What to watch for as Montreal hosts 2024 World Figure Skating Championships
The figure skating fandom will soon be focused on Montreal as the city hosts the 2024 ISU World Figure Skating Championships.
It will be the first time since 1932 that Montreal has welcomed the world’s best figure skaters. The 2020 Worlds were to be held there, but had to be cancelled just a week before the competition began because of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now it’s time for take two, which will be the first figure skating worlds that Canada has hosted since 2013 in London, Ontario.
There are 15 Canadians who have high hopes for what they can do on home ice. Here’s what you need to know as you prepare to cheer them on.
Who is representing Team Canada at the World Figure Skating Championships?
Team Canada is made up of three pairs, three ice dance duos, two men’s singles competitors, and one entry in women’s singles.
Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps, of Canada, perform their pairs free program during the Skate Canada International figure skating competition, in Vancouver, on Saturday, October 28, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck 
Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud, of Canada, compete in the pairs free skate program during the Skate America figure skating event in Allen, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Roger Steinman) 
Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Ethier, of Canada, perform their pairs free program during the Skate Canada International figure skating competition, in Vancouver, on Saturday, October 28, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Pairs:
Deanna Stellato-Dudek & Maxime Deschamps
Lia Pereira & Trennt Michaud
Kelly Ann Laurin & Loucas Éthier
Ice Dance:
Piper Gilles & Paul Poirier
Laurence Fournier Beaudry & Nikolaj Soerensen
Marjorie Lajoie & Zachary Lagha
Men’s Singles:
Wesley Chiu
Roman Sadovsky
Women’s Singles:
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, of Ontario, skate during the senior ice dance rhythm program at the Canadian figure skating championships in Calgary, Friday, Jan. 12, 2024.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh 
Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha compete in ice dance at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Cup on China (Photo by Lintao Zhang – International Skating Union/International Skating Union via Getty Images) 
Wesley Chiu, of British Columbia, skates during the senior men short program at the Canadian figure skating championships in Calgary, Alta., Friday, Jan. 12, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh 
Canada’s Madeline Schizas, of Oakville, Ont., performs her women’s short program during the Skate Canada International figure skating competition, in Vancouver, B.C., Friday, Oct. 27, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Three entries is the maximum per country in each discipline. The actual number is based on results from the previous year’s world championships. So, this year’s worlds will determine the qualification for next year’s world championships, which will in turn determine the allocation of Olympic quota spots for Milano Cortina 2026.
When a country has two or three entries in a discipline, only the top two results will count towards qualification for the following year. If both placements add up to 13 or less (ex: 6th and 7th, 2nd and 11th), the country earns three spots in that discipline. If both placements total 14 to 28, then the country retains two spots. Anything more than 28 and the country drops down to one spot in the discipline.
When a country has just one entry in a discipline, a top 10 finish will secure two spots for the following year in that discipline. A result lower than that keeps the country at one spot.
Skaters who advance to their respective free skate receive at most 16 points for their placement (regardless of what their actual result is). Skaters who do not qualify for the free skate are given 18 points for their placement.
When are the 2024 World Figure Skating Championships?
Official practices will take place on March 18 and 19 before the competition begins on Wednesday, March 20 and continues through Saturday, March 23. The event will conclude with the always exciting exhibition gala on Sunday, March 24.
Schedule:
Wednesday March 20: Noon ET – Pairs’ Short Program, 5:00 p.m. ET – Women’s Short Program
Thursday March 21: 11:10 a.m. ET – Men’s Short Program, 6:10 p.m. ET – Pairs’ Free Skate
Friday March 22: 11:20 a.m. ET – Ice Dance Rhythm Dance, 6:00 p.m. ET – Women’s Free Skate
Saturday March 23: 1:30 p.m. ET – Ice Dance Free Dance, 6:00 p.m. ET – Men’s Free Skate
Sunday March 24: 2:00 p.m. ET – Exhibition Gala
There are still tickets available if you’ve been enticed to attend in person! If you’ll instead be watching from the comfort of your living room, CBCSports.ca will livestream the entire competition and provide some broadcast coverage on CBC Television.
