Canadians Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier made history at the Skate Canada international figure skating competition on Sunday.
They became the first ice dance couple to win six gold medals in a row with a total score of 202.89.
Gilles and Poirier narrowly beat Lithuanians Allison Reed and Saulius Ambrulevicius, who finished with a score of 200.92. Canadians Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Laga took bronze with a score of 192.41.
Gilles and Poirier were first after Saturday's rhythm dances with a score of 85.38, while Reed and Ambrulevicius scored 80.89.
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier win the ice dance competition at Skate Canada International with a combined score of 202.89.
However, in Sunday's free skate the Lithuanians earned 120.03, which was not enough to close the gap: Gilles and Poirier scored 117.51.
Earlier in the day, Roman Sadovsky was the top Canadian, finishing seventh after the men's free skate with a score of 236.73, while his compatriot Steven Gogolev finished just behind him with a score of 236.48. Aleksa Rakic placed 12th with a score of 216.90.
Ilya Malinin from the USA won the competition with a score of 333.81.
Canadian dancers Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier look back on their victory in the ice dance competition at Skate Canada International.
Malinin extended his undefeated streak
Malinin easily broke the world record in the free skate, maintaining his two-year unbeaten streak and highlighting his status as the favorite to win Olympic gold at the Milan-Cortina Games.
The 20-year-old from Fairfax, Virginia, landed six quads and a triple Axel during a dazzling free skate set to music from the French supernatural thriller “Un Ball of the Falls.” The result puts the two-time and current world champion ahead of second-place Alexander Selevko by 76.6 points, an absurd margin in elite figure skating competition.
Ilya Malinin set a new personal best of 333.81 points in Saskatoon to take the Skate Canada International men's title with a whopping 76.6 points.
Malinin's free skate score of 228.97 surpassed the previous record under the current scoring system (224.92), set by Olympic champion Nathan Chen in the 2019 Grand Prix Final, when the American set the overall record with a score of 335.30.
Selevko, a native of Estonia, finished second on Sunday with 257.21 points. Kao Miura of Japan won bronze with a score of 253.69 points.
Malinin has not lost since November 2023, when he finished second at the French Grand Prix. The three-time US champion's streak of excellence includes his last two world titles and championships in his last two Grand Prix Finals.
Skate Canada is the third of six Grand Prix events. The NHK Trophy takes place next weekend in Japan, followed by Skate America in Lake Placid, New York. The Finlandia Trophy is the last chance to qualify for the Grand Prix Final.
