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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, F eb ru ar y 3, 20 22 | 24 Cut out paying more Your only destination for more coupons, more flyers, more savings. #SavingWithSave save.ca/couponsScan to get coupons Buy 1 Black Diamond® Pizza & PastaMozzarella Shredded Cheese (907 g) & 1 Prego® Pasta Sauce (645mL) & get a second Prego® Pasta Sauce (645mL) FREE*. *Up to $4.50 in one transaction. SCAN FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT metrolandparcelservices.ca If you're a large-scale business with large-scale orders, you need large- scale delivery. Metroland Parcel Services helps businesses deliver packages to customers across Ontario in a reliable, affordable and timely manner - without the headaches during peak seasons. FEELING THE EFFECTS OF THE HOLIDAY RUSH? A month before the last Winter Olympics, 14-year- old Maddie Schizas skated in her first national cham- pionship in Vancouver. Competing in the novice women's division, she fin- ished sixth. It was attending 2010 Olympics in the same city that had sparked Schizas' interest in competitive skating. "I was very inspired," she said of seeing Canada's Joannie Rochette compete in the short program on her way to a bronze medal. "It was very electric. It was a Canadian Games so there was this feeling of excite- ment that even I could un- derstand at the time when I was six." Over the years, she thought about what it would be like to represent her country on the sport's biggest stage. But had you tapped her on the shoulder at those national champi- onships and told her in four years' time it would be her skating for Canada at the Olympics ... "I would have thought you were a little bit insane," she said. "It was always a goal that I wanted to hap- pen, but it was never the day-to-day goal." Instead of chasing the big dream, the Oakville skater simply worked on improving every day. She progressed steadily each year, culminating with the senior women's title at the Canadian championships earlier this month, solidify- ing her Olympic spot. Schizas is keeping her expectations in check. She is heading to Beijing hop- ing for a top-10 finish, but that doesn't mean she has given up hope of winning a medal. "Seeing Canada win the team gold (in 2018), it was pretty cool," she said. "For me, it's what I am focusing on, helping Canada's team have success." The 18-year-old may not have seen herself at the Olympics this soon, but it hasn't been an overnight success story. Instead, it's been a gradual rise, meet- ing the challenge at each level. She made the jump from novice to junior in 2019 and finished second at nation- als. The following year she joined the senior ranks and won a bronze medal. In 2021, she was one of the fa- vourites for the Canadian title, but nationals were cancelled due to COVID-19. But she was named to Can- ada's team for the world championships, where she finished 13th. Nancy Lemaire, her coach at the Milton Skating Club, said worlds and two international competitions that followed were very im- portant for Schizas. "Once you start compet- ing against the skaters you'll see at the Olympics, you start to see yourself in that world, instead of com- peting nationally," she said. "You start setting your standards for that." With COVID-19 forcing the cancellation of many of the events that followed, Lemaire said Schizas had a lot of time to work on the el- ements she needed to raise her scores to match that level. Those extra repeti- tions paid off. "Consistency was the biggest difference for me," Schizas said. "If you land something time after time, you're more likely to be re- warded by the judges." That's exactly what she did at nationals, skating two clean programs, in- cluding a free skate to "Ma- dame Butterfly" that in- cluded six triple jumps. That earned her a decisive victory with a personal best score of 198.24. Schizas said her worlds experience has been bene- ficial in helping prepare for the Olympics. "Worlds was my first big event and I know the Olym- pics is going to be 100 times that," she said. "For me, on the ice I just try to tell my- self it's any other competi- tion. The skating part is the most normal part of all of it." Maddie Schizas won the Canadian senior women's championship, solidifying her spot on the Olympic team. Danielle Earl/Skate Canada WINTER GAMES 2022 HERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@metroland.com SCHIZAS PUNCHES TICKET TO OLYMPICS WITH NATIONALS TRIUMPH