Snelgrove makes history as Nova Scotia’s first-ever national junior champion; results set stage for naming of Canada’s team for the World Junior Championships in Japan
QUEBEC CITY, QUEBEC – Nova Scotia’s Julia Snelgrove and Alberta’s Daniel Hall were crowned national junior champions this past weekend in Quebec City, earning the best cumulative rankings across their four distances to capture the titles at the 2024 Canadian Junior Long Track Championships presented by Intact Insurance.
Snelgrove (Dartmouth, N.S.) had a near-perfect weekend, earning gold medals in the 500m (41.045), 1500m (2:07.314), 3000m (4:36.139) and Mass Start, as well as bronze in the 1000m (1:23.534).
The 16-year-old, who represented her province at last year’s Canada Winter Games in PEI, is no stranger to the national podium, finishing second overall at the 2022 Canadian Youth Long Track Championships and third at the 2022 Canadian Youth Short Track Championships (East) last season. This weekend’s Canadian Junior Championship title is believed to be the first ever won by a Nova Scotia skater.
Julia Snelgrove“I was a little surprised! I was almost sick I was so nervous going into it. I only got onto the ice twice during Christmas break because it was raining in Halifax, so there was a lot of biking. I think all-in-all I was pretty rested coming into it, but I was surprised I was able to come home with a decent amount of medals. I think Junior Worlds will be pretty exciting. I’ve never been to something like that.”
Four other women reached individual distance podiums alongside Snelgrove in Quebec City.
Manitoba’s Skylar van Horne captured silver in the 1000m and bronze in the 500m, 1500m and 3000m. Her provincial teammate Sofia Bieber, who won the overall Canadian Junior Championship title last season, finished first in the 1000m and second in both the 500m and 1500m. Alberta’s Darby Beeson earned 3000m silver and Mass Start bronze, while Saskatchewan’s Serena Dallaire won silver in the Mass Start.
Hall (Calgary, Alta.) was equally as dominant on the men’s side, earning gold in the 1000m (1:12.425), 1500m (1:50.758), 5000m (6:37.239) and Mass Start, to go with a fifth-place finish in the 500m (37.870). It marks a promising start for the 18-year-old, who last season captured Canada’s lone medal at the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championship, bringing home silver in the Mass Start from Inzell, Germany.
Daniel Hall“It was a pretty good weekend. I executed a lot of my race plans very well and did what I came here to do. It was very good for me. I want to work towards getting my sprints a little bit faster so that I can do well in the all-round rankings at Junior Worlds this year.”
Fellow Albertan’s Jalen Doan, Max Poulin and Andre Erasmus also brought home some hardware alongside Hall. Doan was victorious in the 500m and earned bronze in the 1000m, Poulin won silver in the 500m, 1000m and Mass Start, and Erasmus took home bronze in the 500m. Manitoba’s Adam Buchwald earned a pair of bronze medals in 5000m and Mass Start, while Ontario’s
Connor Waters and Saskatchewan’s Luca Veeman won individual silvers in the 5000m and 1500m, respectively.
The results from the 2024 Canadian Junior Long Track Championships presented by Intact Insurance will be used to select the team of five women and five men who will compete at the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships in Hachinohe City, Japan, from February 9-11, 2024.
The best long track skaters in the country will be back on the ice for a pair of national competitions next month. The inaugural Canadian Neo-Junior Long Track Championships will take place in Fort St. John from February 3-4, while the Canadian Youth Long Track Championships are scheduled for the following
weekend, February 9-11, in Quebec City. The domestic season wraps up with the Long Track Canada Cup Final in Calgary from March 8-10.