By: Valya Roberts

Friends from when they were 9 years old, Skate Ontario skaters Lia Pereira and Madeline Schizas recently sat down with Skate Ontario to talk about their supportive and special friendship, and what they appreciate about one another.

When reflecting on their friendship, Lia and Maddie shared how much they value the support not only from each other, but also from their coached and the entire Milton Skating Club.

For many of us, we may have seen a glimpse into that support several years ago at Nationals when they competed against each other in the senior category for the first time. They made sure to offer support and to cheer each other on, and their post competition hug was seen around Canada. More recently this was seen at Skate Canada International in Saskatoon when Lia cheered on Maddie, who made a great comeback with her free skate after struggling with the short program.

According to Lia, “Milton is a tight knit community and a small town, and the skating club reflects that closeness”.

Maddie added that training together and attending a sports elementary school for grades 5-8, and often sharing taxis and a coach, gave them a sense of community early on in their careers. Even to this day, they continue to train together three times a week and know that if they need each other, they are right there.

Maddie told Skate Ontario, “It makes it so much easier knowing that Lia is on the same journey as me and we balance each other out…Lia brings all the positivity we all need”.

“I am the golden retriever, and Maddie is the black cat.” Lia said.

Their first international event together was in 2023 in Croatia; Maddie was representing Canada in Senior Women and Lia in her first international Senior Pairs event. Maddie says that having Lia at the same events in her second year of international assignments made it easier for her, as having a friendly face around helps even when competing in an individual sport.

Maddie and Lia agree that it makes it easier for their journey knowing they both have similar goals. Lia says that she isn’t very surprised that they have both stayed in the sports into their twenties because of the support and sense of community they have. Maddie added that they are both so fortunate that their families are also similar in being supportive and not putting any pressure on them. She also added that the Milton Skating Club also does a great job in ensuring it is a healthy training environment, with no tolerance for inappropriate behavior and everyone is treated equally.

Although Maddie is an Olympian, she shares the ice and trains with others whose goal might be to make Sectionals or Nationals. Maddie and Lia shared a story of a trip to Sectionals in Montreal where the whole team from Milton all travelled together, their coach Nancy even got a huge limo for them all. This was back when Nationals included all the different levels of skating. There was a sense of community and friendship, with fun social times too.

Both Lia and Maddie agreed that the coaching they have both had has made staying in the sport much easier, knowing that many girls will drop out during high school. Lia talked about the sense of balance they both have with their lives, family and skating. Maddie reinforced that their families are both supportive and they know this is ‘their’ journey. Being such a niche sport, they talked about the importance of a healthy body and mind, especially as you get older. Lia shared that what your body responds to as a 10 to 12 year old is different than for an adult, so you must train smarter, more efficient and “not compare yourself to your younger self”.

Both agreed that with the changing ages in the junior category, it is very important that coaching methods evolve as well, and both the athlete and coach need to adapt – which is what their coaches did.

Many may not know, but not only is Maddie a full-time athlete, but she is also a university student. This May she will be graduating with her Environmental Science degree. Lia said she looks up to Maddie as she is also in school and appreciates the advice she gives her about juggling skating with school. Both skaters added their community of people (family & coaches) support having this balance in their life, which also helps with longevity in the sport.

With this being an Olympic year, Maddie talked about how much she appreciated all the support she got from Lia leading up to the last Olympics, and this year they will really lean on and support each other as they both ramp up training with hopes of making the 2026 Olympic team. Maddie added that there is no downside to training together, they are on the same page, and they have the perfect training set up. One piece of advice that Maddie has for Lia during a potential future Olympics is to pack some posters, pictures and tape in her case so she can make her room her own personal space. She also suggested she journal the experience so she can make it special when she looks back on it in the future.

I asked both skaters, what they would tell their ten-year-old skating self? Maddie said she would tell her to “listen to your coach” and Lia added, “enjoy every moment, pay attention to the little moments and bring back the fun”. Both agreed it’s important to enjoy the journey, to recognize the adventure and enjoy it.

My final question to test just how well they know each other was to share what junk food or comfort food the other likes. Maddie at once exclaimed, “Nerds Gummy Clusters!” for Lia and both laughed.

For Maddie, they both agreed her comfort food is: “Mac & Cheese with a brownie and lemonade”.

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Valya Roberts is a SkateOntaReporter, a serial skating fan, an avid traveller, and an Executive Director of a Social Services Agency.