The competition on Saturday at #SCNats took us back to the 90s with energetic Rhythm Dances, new Canadian champions in Men’s and Pairs and an exciting women’s short program event.

Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier brought the arena to its feet with their vibrant RuPaul rhythm dance, skating to a new personal best score of 93.11. The team approached the performance with a relaxed, confident mindset, focusing on the details and connection they’ve been refining in recent weeks. “We skated like we were at home,” said Piper, noting how special it was to feel the program come to life for the first time and to feed off the energy of the crowd. Paul added that the result was a direct reflection of the work put in since the Grand Prix Final. “It’s been a lot of repetition and run-throughs,” he said, “and today we really felt that work carry us through the program and pay off.”

Photo credit: Tina Weltz Media

The rest of the Ontario dance teams continued to bring the energy in the rhythm dance, with the following placements heading into the free dance:

• 8th place – Lily Hensen and Nathan Lickers
• 10th place – Nadiia Bashynska and Noé Perron
• 11th place – Alisa Korneva and Kieran MacDonald
• 13th place – Amanda Urban and Peter Beaumont
• 14th place – Lucy Hancockl / Aiden Dotzert

The men’s event crowned a new Canadian champion, as Ontario’s Stephen Gogolev captured the national title with a score of 275.50. Following his victory, Gogolev reflected on the moment with a mix of pride and disbelief. “It feels a bit unreal — it hasn’t really sunk in yet,” he said. “Overall, I was pretty happy with the performance. It wasn’t perfect, but I’m quite satisfied.”

He also acknowledged the heightened pressure surrounding the free skate. “Today I definitely felt more pressure,” he added. “This felt like the final deciding moment of who’s going to Milan, and it was probably the most nervous I’ve been at a competition.”

Roman

Photo credit: Tina Weltz Media

Roman Sadovsky rebounded from a fourth-place short program to capture the silver medal, delivering an emotional and expressive free skate. Reflecting on his performance, he said “everything we worked on from a performance standpoint showed out there, and that’s what I’m most proud of. After the short program I was really beating myself up, so I’m glad I could finish Nationals with something to be proud of, rather than focusing on what I could have done differently.”

Ontario’s men were well represented across the standings, finishing in the following positions:

• 6th place – John Kim
• 7th place – David Bondar
• 11th place – Grayson Long
• 13th place – David Shteyngart
• 14th place – Bruce Waddell
• 16th place – Jake Ellis
• 18th – Alec Guinzbourg

The women’s short program was nothing short of exciting. Ontario’s Minsol Kwon is the leader after the short program, narrowly edging out Gabrielle Daleman who sits in in second place by 0.19 points. “I didn’t expect to get first place, I’m really happy for that and I’m really thankful for everyone,” said Minsol.

Photo credit: Tina Weltz Media

Returning to competitive skating after two surgeries and major setbacks, Gabby Daleman expressed pride and gratitude at being back on the ice at Nationals. “I was emotional during warm-up, I’m emotional now, and I was definitely emotional after the skate,” she said. “No one truly knows the struggle it took to get back here. I’m really proud of myself. it’s not easy, and I’m so grateful to be able to do what I love every day.”

As the tight race continues into tomorrow’s free skate, the Ontario women sit in the following spots:

• 4th place – Maddie Schizas
• 6th place – Reese Rose
• 8th place – Meghan Woodley
• 10th place – Katherine Medland Spence
• 12th place – Lulu Lin
• 15th place – Hetty Shi
• 17th place – Cristina Lyons

After finishing second in the short program, Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud capped off the day by claiming their first Canadian pairs title. The duo returned to their powerful Gladiator free skate — the same program they performed at the 2022 World Championships.

Reflecting on the gold-medal result, Trennt shared his pride in the team’s journey. “We were already very happy with how we felt after the skate, and of course this adds even more happiness,” he said. “We’re really proud of what we did this week, and especially today. It just shows the work that went into this season.”

Photo credit: Tina Weltz Media

Ava Kemp and Yohnatan Elizarov impressed in their Senior Nationals debut, finishing just off the podium in fourth place. Jazmine Desrochers and Kieran Thrasher also delivered strong performances in their senior debut, closing out the event in fifth place.

The competition concludes today with what promises to be an exciting Senior Women’s Free Skate and Senior Free Dance. Good luck to all Ontario skaters, we are #SkateOntarioProud of you all! Be sure to follow us on social media @SkateOntario to see all of the #SCNats26 action! For full event information, please visit the Skate Canada website.