Top Ice Dance Moments from the 2023/2024 Season
The 2023/2024 figure skating season came to a crowd-roaring conclusion at the 2024 ISU World Figure Skating Championships at home in Montreal, Quebec. From the junior to senior level, Canada’s ice dancers impressed this season, capturing a total of 14 international medals.
Here are some of the top ice dance moments from the season.
The king and queen of Canadian ice dance, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier continue to impress year after year, and what a year it was for this dynamic duo! Gilles and Poirier posted their best-ever finish at the 2024 ISU World Figure Skating Championships, winning the free dance and capturing the silver medal. Their road to the silver medal included their first championship gold medal at the 2024 ISU Four Continents Championships, a bronze medal at Grand Prix Final, and their fourth title win at Skate Canada International.
Not only did Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha overcome adversity this season, but they also found their place in the upper ranks of Canadian ice dance. After winning two silver medals on the Grand Prix circuit and making their first appearance at Grand Prix Final, Lajoie suffered a concussion that sidelined the duo for months. Finally in the clear to train again just before the World Championships, these previous Junior World Champions (2019) wowed the home crowd to place 5th in Montreal. A huge leap from their previous 11th place finish in 2022.
On the topic of impressive comebacks, Paul Ayer and Alicia Fabbri also had career highlighting moments this year. After being sidelined the previous season due to Ayer’s shoulder injury, Fabbri and Ayer captured their first podium finish – a bronze medal – at Nationals in Ayer’s hometown of Calgary, Alberta. They finished their season strong by winning the first senior international medal of their career, a bronze at the 2024 Challenge Cup.
Skate Canada’s junior teams also shone brightly this season. Ontario’s Layla Vellion and Alexander Brandys claimed their first national title, rising from their fifth-place finish at Nationals the year before. While Chloe Nguyen and Brendan Giang, the newly formed team from British Columbia, took home a silver medal on the junior Grand Prix circuit at the Cup of Austria. Both teams also had standout performances at the 2024 ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships, placing in the top-10.
The future of Canadian ice dance is looking strong as we approach the halfway mark to the 2026 Olympic Games in Milano-Cortina. Make sure to stay tuned to skatecanada.ca and sign up for the Fan List to be the first to know about the 2024/2025 Grand Prix assignments and who’s named to the National Team in the months ahead.