Figure Skating Elite Descend on Halifax for 2024 Skate Canada International

OTTAWA, ON (October 21, 2024) – The figure skating elite is set to compete at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia from October 25-27, 2024, for the 50th edition of Skate Canada International (SCI). Canadian fans will be able to cheer for World Championship medallists and 16 Canadian athletes looking to make their mark on the international stage.

Canadian superstars Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps will be kicking off the event on Friday evening. The reigning World Champions and 2023 SCI gold medallists are fresh off a silver medal performance at the Nebelhorn Trophy and will be joined by fellow Canadians Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Éthier who finished fourth at the John Nicks Pairs Competition in September.

Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier will be on the hunt for their fifth consecutive victory in the ice dance competition. The World Championship silver medallists are undefeated at this competition since 2019 and will be making their 2024-2025 season debut in Halifax. Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha won two silver medals on the Grand Prix circuit last year and will be looking to improve on their bronze-medal performance at the 2022 SCI. Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer are also on form this year, capturing a bronze medal at the Denis Ten Memorial Challenge a few weeks ago.

All eyes will be on Ilia Malinin of the USA in the men’s competition. The reigning World Champion is fresh off a first-place finish at Skate America and will no doubt thrill the crowds with his stunning jumping ability. Canadian athletes Stephen Gogolev, Aleksa Rakic, and Roman Sadovsky will be in the mix as well with Rakic and Sadovsky already having competition experience under the belts this season, and Gogolev making his season debut.

Three-time, and current World Champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan will look to defend her women’s title from last year’s SCI, with Canadians Sara-Maude Dupuis, Kaiya Ruiter, and Madeline Schizas also looking to fight for the podium. Two-time Canadian Champion Schizas finished just off the podium in fourth last year.

Competition starts on Friday, October 25th with the pairs and women’s competitors performing their short programs. Saturday, October 26th will feature the rhythm dance and men’s short program, followed by the free programs for the pairs and women’s competition. The competition will wrap-up on Sunday, October 27th with the final performances in ice dance and the men’s competition in lieu of the traditional exhibition gala.

For more information about the event or to view the livestream, click here. To purchase tickets, visit ticketmaster.ca.

Team Canada
Name | Age | Hometown | Coach

Men
Stephen Gogolev |19 | Toronto, ON | Lee Barkell
Aleksa Rakic | 20 | Burnaby, BC | Joanne McLeod
Roman Sadovsky | 25 | Vaughan, ON | Tracey Wainman

Women
Sara-Maude Dupuis | 19 | Montreal, QC | Stéphane Yvars
Kaiya Ruiter | 18 | Calgary, AB | Tracy Wilson
Madeline Schizas | 21 | Oakville, ON | Nancy Lemaire

Pairs
Kelly Ann Laurin | 19 | St-Jérôme, QC & Loucas Éthier | 24 | St-Alphonse, QC | Stéphanie Valois
Deanna Stellato-Dudek | 41 | Chicago, USA & Maxime Deschamps | 32 | Vaudreuil-Dorion, QC | Josée Picard

Ice Dance
Alicia Fabbri | 21 | Terrebonne, QC & Paul Ayer | 26 | Brossard, QC | Marie-France Dubreuil
Piper Gilles | 32 | Toronto, ON & Paul Poirier | 32 | Unionville, ON | Juris Razgulajevs
Marjorie Lajoie | 23 | Boucherville, QC & Zachary Lagha | 24 | Saint-Hubert, QC | Marie-France Dubreuil

Team Leaders – Manon Perron & Cynthia Ullmark
Medical Team – Tatiana Jevremovic & Agnes Makowski
Officials – Leanna Caron, Lynne Dey, Karen Howard & Deborah Islam

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