# Loucas Éthier

Loucas Éthier (born June 3, 2000) is a Canadian pair skater. With his skating partner, Kelly Ann Laurin, he is the 2022 Skate America bronze medalist and a three-time Canadian national bronze medalist.

## Personal life

Loucas Éthier was born on June 3, 2000. His mother, Sonia Gougeon, is an ice skating coach. He has also worked as a skating coach and completed a firefighting course.

## Career
### Early years

Éthier began learning to skate in 2003. He placed eleventh in the junior men's event at the 2019 Canadian Championships.
He started skating pairs in partnership with Camille Audelin-Dubé. Laurin began learning to skate in 2011. In 2018, he teamed up with Kelly Ann Laurin. The two won gold in the novice pairs' event at the 2019 Canadian Championships.

### 2019–20 season

Laurin/Éthier appeared at one ISU Junior Grand Prix event, placing sixth in Poland. They became junior national bronze medallists at the 2020 Canadian Championships and were assigned to the 2020 World Junior Championships, where they finished fourteenth.

### 2020–21 season

Laurin/Éthier placed second in junior pairs at the Skate Canada Challenge, a qualifier for the 2021 Canadian Championships. The latter event was cancelled, along with many internationals, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

### 2021–22 season

The pair moved up to the senior ranks for the 2021–22 season. They placed sixth at the 2022 Canadian Championships.

### 2022–23 season

Making their senior international debut, Laurin/Éthier placed fifth at the 2022 CS U.S. International Figure Skating Classic. They were then invited to make their Grand Prix debut at the 2022 Skate America. In a pairs field marked by the absence of Russian competitors as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War, Laurin/Éthier won the bronze medal, which he called "a big deal for us." They were seventh at Skate Canada International the following weekend.
Following the Grand Prix, Laurin/Éthier won the bronze medal at the 2022–23 Skate Canada Challenge to qualify to the 2023 Canadian Championships. They finished third in the short program at the national championships, but in the free skate they were overtaken by Pereira/Michaud for the bronze medal. Despite finishing fourth overall, they were named to compete at the 2023 Four Continents Championships. Laurin/Éthier finished seventh at the event, setting new personal bests in the process.

### 2023–24 season

Laurin/Éthier finished sixth at the 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy to start their season. Appearing on the Grand Prix at the 2023 Skate Canada International, they came seventh of eight teams in the short program, but rose to fifth place overall following the free skate. Weeks later at the 2023 NHK Trophy, they placed seventh of eight teams in the short program with a difficult skate that Éthier called "one of the worst programs of our competitive career." They performed much more strongly in the free skate, coming sixth in the segment, though staying seventh overall. He said after that "we skated for ourselves and for redemption and just to prove to ourselves what we could really do after our short performance," adding that the event was "an unreal experience."
At the 2024 Canadian Championships, Laurin/Éthier came third in both segments and took the bronze medal, their first appearance on the senior national podium. They went on to place eighth at the 2024 Four Continents Championships.
The 2024 World Championships were held on home ice in Montreal. Laurin/Éthier, as Quebecois skaters, received a particularly notable reception from the crowds at the Bell Centre. Of this, he said: "Even if we described it, no one could understand. It was a very, very special feeling." The team came fourteenth in the short program, qualifying to the free skate. Fifteenth in the free skate, they finished fifteenth overall in their World Championship debut.

### 2024–25 season

Laurin/Éthier started the season by competing at the 2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition, where they finished fourth. In their first appearance on the 2024–25 Grand Prix series at 2024 Skate Canada International, they placed eighth in the short program, with errors that included an invalidated death spiral element, something they professed confusion over. Eighth in the free skate as well, they were eighth overall. Laurin/Éthier fared better at their second Grand Prix assignment, the 2024 Finlandia Trophy, where they finished fourth overall and managed new personal bests in the free skate (118.12) and total score (178.57). Their score was 3.02 points back of bronze medalists Ghilardi/Ambrosini.
At the 2025 Canadian Championships, Laurin/Éthier won their second consecutive national bronze medal, coming third in both segments of the competition.

## Programs
### with Laurin

| Season | Short program | Free skating | Exhibition |
| 2024–2025 | Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) (from Stranger Things) by Journey choreo. by Mark Pillay, Paul Boll | Elevation by U2 choreo. by David Wilson, Sandra Bezic | Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol performed by Tommee Profitt & Fleurie |
| 2023–2024 | All Right Now by Superhuman choreo. by Mark Pillay | You Don't Own Me performed by Brenna Whitaker Independent Mind by Karl Hugo choreo. by David Wilson | Dream by Imagine Dragons |
| 2022–2023 | All Right Now by Superhuman choreo. by Mark Pillay | Carnival Row: Main Title by Nathan Barr In the End by Tommee Profitt, Chester Bennington, Mike Shinoda, Fleurie choreo. by Mylène Girard | Money Heist: My Life Is Going On by Cecilia Krull Bella ciao performed by Manu Pilas |
| 2019–2020 | Doctor Zhivago by Maurice Jarre choreo. by Stéphanie Valois | Ever After by George Fenton choreo. by Stéphanie Valois | |

