2026 Canadian National Skating Championships: Ice Dance
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier (ON) won their fifth title in Ice Dance at Canadian Nationals on Sunday evening in Gatineau, Quebec. Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha (QC) repeated for silver, while Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac (QC) earned the bronze.
Skate Canada announced that the three teams above were selected to represent Team Canada at the 2026 Olympics next month.
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier
The four-time World medalists took the crowd in Gatineau on a ride with their rhythm dance to “Supermodel” and “I’m too Sexy.” The team flew through their level-four twizzles and received positive grades of execution on all elements. The midline and pattern steps were also graded a level four, as was the rotational lift. They scored 93.11 for a comfortable first place going into the free dance.
“It didn’t feel like work,” said Gilles. “We just skated like we were at home. We just created this like, run-through basically. I think that all the details and all the connection points we’ve been working on for the last few weeks really felt like was coming to life. To experience that was real fun, and having the crowd interact and hype us up a bit was so special.”
“We’ve put in a lot of work since the Grand Prix Final,” Poirier added. “It’s been a lot of repetition, a lot of big sections, and a lot of run-throughs. And that really carried us through the program today. We really felt our work take us through the program, and that’s a really nice feeling.”
The two-time Four Continents champion gave a mesmerizing free dance to “Vincent,” earning many high grades of execution (GOE) throughout. The team flew through their level-four twizzles and showed strong level-four one-foot and level-three serpentine steps. All three lifts and the dance spin were also graded a level four, and they finished first in this segment and overall (137.94 / 231.05).
“We just lived every moment of that program,” said Gilles. “It went by so fast, but I felt like every little fingertip, every little pointed toe felt like it was intentional. And I think when you can finish those programs you just feel so special and honored to be present in moments like that. And then to sit in the kiss and cry and have scored that and get emotional with our coaches and with Paul. These are just the moments that we live for.”
Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha
The two-time Four Continents bronze medalists were a bit out of synch on the twizzles in their popular rhythm dance, but the element was still graded a level four for both ice dancers. However, the level-four midline steps received a huge score of 12.40. The rotational lift and pattern steps were also graded a level four, and they finished second in this segment with 86.93 points.
“It went good,” said Lagha. “We stayed relaxed and we did a good performance, so we’re happy.”
“The training was going very well, the run-throughs were going super well, so I think we were really happy to show the crowd what we’ve been working on,” added Lajoie.
In regard to results, Lagha said it was like going to a ballet: “you go to see the performance, not the goal. It’s about excellence and showing something beautiful.”
“I don’t think it’s one of the best rhythm dances we’ve had this season,” he added, “but it was in the top performance for sure.”
The six-time Grand Prix medalists delivered a captivating free dance to “Nureyev” from The White Crow placing second in this segment and overall (130.39 / 217.32). They earned a level four on the twizzles, lifts, and spin. The diagonal steps, which earned high GOES, were graded a three and four, while the one-foot steps were a level three.
“It went very well,” said Lagha. “We were very nervous. The training was going so well and we really wanted to like give a good performance to the crowd and our coaches, and for ourselves too. So, I’m really happy about how we managed to deal with the nerves again.”
“We’re always stressed when we compete,” added Lajoie. “It’s also part of the beauty of the competition to have a little butterfly that helps you to have a little bit more than you normally do.”
Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac
Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac (QC) put it all on the ice in their rhythm dance to “Thunder” and “Cream” by Prince. The two-time national medalists showed confidence in their level-four twizzles and produced a clever upside-down rotational lift. The midline and patterns steps were graded a level three, and they scored 78.64 for third place going into the free dance.
“We’re happy with our performance,” said Le Gac. “A few minor things happened, but nothing major. The further the program progressed, the more it seemed like we were getting into our stride. I think in the end, we managed to reach our target performance level. Maybe at the beginning, it was slightly below. But we’re happy with our performance today, and it was really fun to perform here.”
The 2022 Skate America bronze medalists put out an intriguing Cleopatra-themed free dance which included level-four twizzles, dance spin, and lifts. The rotational-stationary lift in particular earned high GOEs, as did the one-foot (level two and three) and level-three midline steps. They finished third in this segment and overall (122.29 / 200.93).
“I think we’re just really grateful to be able to perform like this,” said Lauriault. “It’s to our training, to our coaches, the team behind us. We’re just really grateful right now. I think that’s the best energy we have. But, you know, it’s a mix of emotion. We’re happy and sad for the people who worked hard. You want everyone to achieve their goal, but that’s sport. You can’t get it every day. So I think it’s like a mix of emotion right now.”
Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer
Alicia Fabbri and Paul Ayer (QC) set the audience on fire and received a standing ovation for their energetic rhythm dance to “Bombastic,” “Oh Carolina,” and “Rock this Party.” The twizzles were graded a level four and three, while the midline steps received a four and three. Their routine was highlighted by difficult level-four rotational lift and the team exuded fun throughout the routine. They scored 78.05 points for a close fourth place heading into the free dance.
The two-time Canadian national bronze medalists were seamless in their moving free dance to “Leave a Light On.” They brought the crowd to their feet again with their routine which featured level-four twizzles, dance spin and lifts. They placed fourth in this segment and overall (118.07 / 196.12).
Alyssa Robinson and Jacob Portz (AB/NT/NU) finished fifth (175.61) overall, followed by Lily Hensen and Nathan Lickers (ON) (174.85), Jamie Fournier and Everest Zhu (QC) (173.95), and Chloe Nguyen and Brendan Giang (BC/YT) (172.44).
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