Ice Maples leave Poland with seven medals; Dandjinou and Sarault lead Crystal Globe standings heading into final stop

GDANSK, POLAND – The Canadian Ice Maples earned three bronze medals on the final day of ISU Short Track World Tour action in Gdansk, with Courtney Sarault, Steven Dubois and the mixed relay team all reaching the third step of the podium.

Sarault (Moncton, N.B.) was leading the women’s 1500m going into the final lap but was unable to fend off a well coordinated outside pass from the Korean duo of Choi Minjeong (2:30.656) and Kim Gilli (2:30.610), who overtook her at the entry of the final corner and pushed her into bronze medal position (2:30.985).

It marked Sarault’s third medal in the distance this season, having earned back-to-back gold during the two World Tour stops in Montreal in October.

The 25-year-old Canadian looked poised to reach the podium again in the women’s 500m but was the victim of contact from Michelle Velzeboer, who made contact with Sarault while trying to fend off an outside pass, causing her to lose balance and crash into the mats. Velzeboer was penalized for the infarction, moving Sarault into fourth place, just off the podium.

On the men’s side, Dubois reach the podium in bronze medal position for the second consecutive day, this time in the 1000m. The 28-year-old was nestled in third place but briefly lost a few positions as China’s Lin Xiaojun passed him by the inside at the same time as Korea’s Hwang Daeheon overtook him from the outside. Those two made contact and lost speed immediately after the double pass, allowing Dubois to quickly regain his position and cross the line in third (1:25.283). Jens Van ‘T Wout of the Netherlands earned the victory (1:25.147), with Pietro Sighel taking silver (1:25.195).

“The skater Dutch had a fantastic race from the front. He found a way to go fast and maintain his speed, while for us behind him it was more difficult coming out of the corners a bit tighter. I lost my footing while in third position with two laps to go. I was passed by two skaters, but I managed to retake them immediately with a half-lap to go to secure third place. Of course, I would have liked to be higher on the podium, but I haven’t finished lower than sixth in any of the distances I’ve competed in this year. That’s good consistency and good confidence, and I think I can give it a little more next week to go for the gold medal.”

Steven Dubois

Dubois teamed up with William Dandjinou, Florence Brunelle and Danaé Blais earlier in the afternoon to win yet another bronze for Canada, this time in the 2000m mixed relay. The Canadians started fourth off the line and moved into third during the twelfth lap but were unable to break through their Dutch (2:40.224) and Korean (2:40.155) competitors, settling for a third-place finish (2:40.478).

“The mixed relay was a super tough race. We started in fourth position with very brittle ice, making it very difficult to pass on the inside. And in a mixed relay, the chances of passing on the outside are very slim, so starting last meant we had a lot ground to make up. We managed to gain two positions, then lost one. But we raced really well as a team. It’s a great medal that gives us confidence for what’s to come.”

Steven Dubois

Sarault sits atop with women’s Crystal Globe standings with 570 points, a 90 points clear of her closest competitor Corrine Stoddard of the United States (480 points). Dandjinou (Montreal, Que.) is also in the lead of the men’s standings with 642 points, comfortably ahead of Italy’s Sighel (432 points) and fellow Canadian Steven Dubois (422 points).

The fourth and final ISU Short Track World Tour stop of this Olympic season takes place next weekend in Dordrecht, where Canadian skaters will look to solidify quota spots for their country and make one final push for the ISU Crystal Globes. Racing will be live streamed on CBC Sports and Radio-Canada Sports digital platforms on both Saturday and Sunday.

Results

Women’s 1500m

Courtney Sarault: 3rd
Florence Brunelle: 16th
Danaé Blais: 17th

Men’s 1000m

Steven Dubois: 3rd
Félix Roussel: 15th
William Dandjinou: 17th

Women’s 500m

Courtney Sarault: 4th
Florence Brunelle: 19th
Rikki Doak: 21st

Relays

Mixed: 3rd
Men’s: 11th