2025–26 Canadian Ice Dance: News and Updates

[Sylvia]

For anyone who has an X account and likes this idea - please retweet! https://x.com/Post_Brodie/status/2022734961028264239

https://twitter.com/x/status/2022734961028264239

 

[dramagrrl]

Bev Smith' s latest article: Gilles and Poirier: Long Path to Olympic Bronze

A heads up - This is an opinion piece written from a pro-Canadian perspective. If you're looking for a balanced analysis of the current ice dance season's scoring, you might want to take a pass on this one.

Mostly a good read, but some revisionist history that made me go, "Uhhh...":

"Poirier made to his first Olympics in 2010 with Vanessa Crone, and finished 14th. They seemed to be on a stairway to heaven, but Crone decided to retire, and Poirier found another partner..."

That's not the way I remember it, and I'm pretty sure Vanessa would agree.

 

[elka_sk8]

So happy for Gilles and Poirier, I love that FD so much

 

[marbri]

Mostly a good read, but some revisionist history that made me go, "Uhhh...":

"Poirier made to his first Olympics in 2010 with Vanessa Crone, and finished 14th. They seemed to be on a stairway to heaven, but Crone decided to retire, and Poirier found another partner..."

That's not the way I remember it, and I'm pretty sure Vanessa would agree.

She should write a book

 

[BaileyCatts]

Mostly a good read, but some revisionist history that made me go, "Uhhh...":

"Poirier made to his first Olympics in 2010 with Vanessa Crone, and finished 14th. They seemed to be on a stairway to heaven, but Crone decided to retire, and Poirier found another partner..."

That's not the way I remember it, and I'm pretty sure Vanessa would agree.

I don't remember it. I vaguely remember the names sounding familiar together. Why did they break up?

 

[Alilou]

I don't remember it. I vaguely remember the names sounding familiar together. Why did they break up?

AFAIR Vanessa wanted to move to a different coach, and Paul was adamant that he wanted to stay with Carol and Juris. Same reason Nadiia Bashinska and peter Beaumont broke up

 

[jmtfti]

I left a comment on her piece re: Crone's subsequent partnership efforts.

 

[4rkidz]

An update on the August 2023 incident which resulted in the death of Alexandra Paul:

Driver pleads guilty in crash that killed Olympian skater Alexandra Paul | Globalnews.ca

The crash took place in August 2023, when police say a transport truck entered a construction zone and crashed into a lineup of stopped cars.

globalnews.ca

It is alarming the number of truck drivers accidents the past five years. There was a time when they were the safest drivers but now with buying licenses and illegal short cuts they have become a menace. This was the second time someone was killed by a truck in that area.

 

[skategal]

I left a comment on her piece re: Crone's subsequent partnership efforts.

Crone would probably rather forget considering she partnered with Nik Sorenson after she and Paul split.

 

[dramagrrl]

I left a comment on her piece re: Crone's subsequent partnership efforts.

How odd that it hasn't shown up yet, but two very complimentary comments are the only ones I can see.

Crone would probably rather forget considering she partnered with Nik Sorenson after she and Paul split.

From what I remember, when the split with Paul was announced, SC's press release said Vanessa was retiring, but she spoke out to correct that assumption. I remember she was skating at the DSC with Madison Hubbell's brother for awhile, but that didn't work out because he didn't want to sit out of international competition for a year or more and was then able to find an American partner. She then announced that she was planning to skate in singles, but IIRC, that never happened. When did the partnership with Sorensen happen in this timeline? I believe it was after the attempted partnership with Hubbell and that when it didn't work out with Sorensen, she announced her actual retirement from competition, but I might be wrong.

 

[dramagrrl]

AFAIR Vanessa wanted to move to a different coach, and Paul was adamant that he wanted to stay with Carol and Juris. Same reason Nadiia Bashinska and peter Beaumont broke up

There were also a lot of rumours going around that Paul and Carol thought he needed a more traditionally "feminine" and glamorous partner to get to the top of the ranks. He was not out then (and wasn't until many years after he'd established his partnership with Piper) and was probably insecure about not being perceived as the type of romantic "leading man" that was the norm in ice dance at the time.

I was a big Crone/Poirier fan - they were different from all the other teams competing at that time, and I loved their uniqueness - and it took me until Vincent 1.0 to truly get over the split enough to really love P&P, but once I was in, I was committed.

 

[Alilou]

There were also a lot of rumours going around that Paul and Carol thought he needed a more traditionally "feminine" and glamorous partner to get to the top of the ranks. He was not out then (and wasn't until many years after he'd established his partnership with Piper) and was probably insecure about not being perceived as the type of romantic "leading man" that was the norm in ice dance at the time.

