Matthias Versluis

Matthias Versluis (born 18 July 1994) is a Finnish figure skater. Competing in ice dancing with Juulia Turkkila, he competed at two Winter Olympics (2022, 2026), is the 2023 European bronze medalist, a two-time Grand Prix of Espoo bronze medalist, 2023 CS Finlandia Trophy gold medalist, and a six-time Finnish national champion (2019, 2022–26). Turkkila/Versluis also earned a small bronze medal for the free dance segment at the 2025 European Championships.

As a single skater, he is the 2014 Finnish national champion and competed in the final segment at two ISU Championships.

Personal life

Versluis was born on 18 July 1994 in Genolier, Switzerland,^[1] to a Finnish mother and Dutch father.^[2] He moved to Finland with his family when he was six months old.^[2] As of 2018, he was studying physiotherapy^[3] at the Arcada University of Applied Sciences.^[4]

Career

Early career

Versluis began learning to skate in 2002.^[1] Tiiu Valgemäe coached him early in his career.^[5] In 2008, he debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix series, coached by Virpi Horttana, Sara Lindroos, and Arja Veijola.^[5] He competed at the 2012 and 2013 World Junior Championships, qualifying for the free skate at both events.^[6]

In December 2013, Versluis won the senior men's title at the 2014 Finnish Championships.^[7] He was selected to compete at the 2014 European Championships but withdrew due to a knee injury, sustained in training on 9 January 2014.^[8] His coaches were Virpi Horttana, Kati Perokorpi, and Henna Hietala.^[9] By 2015, he was being coached by Stefan Zins.^[10]

On 1 April 2016, the Finnish Figure Skating Association reported that Versluis had teamed up with Juulia Turkkila to compete in ice dancing.^[11]

Competitive ice dance career

2016–2017 season: Switch to ice dance and debut of Turkkila/Versluis

Making their international debut, Turkkila/Versluis placed sixth at the NRW Trophy in November 2016. Later that month, they finished 13th at their first ISU Challenger Series assignment, the 2016 CS Tallinn Trophy. In December, they took the silver medal behind Törn/Partanen at the 2017 Finnish Championships. In February, they represented Finland at the 2017 Winter Universiade, finishing eighth.^[12]

2017–2018 season

Turkkila/Versluis competed at a pair of Challenger Series competitions – placing tenth at the 2017 CS Lombardia Trophy, and fifteenth at the 2017 CS Finlandia Trophy – and then finished thirteenth at the International Cup of Nice. In November, they won bronze at the Ice Challenge in Austria. In December, they repeated as national silver medalists, again finishing second to Törn/Partanen.^[12]

2018–19 season: First national title, World, European, and Grand Prix debut

Turkkila/Versluis began their season with three Challenger Series events – they finished sixth at the 2018 CS Lombardia Trophy, seventh at the 2018 CS Ondrej Nepela Trophy, and sixth at the 2018 CS Finlandia Trophy. In October, the duo won silver at the Minsk-Arena Ice Star. In November, they debuted on the Grand Prix series, placing sixth at the 2018 Grand Prix of Helsinki, and then took bronze at the Warsaw Cup. The following month, they became the Finnish national champions and were selected to compete at the 2019 European Championships in Minsk, Belarus, where they placed eleventh. They then competed at their first World Championships, placing sixteenth.^[12]

2019–20 season & 2020–21 seasons: Struggles with injury

Turkkila sustained a neck injury in a practice session at the 2019 CS Lombardia Trophy, compelling the team to withdraw from the competition. They subsequently also withdrew from the 2019 CS Finlandia Trophy and the 2019 Rostelecom Cup, their Grand Prix assignment for the year.^[13] They were assigned to compete at the World Championships in Montreal, but these were cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.^[14]

Returning to competition for the first time in two years, Turkkila/Versluis represented Finland at the 2021 World Championships in Stockholm, placing twenty-first after a fluke error on the rotational lift.^[15]

