Charlong and Chartrand victorious at last month’s Canadian Championships in Sherbrooke; five Canadian skaters set to make their international debut this weekend in Astana
MONTREAL, QUEBEC – Ten of Canada’s top up-and-coming short track skaters are gearing up for a pair of ISU Junior World Cup Short Track competitions in Kazakhstan over the next two weekends.
The Canadian squad – which was named based on results at the 2025 Canadian Junior Short Track Championships presented by Intact Insurance that took place in Sherbrooke from October 24-26 – kick off their international season with World Cups in Astana from November 7-9 and November 13-15, before heading to Salt Lake City at the end of January for the ISU World Junior Short Track Championships.
Leading the charge on the women’s side is Courtney Charlong (Campbellton, N.B.), who finished the selection event a perfect six-for-six, winning the 500m, 1000m and 1500m twice to earn the overall crown. On the men’s side, Victor Chartrand (Laval, Que.), a World Championship bronze medalist in the 1000m last season, won three gold and three silver to earn the overall title in Sherbrooke.
Returning to the international stage alongside Charlong and Chartrand are Océane Guérard (Quebec City, Que.), Mila Boivin (Chicoutimi, Que.) and Alex Dubuc-Bilodeau (Trois-Rivières, Que.). The trio competed at Junior World Cups last season, with Guérard and Dubuc-Bilodeau having also laced up their skates for Canada at the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games. The experienced group will be joined in Astana by five skaters making their international debut.
Rookies Myriam Djouaher (Sherbrooke, Que.), who captured four silver medals and finished second overall, as well as Annie Kim Boivin (La Baie, Que.) round out the women’s team. Meanwhile, second place finisher Ludovic Lachance (Saint-Eustache, Que.), a double gold medalist in Sherbrooke, makes the men’s team alongside four-time medalist Émile Fortin (Amqui, Que.) and Justin Bessette (Laval, Que.).
- Courtney Charlong (Campbellton, N.B.)
- Océane Guérard (Quebec City, Que.)
- Myriam Djouaher (Sherbrooke, Que.)
- Annie Kim Boivin (La Baie, Que.)
- Mila Boivin (Chicoutimi, Que.)
- Victor Chartrand (Laval, Que.)
- Alex Dubuc-Bilodeau (Trois-Rivières, Que.)
- Ludovic Lachance (Saint-Eustache, Que.)
- Émile Fortin (Amqui, Que.)
- Justin Bessette (Laval, Que.)
Canada had an extremely successful international campaign at the junior level last season, winning 16 total medals across three World Cup stops, including six on home ice in Quebec City. They followed that up with four podium performances at the World Junior Championships in Calgary, including 500m world titles for both Qi Miao (Blainville, Que.) and Mathieu Pelletier (Laval, Que.), and three junior world records, including in the 2000m mixed relay.
Accompanying the athletes in Astana this November are head coach Yannick Desmeules, assistant coach and equipment technician Jonathan Perez-Audy, and physiotherapist Émilie Turner.