Canada finishes competition on home ice with a record 10 medals, including two gold, six silver and two bronze
CALGARY, ALBERTA – Canadian long distance specialists Ted-Jan Bloemen and Graeme Fish both reached the podium in the men’s 10,000m on Sunday, capping off the most successful ISU World Speed Skating Championships in national program history.
The host Canadians – who were welcoming the World Championships to Calgary for the first time since 1998 – took advantage of home-ice advantage to win a record 10 medals, surpassing their previous best of nine medals, a feat accomplished in 2007, 2008 and 2020.
Fish (Moose Jaw, Sask.) kicked off the first of six pairs in the 10,000m by posting a time of 12:48.61, a mark that stood until his teammate Bloemen (Calgary, Alta.), skating in the fourth pair, edged him out by stopping the clock at 12:47.01. The Canadian duo held the two top spots on the board until the very last pair, where Italy’s Davide Ghiotto skated a personal best time of 12:38.82 to claim the world title.
Sunday’s result marked only the second time Canada had two skaters on the World Championship podium in the 10,000m. Fish and Bloeme also shared the podium four years ago in Salt Lake City, where Fish won gold, in world record time, and Bloemen silver. The 37-year-old Bloemen also won World Championship silver (2016) and bronze (2023) over the course of his career.
A few Canadians also came close to the podium in individual distances on Sunday.
Isabelle Weidemann (Ottawa, Ont.) and Valérie Maltais (La Baie, Que.) fell just short in the women’s 5000m, finishing fifth (+7.75) and sixth (+14.89), respectively. Joy Beune (6:47.72) of the Netherlands was crowned world champion, ahead of teammate Irene Schouten (+1.26) and Martina Sáblíková of Czech Republic (+4.16), who captures her 26th career World Championship medal.
Meanwhile, Ivanie Blondin (Ottawa, Ont.) was the top finisher in the women’s 1500m, her time of 1:53.41 placing her sixth overall, behind medalists Miho Takagi of Japan (1:52.29), Mei Han of China (+0.43) and Buene of the Netherlands (+0.62).
This weekend’s performances caps off a successful international campaign for Canada, who in addition to their 2 gold, 6 silver and 2 bronze at the World Championships, also won an impressive 23 World Cup medals across six events, including four on home ice in Quebec City earlier this month.
A handful of National Team members will take part in the ISU World Sprint and Allround Championships in Inzell from March 7-10, while others will skate at the Long Track Canada Cup Final in Calgary from March 8-10, where they will fight for rankings points and spots on next season’s National and NextGen teams.
Quotes
Ted-Jan Bloemen“It was a struggle for me today. Of course, I’m happy to come away with the silver medal. I think it’s a testament to all the hard work I put in and the mentality I have going into my races, which is to never give up. I’m a little bit disappointed that I wasn’t able to challenge Ghiotto a little bit more today. I really tired this season to peak in Salt Lake City and try to go for a 5000m world record, and then peak again at the World Championships here. In hindsight, I feel like maybe that was a little bit too ambitious. I’m proud that I tried to do both and took the risk. I like to dream big and go for greatness. So mixed feelings about this race.”
Graeme Fish“My plan was to go out there and skate well. I just wanted to lay down a time that would put pressure on the top guys. There was a lot of really strong skaters in the field and luckily for me, I was able to go out there and perform. I was nice to be on the podium again after four years of not being there.”
Mark Wild, Director, High Performance – Long Track“I’m just thrilled, not just for the athletes, but also for the coaches and the staff that have supported the team this season. To put on a show for the people in the stands, and show how good our country is at this sport and that we can succeed on the international stage, is just an exciting way to finish the season. Ten medals, which is the most Canada has ever earned at a World Championships, exceed our expectations. We believe in our team so much, but to be able to execute at a competition like this, on home ice, which brings some extra pressure, is just amazing!”
Results
1500m
- Ivanie Blondin: 6th
- Valérie Maltais: 10th
- Abigail McCluskey: 15th
- Connor Howe: 12th
- Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu: 16th
- Vincent De Haître: 19th
5000m
- Isabelle Weidemann: 5th
- Valérie Maltais: 6th
10,000m
- Ted-Jan Bloemen: 2nd
- Graeme Fish: 3rd