An exclusive interview on ice with Cottage Life cover star Elladj Baldé

Canadian figure skating phenom Elladj Baldé is carving his own path in a sport often out of reach for youth in underserved communities. He recently co-founded the Skate Global Foundation, a nonprofit which aims to foster equality, diversity, and inclusion. Following his retirement from competitive figure skating in 2018, he started garnering attention on social media for his gravity-defying flips on wild ice in some of Canada’s most spectacular locations including Lake Minnewanka in Banff, Alta. Check out his backflip on the cover of the Winter 2021 issue of Cottage Life magazine.

Watch his exclusive on-ice interview with another retired figure skater, Cottage Life editor Michelle Kelly (who competed in her youth)—and see what happens when they try to teach each other some new tricks. You won’t want to miss Baldé’s signature backflip at the end which is filmed from just about every angle.

Catch Baldé’s commentary at the Beijing Olympics. He’s part of CBC’s Olympic Broadcast Team on the ground in China.