Laurent Dubreuil was not in top form on Friday during the first 500m of the season where he finished seventh, at the Long Track Speed Skating World Cup in Obihiro, Japan. Back pain was still present on Sunday as Dubreuil once again took part in the 500m, where he finished sixth (35.03s), improving his time by 0.05 seconds compared to Friday.
“It was a little bit better. One rank better and 5 hundredths better, we will take the small improvements when they come. Does it live up to my expectations? Not really, but when you get injured during a week of racing, you have to lower your goals,” Dubreuil said.
Despite everything, Dubreuil managed to see a little positive through this weekend which he considers to be more difficult on his side. Finishing sixth while being hampered by a back injury proves to him that he can aspire to great things when he is back healthy.
“I’ve almost won medals at every World Cup for four years, so not winning one is not something that satisfies me. But hey, I’m sixth in the world, it’s not dramatic. In addition, I am 9 hundredths away from a medal even though I am limited because of my back,” he added.
The 500m was won by Japanese Wataru Morishige who covered the distance in 34.64s. He was accompanied on the podium by his compatriot Tatsuya Shinhama (0.05 seconds) and the American Jordan Stolz (0.30 seconds).
For her part, Valérie Maltais felt in full control of her means since the start of the weekend in Obihiro. The skater from La Baie concluded her weekend with a seventh place in the 3000m with a time of 4:6.18 (4.30 seconds).
“It still went well, but I definitely made a tactical error because I still had energy after the race. It’s hard to be disappointed because I felt good and I skated well. », indicated Valérie Maltais.
Norwegian Ragne Wiklund won the gold medal, beating Japanese Momoka Horikawa (1.54 seconds) and Dutch Antoinette Rijpma-De Jong (1.83 seconds).
For their part, Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu and Ontarian Ivanie Blondin teamed up for the mixed relay. The Canadians thought they had won the gold medal, having crossed the finish line in first place after leading the race from the start.
After a video review, Gélinas-Beaulieu was however penalized since his skate blade came into contact with that of the Dutchman Wesly Dijs who was trying to come from behind in the last meters.
The Canadians were therefore disqualified and the Dutch took the top step of the podium.
Finally, Béatrice Lamarche took eighth place in the 3000m in group B (5.11 seconds). The event was won by the Dutch Reina Anema.