Tag Archive for: 2021 Skate America

Fournier Beaudry and Sørensen Hang on to bronze at Skate America

LAS VEGAS – Ice dancers Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Sørensen of Montreal earned their third career bronze medal on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit on Sunday as they held on to third spot at Skate America.

Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue collected gold for the fourth straight Skate America event with 209.54 points. Their compatriots Madison Chock and Evan Bates were second at 208.23 and Fournier Beaudry and Sørensen followed at 190.13, just under 11 points off their personal best.

The Canadians ranked fourth for the free dance but held on to third by a mere 0.44 points over Olivia Smart and Adrian Diaz of Spain in fourth.

‘’It was so great to be back in international competition with an audience,’’ said Sørensen, eighth with his partner at the world championships this past March. ‘’We really felt them with us in both programs and it gave us the energy to produce two clean skates.’’

Fournier Beaudry and Sørensen also won bronze in 2019 at Skate America and the Cup of China.

Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver moved from eighth after the rhythm dance to seventh overall.

‘’It was an awesome experience,’’ said Firus ranked third with Soucisse in Canada. ‘’We are really happy with our performances, we don’t feel at this point in the season we could have done much better. We had some objectives for this meet and we achieved them.’’

On Saturday night, Nam Nguyen of Ajax, Ont., was eighth in men’s competition and Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Trenton, Ont., were eighth in pairs. There were no Canadians in the women’s event.

The next stop on the circuit is Skate Canada International this upcoming Friday and Saturday in Vancouver.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/gpusa2021/

Canadian Ice Dancers in Medal Hunt at Season Opening ISU Grand Prix

LAS VEGAS – Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Sorensen of Montreal stand in third place after Saturday’s rhythm dance at Skate America, the opening stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

The U.S. is 1-2 with three-time defending champion Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donahue first with 83.58 points and Madison Chock and Evan Bates second at 82.55. Fournier Beaudry and Sorensen, eighth at the 2021 worlds, follow at 75.33.

Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver are eighth.

Medals were handed out in two events Saturday evening and both Canadians entries placed eighth.

In men’s competition, Vincent Zhou of the U.S. collected a third international victory this season as he took the gold with 295.56. Shoma Uno of Japan was second at 270.68 and three-time world champion Nathan Chen of the U.S. third at 269.37.

Nam Nguyen of Ajax, Ont., dropped from seventh after the short program on Friday to eighth. He opened with a strong quad Salchow in his free skate but singled his triple Axel which proved costly.

‘’I’m really proud of the fight and perseverance I put in through in both programs,’’ said Nguyen. ‘’It’s a good start for me and I’m looking forward to just improving for the rest of the season.’’

In pairs, the Russian team of Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov took the gold with 222.50 points. It marks their first Grand Prix victory in three seasons; they were fourth at worlds this past March.

Japan’s Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara were second (208.20) for their first career Grand Prix medal while 2021 world bronze medalists Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii of Russia slipped from second to third at 205.53.

Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Trenton, Ont., remained in eighth.

‘’We’re disappointed with both skates we put out,’’ said Walsh. ‘’It was our first event of the season so there’s still a lot of room to grow.’’

Competition ends Sunday with the free dance. There are no Canadian entries in the women’s event.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/gpusa2021/

Seven Canadians Kick Off ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Las Vegas

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will have four entries for a total of seven skaters competing at Skate America 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Canada will have one entry in men, one entry in pairs and two entries in ice dance. This is the first event in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating and the event takes place from October 22 to 24, 2021.    

Nam Nguyen, 23, Ajax, Ont., will be the lone Canadian entry in men. Nguyen finished second at the 2021 Skate Canada Challenge and finished sixth at the 2020 ISU Four Continents Championships. He is coached by Robert Burk, Danielle Rose and Ken Rose in Richmond Hill, Ont.   

Evelyn Walsh, 20, London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud, 25, Trenton, Ont., will be the only Canadian entry in pairs. Last season, Walsh and Michaud placed twelfth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships.  They are coached by Alison Purkiss, Andrew Evans and Paul Macintosh in Brantford, Ont.   

Laurence Fournier Beaudry, 29, Montreal, Que., and Nikolaj Sørensen, 32, Montreal, Que., are the first Canadian entry in ice dance. They finished second at the 2021 Lombardia Trophy in Bergamo, Italy and placed eighth at the 2021 ISU World Figure Skating Championships They are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon and Romain Haguenauer in Montreal, Que. 

Carolane Soucisse, 26, Châteauguay, Que., and Shane Firus, 27, North Vancouver, BC., are the second entry in ice dance. This season they finished eleventh at the 2021 Finlandia Trophy and fifth at the 2021 Autum Classic International. They are coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs in Toronto, Ont.  

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director and Cynthia Ullmark, of Canmore, Alta., will be the Canadian team leaders at the event. Physiotherapist Paige Larson of North Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Lynne Dey, Edmonton, Alta., and Erica Topolski, Fredericton, N.B., will be the team officials at the event.   

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT ISU GRAND PRIX OF FIGURE SKATING
SKATE AMERICA – LAS VEGAS, USA 

MEN
Nam Nguyen (23) / Ajax, Ont. / Richmond Hill Training Centre / Coached by Robert Burk, Danielle Rose, and Ken Rose 

PAIRS
Evelyn Walsh (20) and Trennt Michaud (25) / London, Ont., and Trenton, Ont. / Brantford Skating Club and Trenton Skating Club / Coached by Alison Purkiss, Andrew Evans and Paul Macintosh 

ICE DANCE
Laurence Fournier Beaudry (29) and Nikolaj Sørensen (32) / Montreal, Que. / Town of Mount Royal FSC / Coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain and Haguenauer  

Carolane Soucisse (26) and Shane Firus (27) / Châteauguay, Que. and North Vancouver, BC. / CPA Repentigny / Coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs