Canadian figure skating duo posts personal best in Olympic pairs short program

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Brant Figure Skating Club members watch local athletes compete in long program

Brant Figure Skating Club cheers on Olympians

Canada’s Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud are hoping to glide their way to the Olympic podium.

As of Monday morning, the figure skating duo were in third place after the pairs short program at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

Pereira of Milton, Ont. and Michaud of Belleville, Ont. were the first Canadian pair to skate on Sunday.

The pair posted a personal best score of 74.60, briefly moving into first place in the 19-team field. They held the top spot through much of the competition but finished third overall.

However, on Monday, the duo’s free skate program didn’t come with the same acclaim, and they ultimately finished eighth overall in the pairs competition.

Scores from both competitions are combined to determine the medal standings.

Fans from home cheer on “Team Tria”

Fans proudly wore red, white and “Team Tria” t-shirts during a viewing party at the TD Civic Centre in Brantford, Ont. on Sunday during the pairs short program.

The event was hosted by the Brant Figure Skating Club, where Pereira and Michaud trained for years ahead of their Olympic debut.

“I look up to them so much, I think they are very good together,” 13-year-old figure skater Brynleigh McCully said. “You definitely need trust for all of the little things. If you don’t have it you are not going to go far, and you have to enjoy skating together.”

“I think they are my biggest role models,” said 17-year-old figure skater Elizabeth Burns. “I’ve known Trennt since I was little, so I am just really proud of both of them. I think it’s just so great how quickly they have become such a good team.”

The on-ice partnership between Pereira and Michaud began in late August 2022.

“It’s not a really long time to be together for them to be as far as they are, it usually takes a bit more time for them to gel and really find their footing,” explained Heather Burns, the Brant Figure Skating Club’s president. “But they gelled very quickly for just being together for three years. It’s amazing what they’ve accomplished so far.”

The pair won bronze at the Four Continents Championships during the 2024-25 season and captured their first national title in 2026.

Those close to Michaud spoke to his character, describing him as outgoing, positive and supportive both on and off the ice.

“Trennt, as a person, I can’t really find a better guy… his support and positivity are probably his biggest qualities,” said long-time friend Bryce Chudak.

“He’s also one of those people that if he sets his mind to something, he’s 100 per cent going to get it done, no matter what it takes,” added fellow figure skater Marty Haubrich.

Burns said this was the first time one of the club’s pairs has competed at the Olympics.

“They are together training most of the day, every day, at least five days a week,” she explained. “So, it’s really become very much a family. Everyone is rooting so much for them.”

“I’ve been skating my entire life, and this is the first time I’ve been in a club where somebody has gone off to the Olympics,” said club coach Kaylyn Pecaric. “It’s special to see them go to World Championships, but the Olympics only comes around every four years, and this is really special to me.”

Pecaric also spoke highly of Pereira and Michaud’s coach, Alison Purkiss, who is in Italy with the pair.

“She’s a native of Brantford. She’s born and raised here,” Pecaric said. “Now she’s here, leading our program. She’s the technical director and she’s doing a fabulous job.”

For the Ontario club, it isn’t just an Olympic performance – it’s hometown history in motion.

“Trennt and I went to our first National Championships in 2012, and so for me to be able to sit here and see all of the support that he’s garnered through his entire career since I’ve known him is incredible,” Chudak said. “There’s really no one else other than Trennt that really deserves this.”

He also shared these words of encouragement for the hometown heroes.

“There’s no better stage to be on than where you’re at right now. And don’t hold back. Give everything you got.”

Despite finishing eighth, their supporters said they couldn’t be prouder of the pair.

“They’ve put out some excellent performances,” Susie McGrigor, coach and choreographer with the Brant Figure Skating Club, said. “I think they’ve really got a nice little wave of positivity running under them.”

That positivity benefits the whole club.

“Them as people, first and foremost, [are] very supportive, very positive. So, to have them as role models here is very, very special,” Chudak said.