Who are Canada’s medal contenders?
Canada’s top medal potentials can be found in ice dance and pairs.
With two career world championship medals already, Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier are the most accomplished members of the Canadian team. They won their second bronze last year, coming back after several months away from competition to stand on the podium after Gilles underwent surgery for stage one ovarian cancer.
This season, they have once again been among the world’s best ice dancers, winning two Grand Prix gold medals, bronze at the Grand Prix Final, and gold at the Four Continents Championships.
“We had a hard season last year and we didn’t get to have our optimal preparation going into the world championships, so it’s been so nice to do it again this time and train exactly how we want going into the worlds, do exactly the kind of training and pacing we know we need to skate our best in a competition setting,” Poirier said during a pre-worlds practice session for the Canadian team at the Bell Centre.
“We want to be at the top of the podium, of course,” Gilles said of their goals for the worlds before adding that they want to enjoy the experience of competing in such a major event at home. “I think we’re really looking forward to embracing our fans, embracing our family and friends, it’s just gonna be a special moment and we want to skate for them and for Canada.”
They’ll likely be part of a tight battle for the top of the podium with the defending world champions, Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States, as well as reigning European champions and last year’s world silver medallists, Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri of Italy.
Should any of those duos slip, Great Britain’s Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson are knocking at the door, as are the other two Canadian couples, Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen as well as Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha. Canada boasted half of the six teams that qualified for the Grand Prix Final in December.
Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps, who have their training base in Montreal, would love to cap off what has been a fantastic season with a world title. They also won gold at both of their Grand Prix events before a bronze at the Grand Prix Final. In February they won gold at the Four Continents Championships, defeating the reigning world champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara of Japan. The two-time Canadian champions had these world championships in mind from the moment they started planning their programs for the season.
“When Maxime and I were brainstorming ideas for our short program, we knew we had to pay tribute to Maxime’s home and my adopted home of five years,” Stellato-Dudek about their song choice of “Oxygène” from Cirque du Soleil. “We hope to thrill the audience and do Montreal proud.”
Deschamps added: “Being able to compete in front of my family and friends will be incredible. I feel very privileged to have this opportunity in my career.”
The Japanese team had been out for most of the season due to injury. Among the other pairs that stepped up as challengers are Germany’s Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin, who won the Grand Prix Final, and a couple of Italian duos, European champions Lucrezia Beccari and Matteo Guarise as well as Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii, who were runners-up at the Grand Prix Final.
Also at that Grand Prix Final were Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud, who had qualified after winning medals in their first two Grand Prix events together. They produced one of the best surprises at the 2023 Worlds when they finished sixth just six months into their partnership.
What should Canadians keep an eye on in singles?
In the midst of a solid, but sometimes difficult season, Madeline Schizas is looking to break through the top 10 barrier after placing 12th or 13th in her first three world championship appearances. She finished top-five at both of her Grand Prix events and then sixth at the Four Continent Championships. Clean, consistent jumps will be vital to success in the women’s event as almost everyone in the field is attempting similar difficulty.
“I really buckled down in the last two months, since Canadians, which was really disappointing for me,” said Schizas, who finished as the runner-up at the national championships in January. “I think it was a good wakeup call because I really put in the time and the effort and the run-throughs to be ready for this event.”
Wesley Chiu will make his world championship debut the same week he turns 19. He claimed his first senior national title in January and went on to finish seventh at the Four Continents Championships. Chiu does not have the vast array of quads in his repertoire that the top podium contenders will put on display, but he is steadily building a reputation for his artistic qualities.
Roman Sadovsky is headed to his second world championships. He placed 12th in 2022, a month after he made his Olympic debut. It’s been a weird season for the 24-year-old, who didn’t compete until the Canadian championships because of various, almost unbelievable, travel issues. The man known to many as “Romsky” is amazingly gifted when it comes to his skating skills and artistry.