2021–2022 season: Beijing Olympics

Turkkila/Versluis began the Olympic season at the 2021 CS Lombardia Trophy, where they placed sixth.^[16] They were assigned to the 2021 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, seeing to qualify a place for Finland at the 2022 Winter Olympics. They placed first in both programs, setting three new personal bests to take both their first Challenger gold and the first of four available dance spots.^[17] At their third Challenger event of the season, the 2021 CS Finlandia Trophy, Turkkila/Versluis came sixth, notably managing fourth place in the free dance.^[12] They competed at the 2021 Cup of Nice, also known as Trophée Métropole Nice, where they won gold, before going on to make their Grand Prix appearance at the 2021 Internationaux de France, where they finished in seventh.^[18]

After winning their second Finnish national title, Turkkila/Versluis were named to the Finnish Olympic team. Turkkila had a mild case of COVID-19 in late December and recovered, but because she continued to test positive, the team was unable to participate in the 2022 European Championships.

Making their appearance at the Beijing Olympics dance event, Turkkila/Versluis were the first Finnish ice dancers to appear in the Winter Olympics since Rahkamo/Kokko in 1994. They placed sixteenth in the rhythm dance, qualifying for the free dance.^[19] They moved up one place in the free dance, finishing fifteenth.^[20]

Turkkila and Versluis concluded the season at the 2022 World Championships, held in Montpellier. They finished twelfth.^[12]

2022–23 season: Grand Prix and European Championships bronze

Turkkila/Versluis won the bronze medal at the 2022 CS Finlandia Trophy before taking the gold medal at the 2022 Cup of Nice.^[12] They were considered medal contenders going into the Grand Prix, but placed eighth in the rhythm dance after Turkkila fell during the twizzle sequence. They were fifth in the free dance, rising to seventh overall.^[21] Their second event was the 2022 Grand Prix of Espoo, held on home ice in Finland instead of the Rostelecom Cup as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War. They finished fourth in the rhythm dance with a new personal best score of 75.06, 1.16 points behind third-place Americans Carreira/Ponomarenko.^[22] In the free dance, they rose to third overall with another new personal best (116.73), taking the bronze medal with a total score of 191.79. They were the lone Finnish medalists at the Finnish Grand Prix event and the first Finnish dance team to ever medal in the Grand Prix. Turkkila said that the result "gives us a lot of confidence. We know what we are capable of, and we want to achieve more. This is just the beginning."^[23][24]

After winning their third Finnish national title, Turkkila/Versluis were their country's primary medal hope at a home European Championships, hosted, like the Grand Prix, in Espoo. This was their first appearance at the European Championships since 2019. They finished third in the rhythm dance with a new personal best score of 77.56, 0.23 points ahead of fourth-place Lithuanian team Reed/Ambrulevičius.^[25][26] In the free dance, Turkkila/Versluis set new personal bests in that segment and overall, and won the bronze medal. This was the first European medal for a Finnish dance team since Rahkamo/Kokko's gold in 1995. Versluis called it "absolutely amazing," especially in light of their previous absences.^[27][28]

Turkkila/Versluis concluded the season at the 2023 World Championships in Saitama, where they finished ninth, the first time since 1995 that a Finnish team placed in the top ten. Turkkila commented that "in August, you couldn't have imagined that there would be a season like this. All expectations have been exceeded."^[29]

2023–2024 season

Beginning the season at the 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, Turkkila/Versluis won the bronze medal.^[12] Competing next on home ice at the 2023 CS Finlandia Trophy, they won the rhythm dance.^[30] Second in the free dance, they remain in first place overall, becoming the first Finnish dance team to win the gold medal at the Finlandia Trophy. The duo noted that the Espoo Metro Areena had been the site of many milestones in their careers, including national singles championships, making it a place of "many meanings."^[31] With Finland again hosting on the Grand Prix in the same venue, they won another bronze medal at the 2023 Grand Prix of Espoo.^[32] Turkkila/Versluis went on to finish fourth at the 2023 NHK Trophy, which they said they considered a strong result given that they were competing on consecutive weekends. Turkkila said they were "overall very happy" with the first half of the season.^[33]

After claiming their fourth national gold medal, Turkkila/Versluis sought to defend their podium place at the 2024 European Championships. They came sixth in both segments, placing sixth overall. They received a deduction of an extra element in the free dance, which they said they would research for future performances to understand the error.^[34] They then finished the season at the 2024 World Championships, coming tenth. Turkkila praised the crowd at the Montreal event as "amazing," while admitting that "result wise, we could have done even a bit better this season, especially at Europeans. But the field is big and competitive."^[35]

2024–25 season

Turkkila and Versluis shared that their goal for the 2024-25 figure skating season was to either match or surpass their achievements from the 2023–24 figure skating season.^[36] They began the season by competing on the Challenger circuit, winning bronze at the 2024 CS Budapest Trophy and finishing fourth at the 2024 CS Nepela Memorial.^[12] Going on to compete on the 2024–25 Grand Prix series, they were first assigned to the 2024 Finlandia Trophy, which was for the first time held as part of the Grand Prix rather than the Challenger series. They again won the bronze medal on home ice, with their tango-themed free dance earning a notable audience response.^[37] The following week they competed at the 2024 Cup of China, where they were fifth.^[38]

In December, Turkkila/Versluis would win their fifth national title at the 2025 Finnish Championships.^[12] The following month they participated in the 2025 European Championships in Tallinn, coming fourth in the rhythm dance despite Versluis losing two levels on his twizzle element. Their score of 81.26 was 0.31 points back of third-place Britons Fear/Gibson. They placed third in the free dance with a new personal best score of 124.43 despite each losing a twizzle level, receiving a bronze small medal for the segment, but remained in fourth overall. Both said they had found the event difficult, but Turkkila added that it was "still meaningful to have the small medal for the tango, which shows that the tango was appreciated by the public and the judges."^[39]

Following the European Championships, Turkkila/Versluis participated in the Road to 26 Trophy, the test event for the 2026 Winter Olympics, held at Milan's Forum di Milano. They won the gold medal.^[40] They finished the season at the 2025 World Championships in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, which were also the primary qualifying event for the Milan Olympics. Skating in the penultimate group of the rhythm dance, Versluis fell in their midline step sequence, resulting in them scoring only 68.09. They initially appeared poised to miss qualification for the free dance by one ordinal, but after Lithuanian team Reed/Ambrulevičius also had a fall and dropped below them, they were instead the final team to qualify, twentieth in the segment. Turkkila/Versluis were seventh in the free dance, rising to eleventh overall. Turkkila said it had been "an absolute roller coaster of emotions when we learned in the locker room that maybe there was a chance we would get to skate this free dance again. It felt like a gift, and we are so happy we could end our season with a happy memory."^[41] Their placement, in addition to Orihara/Pirinen's fourteenth-place finish won Finland two quotas for ice dance at the 2026 Winter Olympics.^[42]

2025–26 season: Injury & Milano Cortina Olympics

Although assigned to compete at 2025 Skate Canada International, Turkkila/Versluis withdrew from the event due to Versluis sustaining a leg nerve injury during the off-season.^[43][44] They subsequently withdrew from the 2025 Finlandia Trophy as well.^[45]

In December, Turkkila/Versluis returned to competition at the 2026 Finnish Championships, winning their sixth national title. The following month, they competed at the 2026 European Championships in Sheffield, England, United Kingdom, finishing in eighth place.^[46]

Programs

Ice dance with Juulia Turkkila

Single skating

Competitive highlights

*GP – Event of the ISU Grand Prix Series

• JGP – Event of the ISU Junior Grand Prix Series
• CS – Event of the ISU Challenger Series
• TBD – Assigned
• WD – Withdrew from competition

