Canadian pairs team Stellato-Dudek, Deschamps will compete at Olympics

Canadian pairs team Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps will get their chance at Olympic glory after all.

The pair will leave Montreal on Wednesday and arrive in Milan on Thursday after Stellato-Dudek was cleared to compete, Skate Canada announced Tuesday.

It will give the 2024 world champions two days of practice before the short program begins on Sunday.

"Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps will compete in the pairs figure skating event beginning February 15," Skate Canada said in a statement. Stellato-Dudek hit her head on the ice during a training session in Quebec on January 30. Since then, her condition has been closely monitored by the medical teams of Skate Canada and Team Canada, and she has undergone the required medical examinations."

The decision to allow Stellato-Dudek to compete was made under the supervision of medical professionals and that the Canadian is feeling well and looking forward to competing, according to the Canadian Olympic Committe.

At 42, Stellato-Dudek will become the oldest woman to compete in an Olympic figure skating event in almost a century.

“I want to thank everyone for their interest and support. I’ve been working closely with the medical team and I feel ready and I’m really looking forward to competing,” said Stellato-Dudekin. “My priority now is to skate to the best of my ability. Maxime and I respectfully ask the press representatives to give us the space to focus on the competition.”

Originally from the Chicago area, Stellato-Dudek was a world junior silver medallist in 2000 and was projected to be the next American women's singles star when a chronic hip injury forced her into retirement at 17.

She returned to the ice in 2016 after a team-building exercise at a