Former figure skater Tessa Virtue, PWHL player Sarah Nurse to launch YouTube shows

TORONTO – Since retiring from competitive figure skating in 2019, Tessa Virtue has pursued academia, a career in the business world and mentored young athletes.

Now, the five-time Olympic medallist is venturing into another space: podcasting.

“Virtuoso” will appear exclusively on YouTube Canada and will see Virtue explore the pursuit of excellence, something the most decorated female figure skater in Olympic history knows a thing or two about.

The 37-year-old will interview a variety of guests, including athletes, artists, scientists and entrepreneurs about the experiences, habits and practical tools that shaped them. Virtue said she hopes listeners can apply some of the insights into their own career and lives.

“So much of my life as an athlete was spent actually honing kind of the mental skills and tools to perform under pressure on the world’s biggest stage. And that’s the thing that I think differentiates performers at a certain level,” she said on Thursday.

“I’m so interested in how people manage insecurities and doubt, how you put yourself out there (when) you’re vulnerable to scrutiny and criticism, how you pick yourself up after a failure and forge ahead and how you manage the expectations of success once you’ve achieved something.”

Virtue’s podcast, scheduled for release later this year, is a part of a new slate of creator-driven shows launching on YouTube Canada that includes reality and scripted series spanning topics such as entertainment, sports, food, comedy and lifestyle.

One of Virtue’s podcast guests is her former ice dancing partner Scott Moir, whom she skated with competitively for 22 years and won three Olympic gold medals with, including in 2010 and 2018. Virtue said interviewing her former partner was both easy and difficult because she knows so much about him.

“What I hope is that there’s some things that I can talk to Scott about that maybe no one else can. And so that’s one that’s close to my heart just because of how important a role that partnership plays in my life. And now as I’m venturing out into this new territory, it’s really nice to have the support of someone who’s lived those other big moments with me.”

Fellow Olympian and Professional Women’s Hockey League player Sarah Nurse is also introducing a reality series titled “Sarah’s Side Quests.” Slated for release next year, the show will see the Vancouver Goldeneyes forward learn new skills from experts in a variety of fields.

Nurse said she wants to be a lifelong learner and pursuing activities outside of hockey takes her out of her comfort zone, in a good way.

“It’s a way to showcase things that I’ve always been curious about, always had a love for, a passion for, but also a way to step outside my comfort zone and show people that not everything is perfect,” she said. “You don’t just pick things up super, super easily. A lot of times it takes a lot to master a craft or master something. But it also shouldn’t discourage you from just trying something new.”

Nicole Bell, head of YouTube Canada, said having projects from Virtue and Nurse is exciting given the growth of women’s sports in Canada.

“I just think audiences are going to love it. I feel it’s going be really powerful and (Sarah’s) just an incredible personality,” said Bell.

“Tessa is this person who we have all watched in these incredible moments of pure athleticism and being at the pinnacle of her sport. But she’s not someone whose voice we get to hear a lot,” Bell said. “She’s this person who I think is beloved by Canadians, and I think it’ll be really wonderful to hear her in this new perspective.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2026.