Scott Thornton and Amanda Evora win Battle of the Blades
American skater Amanda Evora and retired NHLer Scott Thornton have triumphed, winning the fourth season of CBC-TV's Battle of the Blades.
Evora and Thornton were declared champions of the televised skating competition Sunday night in Toronto, after earning the most public votes ahead of the season finale.
Evora is a two-time U.S. pairs silver medallist, while Thornton had a nearly two-decade long career in the NHL, playing in Toronto, Edmonton, Montreal, Dallas, Los Angeles and San Jose.
As part of their win, Evora and Thornton chose the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation to receive a $100,000 donation.
The pair beat out stiff competition from fellow finalists Violetta Afanasieva and Jason Strudwick and Marie-France Dubreuil and Mathieu Dandenault. All of this year's 16 skaters returned for Sunday's finale to perform in a group number.
Previous Battle of the Blades champions include:
- Jamie Salé (who served as a judge this year) and Craig Simpson.
- Ekaterina Gordeeva and Valeri Bure.
- David Pelletier and Tessa Bonhomme.
Along with Salé, this year's judging panel included former world figure skating champion Kurt Browning and former NHLer and Hockey Night in Canada broadcaster P.J. Stock.
