Meet London area junior ice dancers Jordyn Lewis and Noah McMillan
LONDON, Ontario — The National Skating Championships are taking place in Oshawa, Ontario from January 9 to 15, and junior ice dancers Jordyn Lewis (Komoka) and Noah McMillan (Ilderton) are ready. The pair competed this fall in their first Junior Grand Prix in Riga, Latvia (in September) and Gdansk Poland (in October). “It was a big eye opener,” says Jordyn Lewis, describing the competitions where, at each, they were one of approximately 22 ice dance teams competing for a place in the finals. Jordyn and Noah were thrilled to bring home a bronze medal for Canada; Notably, the first Junior Grand Prix medal to come home to Ilderton since Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue brought home theirs.
The Lewis-McMillan ice-dance duo are quick to credit their coaches at the Komoka, Ontario campus of the Ice Dance Academy of Montreal (I.AM), led by none other than Scott Moir himself. As head coach and managing director at I.AM’s Komoka, Ontario campus, Scott is one of several coaches working with Jordyn and Noah. Skating since they were young children, and together for nine seasons, Jordyn and Noah agree, “We are so lucky to have this level of training at home!”
Skating is a huge part of every day. “We spend about 25 hours on the ice each week,” explains Jordyn, adding that it can be difficult to juggle other aspects of life with their schedules. They like to spend time with friends or unwind with baking at home when they have the time. Jordyn is also enrolled in part-time studies at Western University, while Noah is engaged in learning new languages. Ultimately, they are committed to skating and practise comes first.
“My favourite part of skating,” says Noah, “is the technical side… it’s satisfying when you have been trying to figure something out and it finally clicks into place.” Jordyn nods, adding that she loves the artistic side of skating, where they can portray different characters and tell those stories. Their love of ice dance is evident to anyone watching them; through the choreography is an energy, fluidity and emotions that capture the audience, drawing them into the performance. Jordyn and Noah are forging their own style in a highly competitive sport.
As a member of the Ilderton Skating Club’s synchronised skating team, Ice Ignite, Jordyn will be with the Ice Ignite skating team to represent Canada at competitions in early February in Rouen, France and again in Gdansk, Poland.
After so many hours on the ice, phenomenal support from their families, and inspirational dedicated coaching, Jordyn and Noah are not just looking good – they are motivated. If they rank high enough at the National Skating Championships in January, they may earn a spot to represent Canada at the ISU World Junior Figure Skating Championships 2023 in Calgary, Alberta. Their eyes are on the podium.
These skaters know they are fortunate to be gaining international experience and hope to continue with opportunities at larger world championships and competitions in the future. When asked what their immediate goals are with their sport, Jordyn and Noah recognise that they are still in the developmental stage of their ice dance careers. Every day they strive to improve and learn something new. “We are making the most of our training and soaking up all the information from our coaches,” whom they describe as motivational and inspirational, both on and off the ice.
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