I was a big Crone/Poirier fan - they were different from all the other teams competing at that time, and I loved their uniqueness - and it took me until Vincent 1.0 to truly get over the split enough to really love P&P, but once I was in, I was committed.

I loved them too, and it also took me a while to get behind him and Piper, but I did love some of their earlier stuff, before Vincent.

 

[OrioleBeagle]

.

 

[Alilou]

It sounds like Carol has the same influence with male skaters that Delilah Sappenfield had.

Maybe it's just more of what happens in all of ice dance and pairs - the boys are special because there are so few of them.

 

[puglover]

I am personally more surprised when teams that get together so young actually go the distance as opposed to those who call it quits. My son skated pairs with a nice girl who had sensible parents and still it was nuts. I recall going to divisionals (long time ago) and they were already fighting on the van ride to the airport on our way there. Her mother told me she was crying because my son didn't want to sit with her on the ride. When talking to my son, he expressed his feelings that he sat with her enough and he wanted to sit with his buddies. My thoughts - shoot me now! They were both in their young teens acting like young teenagers.
I remember all the criticism of Piper when she and Paul teamed up and I really respect any skater stepping into the skates of a former partner of a favourite team.

 

[Wyliefan]

It sounds like Carol has the same influence with male skaters that Delilah Sappenfield had.

Let's not make THAT comparison unless we know it's warranted.

 

[Taso]

Let's not make THAT comparison unless we know it's warranted.

Truly, that goes so so much farther....

 

[ChiquitaBanana]

Facebook

www.facebook.com

LaLa skating with Laurent-Duvernay-Tardif (you know, that MD who won the Superbowl )

 

[Sylvia]

Madelaine Breau/Kurtis Che (9th in Junior at Canadians) won the gold at Maria Olszewska Memorial in Lodz, Poland on 2/25/26, scoring 133.27 (5 teams competed).

Maria Olszewska Memorial Adv. Novice Ice Dance results - silver & bronze:
2 Florence BEAUSOLEIL / Remi THIBAULT CAN [N-2] 126.52 3 2 2
3 Kayleigh CHAO / Jonathan MA CAN [N-1] 119.59 2 3 3

2026 Canadian Junior Ice Dance splits post-Nationals:
4 Laurence Brière / Julien Lévesque QC 144.99 (both are listed on IPS)
5 Auréa Cincon-Debout / Earl Jesse Celestino QC 144.07 (both listed)
8 Olivia Corneil / Alexandre Emery ON 132.97 (she's listed)
11 Émilie Proulx / Corentin Cincon-Debout QC 118.85 (both listed)
12 Hannah Li / Nathan Feng BC/YT 116.84 (she's listed)
13 Anjou Karino / Andrew Song AB/NT/NU 116.63 (both listed)
15 Madison Tong / Michael Boutsan 100.17 (both listed)

 

[Sylvia]

From Skate Canada's Maria Olszewska Memorial recap yesterday:

Early in the week was advanced novice ice dance, with Skate Canada Trophy novice gold and silver medallists Florence Beausoleil and Rémi Thibault taking second and Kayleigh Chao and Jonathan Ma placing third.
Beausoleil and Thibault put up scores of 33.71 and 38.28 in the pattern dance segments, and 54.53 in the free dance, earning an overall score of 126.52. The duo wasn’t sure what to expect coming into this first international competition together, so this outcome is a welcome surprise.
“We weren’t really expecting much, but this is more, actually, than what we were expecting,” Thibault said. “It really represents how hard we worked this season.”
Chao and Ma scored 33.89 and 36.90 in the pattern dances, and 48.80 in the free dance, scoring 119.59 overall. [...]
In junior ice dance, Madelaine Ann Breau and Kurtis Che took gold with scores of 49.95 and 83.32 in the rhythm dance and the free dance, and an overall score of 133.27.
“At this competition, everything felt a lot smoother than at previous ones, it flowed pretty well,” explained Breau.

ISU Worlds entries were published online this past Wednesday:
Piper GILLES / Paul POIRIER
Marjorie LAJOIE / Zachary LAGHA
Marie-Jade LAURIAULT / Romain LE GAC
Sub: Alicia FABBRI / Paul AYER

Saturday night at the Leafs game:

Sportsnet on Instagram: "Canadian medallists Megan Oldham, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier were in the house after incredible performances at Milano Cortina 2026 🙌🍁"

4,833 likes, 29 comments - sportsnet on February 28, 2026: "Canadian medallists Megan Oldham, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier were in the house after incredible performances at Milano Cortina 2026 🙌🍁".

www.instagram.com

Piper's post+photos today (March 1):

