Meet the Senior Men

/by

NAM NGUYEN

Long before stealing the show at the 2011 Canadian junior championships in Victoria, B.C. – where a podium shot gained international attention–

Nam Nguyen

2011 Canadian junior championships

Nam Nguyen was on a fast-track to stardom. During the figure skating gala at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, men’s gold medallist Evan Lysacek introduced the then-11-year-old, who went on to dazzle the capacity crowd at Pacific Coliseum.

Nam Nguyen

2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver

Nam stormed on to the international stage in 2014, winning the world junior crown in Sofia, Bulgaria, before claiming his first senior national title at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in Kingston, Ont. last January.

In Japan, Nam and reigning Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu – who both train under Brian Orser at Toronto’s Cricket Club – are known as the “Cricket Brothers.”

FUN FACT: Nam claims to be able to put 21 marshmallows in his mouth at once.

1234

PATRICK CHAN

Guess who’s back? The three-time world champion (2011, 2012, 2013) returned to the competitive scene after a one year hiatus, winning gold at Skate Canada Challenge in October. In the summer of 2015, Patrick launched his own ice wine named, not surprisingly, “On Ice.” Looking to the future, the seven-time Canadian champion – who is fluent in English, French and Cantonese – plans to pursue a B.A. in Economics, Business and International Language.

FUN FACT: Chan is a car aficionado, and can often be found under the hood during the off-season.

1234

LIAM FIRUS

Liam, an exquisite skater with powerful, fluid strides, represented Canada at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games. Always a crowd favourite, Liam transitioned to figure skating after playing competitive hockey at a young age. Liam says he subscribes to GQ Magazine, and the dapper two-time Canadian senior men’s bronze medallist is always keeping up with fashion trends. Skating is in his family – Liam’s brother, Shane, is a national-level ice dancer.

FUN FACT: Liam says he is “obsessed with the stock market”, and looks forward to working in the investment world once his skating career is over.

1234

ROMAN SADOVSKY

Widely regarded as one of Canada’s brightest young skating prospects, Roman originally took up skating in the hopes of playing hockey, before coaches suggested he give figure skating a go. Not a bad decision. Sadovsky, who trains under two-time Canadian women’s champion Tracey Wainman, captured his second ISU Junior Grand Prix gold medal earlier this year in Bratislava, Slovakia. The youngster also earned his way on to the national team this season, thanks to a fourth-place showing at the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and looks poised to make his mark when he makes the jump to the senior level.

FUN FACT: Roman is terrified of bugs.

1234

KEEGAN MESSING

A first-year member of the national team, Keegan, who holds dual U.S and Canadian citizenship, competed for the U.S. previously. An energetic, crowd-pleasing showman and avid outdoorsman, Keegan can usually be found sporting his trademark boonie hat when away from the rink.

FUN FACT: Among his many talents, Keegan walks on stilts in local carnivals during the off-season.

1234

Meet the Senior Women

/by

GABRIELLE DALEMAN

At just 16 years of age, Gabrielle was the youngest member of the entire Canadian Olympic Team at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. A former gymnast, “Gabby”, the defending Canadian women’s champion, uses her lightning speed as the springboard for her powerful jumps. Her favourite motto? “Play like you’re in first, but train like you’re in second.”

FUN FACT: Gabby always has to have her special travel companion with her when she is on the road: her purple blanket.

1234

KAETLYN OSMOND

Just weeks after winning Skate Canada Challenge to qualify for the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in 2012, Kaetlyn turned a lot of hands with a bronze medal performance at nationals. Later that year, she added titles at Nebelhorn Trophy and Skate Canada International before winning Canadian championships in 2013 and 2014. The affable Osmond, who always seems to have a smile on her face, missed last season following surgery for a broken leg.

FUN FACT: Kaetlyn has to tie her skates twice – and drink orange juice – before she competes.

1234

ALAINE CHARTRAND

A bronze medal finish at the Rostelecom Cup in 2014 set the table for Alaine at the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, where she finished second, less than two points behind champion Gabrielle Daleman. Although she says she was too young to remember, Alaine has been told she landed her first axel when she was just six years old.

FUN FACT: On long skating trips, Alaine often rides in the family RV, a step up from her previous mode of transportation: her father racked up more than 500,000 km on his six-seat pickup truck in Alaine’s younger years.

