Patrick Chan roars to record-tying 9th national title
Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir reclaim crown after 2-year hiatus
Patrick Chan laid down one of the best performances of his comeback to capture a ninth Canadian men's figure skating title on Saturday.
The 26-year-old from Toronto landed two huge quadruple jumps, and two triple Axels to score 296.86 points — a full 40 points better than the field — and skating with an ease reminiscent of his performances prior to the Sochi Olympics.
He tied the Canadian record of nine titles won by Montgomery Wilson between 1929 and 1939.
Chan took a year's hiatus from competing after his heartbreaking silver-medal performance in Sochi in 2014.
Kevin Reynolds of Coquitlam, B.C., landed three quads en route to winning silver with 255.77, while Toronto's Nam Nguyen won bronze (240.60).
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir captured their seventh national senior ice dance title, another victory in the veteran skaters' seamless comeback.
The Olympic gold and silver medallists scored 203.15 points. Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje of Waterloo, Ont., won silver with 192.73 points, while Toronto's Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier of Unionville, Ont., were third with 189.68, to clinch spots on the team for the world championships in Helsinki in March.
Two-time world champions Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford captured a record-sixth national pairs title in commanding fashion. Duhamel, from Lively, Ont., and Radford, from Balmertown, Ont., scored 227.23, despite a bad fall by Duhamel on their throw quad Salchow.
Toronto's Lubov Ilyueshechkina and Dylan Moscovitch were second with 208.24, while Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., were third (198.74).
Kaetlyn Osmond, a 21-year-old from Marystown, N.L., won the women's singles gold medal despite two falls. Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, Ont., was second with 211.09, while last year's champion Alaine Chartrand of Prescott, Ont., who sprained her right ankle in practice earlier in the week, scored 182.07 for third.
Osmond, meanwhile, was disappointed with her two falls, but thrilled to be back on top of the podium. She drew motivation from last year's nationals where a rocky long program put her third and left her off the team for the world championships in Boston.
"It's definitely led to something," she said. "It's definitely gotten me to train a lot harder in my off-season and be really motivated for my competitions this season. I think last nationals was the last little kick that I needed, because coming back to practice right after that I felt completely rejuvenated, completely ready to buckle down and do everything that I had to do."
Chartrand, meanwhile, had trouble holding back tears after finishing third. The 20-year-old's ankle buckled under her on a Lutz jump in Monday's practice.
"I started my week with a sprained ankle. I didn't know if I'd be able to compete at all," said Chartrand, who competed with her right ankle wrapped. "As much as I'm disappointed with my free program today, I'm proud of my fight and just being here."
Canada has just two spots available in women's and men's singles for the world championships, but three entries in both ice dance and pairs.