Madeline Schizas Archives

Piper Gilles & Paul Poirier to Lead Team Canada at 2023 ISU World Team Trophy

April 6, 2023/by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON (April 6, 2023) – Eight skaters across all four disciplines will represent Canada at the 2023 ISU World Team Trophy in Tokyo, Japan from April 13 to 16, 2023. The event, which will mark the last competition of the 2022-2023 figure skating season, is reserved for the top six nations who compete in a team format with points awarded based on skaters’ placement.

Team Canada will be led by 2023 world bronze medalists and 2022 Grand Prix Final winners Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, who will be looking for a fourth consecutive podium finish this season. They will be joined by pair national champions and Grand Prix de France gold medalists Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps, who are coming off a 4th place finish at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships.

In the singles events, two-time Olympian and 2023 national champion Keegan Messing will be competing in the last competition of his illustrious career. Stephen Gogolev, 2019 Junior Grand Prix Final champion and 4th at the 2023 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, will also be representing Canada in the men’s event. The women’s field will feature two-time national champion and Olympian Madeline Schizas, as well as 2023 Skate Canada Challenge bronze medalist Sara-Maude Dupuis.

The competition starts on Thursday, April 13, with rhythm dance and the men’s and women’s short programs. Friday will feature the pair short program, the free dance, and the women’s free program. Competition ends on Saturday, April 15, with the pair and men’s free programs. The Gala Exhibition will take place on Sunday.

Team Canada

Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location 

Men

Women

Pair

Ice Dance

For more information about the event, click here.

Canadian Ice Dancers in Medal Hunt at ISU World Figure Skating Championships

March 24, 2023/by Skate Canada

SAITAMA, Japan (March 24, 2023) – Canadians Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier are in third place in the rhythm dance as they chase a world medal for the second time in their career, at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships.

Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the U.S. lead with 91.94 points followed by European champions Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri of Italy at 88.21. Gilles, from Toronto, Ont., and Poirier, from Unionville, Ont., scored 87.34 in their first competition in three months. They have three international victories this season including the Grand Prix Final.

‘’We were a little nervous in some places,’’ said Gilles. ‘’We came into this event not to focus on the scores but make sure we put two solid performances down and not give anything away.’’

Also in the medal hunt are Canadian champions Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen of Montreal, Que., who are fifth at 85.59. They have two international medals this season including gold at the NHK Trophy Grand Prix held in Japan last November.

‘’We would like to step on the podium for the first time at Worlds and I think we have a really good chance with the results we’ve had this year,’’ said Soerensen. ‘’But once we finish the program and have done the kind of performance we did today, that we were both happy with, then the job and the goal is accomplished and the rest is out of our control.’’

Kaori Sakamoto of Japan successfully defended her women’s world title with Haein Lee of South Korea second and Loena Hendrickx of Belgium third. Two-time Canadian champion Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., climbed from 16^th after the short program to 13^th with the 11^th best free skate.

‘’No matter where I placed I can be proud with how I skated,’’ she said. ‘’I had a tough year putting out skates I wasn’t super thrilled with so we decided to go back to a program I was comfortable with.’’

Competition ends Saturday with the men’s free skate and the free dance. The event is available for Canadian viewers on the CBC Sports website. For full results, click here.

New Pair Team to Compete at the 54th Golden Spin of Zagreb

November 29, 2022/by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON (November 29, 2022) – The ISU Challenger series is scheduled to come to an end with the 54th Golden Spin of Zagreb taking place in Sisak, Croatia from December 7-10, 2022. Canada will be sending a small team to the event, including one woman, one man and one pair team.

National champion Madeline Schizas will be representing Canada in the women’s event. The Olympian has had a strong season so far, finishing 5th at the 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy, 7th at the 2022 Skate Canada International and 5th at the Grand Prix Espoo.

Corey Circelli of Toronto, Ontario, will be the sole Canadian entry in the men’s competition. Circelli claimed bronze at the 2022 Skate Canada Challenge and finished 10th at the MK John Wilson Trophy, which marked his first-ever ISU Grand Prix participation.

They will be joined by the newly formed pair team of Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud, who will be competing at their first international competition. Michaud won bronze at the 2022 Four Continents and is a three-time national silver medalist, while Pereira placed 4th at last year’s Skate Canada Challenge in the women’s discipline. The pair have already won a gold medal at the 2023 Skate Ontario Junior & Senior Sectional Championships.

Team Canada
Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location

Women
Madeline Schizas | 19 | Oakville, Ont. | Nancy Lemaire & Derek Schmidt | Milton, Ont.

Men
Corey Circelli | 20 | Toronto, Ont. | Brian Orser & Oula Jaaskelainen| Toronto, Ont.

Team Leader – Laura Baker
Official – Sabrina Wong

The Skating World Converges in Mississauga for Skate Canada International

October 24, 2022/by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON (October 24, 2022) – After a successful weekend at Skate America that saw Canadians win three medals, the ISU Grand Prix series stops in Mississauga, Ontario this week for the 48th edition of Skate Canada International. From October 28-30, some of the best skaters from around the globe will compete for a spot on the podium at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre, including Shoma Uno, Young You, Lilah Fear, Lewis Gibson, Riku Miura, Ryuichi Kihara, plus fifteen of Canada’s top talents.

The men’s team, which will count three entries, will be headlined by veteran and two-time Olympian Keegan Messing. Messing is the current Canadian champion and has gotten off to a stunning start this season, winning gold at the Nebelhorn Trophy. He will be joined by Conrad Orzel, who recently placed 11th at the Finlandia Trophy, as well as Stephen Gogolev, who finished 9th at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic.

Olympians Madeline Schizas and Gabrielle Daleman will represent Canada in the women’s field. Schizas, the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships women’s gold medallist, kicked off the competition season with a 5th place at the Nebelhorn Trophy. Teammate Gabrielle Daleman will be competing at her first international event after an excellent domestic season that saw her win gold at the 2022 Skate Canada Challenge and bronze at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

In the pair discipline, Canada will be sending two young but solid teams, with Brooke McIntosh and Benjamin Mimar setting their sights on the top step of the podium. The pair, who finished third at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships last season, had a breakthrough start to their first senior season, winning bronze at the 2022 Finlandia Trophy earlier this month. Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Éthier will also be competing in the event after winning bronze over the weekend at Skate America.

Canada will boast three Olympic teams in ice dance. 2021 Skate Canada International gold medallists Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier will be looking to defend their title after a successful 2021-2022 season that saw the pair claim the Canadian title. Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha will also be strong contenders for the title, with the team winning two gold medals this year at the Ondre Nepela Memorial and Budapest Trophy. Finally, Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac , who claimed bronze at Skate America, will be replacing Miku Makita and Tyler Gunara due to injury.

Competition starts on Friday, October 28 with every discipline performing their short program/rhythm dance. All medals will be awarded on Saturday, October 29, as all disciplines will perform their free program/free dance. The event concludes on Sunday with the exhibition gala. The event will be live streamed in Canada via skatecanada.ca.

Team Canada

Name | Age | Hometown | Coach | Training Location

Team Leaders – Carolyn Allwright & Cynthia Ullmark
Medical Team – Tatiana Jevremovic & Agnes Makowski
Officials – Andrea Derby, Veronique Gosselin, Janice Hunter & Lorna Schroder

For more information about the event and full schedules, click here. To purchase single-session tickets, visit ticketmaster.ca.

Schizas 12th, Gilles and Poirier Fifth After Rhythm Dance at ISU World Figure Skating Championships®

March 25, 2022/by Skate Canada

MONTPELLIER, France – Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., took 12^th spot in women’s competition Friday while Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Toronto stand fifth after the rhythm dance at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships®

Olympic bronze medallist Kaori Sakamoto of Japan won the women’s gold with Loena Hendrickx of Belgium second and Alysa Liu of the U.S. third.

Schizas ranked 10^th in both Thursday’s short program and the free skate, but she still dropped slightly in the standings.

‘’I’m happy with my skates,’’ said Schizas, 19^th in her Olympic debut last month. ‘’This is the kind of scores and performances I’ve put out this year.’’

Canada iced three entries in ice dancing. After the rhythm dance, Gilles and Poirier stand fifth, Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Sorensen of Montreal eighth and Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of St-Hubert, Que., 13^th.