1234

VÉRONIK MALLET

When she isn’t finishing on the podium at the national championships, Véronik, the reigning Canadian bronze medallist, is setting up for her future. The native of Sept-Îles, Quebec would love to remain in skating as a coach, but she is currently studying Human Science at CEGEP in Sorel-Tracy, Que. in the hopes of one day becoming a primary school professor.

FUN FACT: In addition to skating and school, Veronik finds time to juggle in her spare time.

1234

ROXANNE RHEAULT

A rookie on the national team, Roxanne has dealt with injury issues over the past few seasons. She made her mark on the national scene in 2011, winning the Canadian junior women’s title. In 2007, Roxanne also won the national juvenile title – the same year a young Nam Nguyen won the juvenile men’s crown.

FUN FACT: An avid dancer, Roxanne has also studied ballet to help improve her artistry and presentation on the ice.

1234

KIM DEGUISE LÉVEILLÉE

Thanks to a fifth-place showing at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships last year, Kim, the 2014 junior champion, punched her ticket on to the national team for first time. The young skater, who enjoyed a pair of top-ten finishes on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit in 2014, has worked hard with coaches Josée Picard and Marc-André Craig to boost her confidence as she makes the transition to the senior level.

FUN FACT: Kim ties her skates standing up, not sitting down.

1234

Skate Judging 101: How is a Program Scored?

/by

Skating is a sport that combines extreme technical expertise and physical stamina with artistry. For those fans who are newer to the sport or in need of a little understanding on skating’s judging system, we’re here to give you some basics on judging and scoring.

This crash course on the Judging System is just in time to help you enjoy the 2016
Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

THE JUDGING SYSTEM
So how does the judging system work and what factors are used to calculate your
favourite skater’s performance?

Each segment (or program) is graded by combining two sets of scores:

  • Technical Elements (TES – Total Element Score)
  • Program Components (PCS – Program Component Score)

Each skater (or pair) is judged on their specific program elements and components, or presentation.

Let’s take a closer look at Technical Elements and Program Components:

TECHNICAL ELEMENTS (TES – TOTAL ELEMENT SCORE)
The TES is composed of a Base Value for each element within a program (i.e. jump, spin, lift, step sequence, etc.) determined by the Technical Panel, and the Grade of Execution (GOE), graded by a panel of up to nine judges. The more difficult the element, the higher the Base Value.

The Technical Panel is generally made up of a team of five: the Technical Specialist,
Assistant Technical Specialist, Technical Controller, Data Input Operator and Video Replay Operator. Together, the Technical Panel works to identify or “call” each performed element and the Base Value associated with it. The Base Value of each element has a point value assigned to it. In some cases the Technical Panel also determines the Level of Difficulty associated with that element (i.e. footwork, spins). If the planned element was not completed – for instance, if a jump was under-rotated – then the Base Value of that element is reduced.

Once an element is identified and confirmed by the Technical Panel, that element is
immediately displayed on the touch screens of all nine judges, who will give a Grade of Execution (GOE) for the quality of the element using a seven-point scale (+3, +2, +1, 0, -1, -2, -3). A GOE of +3 means the element is considered world-class.

For each element, the highest and lowest GOEs are discarded and an average of the remaining scores is then calculated, referred to as the “trimmed mean.” The sum of the trimmed mean GOEs and the Base Values of all the elements gives the Total Element Score.

Instantaneous, slow-motion video replay is at the fingertips of the Technical Panel, so any particular element can be reviewed to determine if it was completed. At most events, video replay is also available for the judges to assess the quality of an element for their own scoring.

Example:
Each planned element in any program will have a designated Base Value attached to it.

If a skater were to receive a GOE of “0” on every element – which means the element was simply “completed” – then the technical score is identical to the total Base Values of the elements.

PROGRAM COMPONENTS
In addition to the Total Element Score (TES), Judges also award points for overall quality and presentation of the program based on five components: skating skills, transitions, performance/execution, choreography/composition and interpretation. The skater is assigned a mark for each of these components, scored from 0.25 to 10, in increments of 0.25.

