Leah Hennel/COC
February 8, 2026
After positioning themselves to be in medal contention on the final day of competition, Canada could not overcome many outstanding displays by the field on the final day of team figure skating in Milano Cortina, finishing the day in fifth overall.
Ultimately, it was the United States who defended their Olympic gold from 2022, propelled by a world-class performance in the men’s singles free skate by Ilia Malinin. The U.S. needed every bit of Malinin’s magic to squeak by Japan, who finished in second place by a single point, while Italy finished a distant third.
Canada entered the day in fourth place, just a few points back of Italy.
First-time Olympians Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud kicked off the day by delivering another impressive skate in pairs, finishing with a score of 134.42. Taking to the ice immediately after the Americans, the pair felt the energy in the building and went on to finish less than a point shy of the U.S.’ Ellie Kim and Danny O’Shea.
Team Canada’s Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud celebrate together after competing in the figure skating pairs free skating team event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy on Sunday, February 08, 2026. Photo by Leah Hennel/COC
“We’re happy that we were able to put out a skate like that,” said Pereira. “The Americans laid out a really great performance ahead of us… It was very motivating for us… I’m really glad we took that as motivation.”
“Being in the medal hunt is really exciting,” added Michaud. “We’re very team-motivated people, so being part of the team event is really exciting.”
Madeline Schizas opened her skate in women’s singles with a fall on a triple lutz, but recovered nicely to finish with a score of 125.00. She said afterwards that she was surprised by the timing of her fall, but was pleased with her resilience.
“Our high performance staff and our coaches – we decided I would try a slightly harder version of the program. I’m happy with how I showed maturity to try and – you know, go for broke for the team.”
Schizas’ fall cost her a one-point deduction and affected some of her program component scores, but ultimately she finished just 1.94 points back of Italian skater Lara Naki Guttman for fourth place.
Schizas was a part of the team that finished fourth in Beijing 2022.
Team Canada’s Madeline Schizas competes in the figure skating women’s singles free skating team event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy on Sunday, February 08, 2026. Photo by Leah Hennel/COC
In the men’s free skate, Stephen Gogolev picked up where he left off the day before, delivering an inspiring performance to the tune of Piano Concerto No. 2.
Gogolev’s skate in the qualification on Saturday helped Team Canada get through to the final. Although Canada had been eliminated from medal contention ahead of Gogolev’s skate, he ended the evening on a high note for his team.
“I had a few small mistakes that could have been prevented, but overall I’m pretty happy with my performance, happy for the team, and happy for what we were able to put up this week.”
Team Canada’s Stephen Gogolev competes in the men’s singles free skating team event at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy on Sunday, February 08, 2026. Photo by Leah Hennel/COC
Gogolev will now look ahead to the men’s individual short program which he will compete in on Tuesday, while Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier – participants in the qualification round of the team skate – will compete in the rhythm dance tomorrow.
For tonight, the team will have the chance to celebrate yet another top five finish at the Olympic Games.
“Our team has travelled together in little groups for the last many years,” said Pereira. “As much as we’re competitors sometimes, we’re all very much a family. So to be a family off the ice, and support each other while we’re on the ice, it’s a really nice feeling.”