Single skating

Detailed results

Ice dance with Juulia Turkkila

References

1. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2018/2019". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019.
2. ^ Jokinen, Leena (17 December 2011). "Nurmenkari niukassa johdossa" (in Finnish). is.fi. Archived 13 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine.
3. ^ "Q & A: Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis". ice-dance.com. 20 December 2018.
4. ^ "Får jag lov? frågade Juulia, och Matthias svarade ja – med motivationen i botten och karriären på fall förändrade en fråga allting" (in Swedish). svenska.yle.fi. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
5. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2008/2009". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009.
6. ^ "Competition Results: Matthias VERSLUIS". International Skating Union. Archived 3 July 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
7. ^ Pusa, Ari (16 December 2013). "Matthias Versluis taitoluistelumestari ennätyspistein" [Matthias Versluis wins national title with record score] (in Finnish). Helsingin Sanomat
8. ^ "Versluis loukkaantui - EM-kisat jäävät väliin" [Versluis injured, out of European Championships] (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. Suomen Tietotoimisto. 11 January 2014. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
9. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2013/2014". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 21 June 2014.
10. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2015/2016". International Skating Union. Archived 27 May 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
11. ^ "Juulia Turkkila ja Matthias Versluis jäätanssipariksi" [Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis team up for ice dancing] (in Finnish). Finnish Figure Skating Association. 1 April 2016.
12. ^ "Competition Results: Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS". International Skating Union. Archived 13 January 2019 at the Wayback Machine.
13. ^ Skating Finland (1 October 2019). "Juulia Turkkila-Matthias Versluis announced today: "Unfortunately, we have to postpone the start of our competitive season due to Juulia’s neck injury. We hope to be back soon and stronger than ever." Get well soon but be patience with the recovery! 💛". No. 1179019080172494852.
14. ^ Ewing, Lori (March 11, 2020). "World figure skating championships cancelled in Montreal". CBC Sports
15. ^ "ISU World Figure Skating Championships 2021 Results – Ice Dance". International Skating Union.
16. ^ "Lombardia Trophy 2021". Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio.
17. ^ Flade, Tatjana (September 25, 2021). "Finland's Turkkila and Versluis dance off with Nebelhorn gold". Golden Skate
18. ^ Slater, Paula (November 20, 2021). "Papadakis and Cizeron take 12th Grand Prix gold in France". Golden Skate
19. ^ "Suomalaiset palasivat jäätanssin olympiajäälle upealla tavalla – Turkkila ja Versluis saivat tiedon jatkopaikasta yllättävällä hetkellä" [The Finns returned to the ice age of ice dancing in a wonderful way - Turkkila and Versluis received information about the continuation at a surprising moment] (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. 12 February 2022.
20. ^ Penny, Brandon (13 February 2022). "How the free dance transpired and determined Olympic ice dance medalists". NBC Sports
21. ^ "Turkkila ja Versluis nousivat vapaatanssissa seitsemänneksi" [Turkkila and Versluis came seventh in the free dance] (in Finnish). Savon Sanomat. 5 November 2022.
22. ^ "Confident and cool Gilles/Poirier (CAN) set personal best to win Espoo Rhythm Dance". International Skating Union. November 25, 2022. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
23. ^ "Ice Dancers Gilles/Poirier (CAN) cruise to gold while Turkkila/Versluis take first Grand Prix medal for Finland". International Skating Union. November 26, 2022. Archived from the original on November 27, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
24. ^ Slater, Paula (November 26, 2022). "Gilles and Poirier epic in Espoo". Golden Skate
25. ^ Slater, Paula (January 27, 2023). "Guignard and Fabbri take slight lead at Europeans". Golden Skate
26. ^ "Guignard/Fabbri (ITA) find the right rhythm for the prime spot in the Ice Dance in Espoo". International Skating Union. January 27, 2023. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
27. ^ Slater, Paula (January 28, 2023). "Guignard and Fabbri grab elusive gold in Espoo". Golden Skate
28. ^ "Guignard/Fabbri end nine-year gold medal drought for Italian Ice Dance in Espoo". International Skating Union. January 28, 2023. Archived from the original on March 23, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
29. ^ Pusa, Ari (March 25, 2023). "EM-mitalistit Juulia Turkkila ja Matthias Versluis onnistuivat MM-jäällä – paras suomalaissijoitus 28 vuoteen" [EC medalists Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis succeeded on the ice of the WC – the best Finnish finish in 28 years] (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. Suomen Tietotoimisto. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