FINAL SCORE
The total score for any segment (program) is the Total Element Score and Program Components added together less any deductions (e.g. 1.0 for a fall). Please see the corresponding charts for segment and competition score breakdowns, and scoring benchmarks at senior level events.

COMPETITION SCORE:

Men, Women, Pair & Synchronized

Short Program Score +
Free Program Score =
Total Competition Score

COMPETITION SCORE:

Ice Dance

Short Dance Score + Free Dance Score
= Total Competition Score
Or
Pattern Dance 1 Score (x.5) +
Pattern Dance 2 (x.5) Score +
Free Dance Score = Total Competition Score

SENIOR SCORING BENCHMARKS
MEN WOMEN PAIR ICE DANCE
EXCELLENT 290 200 210 180
VERY GOOD 250-289 180-199 185-209 165-179
GOOD 210-249 160-179 170-184 150-164

Twenty-six years after “epic moment”, Elvis Stojko returns to Halifax as Athlete Ambassador

/by

Photos : Gladys Orozco

Elvis Stojko can’t believe it’s been that long.

It’s been more than a quarter-century since Stojko introduced himself to the world in Halifax, NS, and the three-time world champion wonders where the time has gone.

This week, Stojko returns to the picturesque Maritime city, serving as the official Athlete Ambassador for the 102nd edition of the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. In the role, Stojko will handle speaking engagements, media interviews and in-venue activations and, as always, make a little time for competing athletes and his legion of fans.

Stojko will always hold a soft spot in his heart for Halifax, host city of the 1990 ISU World Figure Skating Championships. A fresh-faced youngster still a couple of weeks shy of his 18th birthday, Stojko, fresh off a silver medal performance at the national championships in Sudbury, Ont., arrived in Nova Scotia primed for his first senior worlds.

That week in Halifax, the world was introduced to 17-year-old Elvis Stojko. When he left town, Kurt Browning had racked up his second of three straight world titles, and Stojko was a very respectable ninth

“Halifax – wow, what a week that was,” says Stojko with a laugh. “It was a dream week for me, just an amazing experience. There is no doubt it was a turning point for my career.

“I’ll never forget it. The place was sold out, the fans were just packed in there, and they were going ballistic (for the free program). It was just one of those epic moments.”

“I’ll never forget, the previous year at junior worlds, I was eighth overall. Suddenly, here I was, skating against Kurt, and Viktor Petrenko, and Todd Eldridge – guys I always watched on TV – and I was ninth best in the world, and sixth in the long (program). It was pretty surreal. Everything just kind of snowballed after Halifax. It just kept building and I never really looked back.”

After leaving Halifax. Stojko set off on a gradual climb to the top of the skating world. At the 1991 world championships, he became the first skater to land the quad-double jump combination. The following year, he took home his first world medal with a bronze and followed that up with a silver in 1993.

In 1994, Stojko made it to the top of the skating mountain, winning his first of three world titles over a four-year span.

For good measure, Stojko also became the first skater to complete a quad/triple combination at the 1997 Champions Series Final in Hamilton, Ont.

In addition to his three world titles and seven Canadian senior crowns, Stojko has a pair of Olympic silver medals in his trophy case (1994, 1998).

It was after his second Olympic silver in Nagano – where he skated with a painful groin injury – that Stojko hit tough times. Over the next few years, Stojko admits he fell into a long stretch of depression. Needing a break, Stojko went to visit a friend in Mexico in 2001.

It was what he needed: a chance to relax, escape the merciless Canadian winters and get a little privacy.

He ended up buying an apartment on the spot.

In 2009, he met Gladys Orozco, a former Mexican figure skating champion, while at a skating competition. Stojko and Orozco were married in Las Vegas a year later. The couple lived in Ajijic, a stunning village about an hour from Guadalajara.

But eventually, Canada called him home.

“I never really left,” he says of the return to Canada. “Sure, I was living in Mexico, but I have always been a Canadian. That never changed.

“It was time to come home.”

Since touching down back in Canada, Stojko has been working with Skate Canada, taking young skaters under his wing with on-ice training and mental preparation. Stojko, a martial arts expert, has also given kung fu lessons to his young charges.

Elvis Stojko trains young skaters.

In his limited spare time, Stojko continues to skate in shows while chasing another of his passions: professional kart racing at the national and international level. Stojko also recently dipped his toe in the Broadway show pond, starring as manipulative lawyer Billy Flynn in Chicago: The Musical.

