FIGURE SKATING
Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps (CAN) float to gold in Finlandia Trophy
17 Nov 2024
ISU World Champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps (CAN) once again confirmed their class and celebrated a clear victory at the ISU Grand Prix Finlandia Trophy in Helsinki (FIN) Sunday. The Canadians qualified for their second consecutive ISU Grand Prix Final.
Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps (CAN) float to gold
ISU World Champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps of Canada once again confirmed their class and won their fifth ISU Grand Prix gold medal of their career with more than 20 points to spare. Maria Pavlova/Alexei Sviatchenko of Hungary moved up one spot to take the silver medal, swapping places with Italy’s Rebecca Ghilardi/Filippo Ambrosini who earned the bronze.
Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps floated through their beautiful program which, fittingly, is about a journey underwater. The 2024 ISU Four Continents Champions produced a triple twist, triple toe-single Axel-double Axel sequence as well as a throw triple loop and spectacular lifts. The only major glitch came when she stumbled on the throw triple Lutz. The Canadian Champions scored 131.55 points and totaled 207.44 points, a new season’s best.
Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps (CAN) in the Pairs Free Skating at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Helsinki, Finland © ISU
“We did some changes in the program since last time, so it was a new way to do it,” Deschamps said.
“We changed the order of some elements and we like it. We did some technical mistakes and we will go home and work on it. In the Short Program we want to improve the feeling, while keeping the technical part,” he continued.
Looking ahead to the ISU Grand Prix Final Stellato-Dudek said: “The (triple) Salchow is what needs the most work. It's actually a transition pattern issue that we're having with it. We're going to probably change that so that we're both a little bit more comfortable. Otherwise, the short was a big improvement.”
Pavlova/Sviatchenko entertained the audience at the Helsinki Ice Hall with their program to “Pirates of the Caribbean” which was highlighted by a triple twist, triple toe-double Axel-double Axel sequence, triple Salchow and throw triple flip. However, they aborted the reverse lasso lift.
Nevertheless, the 2023 ISU Grand Prix finalists were second in the Free Skating with 122.92 points and took silver with 184.21 points overall.
Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko (HUN) in the Pairs Free Skating at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Helsinki, Finland © ISU
“Today was very hard,” Pavlova said. “We didn't have a big break in between the practice and competition.
“As for the lift, we were just too tired. When we went into it, and I heard Lesha's (Alexei’s) breathing, I understood, oh, we have problems right now. Lesha had a problem with his back and we started working the lifts only two weeks ago. But his back is fine now and we'll come back and work more.”
Ghilardi/Ambrosini delivered a dramatic “Dracula” program, completing excellent lifts, but they struggled with the solo jumps. The two-time ISU European medalists were ranked sixth in the Free Skating with 114.16 points but held on to the bronze medal with 181.59 points.
Rebecca Ghilardi and Filippo Ambrosini of Italy in the Pairs Free Skating at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Helsinki, Finland © ISU
“We did some mistakes,” Ambrosini admitted. “It was hard after the beginning, after I fell, but I believed in myself and I worked hard (for the rest of the program). But my legs were so tired after I fell,” he added.
“The crowd helped a lot in the last part of the program,” Ghilardi shared. “Now we’ll take some days off and rest. We have done many competitions. We’ll go back home and work harder. Our next one is Nationals in a month or less, we want to work as much as we can towards it.
Kelly-Ann Laurin/Loucas Ethier (CAN) finished fourth with a new personal best score of 178.57 points. Two-time ISU Four Continents silver medalists Emily Chan/Akira Spencer-Howe (USA) came fifth at 174.40 points. Yuna Nagaoka/Sumitada Moriguchi (JPN) placed third in the Free Skating and pulled up to sixth place (171.80 points).
Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps advance to the ISU Grand Prix Final with two victories and the maximum of 30 points. Pavlova/Sviatchenko collected 20 points from their two events which is not enough to qualify for the Final. Ghilardi/Ambrosini have 22 points.
For full entries, schedules & results, see the ISU Grand Prix Event Page & ISU Grand Prix Finlandia Trophy Event Page & Official Finlandia Trophy Website.
Check out the ISU Grand Prix Standings to find out who is on their way to qualify for the Final:
Men Women Pair Skating Ice Dance
What & When
The schedule of the Finlandia Trophy is as follows
Friday, Nov 15: Men’s, Women’s & Pairs Short Programs
Saturday, Nov 16: Men’s & Women’s Free Skating, Rhythm Dance
Sunday, Nov 17: Pairs Free Skating, Free Dance
Follow the ISU Grand Prix events:
The schedules of each ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating event are available below:
- 18 - 20 Oct 2024 Skate America in Allen, TX (USA)
- 25 - 27 Oct 2024 Skate Canada International in Halifax (CAN)
- 01 - 03 Nov 2024 Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA)
- 08 - 10 Nov 2024 NHK Trophy in Tokyo (JPN)
- 15- 17 Nov 2024 Finlandia Trophy in Helsinki (FIN)
- 22 - 24 Nov 2024 Cup of China in Chongqing (CHN)
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final:
- 05 - 08 Dec 2024 Grenoble (FRA)
About ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating
The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series started in 1995 (previously known a s the ISU Champions Series) and consists of six invitational international senior events and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. The top six of the past World Championships are seeded. Competitors collect points in their events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline can qualify for the Final.