Olympic champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France set a ‘’new record score’’ for the rhythm dance with 92.73. Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue of the U.S. are second at 89.72 and their compatriots Madison Chock and Evan Bates third at 87.51.

‘’We are a little disappointed in the scores today,’’ said Gilles, who received 80.79 with her partner. ‘’We feel like we performed it almost at our best. We did make some changes since the Olympics and maybe not having those totally under our belt may have hurt us a bit.’’

Competition ends Saturday with the men’s free skate and the free dance.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/wc2022/

James and Radford fifth after short program at ISU World Championships

March 24, 2022/by Skate Canada

MONTPELLIER, France – Vanessa James and Eric Radford posted Canada’s top result in Wednesday’s short programs to open the 2022 ISU World Figure Skating Championships® ranking fifth in pairs.

American teams are 1-2 with Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier first at 76.88 and Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy Leduc second at 75.85. Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan are third at 71.58.

James and Radford opened with a perfect triple twist which set the tone for a clean program scoring 66.54

‘’We felt free, motivated and liberated,’’ said James, who placed 12th with her first-year at the Olympics. ‘’It was pure enjoyment on the ice for us and it felt so good. We let a few levels go and there were a few bobbles but how we felt on the ice was a rare moment.’’

Their compatriots Evelyn Walsh of London, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Trenton, Ont., are eighth. Walsh and Michaud were making their third appearance at the worlds. They were 12th in 2019 and 2021.

‘’We made mistakes on a couple of elements which were costly,’’ said Walsh. ‘’There were a lot of good things to the program and the actual skating was better.’’

In women’s competition, Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., earned 64.20 points in a clean short program to stand in 10^th spot. The 19-year-old Olympian opened with a triple Lutz-triple toe-loop combo, followed by a triple loop and later on also landed a double Axel.

Kaori Sakamoto of Japan is first at 80.32, Loena Hendrickx of Belgium second at 75.00 and Mariah Bell of the U.S. third at 72.55.

‘’I’m happy with my skate after an up and down kind of week,’’ said Schizas. ‘’It was a strong performance, and I showed a lot of resilience.’’

Competition continues Thursday with the men’s short program and the pairs free skate.

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/wc2022/

Canadians in Medal Position at ISU Grand Prix

November 26, 2021/by Skate Canada

SOCHI, Russia – Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., and Montreal ice dancers Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen are both in third place after Friday’s short programs at the Rostelecom Cup,the sixth stop on the ISU Grand Prix figure skating circuit.

In men’s competition, Kazuki Tomono of Japan is first after the short with 95.81 points. Morisi Kvitelashvili of Georgia follows closely at 95.37 and Sadovsky, 12th at Skate Canada International last month, earned a season’s best 84.59.

‘’Overall, I am very pleased with what I was able to put out there today,’’ said Sadovksy, 22. ‘’I had a little bit of struggle internationally this year so far. I hope that my efforts and adjustments we did in practice will reflect in my free skate.’’

In ice dancing, world champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia lead after the rhythm dance with 86.81. Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri of Italy are second at 79.56 and Fournier Beaudry and Sorensen are third at 76.39.

‘’We felt pretty good today, it wasn’t perfect,’’ said Soerensen, third with his partner Laurence Fournier Beaudry at Skate America, last month. ‘’We improved a lot on the performance and also on the technical side since Skate America.’’

Also in the medal hunt is Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., who is fourth after the short in women’s competition with a season’s best 67.49. Schizas, 18, was eighth at Skate Canada International and ninth at the Finlandia Trophy.

Russia is 1-2 with Kamila Valieva first with 87.42 and Elizaveta Tuktamysheva second at 80.10. Mariah Bell of the U.S. is third at 69.37.
In pairs, Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., are seventh after the short.

All four free skates are on Saturday.
Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/gprus2021/CAT004RS.htm

Gilles and Poirier Take the Road to Gold at Skate Canada International

October 31, 2021/by Skate Canada

VANCOUVER – The long and winding road led to gold for Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier as they won the ice dance competition on Saturday at Skate Canada International, the second stop on the ISU Grand Prix circuit.