Despite his busy schedule, Stojko is focused on giving back to a sport that has given him so much.

As he was coming up through the ranks as a youngster, Stojko says he often turned to 1987 world champion and two-time Olympic silver medallist Brian Orser for advice.
Stojko has never forgotten that Orser always seemed to find time for him, and he plans on paying it forward.

“If I can help guide them and get them pointed in the right direction, and teach them some of what I have learned, well, that’s what it’s all about. Giving something back.”

“I was fortunate enough to have others I could go to, guys like Brian, who were busy with their own careers but always took time to help out,” adds Stojko.

“These kids today are going to have their own hurdles. It can be a daunting process. You worry about what people think, you want to please everyone.

“If I can help guide them and get them pointed in the right direction, and teach them some of what I have learned, well, that’s what it’s all about. Giving something back.”

And as Stojko gets set to arrive in Halifax in his Athlete Ambassador role, the memories of 1990 are sure to come flooding back.

His advice for those competing this week at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships?

“It sounds cliché, but just embrace the moment,” says Stojko.

“These kids are the best in Canada. They are here for a reason. A few of them are going to have a magical week, but some will not. For a lot of these kids, this week is going to be a learning experience. You learn, you adapt and you come back stronger.

“Just go for it. This is your chance. Don’t hold anything back.”

And who knows. Perhaps a few skaters will be leaving Halifax with memories of their own.

Meet the Senior Pairs

/by

MEAGAN DUHAMEL / ERIC RADFORD

Year in and year out, Duhamel and Radford continue to raise the bar for themselves and their sport. Showcasing signature elements, including stunning death spirals and a groundbreaking throw quad Salchow a year ago, the reigning world pair champions will go in search of their fifth consecutive Canadian title in Halifax. Radford loves music almost as much as he loves skating. He composed Tribute in 2006 after Paul Wirtz, his coach at the time, passed away from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Tribute continues to help in the fight against cancer and is available at www.cancer.ca/EricRadford, with fifty per cent of all net sales going to cancer research at the Canadian Cancer Society.
The pair also used Tribute in their short program in 2013-14.

FUN FACT: The last time Halifax played hosted to the Canadian championships, Meagan Duhamel placed sixth – in women’s singles. Months later, Meagan shifted to pair skating, and has never looked back. Meagan also claimed the 2004 Canadian junior women’s championship.

1234

LUBOV ILYUSHECHKINA/DYLAN MOSCOVITCH

Lubov and Dylan teamed up in 2014 and their first appearance at the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships was certainly a rewarding one, as they took home silver. The combination of Lubov’s incredible flexibility and Dylan’s powerful strength means fans can often see unique lifts and creative tricks during their programs. In the future, Dylan says he would like to study business at the University of Toronto, while Lubov has an interest in economics and law.

FUN FACT: In her own words, Lubov is “obsessed with cheese.” Dylan is an accomplished martial artist, and a certified Krav Maga instructor.

1234

JULIANNE SÉGUIN/CHARLIE BILODEAU

Anyone who remembers Charlie’s moustache from their The Grand Budapest Hotel soundtrack short program last year probably figures the ‘stache was fake. Not so – he grew it for every short program, maintaining he wanted to “stay in character”, before shaving it off for the free program. The pair turned a lot of heads last year, winning two Junior Grand Prix events, the Junior Grand Prix Final, placing second at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships and, for good measure, taking bronze at the senior level at the 2015 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

FUN FACT: Charlie claims to be able to put a balloon up his nose and pull it out his mouth; Julianne is often offered a kid’s menu at restaurants.

1234

KIRSTEN MOORE-TOWERS / MICHAEL MARINARO

Remember that photo of 4’11” Kirsten and 6’9” Boston Bruins defenceman Zdeno Chara that went viral during the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games?

Well, a lot has changed since then. Kirsten and longtime partner Dylan Moscovitch parted ways after those Games, and KMT teamed up with Michael Marinaro. The duo earned their way onto the national team for the 2015-16 campaign, and earned their first Grand Prix medal together when they took home bronze at Skate Canada International in October.

FUN FACT: Michael is often told he looks like Craig Buntin; Kirsten can recite the alphabet – in sign language.

1234

VANESSA GRENIER / MAXIME DESCHAMPS

Keep an eye on the 2014 Canadian junior pair champions: they train alongside reigning world pair champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford in suburban Montreal, under the watchful eye of coaches Richard Gauthier and Bruno Marcotte. A team on the rise, Grenier and Deschamps were seventh at 2015 Skate Canada International and followed that up with an 8th place showing at the Cup of China.

FUN FACT: Maxime was featured in a commercial for a drugstore, performing a triple jump. Vanessa won a contest and made three montage videos to demonstrate an athlete’s lifestyle.

1234

Meet the Senior Ice Dancers

/by

KAITLYN WEAVER / ANDREW POJE

Kaitlyn and Andrew were riding a perfect season last year before settling for bronze at the ISU World Championships. The two-time world medallists and defending Canadian champions have been members of the national team for a decade. In fact, Halifax holds a special place in the hearts – they made their debut in Canada at the 2007 Canadian championships in the Maritime city, finishing third behind Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon (gold) and Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir (silver).

DID YOU KNOW: Kaitlyn and Andrew are both taking classes at the University of Waterloo – Kaitlyn is studying public relations and media, and Poje is focused on biomedical science.

1234

PIPER GILLES / PAUL POIRIER

Since teaming together in 2011, Gilles and Poirier have established themselves as one of Canada’s top ice dance tandems. The three-time Canadian medallists display a high level of artistry in their programs and despite facing injury issues in recent seasons, remain energetic crowd pleasers thanks to their creative lifts and extraordinary performance ability. Away from the rink, Piper is immersed in the fashion world, and does much of the outfit design for their programs. One day, she hopes to launch her own line of sports clothing.

FUN FACT: Piper was an extra in a Simple Plan music video; Paul, meanwhile, admits he is “really bad” at parking cars.

1234

ALEXANDRA PAUL / MITCH ISLAM

The three-time Canadian bronze medallists have new coaches, who just happen to be their skating idols: Olympians and two-time world silver medallists Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon. Earlier this year, Paul and Islam, who represented Canada at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic games, placed second at the Nebelhorn Trophy and will be looking for their fourth podium finish since 2011 at the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

FUN FACT: Alexandra is a big fan of the show Gilmore Girls, and figure she has watched the entire series at least five times; if Mitch is watching TV, he is usually tuned in to Mad Men.

1234

ÉLISABETH PARADIS / FRANÇOIS-XAVIER OUELLETTE

Teaming up in 2010, this personable tandem are making their way up the Canadian ice dance ranks, highlighted by a bronze-medal finish at 2015 U.S. International Figure Skating Classic. And they are likely only to get better as they continue to train under former Olympians and two-time ice dance world silver medallists Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon.

FUN FACT: Elisabeth plays the tenor saxophone in her spare time while François likes to do some heavy lifting by renovating houses.

1234

Skate Canada School Program Comes to Halifax

/by

HALIFAX, NS: Skate Canada is proud to activate the Skate Canada School Program during the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. The championships will take place from January 18-24, 2016 in Halifax, N.S. at the Scotiabank Centre. The School Program will take place on Thursday, January 21 from 9:45 a.m. until 11:15 a.m.

The Skate Canada School Program allows local area schools to come and watch the senior practices for free. Skate Canada provides educational materials to the schools regarding the event, the athletes competing and the benefits of skating for a healthy lifestyle, in advance of the students coming to watch. Students are encouraged to get creative by making handmade posters to cheer on the skaters.

During their visit, the students will join in on in-venue activities like the Dance Cam and get a special visit from Athlete Ambassador Elvis Stojko.

This year, 12 schools from the Halifax metro area will be participating, for a total of just over 1,000 students from grades 4-6.

Participating Schools

  • Inglis Street Elementary School
  • Sycamore Lane Elementary
  • Astral Drive Elementary School
  • Hammonds Plains Consolidated Elementary
  • Sackville Heights Elementary
  • Prospect Road Elementary
  • Grosvenor-Wentworth Park Elementary
  • Hawthorn Elementary School
  • Elizabeth Sutherland School
  • Beaver Bank Monarch Drive Elementary
  • Tantallon Junior Elementary
  • Shatford Memorial Elementary

 

Year-end Recap: July to December

/by

The much-anticipated return of Patrick Chan was the story in Canadian skating as the 2014-15 ISU Grand Prix season kicked off in October.

