Thomas Williams (figure skater)

Thomas Williams (born April 20, 1991) is a Canadian former ice dancer. He competed at three Four Continents Championships with his skating partners, Nicole Orford and Sarah Arnold.

Thomas Williams
Orford and Williams in 2012
Personal information
Country representedCanada
Born (1991-04-20) April 20, 1991
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
PartnerSarah Arnold
Former partnerNicole Orford, Olga Lioudvinevitch, Alicia Williams
CoachMegan Wing, Aaron Lowe
ChoreographerMegan Wing, Aaron Lowe
Skating clubCalalta FSC Calgary
Training locationsBurnaby, British Columbia
Began skating1995
ISU personal best scores
Combined total140.10
2018 Four Continents
Short dance55.86
2012 World Junior
Free dance87.60
2018 Four Continents

Personal life

Thomas Williams was born on April 20, 1991, in Calgary, Alberta.[1] He is the nephew of Canadian speed skater Michelle Morton.[2] He has a car detailing business and has also worked for a financial services company.[2][3]

Skating career

Early years

Williams began learning to skate in 1995.[1] He skated with Alicia Williams in the 2007–2008 season. During the following two seasons, he competed with Olga Lioudvinevitch, placing ninth on the junior level at the 2010 Canadian Championships.

Partnership with Orford

Williams began training with Nicole Orford in May 2010.[4] Competing on the 2010–11 ISU Junior Grand Prix series, they took the bronze medal in England and placed fifth in the Czech Republic. After becoming junior national champions, they were sent to the 2011 World Junior Championships and finished eighth.

During the 2011–12 ISU Junior Grand Prix, Orford/Williams won gold in Brisbane, Australia,[5] and finished sixth in Austria. Due to Skate Canada rules, they competed on the senior level at the 2012 Canadian Championships and came in sixth. They also placed sixth at the 2012 World Junior Championships.

Orford/Williams made their senior international debut in the 2012–13 season. Competing on the Grand Prix series for the first time, they placed eighth at the 2012 Rostelecom Cup and fourth at the 2012 NHK Trophy. After winning the bronze medal at the 2013 Canadian Championships, they were assigned to the 2013 Four Continents Championships and finished sixth.

In the summer of 2013, Williams injured both ankles due to boot problems, causing the team to reduce their training to 20 minutes at a time.[3] They won bronze at the U.S. Classic and placed eighth at the 2013 Trophée Éric Bompard. Fifth at the 2014 Canadian Championships, Orford/Williams were not named in Canada's Olympic team but were sent to the 2014 Four Continents Championships, where they placed fifth. Their final competition together was the 2015 Canadian Championships.

Partnership with Arnold

Following a tryout with Sarah Arnold in February 2015, Williams took a year off due to an Achilles injury and financial reasons.[2] They continued to skate together occasionally (around eight times) and began a formal partnership in March 2016.[2] They placed 5th at the 2018 Canadian Championships and 8th at the 2018 Four Continents Championships. They are coached by Megan Wing and Aaron Lowe in Burnaby, British Columbia.[1]

Programs

With Arnold
Season Short dance Free dance
2017–2018
[1]
2016–2017
[2][6]

With Orford
Season Short dance Free dance
2014–2015
[3][7]
2013–2014
[8][9]
2012–2013
[10]
  • Polka: Sold
    by John Michael Montgomery
  • Waltz: Tennessee Waltz
    by Anne Murray
  • Polka: Sold
    by John Michael Montgomery
  • High Society Overture
  • Now You Have Jazz
    by Bing Cosby, Louis Armstrong
  • High Society Overture
2011–2012
[11]		 Senior-level:
  • Mariposa en Havana
  • Baila Baila Conmigo
Junior-level:
2010–2011
[12]

Competitive highlights

GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series; JGP: Junior Grand Prix

With Arnold
International[13]
Event 16–17 17–18
Four Continents8th
CS Warsaw Cup8th
Lake Placid IDI10th9th
National[6]
Canadian Champ.6th5th
SC Challenge4th2nd
BC/YK Sectionals2nd2nd

With Orford
International[14]
Event 10–11 11–12 12–13 13–14 14–15
Four Continents6th5th
GP Bompard8th
GP NHK Trophy4th
GP Rostelecom Cup8th
GP Skate America8th
CS Autumn Classic6th
CS U.S. Classic2nd
U.S. Classic3rd
International: Junior[14]
Junior Worlds8th6th
JGP Australia1st
JGP Austria6th
JGP Czech Republic5th
JGP U.K.3rd
National[15]
Canadian Champ.1st J6th3rd5th4th
J = Junior level

Early partnerships
National[11]
Event 07–081 08–092 09–102
Canadian Championships17th J14th J9th J
1 With Alicia Williams
2 With Olga Lioudvinevitch
J = Junior level

References
  1. "Sarah ARNOLD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 21, 2018.
  2. Thayer, Jacquelyn (June 13, 2016). "Time and Life Shape Return Perspective for Arnold and Williams". twofortheice.com.
  3. Thayer, Jacquelyn (June 26, 2014). "Orford and Williams Expand their Horizons". ice-dance.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2014.
  4. Walker, Elvin (May 8, 2011). "Facebook brings Orford and Williams together". GoldenSkate. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  5. Berridge, Tom (September 12, 2011). "Burnaby ice dancer takes gold at Junior Grand Prix in Oz". Burnaby Now. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  6. "Profile – Sarah Arnold & Thomas Williams". ice-dance.com. Archived from the original on April 21, 2018.
  7. "Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2014/2015". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015.
  8. "Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2013/2014". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on July 2, 2014.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. "Nicole Orford / Thomas Williams: 2013/2014". Skate Canada. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
    • "Alternate link". Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved 2013-09-15.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. "Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on March 12, 2013.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  11. "Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 18, 2012.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  12. "Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS: 2010/2011". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on May 19, 2011.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  13. "Competition Results: Sarah ARNOLD / Thomas WILLIAMS". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on April 21, 2018.
  14. "Competition Results: Nicole ORFORD / Thomas WILLIAMS". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on September 8, 2015.
  15. "Nicole Orford / Thomas Williams". Skate Canada. Archived from the original on September 15, 2014.

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