Canadians Gilles, Poirier tracking toward career-1st Grand Prix Final medal
Ice dance duo enter as favourites for season-ending event in Italy
Canadian ice dancers Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier arrived at the Grand Prix Final amid what is so far the best season of their partnership.
But Gilles and Poirier, who had pondered retirement last summer, haven't paused to reflect on their terrific season so far. They're much too busy for that.
"Maybe we'll reflect on it towards the end of the season," Gilles said. "We're still on such a quick turnaround for the Grand Prix Final, our mindset is just: recover, keep skating, recover, keep skating.
"We're very thrilled with the results, we are happy," she added. "I think we're just trying to be as present as possible."
WATCH | CBC Sports' Asher Hill previews Grand Prix Final:
Gilles and Poirier won their Grand Prixs — Skate Canada International and Grand Prix Espoo — with the two highest scores in the world this year. Their best of 219.49 two weeks ago in Finland is nearly six points better than Italy's Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri.
"I think there's a whole confluence of factors and it's really hard to necessarily say that we've been successful because of one specific thing," Poirier said. "I think our mindset has helped.
The 30-year-old Gilles and Poirier, who turned 31 last month, skate their short dance to Lady Bri's "Do What I Do." Their free dance is a Madonna selection from the movie "Evita."
Poirier said the first year of a four-year Olympic cycle is always a chance for skaters to reset. After a couple of challenging seasons all but erased by COVID-19, and then a disappointing seventh place at the Beijing Olympics, the Canadians' summer break was several weeks longer than it normally would be.
The extended downtime appears to have helped.
"I think more than anything, we're really enjoying what we're doing. We really believe in what we're doing. And that has translated into results," Poirier said.
Canadian competition
The Grand Prix Final features the top six skaters or teams from the Grand Prix circuit. Gilles and Poirier, whose top Final finish was fifth in 2019, have company this week. Canadians Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Soerensen earned a spot in the Final after capturing gold and silver in their Grand Prix events.
Following the Final, Gilles and Poirier will have a brief break before the Canadian championships in Oshawa, Ont., kick off the second half of the season, starting Jan. 9.
"This time of year is always challenging, because there's so many competitions that are close together, and not a lot of recovery time," Poirier said. "And that's something that all the skaters are dealing with.
"The trickiest part always heading into this time of year is just managing energy, trying not to get sick, and feeling good. I think we're feeling good, we're feeling confident, and we're excited to go out and compete again."
