2023/24 Canadian Women: News & Updates

[4rkidz]

Great skate for Lin!

Okay - I like Kaiya Ruiter. I think she has good potential. I think she can clean up her issues and get stronger. She has good coaching and a good team around her. And most definitely, Skate Canada needs to send its skaters out to competitions more often.
BUT - the send Kaiya to (sr) Worlds group is awfully quiet this week.

Same ones who wanted Fiona Bombardier sent out for single senior comps. Sometimes maybe an organization that monitors the skaters actually does have better understanding than the impulsive armchair critics.

 

[tony]

Same ones who wanted Fiona Bombardier sent out for single senior comps. Sometimes maybe an organization that monitors the skaters actually does have better understanding than the impulsive armchair critics.

This is a completely different situation, though. I don't know how you could try to relate the two. Bombardier wasn't sent out 4 or 5 times trying to get a minimum that she repeatedly didn't achieve- she had two good skates at the Skate Canada Challenge (she won) and then Nationals, and there was no effort to try to get her out internationally on the senior level following those results.

Still baffled how there's a connection here at all, but okay. And no, Skate Canada doesn't typically 'know better' and it's been shown quite a bit with the lack of assignments for skaters who are showing promise and decent results.

 

[danafan]

This is a completely different situation, though. I don't know how you could try to relate the two. Bombardier wasn't sent out 5 or 6 times trying to get a minimum that she repeatedly didn't achieve- she had two good skates at the Skate Canada Challenge (she won) and then Nationals, and there was no effort to try to get her out internationally on the senior level following those results.

I agree with you, however Bombardier was supposed to make her senior international debut after nationals at the Coupe du printemps but she had to withdraw due to injury. Otherwise I agree with you.

 

[tony]

I agree with you, however Bombardier was supposed to make her senior international debut after nationals at the Coupe du printemps but she had to withdraw due to injury. Otherwise I agree with you.

Yes, I remember, but wasn't that the week before or even during Worlds? I remember being very excited by Bombardier's skating at Nationals (even with the lack of 3+3 talks) and I thought the bigger problem was no assignments in the 2+ months following Nationals.

I'm not a big fan of Ruiter's skating and I think she's another case of somewhat generous judging being the only way she has international success, of course unless she really reworks the foundations. I felt the opposite about Bombardier, but I'm happy to see how pairs goes for her all the same.

 

[4rkidz]

This is a completely different situation, though. I don't know how you could try to relate the two. Bombardier wasn't sent out 4 or 5 times trying to get a minimum that she repeatedly didn't achieve- she had two good skates at the Skate Canada Challenge (she won) and then Nationals, and there was no effort to try to get her out internationally on the senior level following those results.

Still baffled how there's a connection here at all, but okay. And no, Skate Canada doesn't typically 'know better' and it's been shown quite a bit with the lack of assignments for skaters who are showing promise and decent results.

I don’t disagree that skaters should get more opportunities as they are developing but Fiona was a junior which was her teams decision and then once a senior she was injured. Kaiya also had an opportunity to get her senior score to no avail and her team also chose YOG, which I thought was a smart choice coming back from such a terrible injury and being young still.

 

[tony]

I don’t disagree that skaters should get more opportunities as they are developing but Fiona was a junior which was her teams decision and then once a senior she was injured. Kaiya also had an opportunity to get her senior score to no avail and her team also chose YOG, which I thought was a smart choice coming back from such a terrible injury and being young still.

As I posted last year, speaking with those 'in the know' about Fiona, I heard that the narrative being put out here, that she was planning on competing junior in 2023, was not correct. She had a poor monitoring session that summer, but then won Skate Canada senior Challenge (Ruiter was 6th there FWIW) which should've at least hinted at the potential at Nationals-- where she again delivered with a bronze medal.

Now it ultimately didn't matter all that much with Fiona as she seems to be putting her focus into pairs now, but she's also not the first incident of Skate Canada not really planning well.

 

[honey]

As I posted last year, speaking with those 'in the know' about Fiona, I heard that the narrative being put out here, that she was planning on competing junior in 2023, was not correct. She had a poor monitoring session that summer, but then won Skate Canada senior Challenge (Ruiter was 6th there FWIW) which should've at least hinted at the potential at Nationals-- where she again delivered with a bronze medal.

Now it ultimately didn't matter all that much with Fiona as she seems to be putting her focus into pairs now, but she's also not the first incident of Skate Canada not really planning well.

Fiona also posted a nearly 119 free skate at the October fall skate. And yes, she was competing as a senior. I posted this at the time last year, but she should have been on SC’s radar from that moment.

I 100% agree the Bombardier and Ruiter situations are in no way comparable. SC gave Ruiter many opportunities to earn minimums (and I agree with them for supporting her over the years). With Bombardier they were doing what they always do, which is letting new talent stay home until it’s too late for them to have the opportunity be selected for major events.

