A Canadian TV series is on hold due to a confirmed COVID-19 case.

CBC announced today (October 7) that a production team member working on Battle of the Blades tested positive for COVID-19.

As a result, Insight Production has suspended all training and pre-production for the forthcoming Season 6 as a precautionary measure.

Consequently, the live premiere of the new season slated for October 15 is being postponed.

CBC will be providing an update on scheduling when available.

Tapings for the series will be held at the CAA Centre in Brampton, Ontario, featuring a virtual audience. Video screens in the arena will show Canadians reacting to live performances from their homes and communities. 

Season 6 will be hosted by Hockey Night in Canada’s Ron MacLean again with a judging panel consisting of Olympic gold medallist Scott Moir, multi-Olympic ice hockey medallist and Season 5 runner-up Natalie Spooner, and professional skater and choreographer Elladj Baldé, and Kurt Browning in the new role of elite battle expert.

In this ice-skating competition series, NHL, Olympic, and professional hockey players are paired with World and Olympic figure-skating partners to perform on ice to win a $100,000 donation to the charity of their choice.

This year marks the first time that three female hockey players and three male figure skaters, will be a part of the competition.

The 16 skaters that will comprise the eight competing pairs are:

• Violetta Afanasieva and Anthony Stewart  
• Meghan Agosta and Andrew Poje  
• Jennifer Botterill and Eric Radford  
• Jessica Campbell and Asher Hill  
• Meagan Duhamel and Wojtek Wolski  
• Carlotta Edwards and Kris Versteeg  
• Vanessa James and Akim Aliu  
• Kaitlyn Weaver and Bryan Bickell