By: Pj Kwong

Sitting in one of the nicest facilities ever for a Junior Grand Prix in Wuxi, China, I am struck by the fact that regardless of the age of the competitors, the goals are exactly the same. “Skate two clean programs,” is how Skate Ontario coach Lee Barkell described what he and student David Bondar were planning for.

David Bondar

David has already one Junior Grand Prix under his belt this season from Ostrava, Czech Republic where Lee said he had a clean short and a solid free skate to finish in 7th place. David took the ice for a very solid short program where he took his elements one at a time and resulted in a 7th place result heading into the free skate.

David is one of two men from Skate Ontario who are competing at this event, the other is John Kim. John’s coaches are Myke Gillman and Jonathan Mills, and this marks the skater’s second Junior Grand Prix appearance after a 6th place finish in Ankara.

John may have struggled a little with his jumps in his short program but there was no doubt about the elegant impression that his skating style left on the judges as he sits in 10th place after the short program. It’s a learning experience after all, and the competition is tight with less than nine points separating 10th from 4th place. It will all come down to the free skate.

John Kim

Catching up with coach Jonathan, he had this to say about the goals for John at this event: “Focus on strong components and gaining confidence and consistency under pressure.” I love the fact that as a secondary goal, Jonathan wants John to “enjoy competing internationally.”

The enjoyment comes through loud and clear on the faces of the skaters, for whom skating internationally is still a fresh and new experience.

I’m not going to lie; watching the Juniors is a lot of fun. Not only is the competition strong, but I also love getting a sneak peek at the future ‘who’s who’ in the sport. This means you already have some ideas of who to watch for once they hit the Senior ranks. I cannot tell you how many superstars I have discovered this way!

If you want to catch the action, there is a live stream of the event on the ISU’s YouTube channel. In the meantime, we are #SkateOntarioProud.