SAITAMA, Japan (March 22, 2023) – Led by Canadian champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps, all three Canadian entries are in the top-10 after Wednesday’s pair short program at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships.
Last year’s silver medalists, Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan, are first with 80.72 points, defending champions Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier of the U.S. second at 74.64 and Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii of Italy stand third at 73.24. Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps, of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., follow in fourth at 72.81. Lia Pereira of Milton, Ont., and Trennt Michaud of Trenton, Ont., are sixth with a season best 65.31 and Brooke McIntosh and Benjamin Mimar of Toronto, Ont., stand 10th also with a SB 63.33.
‘’It wasn’t our strongest performance of the year, but it had some elements that were the best that we’ve done all year,’’ said Stellato-Dudek. ‘’We had sky-high nerves, jet lag, the ice was different so there was a lot of things reminding me of the key words I need to think of.’’
Pereira and Michaud are in their first season together and the Worlds are only their sixth competition as a pair.
‘’We are trying to take every competition as a new experience,’’ said Pereira. ‘’We’re learning and growing as a team, so we are really happy with the performance we put out today.’’
It is also a first Worlds for McIntosh and Mimar who are in their first year competing as seniors.
‘’I felt shaky a bit the first thirty seconds of the program but after it got better,’’ said Mimar. ‘’After nationals (in January) we tried to rebuild a bit and show that we can be very fast on the ice.’’
In the women’s short program, defending champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan stands first with Haein Lee of South Korea second and Mai Mihara of Japan third. Two-time Canadian champion Madeline Schizas of Oakville, Ont., is 16th.
‘’I’m happy with the fight I showed after the fall but not super happy with the score,’’ said Schizas. ‘’I landed the triple-triple combo which is a make-or-break jump for me here, but I came here to get a top-10.’’
Competition continues Thursday with the pair free skate and the men’s short program. The event is available for Canadian viewers on the CBC Sports website. For full results, click here.