But yeah, all this is a bit moot right now given how Fiona’s single season went this season and her move to pairs.

Kudos to Lulu Lin on a strong junior worlds showing! I really loved the grit she showed in the free skate. Didn’t let that first mistake rattle her and made sure she got that combo in later.

 

[Sonata]

I'm always complaining that Canada doesn't send more women to international events. I'd like to think if we had had two spots this year more skaters would have been sent, or the same skaters would have been sent to more events. If we get two spots back for next year it would be so embarrassing not to have a second eligible skater.

This for me is the point… It’s not about sending Ruiter over Schizas, it’s about why were eggs put all in one basket? Schizas has the most international experience and Skate Canada always planned to send her to worlds and even made her the face of worlds in their advertising. I actually think she will do well at worlds because expectations have been lowered having lost Nationals. She seems to perform as an underdog. But why aren’t they sending more women internationally?If she is injured, there is no backup. How they handled Bombardier was disappointing.

 

[4rkidz]

As I posted last year, speaking with those 'in the know' about Fiona, I heard that the narrative being put out here, that she was planning on competing junior in 2023, was not correct. She had a poor monitoring session that summer, but then won Skate Canada senior Challenge (Ruiter was 6th there FWIW) which should've at least hinted at the potential at Nationals-- where she again delivered with a bronze medal.

Now it ultimately didn't matter all that much with Fiona as she seems to be putting her focus into pairs now, but she's also not the first incident of Skate Canada not really planning well.

Ok that’s fair I wasn’t aware of that. I have just watched her skate since Pre Novice in person and she has always been very inconsistent although always amazing with the lutz. So made total sense to have stayed junior and to try pairs.

I hope that skate Canada focus on getting the junior & senior women out internationally sooner, especially those that have proven their consistencies in monitoring.

 

[Winnipeg]

Skate Canada should hold special clinics for the women to devise strategies for best achieving the TES minimums.

Excellent idea!

 

[Sylvia]

Lulu Lin has shared some photos from her successful Junior Worlds debut experience in Taipei, plus a cute clip of her throwing a stuffie to Kaiya : https://www.instagram.com/p/C4PpUMsuE2H/

 

[Wyliefan]

Robert Brodie has a really good new interview with Maddie Schizas.

Worlds 2024: 'Maybe it needed to happen'

Maddie Schizas used a nightmare long program at the Canadian Championships as fuel to put herself in precisely the right place to take on the planet's best in Montreal.

rwbrodiewrites.substack.com

She’s had plenty of time to reflect on it since, and has a better handle now on what happened during that nightmare of a day [at Nationals].

“I think what happened is I never really got revved up. Normally, I get quite nervous to compete, which sort of works for me. I felt like in Calgary, I was really, really calm the whole time. I walked out there, I felt really calm, and then I calmly walked through the program, and walked through some of my jumps,” she explained. “That’s what I think the issue really was. I’ve learned a little bit since then about needing to be revved up, and I’ve practised it. Even in our simulation days and stuff, I’ve really gotten myself excited and a little bit nervous to go out there. It’s led to some very consistent and repeatable performances.”

That calm feeling is something she openly talked in Calgary about wanting to embrace, but clearly she’s now learned that isn’t the route to success for her.

“It was a fun in a way being calm, because nobody really likes feeling nervous,” she said in looking back. “That excited feeling isn’t always comfortable, but it helps me skate better.”

 

[Sylvia]

Beverley Smith's article based on Madeline Schizas' pre-Worlds media call (March 14):

Madeline Schizas and the "Twiddly Bits" - Bev Smith Writes

Make no mistake: Madeline Schizas, two-time Canadian champion, was upset after the Four Continents Championships in Shanghai six weeks ago. Yes, she finished sixth behind two Japanese, two Korean and one American skater. But she had finished ninth in the short program with scores that didn’t...

bevsmithwrites.com

ETA that McMaster University featured Maddie, "in her second year in the Faculty of Science at Mac," (and Trennt) in this article today:

McMaster students compete for Canada at World Figure Skating Championships

McMaster students Madeline Schizas and Trennt Michaud will represent Canada at next week's championships in Montreal.

dailynews.mcmaster.ca

“I really appreciate how accommodating my professors have been in managing my time away from the classroom,” says Schizas.
Along with competing, training and a juggling a full course load, Schizas worked as a research assistant with professor Gita Ljubicic’s Straight Up North research group in the School of Earth, Environment & Society.
“I’ve really enjoyed supporting projects that have a real impact on communities.”
While faculty are in the loop, both athletes don’t go out of the way to tell their classmates.
“I think it’s kind of 50/50 that my classmates know,” says Schizas. “I don’t normally throw it into conversation. When I’m at school, I’m just a student just like everyone else.”

 

[fsfann]

Curious to hear thoughts on Maddie’s jumping plans for the LP. If she’s trying to climb up world rankings why would she not do at least 3 flips/lutzes or even two of each? I can’t for the life of me understand why she downgraded her content so much…. Esp when she typically has a fairly solid flip and lutz. Anyone have any insight here??

 

[Frau Muller]

To lessen nerves, Maddie did what she could do. I hope that the new Canadian champion, Kaiya, can improve to be stellar next year (nab that one spot).

 

[danafan]

I don't know what to say about Schizas. In a way I think she increased expectations for herself when she overachieved (if you know what I mean) with her 9th place after the short program at her first worlds in 2021, then the next year with her amazing performance in the team event. If she skated like that all the time she'd be a consistent top 10 skater, maybe pushing for more by now.
I wonder if a coaching change is necessary for her to reach the next level and what she will do. I read a quote from Golden skate that her goal is the next Olympics.

 

[honey]

Curious to hear thoughts on Maddie’s jumping plans for the LP. If she’s trying to climb up world rankings why would she not do at least 3 flips/lutzes or even two of each? I can’t for the life of me understand why she downgraded her content so much…. Esp when she typically has a fairly solid flip and lutz. Anyone have any insight here??

Her current content is what she always been trying. Only one time did she ever toy with a second lutz and that was at a sectionals IIRC (in any case it was small insignificant event) and it did not go well. She never tried it again.

It’s not like she consistently gets through what her current lay out is in the LP so I doubt trying something harder would have gone better . She even downgraded the layout last night a bit with repeating the sal instead of the loop as she has most often done.

There’s not much else to say. She’s improved her overall level this year in terms of choreo, but there is a lot of work to be still done on skating skills. Happy they are trying to address it, but it will take more time than one season (also why the kind of effort she put in to that this season should have happened 3 years ago).

But at the end of the day, landing the jumps is the big key and she’s not been able to do that with any degree of consistency since the Olympic season. My thoughts are always going to be that full time university and elite figure skating do not mix unless you’re Nathan Chen, but that’s clearly a priority for her and I don’t see her stopping school now. But she’s still the best eligible canadian woman right now and until someone else comes along and shows they can do more when it counts then we are where we are. I’m not sure we need two spots at the moment.

 

[Former Lurve Goddess]

Having see Maddie live at Worlds, I think she’s improved a fair bit. Her programs and choreography are better, as is her presentation. But she’s the kind of skater who needs to hit her jumps cleanly in the short program to have any chance at the top ten. It would probably be worth it for her to scale back her studies over the next two seasons, but perhaps she wants to graduate on time?

 

[Sylvia]

This is very, very impressive from Lia Cho, winning Novice nationals. She a huge talent for Canada, though at 11, she is a very long way away from senior competition obviously. I hope everyone involved is playing the long game here and that she can be given the time and space to develop at a pace that works for her.

Who knows what the future years will bring her, but I’m impressed with the power in her jumps for such a little tot. The technique is reasonable and the base of her skating is strong. Lots of potential.

https://youtu.be/5ytj067R1xY?si=v3_OeSZd5m6qrr9y

2024 Novice champion Lia Cho’s charming La La Land SP was choreographed by Garrett Gosselin (whose stylish skating I enjoyed watching as a senior national competitor).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1760844127132909744

The Glencoe Club’s good luck video for Lia who is coached by Scott Davis: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5g8IXqrGzz/ (post also confirms Lia has been selected for the NextGen team, as expected)

Good to see Skate Canada sending Stavrina Aranitis (ON; 5th at Junior Nationals) and the 3 Novice medalists — Lia Cho (AB), Sandrine Blais (QC) & Ksenia Krouzkevitch (ON) — to make their international debuts this week at Triglav Trophy in Slovenia - competition thread in Kiss & Cry: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...in-jesenice-slovenia-april-11-14-2024.111712/

 

[Sonata]

Having see Maddie live at Worlds, I think she’s improved a fair bit. Her programs and choreography are better, as is her presentation. But she’s the kind of skater who needs to hit her jumps cleanly in the short program to have any chance at the top ten. It would probably be worth it for her to scale back her studies over the next two seasons, but perhaps she wants to graduate on time?

This is the third time I’ve seen her live and I had opposite impression, maybe because I saw her in contrast to the other world competitors. I felt like I was seeing a promising junior skater who had to really work on her hunched shoulders and who looked cautious. Her pick of slow music almost emphasized her lack of good posture and easy glide. To be honest, she should not be in top 12 even if she lands all her jumps.

As for putting school aside, it’s really up to her. It must be hard to juggle a university schedule and skating. But skating is not as lucrative as in the 1990s and early 2000s and so why delay your life for 2 years? It looks like she might stay for next Olympics and she has a good chance of being Canada’s choice again anyways.

