Canadian Olympic gold medalist Ivanie Blondin of Ottawa, Ontario won two World Cup speed skating medals at a World Cup in Calgary, Alberta on the weekend. She won a bronze medal in the women’s 5000 metres on Friday, and silver in the women’s mass start on Sunday.
Blondin, who won a gold medal in the women’s team pursuit at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. posted a time of 6:54.81 in winning the bronze medal in the women’s 5000 metres. Irene Schouten of the Netherlands won the gold medal with a time of 6:48.06. Ragne Wiklund of Norway won the silver medal with a time of 6:52.86. Blondin earned a medal by 3.19 seconds over Joy Beune of the Netherlands, who had a time of 6:58.00.
In the women’s mass start on Sunday, Blondin finished between gold medalist Schouten, and bronze medalist Marijke Groenewoud of the Netherlands. In the World Cup standings, Blondin is in third place with 269 points. Schouten leads with 345 points.
In the men’s 500 metres on Saturday, Canadian Olympic silver medalist Laurent Dubreuil of Quebec City, Quebec posted a time of 34.10 seconds. Jun-Ho Kim of South Korea won the gold medal with a time of 34.07 seconds. Jordan Stolz of the United States won the silver medal with a time of 34.08 seconds. Dubreuil reached the podium by two one-hundredths of a second, as Yuma Murakami of Japan finished in fourth place with a time of 34.12 seconds. In the World Cup men’s 500 metre standings, Dubreuil leads with 222 points. Murakami is in second with 186 points. Dubreuil won the silver medal in the men’s 1000 metres at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games on Beijing. Stay tuned for my interview with Dubreuil later this week.
In the men’s mass start on Sunday, two Canadians landed on the podium. Connor Howe of Canmore, Alberta won the silver medal and Hayden Mayeur of Toronto, Ontario won the bronze medal. Bart Swings of Belgium won the gold medal. In the Men’s Mass Start World Cup standings, Mayeur is in 11th place with 173 points and Howe is in 12th place with 170 points. Swings is the leader with 275 points. The medals for Mayeur, Howe, Dubreuil, and Blondin will give them confidence as they prepare for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
