Two-time World champion Kaori Sakamoto gets her Grand Prix series started this week at 2023 Skate Canada International. On paper, she’s the class of the field, but we saw some inconsistency from her last year around this time during the Grand Prix Series. There are some strong skaters in this field who could upset, and ther eare some similarities in the field to last year’s Skate Canada—and we all remember how crazy those results were.
Skate Canada International predictions
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GOLD Kaori Sakamoto JPN - Last year, Sakamoto was unsteady coming in as a first-time World champion. This season has already seemed different in her general confidence and her ownership of that World champion energy. She’s continuing to explore new artistic frontiers in her programs, and if she’s even close to clean, she should run away with this title.
SILVER Chaeyeon Kim KOR - Sixth in her Worlds debut last season, Kim has so much upside to her potential, and she’s already shown improvements in her artistry and musicality this season. Her early season has seen strong results already, with a bronze at Lombardia and then a win with a 200+ score three weeks later at Nepela. Skate Canada will be her debut on the senior Grand Prix, and it should be, well, pretty grand.
BRONZE Lindsay Thorngren USA - My pick for surprise of the week, Thorngren had a strong season opener by winning Cranberry Cup a couple months back. But Skate Canada is a competition she’d like a do-over in, because she was ninth here last year in her Grand Prix debut. Her rookie season on the senior circuit was not what she had hoped, but the potential is there for some redemption this year.
4. Rino Matsuike JPN - Second at Chubu Regionals, Matsuike is making her international debut this season. She’s been one of those bubbling-under skaters the past couple of season, but injury a couple years ago and illness last year really hampered her progress. There’s a lot to like about her skating, and if she can be clean this week, her potential for a podium finish is there.
5. Madeline Schizas CAN - The two-time Canadian champion has been looking for her breakthrough since that superb Olympic team event in Beijing put her on the map. But her consistency hasn’t been there. Nepela Memorial in September may have been a good sign, and she seems to be starting this season off with more steadiness in her jumps already. This first GP will be a big test for her.
6. Rinka Watanabe JPN - One of the breakout stars from last year, Watanabe’s season so far has been subpar for her standards. She progressed from a dismal sixth at regionals to a silver at Finlandia a couple weeks later, but even those performances there were not where she’d hope they would be, especially given her brilliant early season last year.
7. Kaiya Ruiter CAN - Bronze at Cranberry and then silver at Autumn Classic, Ruiter has delivered some solid results so far. But she will need to be cleaner in her skates this week if she is to break into that top half.
8. Audrey Shin USA - Shin comes is fresh off a win at Kings Cup, which should give her some confidence as she enters the Grand Prix. She hasn’t quite found some of the consistency that she had on the Grand Prix last year quite yet, but this is an opportunity for her to take a couple steps up.
9. Starr Andrews USA - It is truly difficult to figure out which Starr Andrews is going to show up. She’s the defending Skate Canada silver medalist—and quite the history made last year at that. But she also finished ninth in her second GP last year. She’s had one competition so far this year, and that was a silver medal finish behind Shin at Kings Cup three weeks ago.
10. Lara Naki Gutmann ITA - She’s coming off a really strong free skate at Worlds last year, a cult-favorite program that she has kept for this season. Gutmann was fifth at Lombardia and seventh at Nepela to start her sesason.
11. Mae Berenice Meite FRA - The six-time French champion’s comeback continues. Skate Canada will be her first non-France Grand Prix event since before the pandemic. She was fourth at French Masters earlier this season.
12. Sara-Maude Dupuis CAN - Fourth at Canadians last season, Dupuis made her debut this season with a ninth-place finish at Nebelhorn Trophy.