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Stellato Dudek Deschamps CAN GP France Day 2 Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps (CAN) held their overnight lead to take gold in the Pairs event © ISU

Deanna Stellato-Dudek/Maxime Deschamps of Canada won the Pairs event as competition wrapped up on Saturday at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating event Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA). France’s Camille Kovalev/Pavel Kovalev earned the silver, while Germany’s Annika Hocke/Robert Kunkel jumped from fifth to take the bronze. For the German and French teams, it was their first medals on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating circuit.  

 

Stellato Dudek Deschamps CAN GP France Day 2 3 The 2022 Skate America silver medalists scored 185.84 overall to top the standings © ISU

Overnight leaders Stellato-Dudek/Deschamps opened their program set to “Cleopatra” with a high triple twist followed by a triple toe-double toe combination. The 2022 Skate America silver medalists impressed with their spectacular lifts and a rarely-seen forward outside death spiral. The only major glitch came when Stellato-Dudek fell on the throw triple loop. The 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy Champions scored 121.51 points for their Free Skating and collected 185.84 points overall to strike gold. 

“It wasn't the easiest week of competition this week, it was pretty challenging,” Deschamps admitted. “But we fought together this week, we have learned from each other. We're pleased for all the fight tonight and now we're qualified for the final. So we're looking forward to going there and still improving,” he added. 

Stellato Dudek Deschamps CAN GP France Day 2 2 The Canadians soared to their first gold in only their second international season © ISU

“This is our second season competing internationally and every experience that we've had has been new. The first time being in the lead after the short, the first time skating last, the first time not having a good short. So it's been a lot of new things each time,” Stellato-Dudek explained. “This is the experience that we need to gain to be the type of team we want to be. We're very excited to qualify for the final and very proud of our fight in the long program.”

Kovalev/Kovalev turned in a solid performance to “Caruso” that included a triple twist, triple toe-double toe combination and throw triple Salchow. The husband-and-wife-team posted a personal best of 115.87 points to rank third in the Free Skating, but overall held on to second place at 179.85 points. 

 

Kovalev Kovalev FRA GP France Day 2 Camille Kovalev/Pavel Kovalev delighted the home fans as they claimed silver © ISU

“It's the first time for us (to win a Grand Prix medal) and when we came here it was just to skate and improve and tried to show what we can do,” Camille Kovalev noted. “We changed our coaching team and the way we work in practice. I had a lot of injuries in two years, so we are very careful about this not to stop (training) every time,” she added when asked about the progress they have made.

Skating to ”Without You”, Hocke/Kunkel produced a triple twist, triple Salchow-double Axel sequence, a throw triple flip and two level-four lifts to set a personal best with 119.62 points. They finished second in the Free Skating and moved up from fifth to third overall at 179.73 points. 

 

Hocke Kunkel GER GP France Day 2 Annika Hocke/Robert Kunkel (GER) rose from fifth overnight to take the bronze © ISU 

“We are very pleased with what we could show and we know what to work on,” Hocke told the post-event press conference. “We had a tough time coming here because both of us have been sick and that was more mentally demanding than I would have expected, because when you know you're not 100% ready, it's definitely harder. But for us it was a great learning experience and we're happy that we, like everybody today, showed a fight. We were not perfect, but we will work on that,” she added. 

Ghilardi Ambrosini ITA GP France Day 2 Rebecca Ghilardi/Filippo Ambrosini (ITA) ended the competition in fourth © ISU

Rebecca Ghilardi/Filippo Ambrosini (ITA) remained in fourth place at 174.72 points while Karina Safina/Luka Berulava (GEO) dropped from third to fifth after some errors (162.44 points). 

The Grand Prix de France in Angers (FRA) November 4-6 is the third of six events in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

More than 150 Skaters/Couples representing 29 ISU Members have been invited to the series. The maximum number of entries for each event is 12 Ladies, 12 Men, 8 Pairs and 10 Ice Dance couples. 

The General Announcement of the 2022/23 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series is available here. The individual announcements are published under the respective events. Full entry lists and further information are available on the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series page.

 

Selection Criteria

In order for a Skater/Couple to be eligible to compete at an ISU Grand Prix event, a minimum total score must have been achieved in the 2021/22 or current 2022/23 season in an ISU event (Grand Prix, Junior Grand Prix, Championships) or a Challenger Series event. Exceptions apply to host country Skaters, previously ranked Skaters or split ranked Couples who return with new partners. The minimum total score is 3/5 of highest score per discipline at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2022 and are as follows: Women: 141.65, Men: 187.49, Pairs: 132.65, Ice Dance: 137.89.

Following the IOC recommendation and in order to protect the integrity of ice skating competitions and for the safety of all the participants of international ice skating competitions, the ISU Council based on Article 17.1.q)i) of the ISU Constitution, agreed that with immediate effect and until further notice, no Skaters belonging to the ISU Members in Russia (Russian Skating Union and the Figure Skating Federation of Russia) and Belarus (Skating Union of Belarus) shall be invited or allowed to participate in International ice skating competitions including ISU Championships and other ISU Events. The same applies to Officials listed in the respective ISU Communications and/or Regulations under Russia and Belarus (see ISU Communication 2469).

 

Grand Prix Standings

Men                  Women             Ice Dance         Pair Skating

Where to Watch

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events will be live streamed on the official ISU YouTube Channel in most countries. Find out where to watch the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating competitions.

Subscribe to the ISU YouTube Channel to receive all the latest videos and follow the conversation with #GPFigure.

ISU Grand Prix Schedule

The schedules of each ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events are available below:

21 - 23 Oct, 2022          Skate America, Norwood (USA)

28 – 30 Oct, 2022         Skate Canada International, Mississauga (CAN)

04 - 06 Nov, 2022         Grand Prix de France, Angers (FRA)

11 - 13 Nov, 2022         MK John Wilson Trophy, Sheffield (GBR)

18 - 20 Nov, 2022         NHK Trophy, Sapporo (JPN)

25 - 27 Nov, 2022         Grand Prix Espoo, Espoo (FIN)

08 - 11 Dec, 2022         Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, Torino (ITA)

 

About ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating

The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Series started in 1995 (previously known a s the ISU Champions Series) and consists of six invitational international senior events and the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. The top six of the past World Championships are seeded. Competitors collect points in their Grand Prix events towards the qualification for the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. Only the top six Skaters / Couples in each discipline can qualify for the Final.