2025–26 Canadian Ice Dance: News and Updates

Bev Smith weighs in on the most recent ice dance judging controversy: Ice Dance Hocus Pocus
The Olympics always brings out the worst in ice dancing judging, but this year’s incidents have reached another level of hocus pocus.

To start off with, the optics were not good when Shawn Rettstatt, an American chair of the ISU ice dance technical committee, acted as the technical controller at both Skate America – where top Olympic contenders Madison Chock and Evan Bates competed – and at Finlandia Trophy, where a couple of their major competitors – Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron (France) and Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier (world silver medalists from Canada) were competing. Rettstatt and his panel set all the levels of difficulty up to level four, most difficult. We hardly saw any level fours.

At both events, the tech panel awarded a host of level ones (lowest difficulty) to teams that are the best in the world, unless of course, you were Chock and Bates, and another up and coming US team Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik.
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:yikes:
 
I hope this does not take us back to the old days of judging cheating or unfairness in dance.

Is there no method of accountability built into the system yet? I thought this had been addressed after SLC?
 
Winnipeg said:
I hope this does not take us back to the old days of judging cheating or unfairness in dance.

Is there no method of accountability built into the system yet? I thought this had been addressed after SLC?
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Like the Who song goes at the end We won't get fooled again "Meet the new boss same as the old boss". Different scoring system but the same judges and people in charge as before the scandal of SLC.
 
The problem with the Bev Smith article is that it's a bunch of half-thoughts all pasted together, as if she literally went to ChatGPT and said 'put all of this together and just briefly touch on every subject but make sure you get every last thing in there'. I'm not a big fan of the 'one judge said this...' and 'one person told me this...' stuff. She's whining a lot about Piper and Paul when the level for her twizzle in the RD did deserve to be massively dropped-- we saw how it could be level 1 at best even if she did get a base level. Everyone in the competition was hit in probably overly harsh ways, though.

Finally, I read the article and I am absolutely sure she listened to Thomas' and my rant show about the judging, because she ever-so-briefly mentions Robin Cousins talking about choreographic elements but doesn't expand on anything else he said-- because that's all I gave in that particular show.

I have two of her books from the 90s still sitting on my bookshelves and they were among my favorites back when I was a pre-teen, but this article is so sloppy and has NO QUANTITATIVE analysis or understanding of the rules, which from the start of IJS until apparently the end of time is going to be my pet peeve.
 
I still see ads for "Own the Podium". I thought there was another corporate group that provided sports experts and funds for Virtue and Moir that paid for physiotherapists and really helpful extras for top Canadian athletes. Does anyone know what is in place now?It might have been called "Road to Excellence" and was for targeted athletes
 
puglover said:
I still see ads for "Own the Podium". I thought there was another corporate group that provided sports experts and funds for Virtue and Moir that paid for physiotherapists and really helpful extras for top Canadian athletes. Does anyone know what is in place now?It might have been called "Road to Excellence" and was for targeted athletes
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It was called B2ten and it’s closed
 
Ice_dance_fan said:
Then why Vadim in his twizzles got same level as Emiliea and level 2?
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I don't know what competition you're talking about. Unless there's a 'not' missing somewhere in what you're trying to ask me.

If you did miss a word, I would suggest checking out exactly what I said here:

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com

If it doesn't go to 13m30s, go to that part.
 
It was at the Finlandia RD where Gilles was given Base in the twizzles because of her net errors and lost levels vs features, and Zingas and Kolesnik both got L2. The argument is that he made the same mistakes that Gilles did, but wasn't penalized for them.
 
kwanfan1818 said:
It was at the Finlandia RD where Gilles was given Base in the twizzles because of her net errors and lost levels vs features, and Zingas and Kolesnik both got L2. The argument is that he made the same mistakes that Gilles did, but wasn't penalized for them.
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Zingas and Kolesnik got level 4, hence why there's what I would assume to be a 'not' missing [before the 'level 2'].
 
Maybe I am all wrong, but it's hard for me to believe the skaters and coaches who criticized the Finlandia judging and the direction ice dance is going in would have had the courage to speak up if they hadn't been given permission to do so by their respective federations. They must have had some solid backing because challenging the authority can often entail serious consequences.
 
A little more fuel for the (dumpster?) fire - Rob Brodie's thoughts: Are we really doing this again?
It took literally years to rebuild the sport in the wake of the Salt Lake mess (a new judging system emerged in the wake of the scandal. Basically the one we have today, although it’s been tweaked a bunch over the years). Eventually, fans were coaxed back into the arenas for the big events, but I’m not sure television ratings have ever truly rebounded in all the years that followed those 2002 Olympics (although, to be fair, the TV broadcast landscape has changed massively since then). Again, there was no real measuring exactly how much damage came out of that judging farce in Utah.

