
Team Canada came through with eight medals this past weekend at an International Skating Union Short Track Speed Skating World Tour event in Seoul, South Korea. The Canadians won four gold medals, three silver medals and one bronze medal.
On Saturday, William Dandjinou of Sherbrooke, Quebec won gold in the men’s 1500 metres. He posted a time of 2:14.313. Ji-won Park of South Korea won the silver medal with a time of 2:14.738. Jens van ‘T Wout won the bronze medal with a time of 2:14.878. Dandjinou reached the podium by 0.571 seconds. Michal Niewinski of Poland finished in fourth place with a time of 2:14.884. In the World Tour men’s 1500 metre standings, Dandjinou leads with 380 points, as this was his third win this year. Park is in second with 320 points.
In the men’s 500 metres on Saturday, Canadian Olympic gold medalists Steven Dubois of Laval, Quebec and Jordan Pierre-Gilles of Sherbrooke won gold and silver respectively. Dubois posted a time of 41.681 seconds. Pierre-Gilles won the silver medal with a time of 41.759 seconds and Roberts Kruzbergs of Latvia won the bronze medal with a time of 41.8 seconds. Dubois reached the podium by 13.968 seconds and Pierre-Gilles reached the podium by 13.89 seconds. Shogo Miyata of Japan finished in fourth place with a time of 55.649 seconds. In the men’s 500 metres World Tour standings, Dubois leads with 360 points. Dandjinou is second with 252 points. Pierre-Gilles is in third place with 188 points.
In the women’s 1000 metres on Saturday, Danae Blais of Chateauguay, Quebec won silver with a time of 1:31.01. Gilli Kim of South Korea won the gold medal with a time of 1:30.884. Minjeong Choi of South Korea won the bronze medal with a time of 1:31.053. Blais earned a medal by 0.151 seconds over Kristen Santos-Griswold of the United States, who had a fourth place time of 1:31.161. In the women’s 1000 metres World Tour standings, Blais is in third with 260 points. Xandra Velzeboer of the Netherlands leads with 304 points and Choi is in second with 300 points.
In the women’s 3000 metre relay on Saturday, Canada won gold with a time of 4:11.634. The Canadian team comprised of Blais, Canadian Olympic silver medalist Kim Boutin of Sherbrooke, Florence Brunelle of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec and Courtney Lee Sarault of Moncton, New Brunswick. Italy won the silver medal with a time of 4:11.787. South Korea won the bronze medal with a time of 4:11.855. Canada reached the podium by 0.273 seconds over the Netherlands, which had a fourth place time of 4:11.907. In the World Tour standings, Canada leads with 360 points. Italy is second with 304 points.
In the men’s 1000 metres on Sunday, Dandjinou won the gold medal with a time of 1:24.548 seconds. van ‘T Wout won the silver medal with a time of 1:24.741. Sungwoo Jang of South Korea won the bronze medal with a time of 1:24.843. Dandjinou reached the podium by 0.42 seconds over Park, who had a fourth place time of 1:24.968. In the World Tour standings, Dandjinou leads with 280 points. van ‘T Wout is second with 260 points.
In the women’s 500 metres on Sunday, Brunelle won the silver medal with a time of 43.511 seconds. Santos-Griswold won the gold medal with s time of 43.362 seconds. Hanne Desmet of Belgium won the bronze medal with a time of 43.591 seconds. Brunelle reached the podium by 0.26 seconds over Kim, who had a fourth place time of 43.771 seconds. In the World Tour women’s 500 metre standings, Brunelle is in third place with 218 points. Velzeboer leads with 328 points and Santos-Griswold is second with 290 points.
In the mixed relay on Sunday, Canada won the bronze medal with a time of 2:38.513. The Canadian team comprised of Dandjinou, Dubois, Boutin, and Brunelle. South Korea won gold with a time of 2:38.036 and China won silver with a time of 2:38.051. Canada is third in the World Tour standings with 284 points. South Korea leads with 310 points and the Netherlands are second with 290 points.
Pierre-Gilles and Dubois won gold for Canada in the men’s 5000 metre relay at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. Boutin won the silver medal for Canada in the women’s 1000 metres at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. The medals for Pierre-Gilles, Dubois, Boutin. Brunelle, Dandjinou, Blais, and Sarault will give them confidence as they prepare for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo.