Dandjinou golden in 500m and 1500m; Sarault wins 1000m silver and Dubois earns 500m bronze

GDANSK, POLAND – William Dandjinou continued his dominance on the ISU Short Track World Tour by winning two gold medals Saturday in Gdansk. Teammates Courtney Sarault and Steven Dubois also reached the podium, earning silver and bronze, respectively.

Dandjinou (Montreal, Que.) earned his second 1500m victory of the season to start the day, crossing the line in 2:24.153, ahead of Italians Thomas Nadalini (2:24.215) and Pietro Sighel (2:24.288). The 24-year-old captured his second gold medal of the day a short time later in the 500m, his third consecutive win in the distance. Dandjinou led the race from start to finish, holding off China’s Lin Xiaojun (41.120) to bring home gold with a time of 40.849.

“I’m really happy with my 500m and 1500m today. They weren’t easy races. The ice conditions here are very difficult, so we had to make a lot of adjustments. In the 1500m, I really liked how I managed to adapt to different track patterns. It was a very exciting race. And sharing the podium with Steven in the 500m was great. Overall, I’m very satisfied.”

William Dandjinou

Dubois (Lachenaie, Que.), meanwhile, took advantage of contact between competitors Nadalinin and Brandon Kim of the United States, executing a double pass to move into podium position and earn bronze in the 500m (41.505). The 28-year-old also reached the A Final of the 1500m, finishing the distance ranked sixth (2:24.834).

“I had a fantastic day with an A Final in both the 1500m and the 500m. The 500m was a really tough race. I started in fourth place and lost a position at the start. That doesn’t happen to me very often, but it gave me a bit of a challenge. I made a few passes and just raced really well, even with the incredibly difficult ice conditions. I’m really happy to have won this medal.”

Steven Dubois

For her part, Sarault (Moncton, N.B.) reached the 1000m podium for the third consecutive time, adding silver to the two gold she won in Montreal earlier this season. Belgium’s Hanne Desmet overtook race leader Corinne Stoddard of the United States in the last lap to win gold (1:30.422). Sarault passed Stoddard (1:30.589) immediately after Desmet, helping the 25-year-old Canadian move into silver medal position (1:30.575). Teammate Florence Brunelle (Trois-Rivière, Que.) finished just off the podium in fourth place (1:30.716).

“I’m really happy with my silver medal today. We knew going in that the ice conditions weren’t going to be the best, so I was just trying to race a bit smarter. I don’t know if I made the best decisions but I’m happy with how I fought through the race and got the silver regardless. I’m excited and it’s fueling me for the distances tomorrow. Hopefully I can carry on the podium streak.”

Courtney Sarault

The ISU Short Track World Tour in Gdansk concludes tomorrow with the women’s 500m and 1500m, the men’s 1000m and 5000m relay, and the 2000m mixed relay. Watch the races live on CBC Sports and Radio-Canada Sports digital platforms.

Results

Men’s 1500m

William Dandjinou: 1st
Steven Dubois: 6th
Félix Roussel: 11th

Women’s 1000m

Courtney Sarault: 2nd
Florence Brunelle: 4th
Kim Boutin: 20th

Men’s 500m

William Dandjinou: 1st
Steven Dubois: 3rd
Félix Roussel: 9th

Women’s 3000m Relay

Canada: 12th