And this is what Gilles was talking about in Helsinki. There are fans out there with an itch to throw themselves back into watching ice dance in particular (the diehards will always be there) but again, it’s about trusting the system. People like Gilles and Poirier talk to fans all the time. They know exactly what’s being said and what opinions are being shared about likes and dislikes. Their ears and eyes are always open.
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:EVILLE::yikes:
 
Pre-GPF article by Debbi Wilkes for Skate Ontario's In The Loop (Dec. 3):
skateontario.org

Welcome Home, Paul Poirier - Skate Ontario

By: Debbi Wilkes Paul Poirier, World Dance medalist with Piper Gilles, was introduced to skating as a 3-year old when he was in Junior Kindergarten in suburban Toronto. “We were just thrown on the ice to play hockey,” says Paul. “They’re like, play, get the puck in the net … but I had no idea
skateontario.org skateontario.org
 
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Just found that Piper has a similar video - "Piper Gilles looks back on the billet family who offered her a safe space, support and the confidence to thrive—on and off the ice" but I can't play it (geo-blocked?): https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7029765
However, 2 shorter videos (from the longer version?) do play for me: https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7029760 & https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7031152

Canadian ice dancer Paul Poirier reflects on journey with Piper Gilles (December 31): https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7031156
 
Bev Smith's post-Canadians article on Piper & Paul:
bevsmithwrites.com

Gilles and Poirier: Vincent in their Corner - Bev Smith Writes

“Now I understand, What you tried to say to me And how you suffered for your sanity And how you tried to set them free. They would not listen. They did not know how. Perhaps they’ll listen now.” So Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, skating to these words this Olympic season, are setting forth “some […]
bevsmithwrites.com bevsmithwrites.com
 
Short Barrie Today article on Homick/Buelow: Barrie-based skaters to represent Canada on international stage
With their strong performances this season, Homick and Buelow now move forward with the opportunity to represent Canada on the international stage — first in Oberstdorf, Germany, at the Bavarian Open and next in Tallinn, Estonia, from March 3 to 8 at the World Junior Championships.
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Skate Canada hasn't yet updated their assignments page with the Bavarian Open entries.
 
Auréa Cinçon-Debout & Earl Jesse Celestino (they competed in 4 JGPs & will turn 19 & 20, respectively, in March 2026 https://isuresults.com/bios/isufs00117813.htm) announced the end of their 9-year ice dance partnership today:
www.instagram.com

Auréa Cinçon-Debout & Earl Jesse Celestino on Instagram: "Hi everyone, After nine unforgettable years of growing together, our partnership has come to an end. We are incredibly grateful for every opportunity, every lesson, and all the unwavering sup

84 likes, 5 comments - aurea_earljesse on January 18, 2026: "Hi everyone, After nine unforgettable years of growing together, our partnership has come to an end. We are incredibly grateful for every opportunity, every lesson, and all the unwavering support along the way. Thank you to Skate...
www.instagram.com www.instagram.com
They placed 5th in Junior at the past 2 Nationals.

ETA - from their ISU bio: "Celestino's brother Edrian Paul (eight years older) competed in single skating at the international level, representing the Philippines. Cincon-Debout was born in France but moved with her family to Canada when she was a few months old."
 
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Sylvia said:
Auréa Cinçon-Debout & Earl Jesse Celestino (they competed in 4 JGPs & will turn 19 & 20, respectively, in March 2026 https://isuresults.com/bios/isufs00117813.htm) announced the end of their 9-year ice dance partnership today:
www.instagram.com

Auréa Cinçon-Debout & Earl Jesse Celestino on Instagram: "Hi everyone, After nine unforgettable years of growing together, our partnership has come to an end. We are incredibly grateful for every opportunity, every lesson, and all the unwavering sup

84 likes, 5 comments - aurea_earljesse on January 18, 2026: "Hi everyone, After nine unforgettable years of growing together, our partnership has come to an end. We are incredibly grateful for every opportunity, every lesson, and all the unwavering support along the way. Thank you to Skate...
www.instagram.com www.instagram.com
They placed 5th in Junior at the past 2 Nationals.
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I am sorry to hear that. I saw them live a few years ago and thought they had real potential. He, in particular, has real charm and personality on the ice. Nine years is a long time for young skaters but things change. All the best to both of them.
 
Auréa Cinçon-Debout's IPS profile (she has Canadian & French citizenship): https://icepartnersearch.com/showbio.php?i=7981

Her younger brother, Corentin (11th in Junior at 2026 Nationals with Émilie Proulx), also is looking for a new partner: https://icepartnersearch.com/showbio.php?i=7980

ETA that Proulx also has an IPS profile now: https://icepartnersearch.com/showbio.php?i=7985

ETA 2 - Earl Jesse Celestino's IPS profile showed up on 1/19: https://icepartnersearch.com/showbio.php?i=7987
 
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