Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier achieved a historic milestone at the Skate Canada International figure skating competition. They secured their sixth consecutive gold medals at the event, scoring a total of 202.89 points. In a tight competition, they narrowly surpassed Lithuania’s Allison Reed and Saulius Ambrulevicius, who finished with 200.92 points. The bronze medal went to Canada’s Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha with a total score of 192.41.
Gilles and Poirier took the lead after the rhythm dance on Saturday, earning a score of 85.38, while Reed and Ambrulevicius trailed closely with 80.89 points. Despite the Lithuanians’ strong performance in the free dance on Sunday, earning 120.03 points, it was not enough to catch up as Gilles and Poirier maintained their lead with 117.51 points.
In the men’s competition, Roman Sadovsky was the top Canadian, finishing in seventh place with a score of 236.73 in the free dance, followed by Stephen Gogolev in eighth place with 236.48 points. The event was won by Ilia Malinin of the United States with a total score of 333.81 points.
Malinin set a new world record for the free skate, showcasing his dominance in the sport and solidifying his position as a top contender for the Olympic gold at the upcoming Milano-Cortina Games. His performance included six quads and a triple axel, leaving him with a remarkable lead of 76.6 points over second-place Aleksandr Selevko.
The Skate Canada International is part of the Grand Prix series, with the NHK Trophy in Japan and Skate America in Lake Placid, N.Y., as upcoming events before the Grand Prix Final. The Finlandia Trophy will offer the final opportunity to qualify for the Grand Prix Final.