 

[Former Lurve Goddess]

This is the third time I’ve seen her live and I had opposite impression, maybe because I saw her in contrast to the other world competitors. I felt like I was seeing a promising junior skater who had to really work on her hunched shoulders and who looked cautious. Her pick of slow music almost emphasized her lack of good posture and easy glide. To be honest, she should not be in top 12 even if she lands all her jumps.

As for putting school aside, it’s really up to her. It must be hard to juggle a university schedule and skating. But skating is not as lucrative as in the 1990s and early 2000s and so why delay your life for 2 years? It looks like she might stay for next Olympics and she has a good chance of being Canada’s choice again anyways.

Oh, I agree that her skating is still juniorish but I think her programs are better. And plenty of juniorish skaters can make the top ten if they land their jumps. Based on how the judges have marked her when she's skated well, if Schizas ever had her best short and long in the same competition, she'd likely be in the top ten. In 2022, she was 10th in both segments, but unfortunately finished 12th. That said, I'd like to see all of the Canadian women work on their weaknesses (and their consistency!), especially in the short program, so that more can earn their Worlds minimums.

 

[Jammers]

I think it's obvious that someone else is going to have to one to get two spots back for Canada because i just don't see Maddie moving up very much. The field is just going to get harder in the next couple of years if anything.

 

[Sonata]

I think Schizas’s best chance at getting top 10 was in Montreal at a home worlds due to home inflation and I thought she’d skate more consistently being buoyed by the crowd and without the pressure of being national champion.

I used to think she’d maybe have a chance at top 10 if other people screw up but now, having seen the international field live, I can’t say I see her in that league. We’re talking major screw ups from the other women as their glide, speed, and interpretation is far superior. This explains why she was ranked low despite doing an ok SP. On a positive note, if she doesn’t have tight landings, she doesn’t tend to get negative GOE for edge calls on jumps.

 

[Sylvia]

Good to see Skate Canada sending Stavrina Aranitis (ON QC; 5th at Junior Nationals) and the 3 Novice medalists — Lia Cho (AB), Sandrine Blais (QC) & Ksenia Krouzkevitch (ON) — to make their international debuts this week at Triglav Trophy in Slovenia - competition thread in Kiss & Cry: https://www.fsuniverse.net/forum/th...in-jesenice-slovenia-april-11-14-2024.111712/

I've corrected Aranitis' section in my original post to Quebec. She skates #27 (5th in group 5) of 52/9 groups in the Junior Women's SP tomorrow.

Congrats on the podium sweep for Canada and 7 triples landed by Lia in her FS today! (Krouzkevitch on the left):

https://twitter.com/x/status/1778840205622947854

ETA (from the Triglav Trophy competition thread in Kiss & Cry):

Adv. Novice Girls FS protocols: http://www.isuresults.com/results/s...OV----FNL-000100--_JudgesDetailsperSkater.pdf

Cho's jumps: 3F!b+3Tb (9.5 bv+0.18 goe+2 point bonus=11.68), 3Lz!, 3S+2Ab+2A+SEQ (10.9 bv+1 goe+1 bonus=12.9), 3Lo, 3S, 3F.
Blais' jumps: 3F!b, 3Lob, 3T+2Ab+2A<+SEQ (10.14 bv -0.84 goe+1 bonus=10.3), 3S+2T, 3S, 3T (-1.4).
Krouzkevitch's jumps: 3Lzb+2A+SEQ fall (9.2 bv -2.75 goe+1 pt bonus=7.45), 3Lz!< fall, 3Fb, 3Lo, 3S, 2Ab+2T+2T.

ADVANCED NOVICES GIRLS (1.7.2008 - 30.6.2013)
Result
FPl. Name Club Nation Points SP FS

GOLD Lia CHO CAN CAN 146.58 1 1
SILVER Ksenia KROUZKEVITCH CAN CAN 124.32 2 3
BRONZE Sandrine BLAIS CAN CAN 122.87 6 2

 

[Sylvia]

It seems Hetty is spending alot of time in California with Raf's team.

Misha Ge posted a week ago that he has choreographed Hetty Shi’s SP to “I Will Wait for You” from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and included the hashtag #TeamRaf: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5ZzW-dpvh-/

 

[danafan]

Gabby Daleman had a new short choreographed by Kaitlyn Weaver. So it seems she intends to compete next season.

Gabrielle Daleman 🇨🇦 on Instagram: "I have never been more grateful to have such a wonderful person in my life, not just as a friend, but as a beautiful Skater and Choreographer!! I had the honour with Kaitlyn and creating a fabulous new short that I

223 likes, 4 comments - gabby_dalemanApril 18, 2024 on : "I have never been more grateful to have such a wonderful person in my life, not just as a friend, but as a beautiful Skater and Choreogra...".

www.instagram.com