Béatrice Lamarche and Ivanie Blondin both break into top 10 on first day of competition in the Netherlands

HEERENVEEN, NETHERLANDS – After narrowly missing the podium twice to start the season, Canadian long distance specialist Isabelle Weidemann finally earned some World Cup hardware on Friday, winning silver in the women’s 5000m to kick-off the third event of the pre-Olympic campaign in Heerenveen.

Weidemann (Ottawa, Ont.) crossed the finish line with a time of 6:50.11, narrowly behind pair mate Ragne Wiklund of Norway (6:49.01), who earned the victory. Dutch skater Joy Beune (6:51.83), a two-time long distance gold medalist to start the season, completed the podium by earning bronze in front of a passionate hometown crowd.

Friday’s silver medal marked the 30-year-old Weidemann’s first podium in an individual distance since taking 3000m bronze during the second World Cup stop in Beijing last season. She came quite close at last month World Cup stops in Salt Lake City and Calgary, earning fifth place and fourth place result in the 3000m, respectively.

“I’m happy with how things went today. I was having a hard time finding the pace. I kind of bounced around a bit – it was too slow, too fast, too slow. Once I found it and felt good. The last half I think was the best part. Generally, people start so much fast than I do. I was watching Ragne and she was so smooth. I didn’t want the gap to get too big, and I was trying to keep her in my sights.”

Isabelle Weidemann

The three-time Olympic medalist has now accumulated 137 points and is currently ranked fourth in the long distances with only one World Cup remaining before the Games. Her teammates Valérie Maltais (131 points) and Ivanie Blondin (99 points) sit fifth and tenth in the standings, respectively.

“Last year was really tough, so it feels nice to have some consistency. The last few weekends, I’ve had very consistent lap times and pacing, and I’m happy with that. I think things are getting better as the season goes on.”

Isabelle Weidemann

In other action Friday, Canada’s Béatrice Lamarche (Québec City, Que.) finished sixth in the women’s 1000m, posting a time of 1:15.13 and finishing +0.96 behind race winner Jutta Leerdam of the Netherlands. The 27-year-old Lamarche is currently ranked third overall in the distance, thanks in large part to the bronze medal she earned in Salt Lake City.

The ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Heerenveen continues tomorrow with the men’s 1000m and 10,000m, as well as the women’s 1500m. Racing will be live streamed on CBC Sports and Radio-Canada Sports digital platforms beginning at 8:15am ET.

Results

Women’s 5000m

Isabelle Weidemann: 2nd
Ivanie Blondin:10th
Valérie Maltais: 12th
Laura Hall: 11th (Division B)
Laurie Cayer: 26th (Division B)

Men’s 1500m

Jake Weidemann: 7th (Division B)
David La Rue: 14th (Division B)
Tyson Langelaar: 24th (Division B)

Women’s 1000m

Béatrice Lamarche: 6th
Alexa Scott: 17th
Maddison Pearman: 13th (Division B)
Brooklyn McDougall: 24th (Division B)