Soucisse And Firus Call Time On Competitive Career

Carolane Soucisse and Shane Firus have announced their decision to retire from competition.

Soucisse and Firus teamed up in 2016 and took the first of their three Irish national titles in 2023. It was only the beginning of many milestones for Irish ice skating. Later that same year they became the first senior ice dance team to represent Ireland internationally. In January 2024, they made the first of their three appearances at the European Figure Skating Championships and were the first Irish ice dancers to compete at an ISU Championships. In 2024, they qualified and were selected for the World Figure Skating Championships making them the first Irish athletes to do so since 2012. They were also the first Irish figure skaters to qualify for the free segment of their event at an ISU Championship which they did three times at  Europeans and once at Worlds. In addition, they collected three international medals for Ireland since 2024. Their achievements and the attention they have brought to ice dance will act as an inspiration for the next generation of Irish ice skaters.

“The early morning practices and competitions have completely shaped who we are today. We could never have reached our goals without our amazing coaches teammates, friends, family and the ISAI,” Firus said. “To the fans and the entire skating community: your constant support means the absolute world to us. We are leaving competitive skating behind, but Caro and I are taking all the memories and lifelong friendships with us. Thank you for everything.”

“Carolane and Shane have been wonderful ambassadors for Irish ice skating,” Ice Skating Association of Ireland President Seán Gillis said. “It is always a difficult decision for any athlete to know when the time is right to call it a day. They can both be very proud of their legacy and hopefully they know how much it has meant to all us in Ireland to see them represent us. I wish them every success for the next stage of their lives together.”