Piper Gilles on Instagram: "Life lately has been a thrill!! Bits and bobs from Milan and little back home so far! - #milanocortina2026 #winterolympics #backhome #reallife"

3,155 likes, 42 comments - pipergilles on March 1, 2026: "Life lately has been a thrill!! Bits and bobs from Milan and little back home so far! - #milanocortina2026 #winterolympics #backhome #reallife".

www.instagram.com

Paul's post yesterday:

Paul Poirier on Instagram: "vincent is so special to us thank you for seeing who we are, and for receiving our small creation 💫 a memory to be cherished forever • 📸: @danielleearlphotography"

9,728 likes, 179 comments - pauldpoirier on February 28, 2026: "vincent is so special to us thank you for seeing who we are, and for receiving our small creation 💫 a memory to be cherished forever • 📸: @danielleearlphotography".

www.instagram.com

Lajoie/Lagha's Olympics highlights:

Zachary Lagha on Instagram: "Opening ceremony🌍 Let the games begin😎🏅 #olympics"

2,330 likes, 41 comments - lagha_zak on February 6, 2026: "Opening ceremony🌍 Let the games begin😎🏅 #olympics".

www.instagram.com

Marjorie Lajoie on Instagram: "Dreams do come true 🥹💫"

2,784 likes, 54 comments - marjorie.lajoie on February 6, 2026: "Dreams do come true 🥹💫".

www.instagram.com

Marjorie Lajoie on Instagram: "WHAT A MOMENT 🥹 So grateful we got to compete for Canada at the team event 🇨🇦 ✨"

3,214 likes, 140 comments - marjorie.lajoie on February 7, 2026: "WHAT A MOMENT 🥹 So grateful we got to compete for Canada at the team event 🇨🇦 ✨".

www.instagram.com

Marjorie Lajoie on Instagram: "Chasing dreams at the Olympic Games 💫🇨🇦 We’re so grateful for this journey, I think mini us would be so proud ❤️"

2,137 likes, 46 comments - marjorie.lajoie on February 15, 2026: "Chasing dreams at the Olympic Games 💫🇨🇦 We’re so grateful for this journey, I think mini us would be so proud ❤️".

www.instagram.com

Marjorie Lajoie on Instagram: "Life lately 🇨🇦🇮🇹❤️"

2,671 likes, 30 comments - marjorie.lajoie on February 20, 2026: "Life lately 🇨🇦🇮🇹❤️".

www.instagram.com

Lauriault/Le Gac's Olympics memories:

Marie-Jade & Romain 🇨🇦⛸ on Instagram: "✨️ Let the fun begin ✨️ #milanocortina2026 #openingceremony #olympics #teamcanada"

695 likes, 6 comments - lauriaultlegac on February 6, 2026: "✨️ Let the fun begin ✨️ #milanocortina2026 #openingceremony #olympics #teamcanada".

www.instagram.com

Marie-Jade & Romain 🇨🇦⛸ on Instagram: "Grateful to live this experience surrounded by so many great people ✨️❤️ #olympics #teamcanada #milanocortina2026 #grateful #skatecanada"

1,365 likes, 10 comments - lauriaultlegac on February 8, 2026: "Grateful to live this experience surrounded by so many great people ✨️❤️ #olympics #teamcanada #milanocortina2026 #grateful #skatecanada".

www.instagram.com

Marie-Jade & Romain 🇨🇦⛸ on Instagram: "Hanging out in the Olympic village with @adriandiazbronchud 🪴✨️ #olympics #olympicgames #milanocortina2026 #olympicvillage #hangingout"

309 likes, 6 comments - lauriaultlegac on February 16, 2026: "Hanging out in the Olympic village with @adriandiazbronchud 🪴✨️ #olympics #olympicgames #milanocortina2026 #olympicvillage #hangingout".

www.instagram.com

Marie-Jade & Romain 🇨🇦⛸ on Instagram: "Closing ceremony ✨️📷 #teamcanada #olympics #milanocortina2026 #figureskater #lululemon"

382 likes, 4 comments - lauriaultlegac on February 22, 2026: "Closing ceremony ✨️📷 #teamcanada #olympics #milanocortina2026 #figureskater #lululemon".

www.instagram.com

Marie-Jade & Romain 🇨🇦⛸ on Instagram: "Grazie Italia 🫶💚🤍❤️🫶 #milanocortina2026 #closingceremony #teamcanada #olympics #grazie"

1,536 likes, 40 comments - lauriaultlegac on February 23, 2026: "Grazie Italia 🫶💚🤍❤️🫶 #milanocortina2026 #closingceremony #teamcanada #olympics #grazie".

www.instagram.com