Canadian Olympic gold medalist Ivanie Blondin of Ottawa, Ontario won the silver medal in the women’s mass start at the 2023 World Speed Skating Championships in Heerenveen, Netherlands on Saturday. For Blondin, it was her 11th medal for Canada at the World Speed Skating Championships. She has won four gold medals, five silver medals and two bronze medals.
Blondin was behind gold medalist Marijke Groenewoud of the Netherlands, and ahead of bronze medalist Irene Schouten of the Netherlands. Groenewoud was absolutely dominant as she decided to separate herself from the pack, and it appeared to be the right decision, as the field simply could not catch up.
Blondin won the gold medal in the women’s team pursuit at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing with Isabelle Weidemann of Ottawa, Ontario, and Valerie Maltais of La Baie, Quebec. In addition to winning gold in the women’s team pursuit, Blondin won the Olympic silver medal in the women’s mass start at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games.
This was Blondin’s sixth mass start medal at the World Speed Skating Championships. It was also her third medal at the 2023 World Speed Skating Championships. Blondin won the gold medal in the women’s team sprint and the women’s team pursuit. The silver medal for Blondin on Saturday will give her confidence as she prepares for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo.
