Marie-Jade Lauriault
Marie-Jade Lauriault (born 10 November 1996) is a Canadian-French ice dancer. Competing with Romain Le Gac, she is the 2016 International Cup of Nice champion, the 2015 ISU Junior Grand Prix in Spain champion, and a two-time French national silver medalist. They have competed in the final segment at two ISU Championships. On June 6, 2021, Lauriault and Le Gac announced that they would switch to representing Canada internationally. Personal life. Marie-Jade Lauriault was born on 10 November 1996 in Laval, Quebec. She married Le Gac in December 2015. As of August 2016 , she is studying psychology. She became a French citizen in December 2017. Career. Early years. Lauriault started skating in 2001. At the age of eight, she began taking ice dancing lessons, taught by Pascal Denis, and was soon paired with Pierre-Richard Chiasson. Lauriault/Chiasson placed 8th on the novice level at the 2013 Canadian Championships. Partnership with Le Gac. In July 2014, Lauriault was paired with French skater Romain Le Gac, who had just moved to Canada. The two decided to represent France. They are coached by Romain Haguenauer, Patrice Lauzon, Pascal Denis, and Marie-France Dubreuil in Montreal . Lauriault/Le Gac competed on the senior level in the 2014–15 season. They won silver at the Open d'Andorra and finished 9th at the 2014 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb before taking silver at the French Championships. Lauriault/Le Gac decided to compete on the junior level in 2015–16. They won two medals on the Junior Grand Prix (JGP) series — silver in Linz, Austria and gold in Logroño, Spain. Their results gave them a spot at the JGP Final in Barcelona, where they finished fifth. In February 2016, they won gold at the French Junior Championships ahead of Angélique Abachkina  / Louis Thauron. In March, they represented France at the 2016 World Junior Championships in Debrecen, Hungary, placing third in the short dance and 8th overall. Over eight days in April, they skated in ten ice shows in France. Competitive highlights. "GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix"