Skate Canada has its key Grand Prix spotlights set for Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 in Kelowna, but Olympic ice dance bronze medallists Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier are absent from the 2026-27 assignment list after the ISU released the season’s events.
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier won’t be on Skate Canada International’s 2026-27 Grand Prix assignment list.
The Olympic ice dance bronze medallists were left off Tuesday’s Skate Canada selections after the International Skating Union released the assignments for figure skating’s top circuit, a six-stop series that begins with Kelowna, B.C. The Skate Canada International event runs from Oct. 30 to Nov. 1.
In their place. the field at Skate Canada International will be led by Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud in pairs. with the duo listed as world pairs bronze medallists. In the men’s competition. Canadian champion Stephen Gogolev will also headline the field after finishing fifth at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Gogolev’s appearance is matched by the return of Madeline Schizas, a four-time national champion who is back in the Grand Prix mix after representing Canada at the 2022 and 2026 Winter Games.
Skaters can compete in up to two of the six Grand Prix events as part of the push to qualify for the Grand Prix Final in Chongqing, China, in December. That structure means every assignment carries weight for athletes trying to build momentum early in the season.
For Gilles and Poirier, the omission adds to a growing list of absences beyond Skate Canada. Former world pairs champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps are not listed, nor is two-time Canadian men’s champion Roman Sadovsky. None of those skaters have officially announced retirements.
Gilles and Poirier, both 34, are four-time world medallists. They reached their first Olympic podium with their “Starry, Starry Night” free dance in Milan.
The Grand Prix assignments across the circuit also show how Canada’s opportunities are being distributed this season, with multiple entries placed at different stops. Skate Canada International brings a full slate, including one entry TBD in several disciplines.
At the Grand Prix de France, the women’s list is Gabrielle Daleman. Skate America features Men: Aleksa Rakic, Women: Sara-Maude Dupuis, and pairs including Ava Kemp/Yohnatan Elizarov. The Finlandia Trophy includes Men: Stephen Gogolev, pairs: Lia Pereira/Trennt Michaud, and ice dance: Marie-Jade Lauriault/Romain Le Gac. The NHK Trophy lists Women: Madeline Schizas, pairs: Jazmine Desrochers/Kieran Thrasher, and ice dance: Marjorie Lajoie/Jean-Luc Baker.
Cup of China includes pairs: Jazmine Desrochers/Kieran Thrasher.
Skate Canada International’s assignment list itself is set as follows: Men—Wesley Chiu, Stephen Gogolev, and one entry TBD. Women—Fée Ann Landry, Madeline Schizas, and one entry TBD. Pairs—Ava Kemp/Yohnatan Elizarov, Lia Pereira/Trennt Michaud, and one entry TBD. Ice dance—Marie-Jade Lauriault/Romain Le Gac, Layla Veillon/Alexander Brandys, and one entry TBD.
With Gilles and Poirier missing from the lineup, the season’s early Grand Prix phase in Kelowna becomes a test for how Canada’s ice dance contenders will respond—while their high-profile absence continues to hang over a championship-pedigree team that hasn’t announced it’s finished.
Skate Canada International 2026-27 Piper Gilles Paul Poirier ISU Grand Prix assignments Kelowna Lia Pereira Trennt Michaud Stephen Gogolev Madeline Schizas ice dance pairs figure skating