Tag Archive for: Brooke McIntosh / Benjamin Mimar

Fournier Beaudry and Soerensen win gold at ISU Challenger Series Finlandia Trophy

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ESPOO, Finland (October 9, 2022) – Canada’s string of international success in ice dance this season continued Sunday as Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen of Montreal, Que. won the gold medal at the ISU Challenger Series Finlandia Trophy.

The Canadian Olympians totalled 203.76 points, their best ever score in international competition. Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker of the U.S. took the silver with 197.45 and Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis of Finland were third at 186.30.

‘’We are so happy to deliver those two performances,’’ said Soerensen. ‘’We’ve been working so hard on redeeming ourselves after how we finished last season, so we are just happy being out here and skating really well.’’

Last season, the couple posted four medal performances in international competition before placing ninth at both the Olympic Winter Games and world championships.

Over the past two weeks Canada has won four international gold in ice dance. At last week’s Challenger Series in Czechia, Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha were the winners and at the last two ISU Junior Grand Prix events, Nadiia Bashynska and Peter Beaumont have struck gold.

Canada added a bronze in pair in Finland with Brooke McIntosh of Toronto, Ont. and Benjamin Mimar of Terrebonne, Que., placing third with 166.61 in their senior international debut.

Germany was 1-2 with Annika Hocke and Robert Kunkel first with 180.62 and Elisa Efimova and Ruben Blommaert second at 177.11.

‘’This was a new experience for us competing at this level,’’ said Mimar, who won the bronze with his partner at the world junior championships last season. ‘’Our free wasn’t the best we could do, after a good short, but we are still happy with third place.’’

Olympic silver medallist Yelim Kim of South Korea won the women’s gold while Lia Pereira of Milton, Ont., was 15th.

Conrad Orzel of Toronto was 11th in men’s competition.

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

Full results: https://www.figureskatingresults.fi/results/2223/CSFIN2022/index.htm

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 

McIntosh and Mimar Win Comeback Bronze at ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships

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TALLIN, Estonia – Brooke McIntosh of Toronto and Benjamin Mimar of Terrebonne, Que., won the bronze medal on Friday in pairs at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

The Canadians were fourth after Thursday’s short program but delivered the third best free skate to climb into the podium position finishing with 156.80 points.

The medal capped a great season for the pair who also captured gold at both Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and the Bavarian Open in 2022.

‘’We focused on what we had to do for the free skate,’’ said McIntosh, 10th at the world juniors with her previous partner in 2019. ‘’We knew we were prepared, and we just had to go and show that. Even through the uncertainty of this season we kept training and kept motivated.’’

Karina Safina and Luka Berulava of Georgia took the gold with 188.12 and Anastasia Golubeva and Hektor Giotopoulos Moore of Australia were second at 169.91.

Chloe Panetta of Oakville, Ont., and Kieran Thrasher of Amherstburg, Ont., remained in seventh with 129.70.

In ice dancing, Canadian couples are second and third after the rhythm dance. Natalie D’Alessandro and Bruce Waddell of Toronto are second with 64.00 points and Nadiia Bashynska and Peter Beaumont of Ajax, Ont., are third at 63.45. They trail leaders Oona Brown and Gage Brown of the U.S. first at 66.98.

D’Alessandro and Waddell continue a successful season, most recently capturing the silver last week at the Egna Dance Trophy and gold in January at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

‘’We had speed and aggression and there was no holding back which allowed us to have one of our best skates of the year,’’ said Waddell.

‘’We got a lot of good feedback on the technical side from our performance in Italy and some of those elements we were able to accomplish here,’’ added D’Alessandro.

This season Bashynska and Beaumont took silver at nationals and bronze at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Linz, Austria.

‘’When we finished that program, it was an explosion of emotions,’’ said Bashynska. ‘’We did everything we wanted basically.’’

‘’There was no thinking going on,’’ added Beaumont. ‘’Everything was natural.’’

Competition continues Saturday with the men’s free skate featuring Canadians Wesley Chiu and Stephen Gogolev second and sixth after Thursday short program and the women’s short program. The free dance is Sunday.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/wjc2022/

Wesley Chiu Second After Short Program at ISU World Junior Championships

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TALLIN, Estonia – Wesley Chiu of Richmond, B.C., is in second place after Thursday’s men’s short program at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

Ilia Malinin of the U.S. stands first with 88.99 points, followed Chiu who bettered his personal best to 81.59. He is slightly ahead of Mihhail Selevko of Estonia in third at 81.26.

Chiu, third in the senior division at nationals in January, produced a clean short program landing his triple Axel, triple flip and combo triple Lutz-triple toe.

‘’I feel amazing this is a personal best by far and I’m very excited about that,’’ said Chiu, 16, a gold and bronze medallist this past season on the ISU Junior Grand Prix circuit. ‘’I had really good practices leading up to this event, so I was confident and ready to go.’’

Stephen Gogolev of Toronto, competing at his third world juniors is in sixth spot and within striking distance of the podium with 78.75. He also landed his three jumps cleanly.

The men’s free skate is on Saturday.

Meanwhile Brooke McIntosh of Toronto and Benjamin Mimar of Terrebonne, Que., are also in the medal hunt in pairs placing fourth in the short program with 58.00.

Karina Safina and Luka Berulava of Georgia lead with 67.77, Anastasia Golubeva and Hektor Giotopoulos Moore of Australia are second at 61.72 and Anastasiia Smirnova and Danylo Siianytsia of the U.S. are third at 60.38.

Chloe Panetta of Oakville, Ont., and Kieran Thrasher of Amherstburg, Ont., are seventh at 47.90.

Competition continues Friday with the pairs free skate and the rhythm dance.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/wjc2022/