Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier, of Canada, during the ice dance practice session ahead of the Skate Canada International figure skating competition in Halifax on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese

HALIFAX - Piper Gilles says she and Paul Poirier will skate until they run out of gas.

Right now, the tank is full for Canada’s top ice dancers.

"We're going to keep skating until we feel like we have nothing left to give,” Gilles said. “I feel like we still have so much drive and motivation and unfinished business.”

Gilles and Poirier open their figure skating season this weekend at their ninth Skate Canada International. They’re also targeting a fifth consecutive title at Halifax’s Scotiabank Centre.

The two 32-year-olds are back on competition ice for the first time since winning silver at the world championships in Montreal, where they also posted the highest score of the free dance.

On the back of that performance, Gilles and Poirier, who pondered retirement after the 2022 Olympic cycle, returned for another season with a commitment to compete through the 2026 Games in Milano-Cortina.

They started brainstorming music ideas and working on choreography earlier than usual during the off-season. And even though Gilles was simultaneously planning her wedding in early October, they’re feeling the positive effects of that preparation heading into the season.

“We feel really confident coming into this event,” said Poirier, dressed in yellow as the “Ken” to Gilles’ pink “Barbie” after they practised their Beach Boys-themed rhythm dance on Thursday.

“We really feel in our groove and in our element and on top of what we're doing, and that's a really nice way to feel.”

It's a feeling they don't take for granted.

Poirier recalls low points when their seasons were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and personal illness after Gilles’ ovarian cancer diagnosis during the 2022-23 campaign. She had an ovary and her appendix removed after discovering a tumour, which later tests showed was cancerous.

“I feel like now that's kind of all behind us,” Poirier said. “We've had a nice, I don't want to say normal year, but a nice year where we're just like, really living and training and doing the things that we want to do. It's been really freeing to be able to skate that way over the last few months.”

They’ll debut their Beach Boys program under this season’s '50s, '60s and '70s rhythm dance theme, aiming to capture “that American dream of the time, that picture-perfect life in California,” Poirier said.

"Who knew we're gonna do Beach Boys? I never predicted it,” Gilles added. “Our skating career has been so unpredictable, for ourselves and our fans, and I think that we've just never stopped growing. That's what's been so amazing about our career. It's been so playful and so unexpected and so us in so many ways."

For the free dance on Sunday, they’ll skate to Annie Lennox’s cover of “A Whiter Shade of Pale.”

Fellow Canadians Marjorie Lajoie and Zachary Lagha are Gilles and Poirier’s biggest challengers this weekend, with two-time defending world champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the U.S. not competing at Skate Canada.

Lajoie and Lagha are also making their season debut after withdrawing from two challenger events due to Lajoie’s concussion — her second after the duo pulled out of nationals in January.

The 2019 world junior champions, who placed fifth at Worlds in Montreal, said the fact Gilles and Poirier return and improve year after year is a source of motivation.

"It's inspiring to see that you can have a long career. They still look in shape, and they're able to do everything,” Lajoie said. “I think that's inspiring, not just for us, but for all skaters.”

"It gives you a goal, too,” Lagha added. “It's not like they retire at 30, and then it's your turn. No, because they stay, you also have a chance to compete against them and everything.”

For now, though, Gilles and Poirier are still getting better.

"Last year, they had such a strong season and a great end of the season, and there's still more for them to give and develop,” said Skate Canada high-performance director Mike Slipchuk. “They're knocking on the door. I know their goal is to be world champions, and they keep improving.”

Gilles and Poirier also have their sights set on medalling at the Olympics and say they’ve already started planning their programs for Milan.

In the meantime, they’re focused on capturing more hardware at Skate Canada.

“Yes, the goal is to win worlds. Yes, it’s to get Olympic medals, be on top of the podium, all that kind of stuff,” Gilles said. “But I think we thrive on being confident in the moment, taking one thing at a time.

"We're not going to be here much longer, right? So I think just sitting here and living in these moments, taking it in, it helps us stay more present and confident in our ability."

Skate Canada begins Friday night with the pairs and women's short programs. The rhythm dance and men's short take place Saturday afternoon, followed by the pairs and women's free programs in the evening. The competition wraps up Sunday afternoon with the men's free program and the free dance.

The Grand Prix, the top series in figure skating, consists of six events and a final. This year's circuit kicked off at Skate America last week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2024