30. ^ Ikonen, Petteri (October 7, 2023). "Juulia Turkkila ja Matthias Versluis onnistuivat hienosti" [Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis did a great job] (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. Suomen Tietotoimisto. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
31. ^ Ikonen, Petteri (October 8, 2023). "Julia Turkkila ja Matthias Versluis saavuttivat yhteisen voiton – "Tällä paikalla on monta merkitystä"" [Julia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis achieved a joint victory - "This place has many meanings"] (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. Suomen Tietotoimisto. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
32. ^ Slater, Paula (November 18, 2023). "Chock and Bates take second consecutive Grand Prix gold". Golden Skate. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
33. ^ Slater, Paula (November 25, 2023). "Fear and Gibson edge out Italians for NHK Trophy gold". Golden Skate. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
34. ^ Slater, Paula (January 13, 2024). "Guignard and Fabbri win second consecutive European title". Golden Skate. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
35. ^ Slater, Paula (March 24, 2024). "Chock and Bates repeat as World Champions". Golden Skate. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
36. ^ Dombrowski, Judith (September 1, 2024). "Finns Turkkila and Versluis ready to “tango”". Golden Skate
37. ^ Slater, Paula (November 17, 2024). "Fear and Gibson win surprise gold in Finland". Golden Skate. Archived February 4, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
38. ^ Slater, Paula (November 24, 2024). "Guignard and Fabbri claim redemptive gold in China". Golden Skate. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
39. ^ Slater, Paula (February 1, 2025). "Guignard and Fabbri snag third consecutive European title". Golden Skate. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
40. ^ "Figure Skaters experience Olympic ice in Milan". International Skating Union. February 22, 2025. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
41. ^ Slater, Paula (March 30, 2025). "Chock and Bates win third consecutive World title". Golden Skate. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
42. ^ "ENTRIES/PARTICIPATION 2026 OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES (OWG) SINGLE & PAIR SKATING AND ICE DANCE". International Skating Union. International Skating Union. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
43. ^ "🇫🇮 Juulia Turkkila / Matthias Versluis have withdrawn from Skate Canada". X. Anything GOEs. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
44. ^ "🇫🇮 Juulia Turkkila / Matthias Versluis withdrew from their recent competitions due to a leg nerve injury for Versluis. They still plan to start their season at Skate Canada, but there’s a chance they may not be ready for that competition.". X. Anything GOEs. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
45. ^ "🇫🇮 Juulia Turkkila / Matthias Versluis have withdrawn from Finlandia Trophy". No. 1988915799466119202. November 13, 2025.
46. ^ "Juulia Turkkila / Matthias Versluis". Skating Scores. Skating Scores. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
47. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2025/2026". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 24 August 2025. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
48. ^ "Great work once again with our wonderful choreographer, Massimo. Thank you for your dedication and creativity.❤️ Looking forward to showing our work to all of you! 🤩". Instagram. Instagram. Retrieved 3 August 2025.
49. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2024/2025". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 7 October 2024. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
50. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023.
51. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022.
52. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2021/2022". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022.
53. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 23 May 2020.
54. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2020/2021". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021.
55. ^ "Juulia TURKKILA / Matthias VERSLUIS: 2017/2018". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 29 May 2018.
56. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2012/2013". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 12 March 2013.
57. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2011/2012". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012.
58. ^ "Matthias VERSLUIS: 2009/2010". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 26 September 2010.

External links

• Matthias Versluis at Tracings
• Matthias Versluis at Milano Cortina 2026