Skating to the Beatles classic, the Toronto duo enthralled the crowd at UBC totalling 210.97 points less than four points off their personal best set in a bronze medal performance at the world championships in March. Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri of Italy were second at 200.05 and Olivia Smart and Adrian Diaz of Spain third at 192.83.

‘’The free dance was a little more shaky than our short program,’’ said Poirier. ‘’We have some nerves to work through, but this is really a big step forward moving through the rest of the Grand Prix season.’’

Marjorie Lajoie of Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha of St-Hubert, Que., were sixth and Haley Sales and Nikolas Wamsteeker of Langley, B.C. 10^th.

‘’We didn’t get the score we wanted but that ovation from the crowd at the end that for me was really awesome,’’ said Lajoie.

In pairs, Canadians Vanessa James and Eric Radford came within less than two points from the podium finishing fourth with 187.92 points.

Wenjing Sui and Cong Han of China took the gold with 224.05, Daria Pavliuchenko and Denis Khodykin of Russia were second at 193.08 and Ashley Cain -Gribble and Timothy Leduc of the U.S. climbed from sixth after the short to third with 189.90.

First year partners James and Radford were less than three points off their best score set earlier this month at the Finlandia Trophy.

‘’Aspects of our program grew and improved, aspects of certain elements that we focused on after Finlandia improved but certain other elements need improvement,’’ said Radford.

‘’This is a step up,’’ added James. ‘’A lot of the transition elements are better, but we are still working on getting that clean program.’’

Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., were sixth and Lori-Anne Matte and Thierry Ferland of Levis, Que., were seventh.

In men’s competition, Nathan Chen of the U.S. was the only skater in the top group to deliver a clean program and he won the gold outright landing four quads and totalling 307.18 points. Jason Brown of the U.S. was second at 259.55 and Evgeni Semenenko of Russia moved from fifth to third with 256.01.

Canada’s Keegan Messing struggled in his free skate and dropped from third to fifth overall with 238.34. Conrad Orzel of Woodstock, Ont., couldn’t gain ground with the sixth best free skate and remained ninth and Roman Sadovsky of Vaughan, Ont., was 12^th.

‘’I was pretty disappointed I wasn’t able to give the performance I wanted to today,’’ said Messing, sixth at the world championships this past March. ‘’After my fall I felt a bit shaky but I tried to forget about it. I’m just going to put my best foot forward towards the next competition.’’

Orzel was determined to bounce back after a subpar short.

‘’I was disappointed about my short program, so it was great to come back in the long and do two quad toes in the free skate,’’ said Orzel, 21, in his season debut. ‘’Although there were some mistakes, I was happy with the general performance.’’

Russia swept the medals in women’s competition with Kamila Valieva first, Elizaveta Tuktamysheva second and Alena Kostornaia third.

Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., was eighth, Emily Bausback of Vancouver 11^th and Alison Schumacher of Tecumseh, Ont., 12th.

‘’I was really happy with my free program today,’’ said Schizas, 18, 13^th at the 2021 worlds. ‘’My coaching team and I made a lot of changes since my last competition to make the second half of the program more successful and that reflected in my performance today.’’

Full results: http://www.isuresults.com/results/season2122/gpcan2021/

Lajoie and Lagha Seventh Against Stellar Field at Finlandia Trophy

October 10, 2021/by Skate Canada

ESPOO, Finland – Canadian ice dancers Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha maintained their seventh-place position after Sunday’s free dance to conclude the Finlandia Trophy figure skating competition, the fourth stop on the ISU Challenger Series.

Four-time world champions Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France took the gold with 217.54 points. Defending champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the U.S. followed at 208.31 and Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson of Britain were third at 190.39.

Lajoie and Lagha, the 2019 world junior champions, ranked seventh in both programs this week finishing with 181.03. They were fourth in their season debut at the Autumn Classic International last month in Pierrefonds, Que.

‘’We were really nervous,’’ said Lagha, 22, from St-Hubert, Que. ‘’It was a good accomplishment to get through a performance like that.’’

The couple had firm objectives for this event.

‘’Every little element there was a stress for us,’’ added Lajoie, 20, from Boucherville, Que. ‘’We wanted to make sure we successfully check marked each of the sections in our program. In the end we were quite happy about it.’’

Carolane Soucisse of Chateauguay, Que., and Shane Firus of North Vancouver climbed three spots after the rhythm dance to place 11^th.

