Defying the Odds: Deanna Stellato-Dudek Becomes Oldest Woman to Win World Figure Skating Championship at 40
The figure skating world was abuzz with surprise and admiration this week as Deanna Stellato-Dudek, a retired 40-year-old athlete, and her partner Maxime Deschamps clinched the title of World Figure Skating Champions. Their victory came in the pairs event – a discipline known for its dangerous nature and demanding physical requirements, making Stellato-Dudek’s achievement all the more remarkable.
Battled by injuries and emotionally drained from her sport, Deanna Stellato-Dudek chose to retire in 2001. However, the dreams of unfinished business continued to haunt her. Despite being less than half the age of today’s elite figure skaters when she hung up her skates, Stellato-Dudek had an impressive junior career, with a silver medal at the 2000 World Junior Championships following her victory at the 1999-2000 international Junior Grand Prix Final. Yet, a series of injuries forced her premature retirement.
The following sixteen years saw Stellato-Dudek living an ordinary life as a successful aesthetician and getting married. She no longer tested her limits on international ice, but the longing to return to competitive skating never subsided. Determined to pursue her dreams, she tried on her old skates and embarked on a remarkable journey – learning pairs skating in her thirties.
In figure skating, youth often reigns supreme, with elite singles skaters requiring immense stamina to execute quadruple jumps or triple-triple jump combinations. In contrast, pairs skating poses unique challenges: female partners must have the strength and control to stabilize themselves in mid-air and land powerful throw triple jumps on a narrow blade of steel. Neglecting either responsibility could result in dire consequences.
Finding a suitable partner was another hurdle. In 2016, Stellato-Dudek moved from her hometown in Chicago to Florida to skate with Nathan Bartholomay, a 2014 Olympian seeking a new partner. They achieved success together, earning two national bronze medals before injury forced them to part ways in 2019.
Undeterred by this setback, Stellato-Dudek searched far and wide for a potential partner. Her quest led her to Montreal, where she met Maxime Deschamps, a Quebec native with a successful junior career and an openness about his own personal challenges, including living with ADHD. The pairing proved successful, and Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps emerged as unlikely world champions at ages 40 and 32.
Winning the World Championship title as the oldest female competitor was “not something I ever set out to do when I came back to skating,” Stellato-Dudek shared after her victory. “But I knew that if I were to accomplish my dreams, it would inevitably occur because I’m the oldest everywhere.”
Her achievement did not go unnoticed by her competitors. One of their top rivals, 24-year-old German skater Minerva Fabienne Hase, expressed her respect for Stellato-Dudek. “Deanna, with your age, it’s amazing,” Hase said, according to CBC. “You have my highest respect.”
Stellato-Dudek’s next objective is to compete in the 2026 Winter Olympics at age 42, breaking records once again. However, she must first become a Canadian citizen. When she and Deschamps initially teamed up, they opted to represent Canada instead of the US due to citizenship requirements, making the 2022 Olympics a virtual impossibility for them.
“I’m doing all that I can do to make myself more attractive to Canada,” Stellato-Dudek shared with a laugh after winning the short program this week, according to NBC Sports.
The citizenship requirement and rigorous training demand place significant challenges on Stellato-Dudek’s path to the next Olympics, but her indomitable spirit and relentless determination leave no doubt that she is up for the challenge. “She is a warrior,” Deschamps said. “For her, it’s the Olympics every day.”
