Crone & Poirier Part Ways

SKATE CANADA PRESS RELEASE:  Reigning Canadian Ice Dance Champions, Vanessa Crone, 20, North York, Ont., and Paul Poirier, 19, Unionville, Ont., have decided to end their skating partnership and follow new career paths. The two have skated together for the past 10 years, and were members of Canada’s 2010 Olympic Team and the past three world teams. Their highest placement in the world came in 2010 when they placed seventh. This past season, they won the bronze medal at the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final, and won the Canadian title in Victoria.

Crone is happy that the two accomplished their goals and dreams. “We were a team who had to work hard every day to achieve our results. I learned so much about life from skating with Paul, how to work as part of a team, how to grow from our mistakes, and how to express our thoughts and feelings during interviews. Going to the Olympics last year and being on the world team were part of our goals as skaters, and this year, winning the Canadian ice dance title was a very special moment.” She added, “In addition to thanking Paul for a great career together, I would also like to thank my family and coaches for all the successful years!”

Poirier hopes to continue his ice dancing career. “I would like to thank Vanessa for 10 really great years together. We had a long and successful run, achieved our goals together, and it’s going to be a challenge to find a new partner who is as capable. I’m hoping to find someone with whom I will mesh well and who will lead me to grow even more as a skater. I’ll always be grateful to have skated with Vanessa for this time in my life.”

Both skaters appreciate the support of their friends and family through the years, and especially want to thank everyone at the Scarboro Figure Skating Club, and their coaches Carol Lane, Juris Razgulajevs and Jon Lane. They have appreciated the love and appreciation from the fans who followed their careers with such passion, and thank them for their dedicated support.

Skate Canada High Performance Director, Mike Slipchuk, added his thoughts on the two as a team. “Vanessa and Paul are both tremendous athletes, who carved out their own special place in the ice dance world, and were terrific competitors and ambassadors for Canada at both the junior and senior levels. I look forward to seeing them continuing to contribute to figure skating in new ways.”

Crone plans to stay involved in skating, and is looking forward to completing her senior test for free skate and keeping coaching as a possibility. She also plans to pursue university, staring with part-time courses this fall. Poirier will enter his second year at the University of Toronto in September, where he is studying linguistics.