By Lorie Baird – Trenton Figure Skating Club
Feature photos: All Photos by Amy Deroche Deroche Sports Photography
Bay of Quinte Synchro skaters; Madeleine Henry, Madison MacDonald, Makaela Bell, Reanna Harron, Riley Stanislawski, Taylor Lapierre, Victoria Cooney, Wren Davis, Chloe Amos, Emily Lay, Jennifer Pye, Julianna Cooney, Kaitlin Cooper, Katie Garrison, Kourtney Schwass, Mackenzie Lapierre
The Trenton Figure Skating season Club has been very busy this season with more than ninety children and 30-plus star skaters participating in the CanSkate program. The season concluded on March 30th with a special carnival showcase – Animation On Ice, at Trenton’s Duncan McDonald Arena. Special guests were world champion Kaetlyn Osmond and pairs skaters Chloe Chouinard and Mathieu Ostiguy (cover picture).
Chouinard and Ostiguy, 2019 Canadian Junior Pair champions, were a huge hit. They won their first national title together in Saint John, New Brunswick at the Skate Canada Nationals in January. They train in Saint Leonard, Quebec with Richard Gauthier and Bruno Marcotte. This was their second season together. They have represented Canada on the international stage at two Junior Grand Prix events in Latvia and Croatia. Chloe and Mathieu are great friends on and off the ice, and they’re looking forward to competing in the senior category next year. Chloe is a past member of the Stirling Figure Skating Club where Lindsay Newbery was her long-time coach. She has spent many days in training at the Trenton Figure Skating Club, and was happy to be home to perform.
World Champion Kaetlyn Osmond also showcased her talent at our Amination on Ice carnival. Kaetlyn is a role model to most of the young skaters at the club and it was amazing to see her skate in Trenton after watching her compete in the Olympics, Stars on Ice, and other ice show tours. Kaetlyn was born in Marystown, Newfoundland, and trained in Marystown, St. John’s and Montreal until the age of 10. She moved to Edmonton to the Ice Palace Figure Skating club with coach Ravi Walia and trained there for 12 years. She has competed internationally since 2010 (Junior Grand Prix), culminating with a world championship in 2018. Kaetlyn has an impressive skating resume: 2018 world champion, 2017 world silver medalist, 2018 Olympic champion (team), 2018 Olympic bronze medalist, 2014 Olympic silver medalist (team), 3-time national champion, and much more. No wonder so many young skaters look up to this inspiring athlete.
The Trenton Figure Skating Club (TFSC) is so proud of all its skaters, and it was a pure pleasure to showcase all levels of skating at our carnival from the Pre CanSkate program, as well as those at competitive levels. It is exciting to see so many of our skaters passing their CanSkate levels, having success in their dance tests, and earning medals in competition.
TFSC was well represented at the Skate Ontario Provincial Championships March 7 -10 in Mississauga. Congratulations to the skaters named here who qualified and competed at Provincials.
16-year-old Julia Baird is coached by Lindsay Newbery. It was a great season for this dedicated skater. She won medals in every competition she attended, improving her scores each time. She qualified to compete at the Provincial Championships in Mississauga in the Star 10 category where she finished fourth in the province. Julia was the 2018 provincial champion in the Star 8 event.
Makaela Bell is 17 and in Grade 11 at St. Paul in Trenton. Makaela is a busy skater who is dedicated to everything she applies herself to. This year she had a successful season, qualifying for Provincials in the Silver Triathlon Category, finishing tenth. She was also a member of the Bay of Quinte Synchro team. She coaches in our pre-CanSkate and Canskate sessions and enjoys playing rugby at her school.
Olivia Lord is fourteen and coached by Lisa Conley. She had a very successful season. Olivia placed eighth out of 137 skaters province-wide in the Star 6 Women’s Free Skate, and that qualified her for the Skate Ontario provincial championship in Mississauga. Olivia’s dedication to her training both on and off the ice has paid off this season. She finished 21st at the provincial championship.
Holden (10-years-old) and Tenly (8) Paul competed at the pre-juvenile level. After less than a year skating together, they attended the Skate Ontario Provincial Championship, placing 4th overall. This brother/sister pair team is coached by Leah Paul, along with tech specialist Lisa Conley.
This was the first season for the Bay of Quinte Synchro Team, and wow! It was amazing. It brought together skaters from Trenton, Stirling, Quinte and Brighton with “zero” synchro experience. They competed at the pre-novice level and worked hard all season to qualify ninth for the provincial championships. They are assisted by Krista Baker and coached by Kandis Kelly and Lindsay Newbery. Nine members of the TFSC are on the team. Congratulations Makaela Bell, Emily Lay, Jennifer Pye, Kaitlin Cooper, Kourtney Schwass, Reanna Harron, Riley Stanislawski, Katie Garrison and Chloe Amos.
Program assistants (PAs) are an important part of the club. PA’s help our younger skaters learn to skate in our CanSkate, CanPower and pre-CanSkate programs. They help the professional coaches on the ice, and their energy, enthusiasm, and excellent skating skills help our new skaters learn to enjoy our sport. PA’s volunteer many hours to our club and we are so thankful to have them: Reanna Harron, Chelsea Langley Smith, Emma Langley Smith, Kaitlin Cooper, Julia Baird, Jennifer Pye, Olivia Lord, Paige Hart, Maci McBride, Ava Cameron, Holden Paul, and Emily Lay. Cole Baird and Ethan Lord are volunteers with our club, and these Quinte West Minor Hockey players are excellent young role models and huge assets to our club.