Tag Archive for: 2018 Autumn Classic International

Moore-Towers and Marinaro win silver at 2018 Autumn Classic International

Photo : Susan D. Russell

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., won the silver medal in pairs Friday at the 2018 Autumn Classic International figure skating competition.

World championship bronze medallists Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres of France dominated with 210.21 points, followed by the Canadians at 176.32 and Haven Denney and Brandon Frazier of the U.S. at 164.43.

Both Moore-Towers and Marinaro fell once during the program performed to a Pink Floyd medley

‘’We lack mileage and that’s why some of the things went a little funny today,’’ said Moore-Towers. ‘’These things tend to sort out once we have a better handle on our program.’’

Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Levis, Que., were fifth.

‘’We were hoping to fare better today after some strong practices leading in,’’ said Matte. ‘’We need to learn from this.’’

In women’s competition, Bradie Tennell of the U.S. caused a big upset to win the gold with 206.41. Ninth at the at the Olympics last season, Tennell finished ahead of two-time world champion Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia second at 204.89. Mae Berenice Meite of France was third.

Alicia Pineault of Varennes, Que., moved from ninth to sixth overall with the sixth best free skate.

‘’It came from heart,’’ said Pineault. ‘’I feel like when you can only focus on what you love to do and perform only for yourself then it shows in competition.’’

In ice dancing, world championship bronze medallists Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., are first after the short dance with 76.53. Olivia Smart and Adrian Diaz of Spain are second at 67.35 and Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver are third at 65.38.

‘’This program came very natural to us,’’ said Weaver. ‘’The music was an easy choice, the choreography just started to flow together and tango is probably our favorite rhythm. It’s something we felt very passionate about doing.’’

Soucisse and Firus met their expectations.

‘’It was good,’’ said Soucisse. ‘’For the first event of the year we wanted to brings something solid that we can build on.’’

Molly Lanaghan and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Ajax, Ont., are sixth.

In the men’s short program, two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan earned 97.74 with Junhwan Cha of South Korea second at 90.56 and Jason Brown of the U.S. third at 88.90.

Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., is fourth at 78.14 Kevin Reynolds of Coquitlam B.C. sixth at 68.37 and Bennet Toman of Brampton, Ont., seventh at 67.58.

‘’This was my first competition since nationals last January so I was nervous,’’ said Sadovsky, who fell on his triple Axel but landed his two quads. ‘’But I think I handled it really well.’’

Reynolds two-footed his triple Axel in an otherwise clean routine.

‘’I’m very happy with it,’’ he said. ‘’The score didn’t reflect what I felt about the performance but other than the jumps being a bit tighter in terms of quality, I thought I was able to connect with the audience and do the steps and spins the way I wanted.’’

Competition ends Saturday at the Sixteen Mile Sport Complex with the free dance and men’s free skate.

Full information and results: Skate Canada – 2018 Autumn Classic International

Weaver and Poje unveil new program and win gold at 2018 Autumn Classic International

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje were at their artistic and athletic best on Saturday as they won the gold medal in ice dancing to conclude the 2018 Autumn Classic International.

The Canadian world championship bronze medallists from Waterloo, Ont., unveiled an emotional new free dance to a piece from the Quebec rock opera Starmania. It was also a tribute to figure skate Denis Ten of Kazakhstan, who skated to the same music last season. Ten was killed this past summer in an incident that shook the figure skating world.

‘’It felt good to get out there and really perform this program,’’ said Poje. ‘’It’s been special for us since the beginning. We just wanted to go out, take it easy and feel the environment.’’

Weaver and Poje earned 197.27 points, Olivia Smart and Adrian Diaz of Spain were second at 171.41 and Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver were third at 166.24

‘’Everything right now is a work in progress,’’ added Weaver. ‘’We’ve taken our time with it and with more mileage it’s going to get stronger and stronger. This week we’ve felt comfortable on the ice with our programs and that’s a testament to our level of preparation.’’

Soucisse and Firus feel they are on track for a successful season.

