‘Heated Rivalry’ Look-Alike Contest Fuels Competition in Boston Public Garden

Neither cold temperatures nor gray winter skies could stop more than 200 people from showing up in the Boston Public Garden for a Heated Rivalry look-a-like contest on Monday, Jan. 19.

The event tied into the Canadian romance series, which features rival hockey players Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov. This series has enjoyed rising popularity. A second season is in the works from HBO Max, Deadline reported.

Part of the series is set in Boston, where Rosonov plays for the fictional “Boston Bears.” That connection to Boston inspired Daniva Freeman to track down the real-life Ilya and Shane of Boston.

Freeman, a Suffolk University senior, and her co-host Alexa Hilts organized the contest after a 9 a.m. class, promoting it with posters and a TikTok post that had amassed more than 80,000 views.

“I chose Heated Rivalry because it's really popular right now, and I was surprised that there hadn't already been a competition already,” Freeman said in an interview with Boston.com.

Contestants were asked to come forward as a crowd voted by cheering for their favorite look-alike competitor.

The winning contestant was Noah Hallward-Rough, a Brown University student who bore a strong resemblance to Rozanov. Will Carroll, 22, won second place for his Rozanov impression.

According to Boston.com, first-place winners earned free ice skating tickets, while second-place winners received Coke or ginger ale as prizes.