The Canadian short track speed skating team would no doubt like to be able to relive the first World Cup day of the season. In front of their own, in Montreal, the Canadian athletes were unable to skate at the height of their talent.
Only one medal. That’s all Canada was able to offer its fans gathered at the Maurice-Richard Arena on Saturday afternoon.
And this medal was won hard by Steven Dubois, placing second in the 1000 meters event. Due to an accident on Friday, the three-time Olympic medalist had to go through the repechage races for the first time in his career to secure his place in the medal rounds.
After his fifth individual race of the day, Dubois was relieved not to have worked in vain: “It was a day that was really hard mentally, and physically too. And it’s the first day of competition, so you never know how your legs will respond. »
He was also happy to have held on physically. “My legs were still excellent and I didn’t feel a drop in physical fitness,” he said at the end of this first day of competition.
The 26-year-old from Laval was even sure to have more gas in the tank than Park Ji-won, winner of the event. But the South Korean is extremely difficult to beat. He won the cumulative ranking last season.
According to Dubois, its success can be explained by its ability to leave no room for maneuver to its rivals. “It surprises me every time how good he is. It’s a bit like car racing, if he gives me some distance, I can pick up my speed to overtake him, but he’s excellent at covering that distance and not leaving any to his opponents,” explains he mimicked the laws of aerodynamics with his hands.
With the absence of Kim Boutin for the start of the season, Canada’s hopes among the women rested largely on the shoulders of Courtney Sarault. Second overall in the World Cup last season, the 23-year-old has all the tools to have a great season. And she probably would have liked to be able to prove it at home.
However, things did not happen that way. In the semi-final of the 1000 meters, in a very tight race, the Canadian could not do better than third place in her heat. Relegating her to the B final, which she won 90 minutes later.
Without a medal around his neck, Sarault hinted at how this result fell short of his own expectations: “I have to get my feelings back and learn from my mistakes. I wouldn’t say it was my best day ever […]. It was frustrating the way I skated today. Especially since I felt like I had more to offer, I think I can do a lot better. »
This sixth place is all the more annoying, given the absence of three of the best skaters in the world. Without the Dutch Suzanne Schulting, the South Korean Choi Min-jeong and the Quebecer Kim Boutin, the field was almost open. Or, at the very least, the table was wide open, to use tennis jargon.
However, Sarault was unable to take advantage of it. “I feel that everyone’s level has improved,” she notes, to justify her ranking. I didn’t really take into consideration that there were people absent. The caliber is very strong. »
Upon her return to competition, Florence Brunelle finished just behind Sarault in the B final of the 1000 meters. A seventh position that is encouraging to say the least in the circumstances. “Already, being in a good state of mind internationally is a good step forward. I was happy to be able to enter a competition and be ready to learn. And it went really well at that level. »
Brunelle appeared calm, in control and comfortable on the ice. Without overflowing with recklessness, she attempted to overtake and appeared in full possession of her means. At the very least, for an athlete returning to competition after spending 10 months in the shadows.
“I think I know what I’m worth and I know that, physically, I’m here. But short track skating is a very tactical sport, so it was about managing to be in a good state of mind to be able to combine the more mental, more tactical side. And I think I succeeded in doing it, but above all I am happy with the approach I took for my races,” said the Trifluvienne.
The best female result goes to Danaé Blais among the Canadians.
However, despite placing sixth in the 1500 meters, the 24-year-old skater was caught between different emotions at the end of her day.
“It’s certain that by going to the A final, I was aiming for a podium,” said the Châteauguay athlete calmly. [I] finished fourth and fifth a lot last year, and it’s frustrating, especially since I worked so hard last summer. »
In the final, her blades caught those of a Chinese skater at a “critical moment”. Without this event, her destiny could have been different and that is probably why she was not completely satisfied with her day.
“The perfectionist in me is a little frustrated. The rational in me is able to take over and realize that it’s still a good result and that it’s part of the process of learning to win. »
The name Hanne Desmet is probably very unfamiliar to many people. However, even if she skates under the Belgian colors, the winner of the 1500 meters event maintains a special link with Montreal and Canada.
For the past five years, the bronze medalist at the last Olympic Games trained with the Dutch team.
But since August, she has joined the Canadian team’s training group.
“The [Dutch] federation didn’t seem to want us to train with them anymore, even if the athletes wanted to. We went to the United States for the first months of the summer, but we quickly came to Canada,” she said.
In Belgium, her sport is far from being a priority: “We don’t have a safe arena in Belgium,” she said, “and we have to train at seven in the morning, when we can simply train. You cannot be a professional skater in Belgium. »
But curiously, Desmet excels in his sport. She goes a little under the radar due to the success of Schulting and Boutin, in particular, but the Belgian is blessed with rare talent. And with two good seasons under the belt, and taking into account the absence of its rivals, the 2023-2024 season could be decisive.
“It’s a perfect way to kick off the season. It was a good race and I’m happy to have won. […] There was a bit of pressure: it’s time to win when these big names aren’t there. But regardless if they had been here, I would still have wanted to win. »
