(November 26, 2007 - OTTAWA, ON) - Nine Canadian athletes will represent Canada in the men’s, ladies, pair and ice dance disciplines at the sixth and final International Skating Union (ISU) Grand Prix event of the season, the 2007 NHK Trophy, which takes place Nov. 29 – Dec. 2 in Sendai, Japan.

Making their second appearance on the ISU Grand Prix circuit are Canadian Ice Dance Silver Medalists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir who will be making a bid to qualify for the Grand Prix Final. Virtue, 18, of London, Ont., and Moir, 20, of Ilderton, Ont., are the top ranked ice dance team in Canada this season and won the gold medal at the 2007 HomeSense Skate Canada International. The 2006 World Junior Dance Champions can expect a strong opposition from the current European and French Champions Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder, who won the gold medal at the 2007 Trophée Éric Bompard in Paris. Igor Shpilband and Marina Zoueva coach Virtue and Moir at the Arctic Edge Ice Arena in Detroit, Michigan.

In the pair event, Jessica Dubé, 19, of Drummondville, Qué., and Bryce Davison, 21, of Cambridge, Ont., will use this event as a non-scoring competition. They will compete against the German Pair Champions, Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy, who are ranked third in the world. Savchenko and Szolkowy won the gold medal at the 2007 HomeSense Skate Canada International, while Dubé and Davison won silver. Dubé and Davison won gold at the 2007 Skate America and have already secured a spot in this season’s ISU Grand Prix Final in Torino, Italy, Dec. 13 – 16, 2007. The couple is coached by Annie Barabé, Sophie Richard and Yvan Desjardins at the CPA Sainte-Julie.

Also competing in the pair event are third ranked Canadians Anabelle Langlois and Cody Hay. Langlois, 26, of Grand-Mère, Qué., and Hay, 24, of Grand Prairie, Alta., finished fourth at the 2007 HomeSense Skate Canada International. Langlois and Hay placed an impressive 10th in their first trip to the 2007 World Championships where they also obtained their personal best score in the free skating and overall. Lee Barkell coaches Langlois and Hay at the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie, Ont.

In the men’s event, 22-year-old Shawn Sawyer, of Edmundston, N.B, will look to better his previous ISU Grand Prix seventh place finish at the 2007 Cup of China. Sawyer will compete alongside 2007 World Silver Medalist and 2007 Skate America winner Daisuke Takahashi of Japan, 2007 World Junior Champion Stephen Carriere of the USA and 2007 European Silver Medalist Tomas Verner of Czech Republic. The 2006 Olympian is ranked fourth in the senior men’s discipline in Canada. Sawyer is a two-time Canadian bronze medalist (2005 and 2006) and was the Junior Champion in 2002. Annie Barabé and Sophie Richard coach Sawyer at the CPA Sainte-Julie, Qué.

Joining Sawyer is 22-year-old Vaughn Chipeur, of Edmonton, Alta. Chipeur is coming off a fifth place at the 2007 HomeSense Skate Canada International after a sixth place finish at the 2007 Nebelhorn Trophy. He is currently ranked seventh in Canada. Scott Davis coaches Chipeur at Calalta Community Figure Skating Club in Calgary.

In the ladies event Lesley Hawker, 26, of Barrie, Ont., will try to better her ninth place finish at the 2007 HomeSense Skate Canada International. Hawker is the 2007 Canadian Senior Women’s Bronze Medalist. Richard Callaghan coaches Hawker at the Onyx Skating Academy in Rochester, Michigan. Hawker will face the current World Champion Miki Ando of Japan and current European Champion Carolina Kostner of Italy.

Canadian skating fans will follow the ladies and men event at NHK Trophy anxiously as the results in Sendai will determine whether the current Canadian champions in singles, Joannie Rochette and Jeff Buttle, will head to the ISU Grand Prix Final in Torino, Italy, Dec. 13-16, 2007.

Susan Heffernan, of Roberts Creek, B.C., and Leslie Keen, Vancouver, B.C., will be the Canadian officials at the event. Skate Canada Skating Development Advisor Louis Stong will be the Canadian team manager.

Results will be posted at www.skatecanada.ca as soon as they become available.

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