After a year off, three-time world champion Patrick Chan made his return to the competitive ranks at Skate Canada International, with a near-flawless free program to hold off reigning Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu for gold in Lethbridge, Alberta. World champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford took the pair title, and Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje were golden in ice dance.

Ashley Wagner of the United States won the SCI ladies title.

The ISU Junior Grand Prix kicked off the 2015-16 skating season in August. Roman Sadovsky won the JGP Bratislava, and in September would add bronze at the JGP stop in Poland. Mackenzie Bent and Dmitre Razgulajevs snared silver in their international debut at the JGP Colorado Springs. Reigning Canadian junior men’s champion Nicolas Nadeau added a silver medal at the JGP Croatia.

At the senior level, Canada came away with two bronze medals at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic, with the ice dance team of Élisabeth Paradis and François Xavier-Ouellette and the pair tandem of Kirsten Moore Towers and Michael Marinaro both placing third.

Elladj Baldé

Elladj Baldé

Kaetlyn Osmond

Kaetlyn Osmond

Canada enjoyed another medal haul at the Nebelhorn Trophy, with Elladj Baldé (men) and Kaetlyn Osmond (ladies) winning gold and Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam taking ice dance silver. Canada was golden in ice dance in back-to-back events, with Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier winning the Ondrej Nepela Trophy and Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje taking top honours at the Finlandia Trophy.

Skate Canada played host to Autumn Classic International in Barrie, Ont., as Duhamel and Radford took the pair title, as expected. In ice dance, Nicole Orford and Asher Hill won gold while fellow Canadians Andreanne Poulin and Marc-Andre Servant claimed silver.

Nam Nguyen, the 2015 Canadian men’s champion, placed second to Yuzuru Hanyu. Elizabet Tursynbayeva of Kazakhstan won the ladies title, with Canadian Roxanne Rheault finishing fifth.

The ISU Grand Prix kicked off in October at Skate America, with Julianne Séguin and Charlie Bilodeau (pair) and Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier (ice dance) winning bronze.

As mentioned earlier, three gold medals by the host nation highlighted Skate Canada International in Lethbridge, Alberta in late October. Kirsten Moore Towers and Michael Marinaro added bronze in pair.

In November, Skate Canada announced its 2015 Hall of Fame inductees and several Skate Canada coaches were honoured with Petro Canada Coaching Awards later in the month.

Closing out 2015, Mississauga, Ont. was named host city for the 2016 Skate Canada International. Skaters from across the country competed at Skate Canada Challenge staged in Edmonton, Alb.

At the ISU Grand Prix Final, Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje repeated as ice dance champions, while world pair champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford saw their two year undefeated run come to an end with a silver-medal performance in Barcelona.

With synchronized skating making its debut at the Grand Prix Final, defending world champion NEXXICE from Burlington, Ont. took bronze.The 2015-16 season continues with the 2016 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, January 18 to 24 in Halifax, NS.

Year-end recap: Synchro

/by

NEXXICE was on top of the world in 2015.

With the eyes of the synchro world on Hamilton, Ont., in April for the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships, the Burlington, Ont. based powerhouse, competing just a few kilometres from their home base, thrilled a raucous hometown crowd with a nail-biting win for their first world title in six years.

Nexxice on the podium.

NEXXICE

With an electric atmosphere inside the FirstOntario Centre, NEXXICE dethroned defending champion Marigold Ice Unity of Finland by a miniscule .67 of a point. Russia’s Team Paradise took bronze, that country’s first medal in the history of the world championships.

Quebec’s Les Suprêmes, Canadian silver medallists, finished sixth.

Les Supremes. 2015

Les Suprêmes

Earlier in the season, NEXXICE claimed the Trophy d’Ecosse in Scotland while Les Suprêmes won the Mozart Cup in Austria. Days later, NEXXICE Senior took gold at the Spring Cup in Italy, and the NEXXICE junior squad claimed silver at the same event.

