The pre-Olympic season is an especially critical one for figure skaters. It presents a chance to try some new things to grow artistically, to get the competitive repetitions in to solidify technical skills, and to make an impression on fans and judges. Capping off the season are the most important world championships of the quadrennial – where Olympic quota spots are on the line.
While there have been a few lower stress competitions so far this fall, they are but a warmup for what’s to come. Most top skaters will compete in two of the six ISU Grand Prix events throughout October and November, aiming to be ranked among the top six in their discipline which would qualify them for the ISU Grand Prix Final in December.
Then come the national championships, which for Canada will take place in January. After that, skaters will be named to the teams heading off to the ISU Four Continents Championships and those all-important ISU World Championships.
With the season about to really begin, here is a look at some of the Canadian figure skaters and storylines to keep an eye on.
The ISU World Figure Skating Championships in March will be the primary qualification event for Milano Cortina 2026. It is where most of the Olympic quota spots will be allocated to countries, though a few in each discipline will remain to be allocated at another competition in the fall of 2025.
Based on last year’s results, Canada will have the maximum three ice dance couples and three pairs at the world championships, with the aim of retaining three spots in each discipline for the Olympic Games. It’s a different story in men’s and women’s singles, with only one spot in each for the world championships. The hope is that someone will step up and finish in the top 10 at the worlds, giving Canada the opportunity to earn a second Olympic spot in each of the singles events.
Canada had two ice dance teams in the top five at the 2024 World Championships. Leading the way were Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, who earned silver for their best ever world championship result. They actually won the free skate to move up a step from their first two appearances on the world podium. While that upward trajectory is sure to inspire confidence, they know that getting to stand atop the podium will not be easy, especially with two other veteran teams – Americans Madison Chock & Evan Bates and Italians Charlene Guignard & Marco Fabbri – wanting to be there.
READ: Gilles & Poirier skate to emotional ice dance silver at World Figure Skating Championships
As is often the case in ice dance, their two programs for the season have vastly different vibes. For the rhythm dance – which must fit the theme of “social dances and styles of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s” – Gilles and Poirier will be showcasing the “picture perfect California world” that comes to mind with the music of the Beach Boys. For the free dance, they’ve identified a tango-esque type of energy in “A Whiter Shade of Pale” as covered by Annie Lennox. It’s quite a change from last year’s haunting and dramatic Wuthering Heights free dance but gained acclaim as an exhibition program while they toured with Stars on Ice this past spring.
“There’s a lot of flow, a lot of beautiful transitions, the elements really don’t start until later in the program. And I think that really just shows the depth and the confidence that we have in our skating skills and ability,” Gilles said at Skate Canada’s High Performance Camp in late August. “I think old school skating fans will enjoy this program a lot.”
“It’s a little ballroom-y but not completely ballroom-y,” added Poirier. “We really wanted to show this season some dancing, some tight skating, some close holds.”
Over the last few years, they have been clear that continuing to compete is a season-to-season decision. But while the choice to compete in 2023-24 took them a while to land on, this season it was a much easier “yes”, partly due to the “exciting” vehicles they’ve selected that allow them to have fun while continuing to challenge themselves.
Just a couple spots behind Gilles and Poirier at the last worlds were Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha, who made their ascent into the top flight of ice dancers with their fifth-place finish at home in Montreal. That was despite having their training limited in the leadup as she recovered from a concussion. Being able to have a career-best performance under those circumstances gave them confidence and insight into how to train smarter.
“Worlds were a big thing for me, but bigger is my health because long term we want to do two more Olympics, at least,” Lajoie said at the High Performance Camp about ensuring she had full medical clearance before getting back into rigorous training.
They may still be just 24 and 25, but Lagha sounded very much like the veteran when asked about whether they felt a world medal was more attainable following their success in Montreal.
“We don’t think about that. Focus on the effort, not on the results. It can create pressure that you don’t need,” he said of their philosophy. “Give a good show [“as usual”, chimed in Lajoie] and then after the judges decide whatever. It’s not our place to say, our place is to skate good.”
“We skate better with less pressure,” added Lajoie.
They’ve themed their rhythm dance around selections from the Austin Powers soundtrack and their free dance to Disturbed’s cover of “The Sound of Silence”.
Two other Canadian ice dance teams will be on the Grand Prix series this fall, Marie-Jade Lauriault & Romain Le Gac and Alicia Fabbri & Paul Ayer.
Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps enter the season with the pressure-making title of world champions, making them the hunted rather than the hunters for the first time. But they’re not going to let their past success distract from their future goals, which now include beating what they did last season.
“It was more just a step in our career to go where we want to go,” said Deschamps.
Though fans may have watched their gold-winning free skate over and over, they have not gone out of their way to relive that magical moment in Montreal, partly because it was so emotional and partly because they don’t want to live in the past. Having embarked almost immediately on various tours before getting quickly back into training and the creation of new programs, one season has merged right into the next.
Their short program is Beyonce’s slowed down and sensual remix of her own hit “Crazy in Love”, allowing them to lean into the focus on their maturity; at 40 Stellato-Dudek became the oldest woman to win a world title in figure skating. Their free skate featuring multiple instrumental selections is intended to portray the concept of Deschamps being called to the ocean and Stellato-Dudek showing him the beauty and danger of the underwater world in which he wants to stay.
“It’s very important for me to be original. I never want to skate to things somebody else has skated to, concepts, ideas, so this was no different. And this one is even further outside the box and so original to Max and I,” she explained of the program that helped them take silver at the Nebelhorn Trophy in September.
If there is one thing that all Canadian fans are anxiously waiting for it is the news that American-born Stellato-Dudek is a Canadian citizen. All the paperwork has been filed, but it takes time for the process to be completed that would get her the passport she needs to become Olympic-eligible for Team Canada.
It’s still somewhat hard to believe this will be just the second full season together for Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud, who have twice been in the top eight at the world championships. Earning a second straight trip to the ISU Grand Prix Final would really establish their consistency. Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Éthier, who made their world championship debut last season, will be the third Canadian pair on the Grand Prix series.
Madeline Schizas has been Canada’s top women’s singles skater internationally for several years now. But she’s also seeking more consistency after a disappointing 2023-24 and hopes her very organized and methodical off-season will pay off. Trying to regain the momentum she had in the last Olympic season, she made a conscious choice to compete more often this season. Schizas has also converted one of her show numbers, to music from The Lion King, to be her new short program and landed on Danse Macabre for the free skate.
Waiting in the wings is 18-year-old Kaiya Ruiter who took the national title from Schizas in January and then represented Team Canada at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games. She’s recently moved her training base from Calgary to Toronto where she is now coached by Tracy Wilson and Brian Orser.
Which Canadian man will step up this season to claim the spotlight? Competing on the Grand Prix series: reigning national champion, 19-year-old Wesley Chiu; former national champion and Olympian, Roman Sadovsky; big jumper Stephen Gogolev, who was thwarted by a back injury at last year’s nationals; and fresh from the junior ranks, Aleksa Rakic.
Looking to continue his artistic development, Chiu worked with a new choreographer on his free skate – three-time Canadian Olympian, ice dancer Shae-Lynn Bourne, who has an outstanding reputation for bringing out the best in skaters who perhaps aren’t as naturally gifted when it comes to musicality and movement. Unfortunately, Chiu’s off-season was disrupted a little when he sprained his right ankle, which is his landing leg. But he is now ready to roll as the serious part of the season begins.