‘’We left a couple of points on the table but it was pretty good,’’ said Firus. ‘’The elements were solid so we know we got to work on our technical which will get better as the season progresses.’’

Molly Lanaghan and Dmitre Razgulajevs of Ajax, Ont., were sixth.

‘’We weren’t worried much about the result,’’ said Razgulajevs. ‘’We were out there to do it for ourselves and the crowd. It was incredible to hear the reaction of the audience at the end of the program.’’

In men’s competition, Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., was fourth in the short and long programs and his consistency paid off for the bronze medal with a personal best 233.86. It was his first PB in two years.

World and Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan won the gold with 263.65 and Junhwa Cha of South Korea was second at 259.78.

‘’The quad Salchow is my best jump so I was a bit disappointed to miss that,’’ said Sadovsky. ‘’That’s silly points just gone. However I landed my first quad toe, so there was some good, some bad. Although 233 is my highest, there is still so much to go.’’

Bennet Toman of Brampton, Ont., was sixth and Kevin Reynolds of Coquitlam, B.C., eighth.

‘’I want to make the national team this year, that’s my goal,’’ said Toman. ‘’I’ve been working on my performance aspects and I feel my new programs are a big step for me.’’

On Friday, Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., won the silver in pairs.

Full information and results: Skate Canada – 2018 Autumn Classic International

Great start for Moore-Towers and Marinaro at 2018 Autumn Classic International

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., delivered a flawless performance in their short program Thursday to stand second in pairs at the 2018 Autumn Classic International figure skating competition.

World championship bronze medallists Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres of France hold the lead with 73.81 points. Moore-Towers and Marinaro, the first skaters to perform, are second at 64.73 and Haven Denney and Brandon Frazier of the U.S. third at 61.91.

‘’We’re still at a point to find out where we can get our marks and build on that,’’ said Moore-Towers, sixth with her partner at last season’s worlds. ‘’We’re comfortable with the style but our transitions are difficult.’’

Lori-Ann Matte and Thierry Ferland of Lévis, Que., are fifth with a program that featured a perfect throw triple loop.

‘’Some things were great and others so-so,’’ said Matte. ‘’We still have a lot of work to do based on the levels we got. It’s a new program so we wanted to enjoy and learn from it.’’

In women’s competition, two-time world champion Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia is first, Bradie Tennell of the U.S. second and Mae Berenice Meite of France third.

Alicia Pineault of Varennes, Que., is ninth.

‘’I was really surprised with how comfortable I was on the ice,’’ said Pineault. ‘’There were a few unexpected mistakes but I was happy with the performance.’’

Competition continues Friday at the Sixteen Mile Sport Complex with the pairs and women’s free skates, the short dance and men’s short program.

Full information and results: Skate Canada – 2018 Autumn Classic International

Elite skaters ready to compete at the 2018 Autumn Classic International

OTTAWA, ON: Top Canadian and international skaters are headed to Oakville, Ont., for the 2018 Autumn Classic International (#ACI18). The fifth edition of the event will take place from September 20-22, 2018, at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex. The event is the fifth event on the International Skating Union’s (ISU) 2018 Challenger Series.

The 2018 Autumn Classic International will feature senior events in men, women, pair and ice dance. Canada will have two entries in women and pair, and three entries in men and ice dance. The event will be live streamed on Skate Canada’s Dailymotion page to viewers worldwide.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT 2018 AUTUMN CLASSIC INTERNATIONAL

