Battle of the Blades finale turns into three-way showdown

bottom3-2.jpgFrom a media release:

A THREE-WAY SHOWDOWN, SPECIAL GUESTS AND GROUP NUMBERS CELEBRATE THE BATTLE OF THE BLADES FINALE

  • Canadians to decide who of the remaining three pairs will win $100,000 for charity

The final decision will be in the hands of Canadians, Sunday, Nov. 15, as they choose who of the remaining three pairs will win BATTLE OF THE BLADES, at Toronto’s historic Maple Leaf Gardens. Results will then be announced during a full-blown ice extravaganza, which is set for the series finale, Monday, Nov. 16. Both shows start at 8 p.m., on CBC Television.

The final battle begins on Sunday, when the following three remaining pairs will perform to music of their choice: Shae-Lynn Bourne and Claude Lemieux, Marie-France Dubreuil and Stéphane Richer, and Jamie Salé and Craig Simpson. Competition shifts to collaboration after the individual performances when the members of all three pairs join together for a special group performance. The evening will also begin in style with a special group number featuring the men from BATTLE OF THE BLADES.

The competition wraps up the following night with a special one-hour show for the finale results episode. Kicking things off will be a group performance featuring all eight pairs from the competition, set to the show’s theme song, Bryan Adams’ There Will Never Be Another Tonight.

Monday’s show will also include a guest performance by the show’s co-host and skating mentor Kurt Browning, followed by a special routine by returning competitor Barbara Underhill and her former professional skating partner Paul Martini. This will be the first time Underhill and Martini have skated together since they performed a farewell show at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens in 1998.

The magic on the ice continues with a guest performance by Salé and her husband and skating partner David Pelletier, who as a coach on the show has also been featured in weekly Point of View segments offering tips on figure skating. Dubreuil and her husband and professional skating partner Patrice Lauzon will also join together on the ice for a special guest performance.

When the winning pair is revealed, on Monday’s show, they will receive a $100,000 cheque made out to the charity of their choice. Three charities remain as possible recipients of this prize money. Bourne and Lemieux are skating for Make-A-Wish Canada; Dubreuil and Richer are competing for MA Fondation; and Salé and Simpson are battling it out for The Spinal Cord Injury Treatment Centre (Northern Alberta) Society.

Viewers can learn more about the competitors at www.cbc.ca/battle, the official online portal for the series and the source for everything about BATTLE OF THE BLADES. In addition to videos and behind-the-scene photos, the site offers viewers the opportunity to become fans of their favourite pair and track each participant’s activity as they strive to be the final pair remaining at the end of the series.

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