Pierrefonds, Quebec (September 15, 2023) – Canadian skaters had an amazing day on Friday at the 2023 Autumn Classic International taking place in Pierrefonds, Que., finishing the day with four medals – 1 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze from the pair and women’s events.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek, 40, of Chicago, USA and Maxime Deschamps, 31, of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., debuted their new free skate to music from “Interview with a Vampire” and were very happy with their score of 131.82 which combined with their first-place score from their short program, earned them a total score of 203.62 to win gold in the pair competition.

“It was the first time we came out with that program so we’re happy with it overall. We have stuff we still need to work on, but overall, we were able to pass the 200-point mark and that was a big goal we set this year and now that’s already done!” said Deschamps following the competition.

Fellow Canadian pair skaters Emmanuelle Proft, 21, of Ottawa, Ont., and Nicolas Nadeau, 25, of Boisbriand, Que., who were competing in their first international competition as a pair, also had a strong free skate, despite a couple of errors, that saw them mount the podium to take the bronze medal with a total score of 165.39.

“Honestly, I’m a bit disappointed in myself as I would have really liked to have done the triple loop side-by-side, but aside from that, I’m happy with our performance. I stayed in the character, and in the choreography, and the solo and I’m really happy about that and I’m even more happy that I get to come home with a medal on home ice,” said Proft.

Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan, the 2023 World Pair Champions who live and train in Oakville, Ont., captured the silver medal with a total score of 188.05.

In the women’s competition, two-time World Champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan was unstoppable, winning the gold with a total score of 203.20. Kaiya Ruiter, 17, of Calgary, Alta., improved from her fourth-place finish in the short program to finish second in the free skate, garnering her the silver medal with a score of 172.68.

“It was a fight for sure, but it felt like a good fight,” said Ruiter who was competing in her first international competition this season. “It felt like a good performance, and I’m very excited to take some things that I’ve been working on and put them towards the next performance this season.”

Justine Miclette, 17, of Chambly, Que., rounded out the podium, bringing home the bronze medal with a total score of 169.24.

“I’m pretty happy, I was going out there to have some fun, and I had some fun. The crowd was even bigger than yesterday so that was fantastic. I really felt their energy and it helped me keep going when I was tired at the end. It was an incredible experience,” said Miclette.

The men’s event started today with the short program, and Canadians Stephen Gogolev of Toronto, and Wesley Chiu of Vancouver finished the day sitting in the silver and bronze positions respectively behind Ilia Malinin of the USA. Their competition will wrap up Saturday with the free skate.

After the rhythm dance, Sandrine Gauthier of Saint-Constant, Que., and Quentin Thieren of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., are sitting in sixth, while Alyssa Robinson of Ridgetown, Ont., and Jacob Portz of Calgary, Alta., are sitting 9^th. The ice dance competition will wrap up Saturday with the free dance.

For full results click here