2025 Skate Canada International

The 2025 Skate Canada International is a figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU). Organized and hosted by Skate Canada, it was the third event of the 2025–26 Grand Prix of Figure Skating: a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held from 31 October to 2 November at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Medals were awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. Skaters earned points based on their results, and the top skaters or teams in each discipline at the end of the season were then invited to compete at the 2025–26 Grand Prix Final in Nagoya, Japan. Ilia Malinin of the United States won the men's event, Mone Chiba of Japan won the women's event, Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps of Canada won the pairs event, and Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Canada won the ice dance event.

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating is a series of seven events sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU) and held during the autumn: six qualifying events and the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. This allows skaters to perfect their programs earlier in the season, as well as compete against the skaters whom they would later encounter at the World Championships. Skaters earn points based on their results in their respective competitions and after the six qualifying events, the top skaters or teams in each discipline are invited to compete at the Grand Prix Final. Skate Canada International debuted in 1973, and when the ISU launched the Grand Prix series in 1995, Skate Canada International was one of the five qualifying events. It has been a Grand Prix event every year since, except for 2020, when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2025 Skate Canada International was the third event of the 2025–26 Grand Prix of Figure Skating series, and was held from 31 October to 2 November at the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

The International Skating Union published the initial list of entrants on 6 June 2025.

Women competing in single skating performed their short programs on Friday, 31 October; while men performed theirs on Saturday, 1 November. Lasting no more than 2 minutes 40 seconds, the short program had to include the following elements:

For men: one double or triple Axel; one triple or quadruple jump; one jump combination consisting of a double jump and a triple jump, two triple jumps, or a quadruple jump and a double jump or triple jump; one flying spin; one camel spin or sit spin with a change of foot; one spin combination with a change of foot; and a step sequence using the full ice surface.

For women: one double or triple Axel; one triple jump; one jump combination consisting of a double jump and a triple jump, or two triple jumps; one flying spin; one layback spin, sideways leaning spin, camel spin, or sit spin without a change of foot; one spin combination with a change of foot; and one step sequence using the full ice surface.

Women performed their free skates on Saturday, 1 November; while men performed theirs on Sunday, 2 November. The free skate for both men and women could last no more than 4 minutes, and had to include the following: seven jump elements, of which one had to be an Axel-type jump; three spins, of which one had to be a spin combination, one a flying spin, and one a spin with only one position; a step sequence; and a choreographic sequence.

Couples competing in pair skating performed their short programs on Friday, 31 October. Lasting no more than 2 minutes 40 seconds, the short program had to include the following elements: one pair lift, one double or triple twist lift, one double or triple throw jump, one double or triple solo jump, one solo spin combination with a change of foot, one death spiral, and a step sequence using the full ice surface.

Couples performed their free skates on Saturday, 1 November. The free skate could last no more than 4 minutes, and had to include the following: three pair lifts, of which one has to be a twist lift; two different throw jumps; one solo jump; one jump combination or sequence; one pair spin combination; one death spiral; and a choreographic sequence.

Couples competing in ice dance performed their rhythm dances on Saturday, 1 November. Lasting no more than 2 minutes 50 seconds, the theme of the rhythm dance this season was "music, dance styles, and feeling of the 1990s". Examples of applicable dance styles and music included pop, Latin, house, techno, hip-hop, and grunge. The rhythm dance had to include the following elements: one pattern dance step sequence, one choreographic rhythm sequence, one dance lift, one set of sequential twizzles, and one step sequence.

Couples then performed their free dances on Sunday, 2 November. The free dance could last no longer than 4 minutes, and had to include the following: three dance lifts, one dance spin, one set of synchronized twizzles, one step sequence in hold, one step sequence while on one skate and not touching, and three choreographic elements.

All of the technical elements in any figure skating performance – such as jumps and spins – were assigned a predetermined base value and scored by a panel of nine judges on a scale from –5 to 5 based on their quality of execution. Every Grade of Execution (GOE) from –5 to 5 is assigned a value (a percentage of the element's base value) as shown on the Scale of Values (SOV). For example, a triple Axel was worth a base value of 8.00 points, and a GOE of 3 was worth 2.40 points, so a triple Axel with a GOE of 3 earned 10.40 points. The judging panel's GOE for each element was determined by calculating the trimmed mean (the average after discarding the highest and lowest scores). The panel's scores for all elements were added together to generate a total elements score. At the same time, the judges evaluated each performance based on three program components – skating skills, presentation, and composition – and assigned a score from 0.25 to 10 in 0.25-point increments. The judging panel's final score for each program component was also determined by calculating the trimmed mean. Those scores were then multiplied by the factor shown on the following chart; the results were added together to generate a total program component score.

Deductions were applied for certain violations like time infractions, stops and restarts, or falls. The total elements score and total program component score were added together, minus any deductions, to generate a final performance score for each skater or team.

The following new record high score was set during this event.

Ilia Malinin of the United States set a new world record with his score of 228.97 in the free skate, defeating the previous world record of 227.79, which had been set by Malinin at the 2024 World Figure Skating Championships. His gold medal finish marked Malinin's twelfth consecutive international victory and secured him a spot at the 2025 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Nagoya, Japan. He defeated silver medalist Aleksandr Selevko of Estonia by a margin of over 76 points. Kao Miura of Japan finished in third place.

Mone Chiba of Japan, who had been in the lead after the short program, won the gold medal after also finishing first in the free skate. It was Chiba's first Grand Prix event of the season. Isabeau Levito of the United States won the silver medal. Ami Nakai, also of Japan, won the bronze medal and secured herself a spot at the 2025–26 Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, having previously won the 2025 Grand Prix de France.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek of Canada performs a backflip with an assist from Maxime Deschamps at the 2025 Skate Canada International.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps of Canada won their third consecutive victory at the Skate Canada International, rallying back after a second-place finish in the short program. Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin of Germany had finished first in the short program with a four-point lead over Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps; however a series of errors in their free skate caused them to lose their lead. Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps ultimately defeated Hase and Volodin by a margin of six points. "We're pretty happy with the performance," Stellato-Dudek stated afterward. "It was a significant improvement [from the 2025 Grand Prix de France] ... but we showed more of what we have been doing in practice." Nikita Volodin had a slip during one of his jumps, while Minerva Fabienne Hase suffered a fall during their throw triple flip. "We had two big mistakes," Hase stated. "But the rest of the elements we were really happy with and we showed what we wanted to, which was conditioning. We skated with full power to the end." Ellie Kam and Daniel O'Shea of the United States set a new personal best in the free skate, jumping from fourth place to third.

Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Canada won their sixth consecutive gold medal at the Skate Canada International, finishing with an overall score of 202.89. While Gilles and Poirier had been in the lead after the rhythm dance, they finished second in the free dance after some difficulty on their curved lift cost them four points, but they still won the event. Despite placing first in the free dance, Allison Reed and Saulius Ambrulevičius of Lithuania finished in second place. It was their highest finish at the Grand Prix. Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha of Canada leapfrogged from fourth place to win the bronze medal.

• "Special Regulations & Technical Rules – Single & Pair Skating and Ice Dance 2024" (PDF). International Skating Union. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 June 2025.

• Official website