Weeks before the World Championships, Canada’s best synchro teams met in Quebec City for the Skate Canada Synchronized Skating Championships. NEXXICE won their ninth consecutive senior crown and Les Suprêmes took the junior title before going on to win bronze at the ISU world junior championships.

Other teams to leave Quebec City with gold were NOVA (Open), Évolution (Intermediate) and Les Suprêmes (Novice).

Coming up tomorrow: Men’s, Women’s, Pair and Ice Dance (July to December)

Year-end Recap: Men’s, Women’s, Ice Dance and Pair (January – June)

/by

As 2015 comes to a close, here is the first of a three-part look back at the year that was in Canadian skating:

As the calendar flipped to the New Year, Canada’s best skaters converged in Kingston, Ont. for the 101st edition of the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

In what turned out to be a week of firsts, there were some new faces crowned senior national champions. Gabrielle Daleman claimed her first senior women’s crown, edging out Alaine Chartrand for gold. Nam Nguyen also took home his first senior men’s national title, while Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje won their first ice dance championship.

There were some familiar champions, as Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford won gold for the fourth consecutive year, extending a perfect run that would continue into the 2015-16 season.

In the junior competition, Selena Zhao (women’s), Nicolas Nadeau (men’s), Brianna Delmaestro / Timothy Lum (ice dance) and Mary Orr / Phelan Simpson (pair) claimed junior national titles.

Sadness swept throughout the K-Rock Centre and across Canada on Saturday, January 24, during the senior free programs, when news broke that legendary Canadian figure skater Toller Cranston, a six-time Canadian champion, had passed away in Mexico at age 65.

Toller Cranston

Toller Cranston

In February, it was double gold for Canada at the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships as Weaver and Poje took home ice dance gold before Duhamel and Radford won the pair title in the final tuneup before the world championships. Gabrielle Daleman had the best international showing of her career, finishing seventh.

The pair tandem of Julianne Seguin and Charlie Bilodeau left Tallinn, Estonia with a silver medal at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

In late March, the skating world turned its attention to Shanghai for the 2015 ISU World Figure Skating Championships. Four-time Canadian pair champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford capped off their perfect season by claiming their first world championship, while Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje secured ice dance bronze. Canadian men’s champion Nam Nguyen was fifth, while Gabrielle Daleman placed 21st.

Closing out the season, Canada ended up fourth at the World Team Trophy in Tokyo.

Hall of Fame Coach Sheldon Galbraith passed away April 14 and the following week the Skate Canada family suffered another tremendous loss with the sudden passing of Chief Operating Officer Bethany Tory.

In May, Canada returned home with 16 medals from the ISU Adult Figure Skating Competition in Oberstdorf, Germany.

Finally, on June 12th, three-time Canadian medallist and fan favourite Jeremy Ten, who placed second to Nguyen at the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships at the start of the year, announced his retirement from competitive skating.

Coming up tomorrow: Recapping the synchronized skating season

2015 Skate Canada Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

/by

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada is pleased to induct six new members into the Skate Canada Hall of Fame.  This year Skate Canada celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Hall. The Hall of Fame was developed in 1990 to pay tribute to athletes, builders and professionals who have made a significant impact on Canadian figure skating.

The slate of 2015 will include ice dancers Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon, 2009 Synchronized Skating Team NEXXICE, and pair skaters Louise Bertram and Stewart Reburn in the athlete category. In the builder group, synchronized skating pioneer Cathy Dalton will be inducted. In the professional discipline, coach Richard Gauthier and choreographer Sarah Kawahara will be honoured.

Skate Canada is committed to celebrating the achievements of the skating community through the Hall of Fame, and through alumni programs which engage past skaters, officials, coaches and volunteers. Since the Hall’s inception, Skate Canada has inducted 104 members: 49 athletes, 32 builders and 23 professionals.

Marie-France Dubreuil, 41, and Patrice Lauzon, 39, both of Montreal, were a force on the international ice dance scene for nearly a decade; they enter the Hall in the athlete category. One of Canada’s most loved dance teams, they paired up in 1995. They went on to win the Canadian Championships five times (2000, 2004-2007) and won world silver medals in 2006 and 2007. They competed at the Olympic Winter Games in 2002 and 2006. Dubreuil and Lauzon retired in 2008 and began a successful coaching career in Montreal.

