OTTAWA, ON: Skate Canada will have a total of 12 skaters competing at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships®2022 in Tallinn, Estonia. Canada will have two entries in each discipline. The event will take place April 13 – 17, 2022.
Wesley Chiu, 16, Richmond, B.C., will be the first Canadian entry in men’s. Wesley has had a great season thus far, winning both gold and bronze on the ISU Junior Grand Prix. Recently, Wesley competed at the senior level at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships where he finished third. Wesley is coached by Keegan Murphy and Eileen Murphy in Richmond, B.C.
Stephen Gogolev, 16, Toronto, Ont., is the second Canadian entry in the men’s discipline. Gogolev finished eleventh at the 2021 Warsaw Cup. Domestically Gogolev captured gold at the 2022 Skate Canada Challenge. Gogolev is coached by Rafael Arutyunyan in Irvine, California, and Lee Barkell in Toronto, Ont.
Justine Miclette, 16, Chambly, Que., will be the first entry for Canada in women’s. This season, Miclette placed first at both the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and the 2022 Skate Canada Challenge in junior women. Internationally, Miclette competed at the junior grand prix event in Kosice, Slovakia, where she finished 15th. Most recently Miclette competed at the Challenge Cup in the Netherlands where she placed fourth. She is coached by Stéphanie Fiorito in Chambly, Que.
Lia Pereira, 18, Milton, Ont., is the second entry in women. This season, Pereira finished in 10th place at the 2021 ISU Junior Grand Prix in Krasnoyarsk, Russia. She also competed at the senior level domestically, finishing fourth at the 2022 Skate Canada Challenge and 10th at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. The most recent competition for Pereira was the Challenge Cup in the Netherlands in which she finished in sixth place. Pereira is coached by Nancy Lemaire and Derek Schmidt in Milton, Ont.
Brooke McIntosh, 17, Toronto, Ont., and Benjamin Mimar, 20, Terrebonne, Que., are the first Canadian entry in pairs. The pair captured gold at both the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and the 2022 Bavarian Open in Germany. They are coached by Andrew Evans, Alexander Sheldrick-Male, and Pavol Porac in Mississauga, Ont.
Chloe Panetta, 18 from Oakville, Ont., and Kieran Thrasher, 17 from Amherstburg, Ont., are Canada’s second pairs entry. This duo previously placed sixth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Gdansk, Poland. The pair also finished fourth at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. Panetta and Thrasher are coached by Bruno Marcotte and Brian Shales in Oakville, Ont.
Natalie D’Alessandro, 17, Toronto, Ont., and Bruce Waddell, 20, Toronto, Ont., are the first entry in ice dance. D’Alessandro and Waddell have had a great season, most recently capturing the silver medal in junior ice dance at the 2022 Egna Dance Trophy and gold at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. They are coached by Andrew Hallam, Joey Russell, and Tracy Wilson in Toronto, Ont.
Nadiia Bashynska, 17, Ajax, Ont., and Peter Beaumont, 20, Ajax, Ont., are the second of two teams representing Canada in ice dance. Bashynska and Beaumont previously won silver at the 2022 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships and bronze at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Linz, Austria. They are coached by Carol Lane and Juris Razgulajevs in Scarborough, Ont.
Manon Perron of Boucherville, Que., and Andre Bourgeois, Skate Canada NextGen Director will be the team leaders at the event. Skate Canada President Karen Butcher will be the team official. Cynthia Benson of Quispamsis, N.B., Reaghan Fortin of Aurora, Ont., Veronique Gosselin of Saint-Jean-sur- Richelieu, Que., Sabrina Wong of Toronto, Ont., will be the Canadian judges at the event. Sylvia Ciurysek of Berwyn, Alta., and Dr. Erika Persson of Edmonton, Alta., will be the Canadian medical staff on site.
Fans can watch the event by accessing the ISU livestream.