Serenity, synergy and success on ice

How synchronized skating led Shailja Judge to Montreal

SportsFeatureSamuel Kayll — Published March 31, 2026 6 minutes

She embraces it. She relishes the feeling of stepping onto the ice before a routine, the knowledge that she has supporters in the crowd. And she never lets the moment get in the way of her own enjoyment. 

“You get on, it's go time. You hear the music play,” Judge said. “You have your two-minute warm-up, and seeing everyone in the crowd, your parents cheering for you, your friends and your family, I think that's the biggest motivator for me.”

Synchronized skating—or synchro, as some refer to it—involves a group of eight to 20 skaters performing turns, spins and jumps in perfect harmony. It emphasizes coordination, with routines hinging on a team’s ability to compete as a single unit.

Judge found her love for synchronized skating early, but it took external motivation and even a new sport to settle into the sport she would come to excel in. Growing up in Toronto, she started as a swimmer but was drawn to the rink while training at the local recreation centre. 

The first day she stepped on the ice, however, she immediately wanted to quit. 

“I was pushing with one foot, falling every three steps. It was just not what I wanted to do,” Judge said. “But every day after school, [my mother] would bribe me with a treat or McDonald's. She’d say, ‘OK, today we'll do 15 minutes.’ She would take me to an open rink. We would skate 15 minutes, and I would get my treat after.”

Judge gradually worked her way up to longer sessions, but soon realized that the solo format wasn't for her. So when she noticed a flyer posted for synchronized skating tryouts, she immediately registered.

And Judge loved it. 

She steadily advanced through the ranks from beginner to pre-juvenile, juvenile and junior. Throughout the years, she transferred clubs and teams, but never lost the focus and discipline that synchronized skating instilled in her.

“Every year at the end of the season, sometimes I'm like, ‘Oh, maybe this is the year I quit,’” Judge said. “And then the season's done, and I get right back into it.”

Judge’s stretch with the highly decorated NEXXICE synchronized skating team in Burlington, Ont., was particularly fruitful. In three seasons with the club, her accolades included a gold medal and two silver medals at the Canadian National Skating Championships, as well as another silver medal at the 2023 World Skating Championships. 

At the moment, the World Championships represent the highest level of competition for synchronized skating. Despite including both men’s and women's singles as well as pair skating, synchro remains on the outside looking in. 

“We're really trying to push the sport to go to the Olympics,” Judge said. “So I would love to be part of a team that does go to the Olympics. That would be my ultimate goal.”

Carmela Mariz Olarte competes in synchro with Haydenettes Synchronized Skating. Every time the Olympics roll around, she hopes to see her sport make an appearance.

"It kind of is in the back of our heads," Olarte said in an interview with NPR. "But when [an Olympic debut] gets brought up, we have this little hope."

In 2025, the International Skating Union (ISU) introduced Synchro 9. The new competitive category features nine skaters and aims to remove barriers to competition, pushing the sport onto the world stage. 

Synchro 9 will make an appearance at the 2028 Winter Youth Olympic Games, furthering the hope that synchronized skating will make its way to the Olympics one day. 

“We’re really trying to push the sport to go to the Olympics. So I would love to be part of a team that does go to the Olympics. That would be my ultimate goal.” — Shailja Judge, synchronized skater, Les Supremes

“We believe Synchro 9 will open new doors for athletes, audiences, and countries worldwide as we advance confidently toward its Olympic future,” ISU president Kim Jae-yeol said in a statement.

After a few years with NEXXICE, Judge realized that she wanted more. 

When the opportunity to try out with Les Suprêmes in Montreal popped up, she jumped at the chance. A quick in-person audition in April 2025 was all it took for the club to offer her a spot. Judge got the acceptance call from Les Suprêmes on the train ride back to Toronto, and immediately said yes.

“I was so excited. I almost started screaming on the train,” Judge said. “Because when I was younger, it was my dream team to skate on."

So the day after she graduated high school, Judge packed her bags and headed to Montreal. She trained and acclimated herself with the team throughout the summer and began preparing for competitions with them during the fall and winter. 

The move wasn’t entirely skating-based, though. 

“My parents told me, ‘If you're going to skate, you're going to do school,’” Judge said. “So I enrolled in Concordia [University], and I immediately fell in love with it. “

As an economics student, Judge balances her coursework with life as a high-level athlete, but the hard work and long training sessions don’t faze her. 

“When I was growing up, I was also skating and working at the same time. So I work better on a busier schedule,” Judge said.

That coolness under fire matters especially in a sport like synchronized skating, where small slip-ups can define a routine or even a tournament. Maintaining perfect composure takes not just physical strength, but mental strength as well.

“Early morning training, getting up, actually physically going to the rink, pushing through workouts, it's a lot of discipline,” Judge said.

During the season, the discipline paid off. 

The Les Suprêmes junior team won the Quebec Section Championships and finished second at the Canadian Championships, finishing just behind NEXXICE amongst all challengers. With third- and second-place finishes at the Lumière Cup in the Netherlands and Marie Lundmark Trophy in Finland, respectively, Les Suprêmes proved they could compete on the international stage. 

When the announcement came, Les Suprêmes, alongside NEXXICE, were headed to Poland to represent Canada at the World Championships. Judge described the moment as the happiest she’d ever been.

“There was no goal of placing on the podium. There was no goal of scores that we needed to get,” Judge said. “It was just having fun and doing what we wanted to do and performing our programs for the final time.”

Les Suprêmes finished as the top Canadian team and fourth overall at the World Championships, another impressive result for Judge’s decorated career. 

At home with a new club and with numerous major wins under her belt, the sky is the limit for life on the ice. But while Judge still carries her Olympic dreams, she’s never forgotten to cherish the experience. 

“Something that my coaches say to me a lot is just live in the precious present,” Judge said. “Don't worry about what's next, what's to come. Just be in the moment.”

And for Shailja Judge, no moment is too big.

This article originally appeared in Volume 46, Issue 12, published March 31, 2026.