NEXXICE’s 2009 Synchronized Skating Team, from the Burlington Skating Centre will be the first synchronized skating team to enter the Skate Canada Hall of Fame; the entire 20 person team will enter in the athlete category. The 2009 NEXXICE team was the first ever Canadian team to win gold at the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships, in Zagreb, Croatia. The team was comprised of: Jennifer Beauchamp (captain), Carla Coveart, Amy Cebulak, Tiffany Elliot, Ashley Greenhalgh, Morgan Harper, Cara Horan, Julia Horan, Taylor Kemp, Kristen Loritz, Nichole Manahan, Taryn Milne, Cara Moir, Sheri Moir, Michele Moore, Emily Penrose, Allison Proudfoot, Madeleine Wendland, Danyel Wright-Dykstra, and Lauren Zbucki.

Louise Bertram and Stewart Reburn, both of Toronto, were the 1935 Canadian Pair Champions and will enter the Hall in the athlete category. Both are deceased; Bertram passed away in 1996 at age 88 and Reburn in 1976 at age 63. They were the first pair team to really skate to the music instead of using it as mere background. Their new and charming style captured audiences in both the figure skating and entertainment worlds. They competed at the 1936 Olympic Winter Games, finishing sixth, before retiring from the sport.

Cathy Dalton, 56, Whitby, Ont., will enter the Skate Canada Hall of Fame as a builder. Dalton has been a pioneer in the development of synchronized skating in Canada and around the world. Since 1996, she has been an appointed coach on the International Skating Union’s Coaches Commission/Synchronized Skating Technical Committee and in that capacity has had a major influence on the development of the international judging system for that discipline: creating rules, standards, and educational materials. Her world-wide seminars for international judges, skaters and coaches have resulted in the sharing of her extensive knowledge about synchronized skating to the international community. In Canada, she founded and coached Canada’s first internationally successful synchronized skating team, black ice. They went on to win Canada’s first world medal, silver at the 2000 ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships, in addition to winning eight Canadian championships.

Richard Gauthier, 53, St. Etienne-de-Bolton, Que., has over 40 years of coaching experience and is a NCCP Level 4 coach; he will enter the Skate Canada Hall of Fame as a professional. One of Canada’s most successful pair coaches, Gauthier’s career has pushed pair skating in Canada and around the world. He is responsible for the pairing up of Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, who went on to win the Olympic gold medal in 2002. Most recently he coached Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford to gold at the 2015 ISU World Figure Skating Championships. Gauthier continues to coach several world ranked pair teams in Montreal.

Sarah Kawahara, 61, Montreal, Que., introduced an innovative and artistic style of choreography for competitive skating as well as show skating, which has led her to be world renowned in her field; she enters the Skate Canada Hall of Fame as a professional. During her successful career she created memorable programs and choreographed ice shows for world class skaters, including Toller Cranston, Elvis Stojko, Scott Hamilton, Michelle Kwan, Kristi Yamaguchi, Dorothy Hamill, Peggy Fleming, John Curry and many others. She would go on to win two Prime Time Emmy Awards, both for best chorography, the first in 1997 for Scott Hamilton, Upside Down and the second in 2002 for the Opening Ceremonies at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

Skate Canada is proud to celebrate the achievements of the skating community through the inductions of exceptional members in the Skate Canada Hall of Fame. The exact date and locations of the various inductions will be announced at a later date.

Skate Canada International Primer, Part II

/by

SCI 101

Skate Canada International is the second stop in the International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series. The series also includes events in China, France, Russia, Japan and the U.S. During the series, points are awarded in the four disciplines (men’s, ladies, ice dance and pair) based on event results.

The Grand Prix Series culminates in December 2015, when the top six Series finishers in each discipline square off in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Barcelona, Spain.

Nearing the halfway point between the 2014 and 2018 Olympic Winter Games, the 2015 edition of SCI also will allow fans a sneak peek at potential Olympic contenders for the 2018 Games in PyeongChang, South Korea.

TICKETS

Get your tickets today to witness this world-class international showdown in Lethbridge. Visit enmaxcentre.ca or call 403-329-7328.

TV SCHEDULE

SCI will be broadcast in Canada by TSN, CTV and RDS, the event’s official broadcast partners.