Discipline Name Age Hometown Club Coach
Men Kevin Reynolds 28 Coquitliam, BC Champs International Skating Centre of BC Joanne McLeod
Men Roman Sadovsky 19 Vaughan, ON York Region Skating Academy Tracey Wainman, Grzegorz Filipowski
Men Bennet Toman 21 Brampton, Ont. Skate Oakville Michelle Leigh
Women Larkyn Austman 20 Coquitlam, B.C. Coquitlam SC Zdenek Pazdirek/ Liz Putnam
Women Alicia Pineault 19 Varennes, Que. CPA Varennes Stéphane Yvars
Pair Kirsten Moore-Towers / Michael Marinaro 26/26 St. Catharines, Ont. / Sarnia, Ont. St. Catharines SC / Point Edward SC Inc. Bruno Marcotte / Richard Gauthier / Sylvie Fullum
Pairs Lori-Ann Matte / Thierry Ferland 19/21 Lévis, Que. / Lévis, Que., CPA St. Romuald – St. Jean / CPA St. Romuald – St. Jean Richard Gauthier / Bruno Marcotte
Ice Dance Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje 29/31 Toronto, Ont. / Waterloo, Ont. Granite Skating Club / Kitchener-Waterloo SC Nikolai Morozov / Igor Shpilband / Pasquale Camerlengo
Ice Dance Carolane Soucisse / Shane Firus 23/24 Châteauguay, Que. / North Vancouver, B.C. CPA Repentigny / CPA Repentigny Marie-France Dubreuil / Patrice Lauzon
Ice Dance Molly Lanaghan / Dmitre Razgulajevs 19/21 Doncaster, England / Ajax, Ont. Scarboro FSC / Scarboro FSC Carol Lane / Jon Lane / Juris Razgulajevs

Carolyn Allwright of Kitchener, Ont., and Alexandra Paul of Midhurst, Ont., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Dr. Erika Persson of Edmonton, Alta., and physiotherapist Meghan Buttle of Toronto, Ont., will be the Canadian medical staff at the event. Officials from Canada at the event include Lorna Schroder of Georgetown, Ont., Janice Hunter of West Vancouver, B.C., Jérôme Poulin of Montreal, Que., and Jacqueline Wickett Warren of Manotick, Ont.

For more information and full entries please visit the www.skatecanada.ca.

Ticket Info: 2018 Autumn Classic International

OTTAWA, ON: Tickets for the 2018 Autumn Classic International will go on sale on Tuesday, June 19 at 10:00 a.m. (ET). The fifth edition of the event will take place from September 20-22, 2018, at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville, Ont.

All-event tickets are priced at $85 and single day passes prices are as follows: $30 for Thursday, $35 for Friday and $35 for Saturday. Tickets include entry to view practices on the date(s) of each ticket. All tickets are subject to applicable taxes and services fees. Tickets can be purchased at Eventbrite.ca in advance and online only.

Please note that seating is general admission and not reserved.  Seats are on a first-come, first-serve basis.  Ticket quantities are limited, and all tickets are final sale.

The 2018 Autumn Classic International will feature senior events in men, women, pair and ice dance. The event will host approximately 50 entries from over 15 countries. The senior international figure skating competition is one of 10 events that will form the International Skating Union’s (ISU) Challenger Series. Athletes have the opportunity to earn world standing points through the series. Competitors are eligible to participate in up to three Challenger Series events.

The 2018 entries will be announced after the close of entries in late August.

To register for notification of ticket on-sale dates for Skate Canada events, please fill out the form located here.

Oakville to host 2018 Autumn Classic International

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada has announced that it will host the 2018 Autumn Classic International in Oakville, Ont. The fifth edition of the event will take place from September 20-22, 2018, at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex.

The senior international figure skating competition has previously been a stop on the International Skating Union’s (ISU) Challenger Series in 2014, 2016 and 2017, with hopes of again being included in 2018. A decision regarding Challenger Series status will be announced this summer by the ISU. Events for men, women, pairs and ice dance will feature some of the top skaters in the world. The 2017 competition featured 47 entries (63 skaters) from 15 countries.

“The Autumn Classic International has become a highly anticipated event on the Canadian and international skating calendar,” said Debra Armstrong, CEO, Skate Canada. “We are excited to bring a competition with such great talents from around the world to Oakville and the beautiful facility at Sixteen Mile Sports Complex.”

Tickets for the event will go on sale this summer at a date to be announced. All-event tickets will be priced at $85, with single day passes being priced as follows: $30 for Thursday, $35 for Friday and $35 for Saturday. Tickets include entry to view practices on the date(s) of each ticket.

To register for notification of ticket on-sale dates for Skate Canada events, please fill out the form located here.