With four national titles on their resumés, ice dancers Madeline Edwards and Zhao Kai Pang have been itching to match that on the international rink.
They moved another step closer to just that Sept. 7 and 8, capturing silver in Mexico City at the ISU Junior Grand Prix figure skating competition.
The dancers - 18-yearold Pang of Burnaby and Edwards of Port Moody - were representing Canada in the inaugural ISU meet of the season. They posted the top score on Sept. 7 in the free dance routine, setting a personal best in the process, to secure the silver.
Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker of the U.S. won gold with a total of 136.45 points, while Edwards and Pang were close behind at 134.02, more than 20 points better than the third-place finishers.
"We are excited about this performance," Pang said in a press release. "We prepared and trained hard for this event because it was important for us to get the season off to a good start."
It was by no means their debut on the international stage. Edwards and Pang placed 12th at the world junior championships last March and also scored a pair of bronze medals at ISU Junior Grand Prix events in France and Turkey last season.
The pair train at Burnaby's B.C. Centre of Excellence under ice dance coaches Aaron Lowe and Megan Wing.
