Vanessa James To Represent Team Canada
Figure skater Vanessa James — who has Bermudian heritage and lived in Bermuda as a child — will partner with Canadian 2-time world champion and 3-time Olympic medalist pairs skater Eric Radford as they represent Team Canada at the upcoming 2022 Olympic Games.
Ms James has previously represented France on the world stage.
A CBC story said, “With just months to go until Beijing 2022, Team Canada has a new powerhouse figure skating duo that could turn the Olympic pairs event upside down.
“On Wednesday, two-time world champion and three-time Olympic medallist Eric Radford announced he is coming out of retirement to skate for Canada once again, but this time with new partner Vanessa James, a European champion and world championship medallist who formerly competed for France.
“The immediate goal is to compete as much as possible. The ultimate goal would be to win an Olympic medal. But a lot must happen between now and January when the pair will get the chance to compete at nationals for one of Canada’s two Olympic quota spots.
“All a pair requires in order to represent a country is at least one skater with citizenship and both skaters with a national passport. Despite growing up all over the globe [Bermuda, the U.S., Britain], James was born in Scarborough, Ont., so her passport was already taken care of.
“The only potential hurdle was whether James would be released from the French Figure Skating Federation. She competed for the nation for more than a decade, becoming an official citizen in 2009 after pairing with French skater Yannick Bonheur.
“She’d go on to partner with Morgan Cipres in 2010 and their partnership would last a decade. Along the way, the tandem won six French national titles, a 2019 European title, a 2018 world bronze medal and a fifth-place finish at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.”