‘’We are super happy with free dance, it went as planned,’’ said Soucisse. ‘’We were confident going in. There’s some work to do on the rhythm dance but the programs are taking form and trending in the right direction.’’

The couple was delighted to perform before spectators.

‘’It was great to be in front of a crowd again and they really carried us through our free dance,’’ said Firus, fifth with his partner at the Autumn Classic International.

In women’s competition, Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., brought a huge cheer from the crowd with her eighth-ranked free skate to jump from 12^th after the short program to ninth overall. The 18-year-old produced a clean program which opened with a triple Lutz-triple toe and included two other combos as well as the double Axel.

Russia was 1-2-3 with Kamila Valieva, the 2019 Junior Grand Prix Final champion earning the gold.

‘’I was really happy with my performance today,’’ said Schizas, 13^th at the world championships this past March. ‘’I came here to put out my tech content some of which is new for this season.’’

Full results: http://www.figureskatingresults.fi/results/2122/CSFIN2021/index.htm

TEN CANADIAN SKATERS HEADED TO FINLAND FOR FINLANDIA TROPHY

October 6, 2021/by Skate Canada

OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will have six entries, for a total of ten skaters competing at the 2021 Finlandia Trophy in Espoo, Finland this week. Canada will have one entry in men, one entry in women, two entries in pairs and two entries in ice dance. This event is the fourth stop of the 2021 ISU Challenger Series and takes place from October 7 to 10, 2021.

Keegan Messing, 29, Girdwood, Alaska, USA, will be the lone Canadian entry in men. Last season, Messing finished sixth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships^® 2021 and brought home bronze at Skate America. He is coached by Ralph Burghart in Anchorage, Alaska, USA.

Madeline Schizas, 18, Oakville, Ont., will be the only Canadian entry in women. Last season Schizas finished first at the Skate Canada Challenge and thirteenth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships^® 2021. She is coached by Nancy Lemaire and Derek Schmidt in Milton, Ont.

National pairs team, Kirsten Moore-Towers, 29, St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro, 29, Sarnia, Ont., will be the first of two Canadian entries in pairs. Last season they finished sixth at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships^® 2021. They are coached by Bruno Marcotte, Alison Purkiss and Brian Shales in Oakville, Ont.

National pairs team, Vanessa James, 34, Scarborough, Ont., and Eric Radford, 36, Balmertown, Ont., will be the second Canadian entry in pairs. They finished second at the 2021 Autumn Classic International. This is their first season competing together internationally. They are coached by Julie Marcotte in Montreal, Que.

Marjorie Lajoie, 20, Boucherville, Que., and Zachary Lagha, 22, Saint-Hubert, Que., will be the first ice dance entry representing Canada. Lajoie and Lagha are the 2020 Canadian Silver Ice Dance Medalists and most recently placed fourth at the 2021 Autumn Classic International. They are coached by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer, Pascal Denis and Josée Piche in Montreal, Que.

Carolane Soucisse, 26, Châteauguay, Que., and Shane Firus, 27, North Vancouver, BC., will be the second Canadian entry in ice dance. In 2020, they finished third in the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and most recently finished fifth at the 2021 Autumn Classic International They are coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs in Toronto, Ont.

Mike Slipchuk, Skate Canada High Performance Director will be the team leader and Dr. Shae Zukiwsky, Senior Director, Performance Excellence will be the team official at the event. Physiotherapist Pat Stanziano, Oakville, Ont., will be the Canadian medical staff onsite. Beth Crane, Burnaby, B.C., and Janice Hunter, Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian judges attending the event.

For more information, please visit www.isu.org.

CANADIAN ENTRIES AT ISU CS FINLANDIA TROPHY – ESPOO, FINLAND

MEN
Keegan Messing (29) / Girdwood, Alaska / Ice Palace FSC / Coached by Ralph Burghart

WOMEN
Madeline Schizas (18) / Oakville, Ont. / Milton SC / Coached by Nancy Lemaire and Derek Schmidt

PAIRS
Kirsten Moore-Towers (29) and Michael Marinaro (29) / St. Catharines, Ont., and Sarnia, Ont. / Skate Oakville / Coached by BrunoMarcotte, Alison Purkiss and Brian Shales

Vanessa James (34) and Eric Radford (36) / Scarborough, Ont., and Balmertown, Ont. / EPJM and C.P.A. Saint Leonard / Coached by Julie Marcotte

ICE DANCE
Marjorie Lajoie (20) and Zachary Lagha (22) / Boucherville, Que. and Saint-Hubert, Que. / CPA Boucherville and CPA Saint Lambert / Coached by: Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, Romain Haguenauer, Pascal Denis and Josée Piche

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

Madeline Schizas looking forward to international debut at ISU World Figure Skating Championships

March 19, 2021/by Skate Canada

If Madeline Schizas is feeling starstruck as she prepares to step under the bright lights of the ISU World Figure Skating Championships for the first time, she hides it well.

Set to make her debut on the biggest stage in skating next week – in the midst of a global pandemic, no less – the 18-year-old from Oakville, Ont. can’t wait to dip her foot into the sport’s international waters for the first time.

Given the events of the past year, Schizas’s journey to Stockholm has been far from conventional, but she can’t contain her enthusiasm as she gets ready to proudly represent Canada when the ladies short program kicks off the competition Wednesday.

“I think everyone follows their own path, and this was just mine,” said the 2020 Canadian women’s bronze medallist on a conference call before departing for Sweden. “I think that I’m going into this event with a lot of confidence, even without having a lot of international experience. It’s really special to me that I’m getting to compete at Worlds, and I’m excited for the experience.”

It should be an experience unlike any other, on every level.

For most of team Canada, comprised of eight entries and 13 skaters, these world championships will be their first taste of international competition in well over a year. Only Keegan Messing, who holds dual citizenship and lives in Alaska while representing Canada internationally, competed on the ISU Grand Prix circuit this past season, earning bronze at Skate America in October.

Two months ago, Schizas, along with most of her teammates competing in Sweden, were able to get a taste of competition at Skate Canada Challenge, a virtual event where athletes had their performances recorded at their training rinks several weeks before being judged in real time during the event.

Schizas claimed her second straight senior women’s gold medal at Challenge and is hoping to ride that wave of momentum into Sweden.

“My training’s going really well, I feel really well prepared for this event, despite all the crazy things happening right now,” Schizas adds. “My coaches think that I’m probably in the best shape I’ve been in in my entire career.”

Schizas and reigning Canadian women’s champion Emily Bausback will represent Canada in the women’s competition at the world championships.

After the first wave of the pandemic subsided and the Ontario lockdown ended late last spring, Schizas returned to train at Milton Skating Club, her home club, from June through December.

As Ontario entered another lockdown phase just after Christmas, her home club shut its doors temporarily. With limited training options due to lockdown restrictions, Schizas, and coaches Nancy Lemaire and Derek Schmidt, went in search of ice time. They found temporary training refuge at rinks in Hamilton and Richmond Hill before Schizas returned to Milton shortly after Ontario’s latest stay-at-home order was lifted in February.

As she prepared for the world championships, Schizas admitted she was happy to have returned to a sense of normal.

Whatever normal is these days.

“For me, it was about getting back on a schedule, and knowing when I was going to skate, knowing where I was going to skate, and knowing when I was going to go to the gym,” she says.

And now, Schizas’s dream of representing Canada at the world championships has arrived. She is trying to erase all the background noise from the past year and isn’t putting too much pressure on herself. These world championships will determine how many spots Canada earns for next year’s Olympic Winter Games, but Schizas isn’t concerning herself on what-ifs.

“For me, a successful world championship would be skating personal best programs, which is something I really think I can do,” she adds. “That will get us however many spots we get (for the Olympics). That part is not in my hands, and that is what I’m trying to remind myself. I know I can skate consistent programs, and that is what I’m focused on.”

Schizas is doing her best to make sure the moment doesn’t get too big for her. She isn’t sure of what to expect from these world championships, but she knows she isn’t the only one facing that uncertainty.

“I’ve spoken with a lot of skaters who have competed at Worlds before, and the thing that they’ve all told me is this year is going to be different for everybody,” she says.

The women’s short program in Sweden is set to kick off Wednesday, March 24. For the full schedule and list of entries, please click here.