Sister and brother duo, Laura Stoveld, 21, and Jeff Stoveld, 19, began skating together in March 2005 and are already showing tremendous potential in their new partnership. They will be competing at the Senior level in Ice Dance at Invitational Figure Skating Competitions in both Canada and the United States this year (2005) in preparation for their debut skating together at the 2006 BMO Financial Group Canadian Figure Skating Championships, in Ottawa in January 2006.

Each of them has made great strides and achieved much success over several years with former Ice Dance partners as they worked their way up the levels. Jeff received the BMO

Financial Group Possibilities Award in 2003 at the Canadian Novice Ice Dance Championship for his and his partner's awesome free dance skated to "Bohemian Rhapsody". In presenting this award, Skate Canada stated "this free dance raised the bar for future competition, while putting the crowd on their feet". Jeff represented Canada twice at the North American Challenge Skate Competition, placing 5th in Thunder Bay in 2002 and 3rd in Lake Placid in 2003. Jeff graduated as an Ontario Scholar from High School in 2004 and spent this past school year at Centennial College earning an Art and Design Foundation Studies Certificate. He will be spending the upcoming season focusing on his training as an elite athlete, working part-time, and picking up high school credits he requires for the joint university degree/ college diploma program in New Media Design he has now decided he wants to pursue.

Both Laura and Jeff have competed at the BMO Financial Group Canadian Figure Skating Championships at the Junior Level for 2 years. Laura and her partner placed in the top half in the BMO Financial Group Canadian Figure Skating Championships Junior Ice Dance Competition in Hamilton in 2002 and in Saskatoon in 2003. Laura took a couple of years away from the competitive circuit to attend the University of Toronto working towards her Bachelor of Business Administration degree and Chartered Accountant designation. During her first 2 years at university she competed on the University of Toronto Varsity Figure Skating Team, was nominated 2004 University of Toronto Female Athlete of the Year and was named 2004 Rookie of the Year for winning 4 events for her team at the Ontario University Figure Skating Championship. She was named 2005 Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Figure Skating Competitor of the Year. Laura holds the Ontario University Athletics record for the most points earned by an individual athlete in an OUA competition. Laura is currently in her third year at the University of Toronto and plans to continue her full-time studies and co-op terms while training as an elite athlete.

Laura and Jeff are now training vigorously to make their mark at the Canadian Figure Skating Championships in Ottawa in January 2006.