Barrie is hosting world-class figure skaters from over 20 countries for the first ever Skate Canada Autumn Classic International competition.
The event runs until Thursday at the Allandale Recreation Centre as part of a series of competitions in which skaters compete for points in the world standings.
Skater Ronald Lam from Hong Kong is excited to be part of it.
“Is it a big deal to be here”, said Lam.
16-year-old Gabrielle Daleman of Newmarket, who competed in last winter’s Olympics in Russia, is also taking part.
She’s hoping it will help give her more experience on the international stage.
“This is very serious for me … it's my first international kind of competition,” she said.
The pressure is on not just for the skaters – but also for the judges.
“Is there pressure being a judge? Huge. Absolutely huge pressure yeah because you can’t close your eyes ever,” said Judge Sally Rehorick. “Everything is much, much, much more difficult and complicated than it used to be and so to really make our marks reflect that kind of complexity, we take a day to watch the practices.”
Canadian coach Bruno Delmaestro says the event is a big score for Barrie.
“It's the first time in Canada to have this series here”, he said.
The travelling series wraps up in Croatia in December.
