by Anne Calder | Photo by Robin Ritoss

The Finlandia Trophy was held at the Helsinki Ice Hall November 15-17, 2024. Ten ice dance teams from seven countries competed at the fifth Grand Prix series event.

RHYTHM DANCE

The highest Rhythm Dance five partnerships included: Piper Gilles & Paul Poirier (CAN), Lilah Fear & Lewis Gibson (GBR), Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis (FIN), Natalie Taschlerova & Filip Taschler (CZE) and Oona Brown & Gage Brown (USA). These teams skated in the second group in the Free Dance. Three teams earned season best scores.

Gilles & Poirier danced to the 1960’s Beach Boys’ “I Get Around” and “California Girls” plus “Wipe Out” an instrumental by the Surfaris. The “Ken and Barbie at the Beach” themed program scored 84.65. The Canadians wore another one of their many surf party costumes, they are alternating this season. Their Choreo Rhythm Sequence earned an impressive 6.21 GOE. The team had fun playing with the supportive audience.

“We need to enjoy what we’re doing in order to continue to skate. By choosing music that we really love and really believe in makes for performing and doing our job just that much easier,” Gilles said.

“There were a few things we had to think about throughout the performance, but overall, for me, it felt better than Skate Canada. I felt we leveled up with the performance, but I know we have more to do for tomorrow,” she noted.

Fear & Gibson strutted their stuff to “Le Freak” and “Superstition” and were rewarded with 82.03 points. The reigning European silver medalists scored level 4 twizzles and rotational lift. Each earned a level 2 for the Midline Step Sequence.

Actually, the “Disco Brits” as they’ve been dubbed, were not sure they would compete in the event. At practice the previous day, Fear fell after being accidentally hit on her leg by Gibson who then carried her off the ice to the awaiting medical team.

“We mistimed our revolutions in the twizzle, and then intercepted one another. Then that took me off my feet. The pain was from the impact of the kick, but I was super lucky that it wasn’t a blade,” Fear explained.

“It meant that I couldn’t really bear weight until last night, but we took really good care of it. I’m so happy to be in skates and skating today. I’m just so grateful and really excited for tomorrow,” she acknowledged.

Turkkila & Versluis treated their hometown crowd to an upbeat skate to “I Got You” and “Land of 1000 Dances”.

The Midline Step Sequences were both level 2, while the team’s rotational lift and Turkkila’s twizzles were level 4. The segment scored a personal best 78.31.

“We were very happy and pleased about our skate today and feel the performance is growing from the start of the season,” Versluis said. “To skate in front of the home crowd is always special for us. We can feel the love and support. It really helps us in the performance.”

Two sets of siblings scored season best scores and placed fourth and fifth. Taschlerova & Taschler used songs by Donna Summer to earn 75.50 points. Brown & Brown added a third Brown (James) to the team and scored a 73.35 with his song “Get Up Offa That Thing”.

FREE DANCE

The Finlandia Trophy Free Dance had all the excitement of a thriller novel including a surprise ending.

The introduction of the opening group of ice dancers was greeted with supportive applause. The teams included Mariia Pinchuk & Mykyta (UKR), Hannah Lim & Ye Quan(KOR) Yuka Orihara & Pirinen (FIN). Eva Pate & Logan Bye (USA) and Emilea Zingas & Vadym Kolesnik (USA).

After the last performance, the spotlight was directed back to center ice where the five highest Rhythm Dance scorers were presented. The teams competed in reverse order of their previous day’s results.

Later at the victory celebration, Fear & Gibson (gold), Gilles & Poirier (silver) and Turkkila & Versluis (bronze) stood on the podium for the playing of “God Save the Queen”.

Great Britain’s National Champions Fear & Gibson danced to a blended genre of Beyoncé’s “Halo”, “End of Time” and “Crazy in Love” and scored 121.19 points. The total was 203.22, which at the end of the Free Dance became the gold medal score.

