Gélinas-Beaulieu wins first career World Cup medal in an individual distance
CALGARY, ALBERTA – Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu earned the first individual distance World Cup medal of his career on Sunday, winning bronze in the 1000m alongside teammate, and silver medalist, Laurent Dubreuil. The double podium helped Canada cap off the ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Calgary with five medals, including two gold.
After reaching the podium twice at last weekend’s ISU Four Continents Championships in Quebec City, Gélinas-Beaulieu carried that momentum and confidence into his final race of the weekend, putting down a flawless performance in the men’s 1000m to reach his first World Cup podium outside of the Team Sprint and Team Pursuit.
The 30-year old posted a time of 1:07.325, just 0.075 shy of his personal best (1:07.250). Sitting in first position after his skate, the Sherbrooke native anxiously waited for the remaining seven pairs to finish their race. When all was set and done, only Hein Otterspeer of the Netherlands (1:07.28) and fellow Canadian Dubreuil (1:07.30) posted faster times.
It was Dubreuil’s second 1000m medal of the season, having also captured silver at the season opener in Stavanger, Norway. The native of Lévis also won gold in Satuday’s 500m.
The last time a pair of Canadians shared the World Cup podium in the men’s 1000m was 2015, when Denny Morrison and Vincent De Haître finished first and third at the World Cup Final in Erfurt, Germany.
Canada qualified three Canadians into the Mass Start finals as Ivanie Blondin and Valérie Maltais finished second and fourth in their respective women’s semis, while Hayden Mayeur was advanced on the men’s side after the officials determined he was obstructed during the race.
Ivanie Blondin crossed the finish line third position in the women’s final (8:33.80), narrowly outstretching Dutch skater Marijke Groenewoud (8:33.82) to earn a spot on the podium. The jubilation was short lived, however, as the Ottawa native was penalized and disqualified after the officials judged a lane change in the opening laps caused another skater to slow down significantly to avoid a collision.
Irene Schouten of the Netherlands (8:33.70) was victorious and stood on the podium alongside Mia Kilburg of the United States (8:33.79) and fellow countrywoman Groenewoud (8:33.82). Fellow Canadian Maltais finished 12th overall, while Mayeur was 11th in the men’s final.
It’ll be a short turn around for the Canadian long track team as they will return to action next weekend at the Olympic Oval in Calgary for the second of back-to-back ISU World Cups. Tickets are still available at www.speedskating.ca and the races will be live streamed on CBC Sports and Radio-Canada Sports for those not able to attend.
Quotes
I really felt amazing today. The last few days have been hard for my lungs – it’s my first time skating at altitude since last season and I’m asthmatic as well – but we figured out a plan to ease the symptoms and that made me more confident to attack this race. With that plan in place, I had the confidence to go out and give my best today. When I saw the opener (16.6 seconds), I knew I was going to have a good race. Usually, I open half a second slower, so when I saw it, I went all out. I had a really good draft in the last back straight as well, which helped me put down a good final lap. I came back to skating [after a four year break] thinking that I could have the potential to reach the podium like this. Doing it at 30-years old is a good accomplishment and it shows that I still have a lot to offer.
Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu
Results
Women’s 1000m
- Ivanie Blondin: 14th
- Béatrice Lamarche: 8th (B Division)
- Maddison Pearman: 10th (B Division)
- Brooklyn McDougall: 11th (B Division)
- Alexa Scott: 15th (B Division)
Men’s 1000m
- Laurent Dubreuil: 2nd
- Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu: 3rd
- Connor Howe: 14th
- Vincent De Haître: 5th (B Division)
- Tyson Langelaar: 11th (B Division)
Women’s Mass Start
- Valérie Maltais: 12th
- Ivanie Blondin: DQ
Men’s Mass Start
- Hayden Mayeur: 11th