scarborough, Ont.
Dana Sabatini-Speciale | 16 | Springwater, Ont. & Nicholas Buelow | 15 | Barrie, Ont. | Mitchell Islam & Kelly Johnson | Barrie, Ont.

Team Leaders – Andre Bourgeois & Marie Bowness
Medical Team – Delphine Boury-Simoes & Paige Larson
Officials – Ron Conacher & Susan Morriss

For more information, please visit www.isu.org.

Single Session Tickets Now Available for 2022 Skate Canada International 

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Single session tickets for the 2022 Skate Canada International are now on sale! Single session tickets begin at $25 (plus applicable fees) and can be purchased at ticketmaster.ca. Ticket prices range per session, with fans having the opportunity to attend Thursday practices for as little as $10 (plus applicable fees).

The 2022 Skate Canada International will take place at Paramount Fine Foods Centre, in Mississauga, Ontario, from October 28-30, 2022.

Join us in Mississauga to cheer on Team Canada as they compete against the world’s best skaters! For more information about tickets click here.