“It’s going to be okay, it’s going to be okay,” Marjorie Lajoie kept repeating to herself before starting the free dance routine at the World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal on Saturday afternoon. The skater was breathing harder than usual.
For Zachary Lagha, these two manifestations signaled that his partner of the last 13 years was more tense than usual. But when the first notes of Roses, by Quebec pianist Jean-Michel Blais, sounded through the speakers of the Bell Center, this nervousness disappeared as if by magic. “A miracle has appeared! ”, will even go so far as to declare the young woman.
Four minutes later, after a delicate and gentle ballet on ice, Lajoie and Lagha left the ice rink to the cheers of the 8,000 spectators who occupied the entire first two levels of the enclosure.
The first pair of the last group, the Quebec skaters took the lead, which brought a smile to the placid Patrice Lauzon, one of their coaches at the Montreal Ice Academy (I.AM).
In the end, the score of 125.71 points, a personal mark, allowed them to maintain their rank after their fifth place the day before in the rhythm dance. The last duo in the running, their Canadian compatriots Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier caused a surprise and created a sensation by winning the silver medal, just behind the defending champions, the Americans Madison Chock and Evan Bates. The Italians Charlène Guignard and Marco Fabbri had to settle for bronze.
PHOTO GRAHAM HUGHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier
“We did the job”
Clearly, Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha have made a giant leap since their 11e position at their last participation in the Worlds in 2022, a few weeks after finishing 13e at the Beijing Olympic Games.
Apart from their coaches, almost no one believed them capable of obtaining such a result considering the severe concussion suffered by Lajoie in January, an injury which jeopardized their presence in Montreal.
PHOTO ERIC BOLTE, USA TODAY SPORTS
Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha
Surprised by this fifth place? “We didn’t even think about it, we just wanted to skate well,” replied Lagha. After that, the results, the scores, it’s the icing on the cake. »
They say all the time that you don’t want to think about the results, but I think this was my first competition in my life where I didn’t think about it at all. Because of my injury, the time we had [pour se préparer] and the magnitude of the competition in front of family and friends, we just wanted to skate well.
Marjorie Lajoie
On Friday, Lagha surprised journalists by stating point blank that he was not looking forward to jumping on the ice, emphasizing how the pressure stifled the pleasure for the vast majority of competitors, whether they admitted it or not. .
This time, the athlete from Saint-Hubert had “a little more” fun than the day before. “We are very, very happy. We did the job, we managed, we were professional. »
Like in a merry-go-round
Likewise, Marjorie Lajoie acted like a professional after suffering a concussion in a fall in training. She fell on her butt and her head did not hit the ice, but the whiplash effect was devastating to her brain. She understood that she was suffering from this insidious illness two days later during a rotational lift where her sidekick took her on a real ride.
The rehabilitation was long and difficult. Helped by specialists from the Institut national du sport du Québec, the skater from Boucherville restarted training very gradually. It was only three weeks before the Worlds that they were able to resume on-ice practices.
“We added one element per day,” said their coach Marie-France Dubreuil. The rotational lift, it’s only been 10 days since they reinstated it. She had sprained her neck while doing that lift. The head is quite far away and it’s spinning. So we took our time, especially since it comes to the end in both programs. »
Marjorie Lajoie had to find strategies to not lose her balance after these six revolutions at very high speed, not counting the exit. “I was so dizzy at first, and not necessarily from the concussion. Anyone gets dizzy doing a rotational lift. There, it had been two months since I had filmed. So we developed some things: when I come out of the lift, I look at him and we continue afterwards. I never thought I would have to work on this. »
PHOTO GRAHAM HUGHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha
During her accomplice’s convalescence, Lagha continued her individual progress. “Marjo and Zach, I call them my super kids,” said Marie-France Dubreuil. If they have a plan, they will execute it to the letter. They believe in their means. They’ve been skating together for so long that they can do it with their eyes closed. »
I told Zach, “Get better on your part and Marjorie will follow you. That’s what she does best in the world, following you.”
Coach Marie-France Dubreuil
World junior champions in 2019, Lajoie and Lagha are now among the best in the senior category. At 23 and 24 years old, they stand out. The average age of medalists in Montreal is 33 and a third. None of them, including vice-champions Gilles and Poirier, wanted to confirm their participation in the next season.
“We still have work to do and we’re just going to focus on that,” warned Lagha. If the judges want to put us on top, they will. We’re just going to continue our performances and let the world appreciate what we’re doing, hopefully. »
World dance capital
After winning bronze twice (2021 and 2023), Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier shook up the established order by surpassing the Italians Guignard and Fabbri, en route to an unexpected silver medal. Their score of 133.17 was the best in the freestyle, edging out American world champions Chock and Bates by more than a point.
PHOTO GRAHAM HUGHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier
“The free skate is usually the strongest for us, and today we felt so present on the ice,” noted Poirier, a Franco-Ontarian originally from Ottawa.
Chock and Bates, who train in Montreal under the guidance of Dubreuil and Lauzon, felt at home at the Bell Center, where the atmosphere “was electric.” “When we first arrived, I wondered if it was our apartment building that I saw on the street,” said Madison Chock. It was a little surreal to be surrounded by so many familiar things. At the hotel, we were in our usual bubble, it was really wonderful to have so many people from our I.AM family and our own family and friends. It was a very nice experience. »
In addition to this other world title, the protégés of Dubreuil and Lauzon at I.AM occupied 6 of the first 10 places, 7 adding the Americans Christina Carreira, a Montreal native, and Anthony Ponomarenko, who train on campus from London, Ontario, with Olympic champion Scott Moir.
More than ever, Montreal is the world capital of ice dancing.
“A victory of life”
PHOTO GRAHAM HUGHES, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Sørensen
After their disappointment the day before, Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Nikolaj Sørensen bounced back in the program, which allowed them to move up one rung to ninth place. Fournier Beaudry, who had missed a turn in the rhythm dance, was particularly moved at the end of the choreography, which ended with an ovation. The encouragement received from the crowd before the start of their performance almost disturbed her. “It was really fantastic,” she said. I had to concentrate and tell myself that I had a job to do, but I took all the love they gave us and then delivered it during the performance. » Fifth last year, the Quebec duo had to deal with the unveiling of a complaint for sexual assault from a former American skater to the Office of the Commissioner for Integrity in Sport. Sørensen has since proclaimed his innocence. “They gave the performance of which they were capable,” rejoiced their coach Marie-France Dubreuil. It’s like a victory of life more than of skating. »
No torch for Deschamps
The Montreal Canadian did not acquiesce to Maxime Deschamps’ request to carry the torch during the closing gala of the World Championships on Sunday afternoon, according to a Skate Canada spokesperson. The sacred object will therefore remain in its display near the team locker room. One thing is certain, the skating of the new world champion in pairs, with his partner Deana Stellato-Dudek, will not suffer from comparison with that of Martin St-Louis’ men.