Irish breaking step in skating competition (5)
I believe the answer is:
pairs
'skating competition' is the definition.
(pairs skating is a type of ice skating event)
'irish breaking step' is the wordplay.
'irish' becomes 'Ir' (abbreviation).
'breaking' indicates putting letters inside.
'step' becomes 'pas' (I've seen this before).
'ir' put inside 'pas' is 'PAIRS'.
'in' is the link.
(Other definitions for pairs that I've seen before include "golfing matches" , "Couples" , "Duos" .)