The Maple Meltdown ice-carving competition was held at Lansdowne Park on March 22.
Organized by the Canadian Ice Carver Society, it was to reward the winner with the right to compete in the 2026 Winter Cultural Olympiad.
Nine competitors, including carvers from Ottawa, Quebec and Toronto, used a trio of 300-pound ice blocks, mimicking the format for next year’s international event in Italy.
Tyler Hayes was one of the competitors Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Suguru Kanbayashi, president of the Canadian Ice Carvers Society, works on one of the sponsors ice carvings.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Gabby Giammaria was one of the nine competitors Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Kevin Ashe was one of the competitors Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia “Apart from chainsaws, we have chisels,” said Suguru Kanbayashi, president of the Canadian Ice Carvers Society.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Suguru Kanbayashi, president of the Canadian Ice Carvers Society, works on one of the sponsor’s ice carvings on Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Chris Dainty works on his 900 pounds of ice.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Nathan McKeough uses his electric chainsaw to work on his piece on Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Kevin Ashe was one of the competitors in the Maple Meltdown on Saturday.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Carvers use various tools to work on their three-block pieces, with each block weighing around 300 pounds.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Ryan Hill is primarily a wood carver, but has transferred his skills over to working with ice for this competition.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia Antonio Baisas spends his days at the Hilton Lac-Leamy Hotel and Casino in Gatineau, where he is the resident ice carver.Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia
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