The Montreal based ice dancers’ second gold medal victory guaranteed them the top spot at the GP Final.

“We just enjoyed our free dance today,” Gibson noted. “We took it step by step and just let it build itself.

Referring back to the practice accident two days earlier when Fear injured her leg, he added, “We were just both so grateful to be able to compete here, and skate the way that we did as well.” 

Gilles & Poirier took to the ice last with a 2.62 lead over the British team. After opening with a combination rotational lift to Bach’s  “Air on the G String” that earned all 4 and 5 GOEs, the music seamlessly moved between “A Whiter Shade of Pale” by Annie Lennox and “Tango On The G String” for their remaining elements

Unfortunately, the SCI gold medalists had an unusual fall at the end of the twizzles that resulted in a fourth place 116.14 segment score.

The twizzle itself was very comfortable, but I put my second foot down and in the exit I didn’t grip into the ice,” Poirier explained about the fall. Today was definitely a more disappointing performance for us. There were several moments where we just didn’t move together,  and we made several costly mistakes. We have to come out of this competition treating it like a learning opportunity.”

“These are the things that we learned from practicing a program and skating together for so long. We learn how to get back together and let it affect the program as little as possible.”

The Canadians finished the competition with a 200.79 total score and the silver medal.

Turkkila & Versluis performed a sophisticated tango to “Bewitched” and “Obcv Astronom” (Remastered 2021) for a second place 118.29 season best free dance score. The total 196.60 earned the reigning Finish National champions the bronze medal.

We were happy with today’s performance and maybe a bit holding back, a bit too chilled,” Versluis said.

Next week, the team heads to Asia for the Cup of China – the last event in the 2024 Grand Prix series.

Our goal in China is to get those levels, which we didn’t get here, and to give our all energy and skate to our maximum,” Turkkila emphasized.

Siblings Taschlerova & Taschler (CZE) totaled 190.43 and dropped a spot in the free dance, but remained in fourth place by a thin margin. Zingas & Kolesnik (USA) scored a third place 116.76 segment score and 189.48 total and moved up to 5th place.

“The most unpredictable season in the ice dance world…ever?” – Mark Hanretty, Peacock commentator

Coming Attractions
The Grand Prix series heads to Chongqing, China November 22-24 for its final competition and selection of the remaining GPF qualifiers. Christina Carreira & Anthony Ponomarenko (USA), Charlene Guignard & Marco Fabbri (ITA) and Marjorie Lajoie & Zachary Lagha (CAN) who all have silver medals with 13 points will go head-to-head. Olivia Smart & Tim Dieck (ESP) and Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis (FIN) with 11 points are long shots. 

Finlandia Facts

Lilah Fear & Lewis Gibson have now scored a trifecta of victories over ISU World Championship  medalists beginning with a 2023 NHK Trophy win over Italian third placeholders,  Charlène Guignard & Marco Fabbri. In 2024, the British team defeated the reigning gold medalists Madison Chock & Evan Bates (USA) at Skate America and Piper Gilles & Paul Poirier (CAN) at the Finlandia Trophy. 

Maurizio Margaglio, coach of the two Finnish teams celebrated his 50th birthday at the Rhythm Dance. With his partner, Barbara Fusar-Poli, he is the 2001 World and European champion and the 2002 Olympic bronze medalist representing Italy.

In the Rhythm Dance, 26 musical selections were used. “Le Freak” was played for three partnerships: Lilah Fear & Lewis Gibson, Eva Pate & Logan Bye and Mariia Pinchuk & Mykyta Pogorielov.

Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis won their second Grand Prix series bronze medal in a row on home Finnish ice.

Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love” won the Finlandia Trophy music award. Pairs gold medalists Deanna Stellato-Dudek & Maxime Deschamps (CAN) skated to the song in their winning Short Program. Ice Dance gold medalists Lilah Fear & Lewis Gibson (GBR) used it in their winning Free Dance.