## Competitive highlights
### Pair skating with Kelly Ann Laurin

* GP – Event of the ISU Grand Prix Series
* JGP – Event of the ISU Grand Prix Series
* CS – Event of the ISU Challenger Series
* C – Event was cancelled
Competition placements at senior level :
| Season | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 | 2024–25 |
| World Championships | | | 15th | TBD |
| Four Continents Championships | | 7th | 8th | 9th |
| Canadian Championships | 6th | 4th | 3rd | 3rd |
| GP Finland | | | | 4th |
| GP NHK Trophy | | | 7th | |
| GP Skate America | | 3rd | | |
| GP Skate Canada | | 7th | 5th | 8th |
| CS John Nicks Pairs | | | | 4th |
| CS Nebelhorn Trophy | | | 6th | |
| CS U.S. Classic | | 5th | | |
| Skate Canada Challenge | 4th | 3rd | | |
Competition placements at junior level :
| Season | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
| World Junior Championships | 14th | |
| Canadian Championships | 3rd | C |
| JGP Poland | 6th | |
| Bavarian Open | 1st | |
| Skate Canada Challenge | 8th | 2nd |

### Single skating

Competition placements at junior level :
| Season | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
| Canadian Championships | 15th | 11th |
| Skate Canada Challenge | 16th | 14th |

## Detailed results

ISU personal best scores in the +5/-5 GOE System :
| Segment | Type | Score | Event |
| Total | TSS | 178.57 | 2024 Finlandia Trophy |
| Short program | TSS | 60.97 | 2024 CS John Nicks Pairs Competition |
| Short program | TES | 34.05 | 2024 CS John Nicks Pairs Competition |
| Short program | PCS | 28.41 | 2024 World Championships |
| Free skating | TSS | 118.12 | 2024 Finlandia Trophy |
| Free skating | TES | 62.61 | 2024 Finlandia Trophy |
| Free skating | PCS | 56.73 | 2024 Four Continents |

### Senior level

Results in the 2021–22 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Dec 1–5, 2021 | 2022 Skate Canada Challenge | 4 | 50.66 | 2 | 100.49 | 4 | 151.15 |
| Jan 7–13, 2022 | 2022 Canadian Championships | 7 | 49.93 | 6 | 98.84 | 6 | 148.77 |
Results in the 2022–23 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Sep 12–15, 2022 | 2022 CS U.S. International Classic | 5 | 50.48 | 5 | 100.33 | 5 | 150.81 |
| Oct 21–23, 2022 | 2022 Skate America | 4 | 52.59 | 3 | 104.35 | 3 | 156.94 |
| Oct 28–30, 2022 | 2022 Skate Canada International | 8 | 50.84 | 6 | 101.25 | 7 | 152.09 |
| Nov 30 – Dec 3, 2022 | 2023 Skate Canada Challenge | 4 | 60.50 | 4 | 100.35 | 3 | 160.85 |
| Jan 9–15, 2023 | 2023 Canadian Championships | 3 | 65.61 | 4 | 109.66 | 4 | 175.27 |
| Feb 7–12, 2023 | 2023 Four Continents Championships | 6 | 59.12 | 7 | 108.55 | 7 | 167.67 |
Results in the 2023–24 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Sep 20–23, 2023 | 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy | 6 | 59.59 | 6 | 116.14 | 6 | 175.73 |
| Oct 27–29, 2023 | 2023 Skate Canada International | 7 | 57.14 | 5 | 110.98 | 5 | 168.12 |
| Nov 24–26, 2023 | 2023 NHK Trophy | 7 | 49.18 | 6 | 111.61 | 7 | 160.79 |
| Jan 8–14, 2024 | 2024 Canadian Championships | 3 | 62.21 | 3 | 125.19 | 3 | 187.40 |
| Feb 1–4, 2024 | 2024 Four Continents Championships | 8 | 58.50 | 7 | 115.97 | 8 | 174.47 |
| Mar 18–24, 2024 | 2024 World Championships | 14 | 60.18 | 15 | 109.30 | 15 | 169.48 |
Results in the 2024-25 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Sep 3-4, 2024 | 2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition | 5 | 60.97 | 4 | 113.11 | 4 | 174.08 |
| Oct 25–27, 2024 | 2024 Skate Canada International | 8 | 52.16 | 8 | 111.44 | 8 | 163.60 |
| Nov 15–17, 2024 | 2024 Finlandia Trophy | 4 | 60.45 | 4 | 118.12 | 4 | 178.57 |
| Jan 14–19, 2025 | 2025 Canadian Championships | 3 | 63.10 | 3 | 124.19 | 3 | 187.29 |
| Feb 19–23, 2025 | 2025 Four Continents Championships | 7 | 62.90 | 9 | 107.33 | 9 | 170.23 |

### Junior level

Results in the 2019–20 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Sep 18–21, 2019 | 2019 JGP Poland | 7 | 45.84 | 6 | 84.64 | 6 | 130.48 |
| Nov 27 – Dec 1, 2019 | 2020 Skate Canada Challenge | 9 | 44.23 | 4 | 85.43 | 8 | 129.66 |
| Jan 13–19, 2020 | 2020 Canadian Championships | 3 | 50.50 | 3 | 87.62 | 3 | 138.12 |
| Feb 3–9, 2020 | 2020 Bavarian Open | 2 | 49.96 | 1 | 89.75 | 1 | 139.71 |
| Mar 2–8, 2020 | 2020 World Junior Championships | 12 | 47.77 | 13 | 83.24 | 14 | 131.01 |
Results in the 2020–21 season :
| Date | Event | SP | SP | FS | FS | Total | Total |
| Date | Event | P | Score | P | Score | P | Score |
| Jan 8–17, 2021 | 2021 Skate Canada Challenge | 2 | 49.24 | 4 | 79.33 | 2 | 128.57 |