OLYMPICS: Injury threatens Canadian Stellato-Dudek's Olympic debut

MILAN – Canada’s Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps will not compete in the figure skating team event at the Milano Cortina Olympics after Stellato-Dudek suffered an injury, casting doubt on her participation in the Games.

The 42-year-old is making her Olympic debut after an extraordinary 16-year break from competitive skating. She and Deschamps became the oldest female world figure skating champions when they won the title in 2024. A victory at the Olympics would have made Stellato-Dudek the oldest pairs skater to claim an Olympic gold.

“Stellato-Dudek’s condition and readiness for the individual pairs event is being assessed on a day-by-day basis,” the Canadian Olympic Committee said in a statement on Monday. “Athlete health and safety is our number one priority.”

The injury happened during a training session in Quebec.

The team event runs from Friday to Sunday, while the individual pairs competition is scheduled for February 15 and 16. -Reporting by Lori EwingEditing by Christian Radnedge/Reuters