Vankleek Hill Starlettes skate onto the scene

Vankleek Hill Starlettes skate onto the scene

The four students have been learning to figure skate as part of the program for the better part of a year, navigating shutdowns and uncertain ice availability, but all their work has paid off. Alice Brunet, Joannie Labre, and Coralie Labre received a bronze assessment, and Haylee Diotte Leduc received a silver assessment in their Star 1 showcase. 

“They were quite proud to be wearing the dress, they were very nervous on the ice of course,” said Starlettes Coach Nancy Neumann. “It’s the first time for them to skate in front of parents and other people, and it’s always a little bit nerve-wracking, but they’re looking forward to repeating it again next year and hopefully scoring a better score before they move up into the next level.” 

The CanSkate program teaches both kids and adults how to reach their skating goals. They help students meet baseline balance, control, and agility goals based on whatever they’re trying to do, whether it be figure skating, hockey, ringette, or just a loop around the rink. The Star showcases allow students to show what they’ve learned and receive feedback from judges on what portion of their routines they need to work on next. 

The Starlettes skated in the Star 1 showcase, which works on the most basic skating skills. The students showed off jumps, spins, spirals, and how they move on the ice, a typical showing for Star 1 assessments. The individual moves don’t get judged until at least Star 5, but overall they did very well. The assessments go up to Star 10. 

The date of their next event is uncertain, as rural areas have less ice time available for booking, especially in the summer. According to Neumann, local ice time is usually taken up by hockey or ringette, so the Skating Club often has to wait for Lachute or Vaudreuil-Dorion to announce a skating event. Travelling down to the Toronto area is too expensive to consider for recreational skaters. The club is hoping to go to Aylmer before Christmas. 

Meanwhile, the girls have been told to look for a piece of music to create their own choreography for, as that’s the next step in the CanSkate program. 

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