Third-place finishers Carolane Soucisse and Shane Firus, of Canada, celebrate following the free dance competitionAP Photo/Rick Bowmer
AP Photo/Rick Bowmer

Soucisse and Firus skate to bronze at U.S. International Figure Skating Classic

Ice dancers Carolane Soucisse and partner Shane Firus skated their way to a bronze medal at the U.S. International Figure Skating Classic in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In third after their Friday night rhythm dance, the Canadian duo maintained their position after their free dance performance to claim the third place prize. In total, Soucisse and Firus scored a total of 181.39 points over the weekend.

They were joined on the podium by two pairs of American skaters in first and second. Madison Chock and partner Evan Bates took the gold with 202.40 points, while Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko claimed silver with a score of 188.47.

Soucisse and Firus’ bronze this week is an improvement from their performance last week in Oakville, Ont. at the Autumn Classic International. The couple sat in second place after their rhythm dance performance last weekend, but dropped to fifth following the free dance and out of a medal position.

This week, they made sure they followed through.

“We did what we’ve been doing in practice and we are happy about that,” Firus said after the couples performance in Salt Lake City. “Our scores are getting better.”

The U.S. Classic is the third stop of the ISU 2019 Challenger Series.