The canadian olympic selections for the 2018 games in Pyeongchang will start tomorrow at the Maurice-Richard arena.
By Jackob Savard
Photos: Tony Chung (@SHORTTRACKHD)
Both men and women will battle for five precious spots on their respective olympic teams. Some spots seem to be no brainers from the get go. The two leaders of team Canada: Marianne St-Gelais and Charles Hamelin are probably not too anxious about this competition. It would be their third and fourth Olympic Games respectively. St-Gelais finished second at the 2017 World championships and has been dominant on the World cup circuit for a couple of years. She is almost untouchable at the canadian level and only Kim Boutin was able to beat her in a race at the 2017 Canadian championships (you can watch the race here).
Hamelin had a slow start in 2016-2017 but was able to climb on some podiums in the second half. He performed well at the Canadian championships and finished third even though a disqualification in the 1500m cost him a lot of points.
Interesting battle on the ladies side
A lot of women can aspire to join the olympic team. It will be interesting to see Kim Boutin of Sherbrooke, Qc as she will surely be of every battle. She is one of our favourite to make the team. The experimented Valérie Maltais who took part in the Vancouver and Sochi Olympics will also be one of the main ladies to fight for one of the five spots. Kasandra Bradette, Jamie Macdonald, Namasthée Harris-Gauthier and Camille Rainville will also have a say in the competition. Open field in the men’s competition
Charles Hamelin, Samuel Girard and Charle Cournoyer look to be in a good position to compete in Pyeongchang. Pascal Dion from Pointe-aux-Trembles had a great season in 2016-2017 and he will be fighting hard to get his spot on the olympic team. He is not afraid of challenging the veterans and his 500m final at the Canadian championships last year proves it (you can watch the race here).
It will not be a walk in the park for those four skaters has other really good athletes will be ready to fight. William Preudhomme from Ontario is one of the top guys who could surprise them. We need to take in consideration two veterans that are working really hard: François Hamelin and Guillaume Bastille. Their experience will be an advantage for the trials. It will be really interesting to see how Sasha Fathoullin will perform at those trials. Sasha, who did not compete last season, is now back in the game. Here is an interview we did earlier this year with him concerning his break: Looking for answers: a discussion with Sasha Fathoullin.
It will not be a walk in the park for those four skaters has other really good athletes will be ready to fight. William Preudhomme from Ontario is one of the top guys who could surprise them. We need to take in consideration two veterans that are working really hard: François Hamelin and Guillaume Bastille. Their experience will be an advantage for the trials. It will be really interesting to see how Sasha Fathoullin will perform at those trials. Sasha, who did not compete last season, is now back in the game. Here is an interview we did earlier this year with him concerning his break: Looking for answers: a discussion with Sasha Fathoullin.
Great races on the horizon
The Maurice-Richard arena will be the scene of some amazing races during those olympic trials. The competition will take place on the 12, 13, 16, 19 and 20 of August.
You can visit our Youtube channel or the video section of our facebook page if you want to see the finals of the 2017 Canadian championships to prepare yourself for the Olympic trials.
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