'No one's going home!' Tied scores saved these skaters from elimination
In a surprise twist on Week 3 of Battle of the Blades, Vanessa James, Akim Aliu, Eric Radford and Jennifer Botterill were saved from elimination by the judge's scores After competing in a head-to-head skate off, the judges scored both pairs at 16.8, leaving everyone in the running for Week 4.
"We have a tie!" confirmed host Ron MacLean. "No one's going home!"
Week 3 gave each hockey player an opportunity to tell their personal story on the ice. The heartfelt performances were accompanied by emotional videos and photos that played on the monitors around the rink.
Vanessa James and Akim Aliu's performance was dedicated to Akim's all-BIPOC minor hockey team and the youth athletes made a cameo appearance in a dance video projected above the ice; Akim and Vanessa mirrored the young players' moves as the video played behind them.
"I see the passion," said Scott Moir to Akim. "This was the first time I really saw your personality, your power showing through.
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Jennifer Botterill and Eric Radford's performance was a tribute to fatherhood, dedicated to both Jennifer's dad and her husband. Jennifer credits her father for inspiring her career and life goals. The pair of Olympic medallists skated gracefully as images of Jennifer's family played throughout the arena.
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While the judges admired how graceful Jennifer and Eric are together, they wanted something out of the ordinary from their performance. "I think you played it safe tonight," said Natalie Spooner to Jennifer. "Going forward, you're going to need to take risks."
After Natalie Spooner and Elladj Balde gave their scores, Scott Moir tied the averages with a 5.5 for Vanessa and Akim.
Seven pairs will be heading into the competition next week for Week 4 on November 12, 2020 @ 8 p.m. (9AT/9:30 NT) on CBC and CBC Gem.
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