Canadian figure skater Alexandra Paul remembered as 'outgoing personality'

Whether on the ice, in the courtroom or in her latest role as a new mother, Alexandra Paul brought passion and joy to all she did, those who knew the former Olympic figure skater said as they mourned her death.

Paul, 31, died last week in a crash involving seven vehicles in Melancthon Township, west of Barrie, Ont., when a transport truck entered a construction zone and crashed in a line of stopped cars.

Police have said Paul's infant son was with her and was taken to a children's hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Paul was "just a great-all-around person," he said, and will be remembered fondly by all who knew her.

"She had an outgoing personality." he said.

"She was very fun to be around and had a very positive impact."

Slipchuk said he first met Paul in 2008, when she was competing at the junior level. He worked with Paul and her figure skating partner Mitchell Islam, whom she later married, until they retired from skating in 2016.

He last saw Paul just a few days before the fatal crash, during a summer skating competition in Waterloo, Ont., where her husband was a coach.

Slipchuk said the couple were a successful team and became World Junior ice dance silver medallists before becoming three-time Canadian senior medallists.

Paul and Islam competed at two World Championships in 2014 and 2015 and were members of the Canadian team at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, Slipchuk said.

"They pushed ahead and kept getting stronger and if one year, if one event, didn't work the way they had hoped, the next one was better," he said.

"It culminated in them being part of Olympic team which is every athlete's dream and it was so great to see them get to that milestone and accomplish that."

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