Laurent Dubreuil won his fifth straight men’s 500-metre speedskating national title on the opening day of the Canadian long track championships on Thursday.
The Lévis, Que., native, also the reigning world championship silver medallist, topped the podium with a time of 34.721 seconds. Calgary’s Yankun Zhao (35.039) earned silver, while Anders Johnson of Burnaby, B.C., brought home bronze (35.194).
“It was a good race overall. I had a great start at 9.57, but my lap was a bit too aggressive,” Dubreuil said. “I probably could have skated a bit more relaxed. But 34.7 is still very good.
“It’s a similar time to what I skated at last season’s World Cup here in Quebec City, but it’s the start of the season and only my first race.”
Carolina Hiller of Prince George, B.C., a two-time world champion in the Team Sprint, took her third straight national title in the women’s 500 in 38.631 seconds.
Quebec City’s Béatrice Lamarche grabbed silver (38.949) ahead of Ottawa’s Ivanie Blondin, who snuck onto the podium after posting a 39.051 in the final pair of the evening.
“Being national champion in the 500m for the third year in a row is pretty exciting and I’m proud of myself,” Hiller said. “Overall, I am really proud of how I skated today. There were a few parts that were a little sloppy, so I’m looking forward to cleaning that up tomorrow in the 1000m.”
Blondin earned her second medal of the day, winning gold in the women’s 3000 with a time of four minutes 10.038 seconds. Last year’s national champion in the distance, Valérie Maltais of La Baie, Que., settled for silver (4:11.326), while Laura Hall of Salmon Arm, B.C., earned bronze (4:12.143).
Graeme Fish of Moose Jaw, Sask., crossed the line in 6:21.793 to capture the men’s 5000 national title, his first in the distance since 2019. Calgary’s Daniel Hall (Calgary, Alta.), took silver in 6:32.403, while Connor Howe of Canmore, Alta., won bronze (6:41.150).
