OBERTSDORF, Germany — Laurence Fournier-Beaudry and Nikolaj Sorensen of Montreal earned their first international victory on Saturday, winning the ice dance event at the Nebelhorn Trophy figure skating competition.

The event is the fifth stop on the ISU Challenger Series, a set of competitions which serves as a tune-up for the upcoming Grand Prix season.

Fournier-Beaudry and Sorensen bettered their previous international best by almost 12 points with a 201.00 score. Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker of the U.S. were second at 192.47 and their compatriots Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko third at 190.35.

"This really shows that when you commit to something you can make great things happen," Sorensen said. "Not everything was perfect but we are so happy we were able to go out there and give two really good programs."

Earlier this month, the duo took silver at the Lombardia Trophy in Italy and two seasons ago earned bronze at the Finlandia Trophy. The veteran couple were 10th at the world championships this past spring.

"Having all our teammates in the crowd cheering us one because we were the last event was really special," Fournier-Beaudry said. "It makes us even more humble and happy to be part of this family."

Haley Sales of Kelowna, B.C., and Nikolas Wamsteeker of Langley, B.C., were 11th.

It was Canada's second gold of the competition. Kirsten Moore-Towers of St. Catharines, Ont., and Michael Marinaro of Sarnia, Ont., won the pairs event on Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 28, 2019.