Defying age at Milano Cortina Games: Canadian skater Stellato-Dudeke aims for gold at 42

Canadian skater Deanna Stellato-Dudek is going to make an impressive comeback after 17-year retirement.

The 42-year-old skater is set to make her Olympic debut at Milano Cortina Games, aiming for gold and Olympic title.

Stellato-Dudek was retired 17-year earlier due to a serious hip flexor injury, forcing her to announce her retirement less than a year before the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.

Now her extraordinary comeback speaks volumes of her determination and inspiration.

With sheer determination, the Canadian skater is now on the quest of earning the Olympic title and becoming the oldest pair skater to win this at this unusual age.

According to Stellato-Dudek while talking in an Olympic documentary, “Because of my age, people say time is ticking for me. Make no mistake, I'm going to do everything it takes to win, because I want to be Olympic champion. I'm going to do what it takes to become the oldest Olympic champion ever.”

“My life was skating full speed ahead for my entire life up until that moment. Then it was like a slap in the face,” she said.

She became the oldest female world figure skating champion when she and partner Maxime Deschamps won in 2024. She also won a world junior silver medal for the United States.

In 2019, she paired up with Canadian Deschamps after reviving her skating career 2.0.

While talking about her age, Stellato-Dudek said she considers her age an asset not a liability.

She said, “I give my age no power. I think it gives me strength. I've lived a lot of life. I've loved, I've lost — and I can portray those experiences on the ice.”

“I'm not going to stop skating until I have decided that I'm done, regardless of what other people think a female should or should not be doing at a certain age,” she told Reuters.