OTTAWA — Liam Firus has withdrawn from Canada’s team for the world figure skating championships to allow Nam Nguyen to compete.
Firus, a 23-year-old from North Vancouver, B.C., finished second at the national championships to earn his spot on the team for the worlds March 28-April 3 in Boston. Nguyen, a 17-year-old from Toronto who was fifth at last year’s worlds, had a rough national championships finishing fourth.
"Making this decision was extremely difficult. However, I feel that withdrawing from the world championships is vital for our team," Firus said in a statement.
The results in Boston determine how many spots Canada will have in next year’s world championships in Finland.
"My teammates Patrick Chan and Nam Nguyen are among the top men in the world. I have full faith in their abilities. This decision is about performance and giving our country the best opportunity to obtain three spots for the world championships next year," explained Firus. "I am extremely proud of the strides I’ve made this year; skating truly is a passion of mine. I look forward to coming back even stronger next season to help Canada obtain the three spots needed for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games."
Skate Canada’s high performance director Mike Slipchuk said he had "a lot of respect for Liam and his decision on worlds.
"We have confidence in Liam being a strong part of our team leading to 2018."
Pairs team Julianne Seguin of Longueuil, Que., and Charlie Bilodeau of Trois-Pistoles, Que., have also withdrawn. Seguin said a minor injury she suffered in training last month hasn’t fully healed.
"Charlie and I had to make a heartbreaking decision to not participate at worlds," Seguin said. "We missed a lot of practices and during competition we want to give our best for our satisfaction and for the people around us.
"We are unfortunately not ready for this event. We will take the time to heal and work to come back stronger for the future."
Seguin and Bilodeau will be replaced by Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont.