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Alexandra Paul (1991–2023) was a Canadian competitive ice dancer. She performed with her skating partner and eventual husband, Mitchell Islam. Together, they clinched the silver medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships. During their senior career, Paul and Islam earned the bronze medal at the 2013 Nebelhorn Trophy and secured the bronze at the Canadian national championships three times (2011, 2014, and 2015). They also represented their country at the 2014 Winter Olympics. In 2021, she started working as a lawyer at Barriston Law in Barrie. Paul died in a multi-car crash in Melancthon Township, a rural area of Ontario on August 22, 2023.
Wiki/Biography
Alexandra Jane Paul was born on Monday, September 16, 1991 (age 31 years; at the time of death) in Toronto, Canada. Her zodiac sign is Virgo. Originally from Midhurst, Ontario, she grew up training at the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie, Ontario. She began skating in 1996 when she was just 5. She attended Laurentian University at Georgian College in Barrie (2009-2012). She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Oakland University, completing her final semester in April 2017.
Alexandra Paul and Mitch Islam after graduating from Oakland University, in April 2017
In 2020, she earned her Juris Doctor degree at the University of Windsor Law School (2017-2020).
Physical Appearance
Height: 5′ 3″ (161 cm)
Hair Colour: Dark Blonde
Eye Colour: Light gray
Family
Parents & Siblings
Her father, Gordon, is a radiologist. Her mother’s name is Anne. She has two sisters, Katharine and Elizabeth.
Husband & Children
In September 2021, Alexandra Paul married her skating partner Mitchell Islam. Together, they had a son, Charles (born in October 2022).
Alexandra Paul alongside her husband, Mitch Islam, and son, Charlie
Career
Figure Skating
In the 2008–09 figure skating season, Alexandra Paul along with her partner Jason Cheperdak came fourth at the ISU Junior Grand Prix in Spain and 6th at ISU Junior Grand Prix in the United Kingdom. Paul and Cheperdak secured the third position in the 2009 Canadian Figure Skating Championships, following which she began to search for a new partner. Meanwhile, Mitchell Islam, a Canadian Junior silver medalist and Junior Worlds competitor was also searching for one. Interestingly, both had trained at the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie, Ontario. In January 2009, they had a successful tryout and immediately began to prepare for the Minto Summer Skate in late July. They surpassed the reigning Canadian Junior Champions in the free dance and went on to win the competition overall. The win earned them an opportunity to skate on the Junior Grand Prix circuit. They competed in two events at the 2009–10 ISU Junior Grand Prix. In their first assignment in Poland, they finished fourth, and in their second assignment in Turkey one month later, they finished fifth. At the 2010 Canadian Figure Skating Championships, Paul and Islam secured the first position in ice dancing after which they were assigned to the 2010 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, where they clinched the silver medal.
A picture of Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam at the 2010 World Junior Figure Skating Championships, performing to Eva Cassidy’s Over the Rainbow
Their coaching team included Islam’s father, David, 2001 Canadian Junior Ice Dance champion Tyler Myles, former Junior Worlds medalist Kelly Johnson, and former World Championships competitor Pavol Porac. The duo moved up to the senior ranks for the 2010–2011 season. At 2010 Skate Canada International, they were placed second in the free dance and fourth overall. Paul suffered a rib injury during the short dance which forced them to withdraw from their second assignment, the 2010 Cup of Russia in Moscow. Paul and Islam finished third at their senior national debut at the 2011 Canadian Figure Skating Championships They finished eighth at the 2011 Skate America. They were placed seventh in the short dance and withdrew before the free dance competition at the 2011 NHK Trophy as Paul suffered a cut to the back of the thigh in a collision with Italy’s Lorenza Alessandrini / Simone Vaturi during the morning practice on November 12. In June 2012, Paul and Islam started training at the Detroit Skating Club in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. They had no Grand Prix events in 2012 and finished fourth at the 2013 Canadian Figure Skating Championships. Paul and Islam started the next season by securing a bronze medal at the 2013 Nebelhorn Trophy. They were placed fifth at the 2013 Skate Canada International. After winning a bronze medal at the 2014 Canadian Championships, they were selected to represent Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, where they finished in 18th place.
Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam of Canada perform their free dance during the ice dancing competition at the Iceberg Skating Palace during the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, February 17, 2014
At the 2015 World Championships in Shanghai, China, Paul and Islam secured the eighth spot in the short dance, placed fourteenth in the free dance, and ultimately finished thirteenth in the overall standings. Afterward, they decided to switch coaches and became part of the coaching team at the Gadbois Centre in Montreal, Quebec, led by Marie-France Dubreuil, Patrice Lauzon, and Romain Haguenauer. In the summer of 2016, Paul suffered a hamstring injury. Paul and Islam earned the bronze medal at the 2016 CS U.S. International Classic.
Alexandra Paul and Mitchell Islam performing short dance at the 2016 Skate Canada International
However, on November 18, Paul injured her knee when she fell during a practice session in the morning at the 2016 Cup of China. Consequently, the duo withdrew from the competition before the short dance. They announced their competitive retirement on December 15, 2016. She worked as a Figure Skating Coach at Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie from 2017 to 2021.
Law
In September 2020, she joined Barriston Law as an articling student and worked in this capacity for nine months. In May 2021, Paul became an associate lawyer at Barriston Law, specializing in wills, estates, real estate, and corporate law.
Favourites
- Ice Dancer(s): Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon, Jeffrey Buttle, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir
Medals
- Gold medal 2010 Canadian Figure Skating Championships
- Silver medal at the 2010 World Junior Figure Skating Championships
- Bronze medals at the 2011, 2014, and 2015 Canadian Figure Skating Championships
- Bronze medal at the 2016 CS U.S. International Figure Skating Classic
Death
On August 22, 2023, Paul was killed after her car was hit by a transport truck in Melancthon Township, north of Shelburne in Canada. She was in a vehicle with her baby boy who was taken to a children’s hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries following the accident.
Facts/Trivia
- A proficient dancer, she was skilled in ballet and jazz.
- Paul’s husband, Islam, hailed from a family of figure skaters with his mother, Debbie, a former Canadian ladies junior champion. A senior bronze medalist, Debbie was also a judge on the men’s panel at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. Islam’s father, David, served as the Director of Ice Dance at the Mariposa School of Skating in Barrie.
- Following her death, a GoFundMe page was set up for her beloved son, Charlie Islam.
- She was a non-vegetarian.
- In an interview, she revealed that she loved cooking but hated baking.