By Caroline Truchon
Photos by Danny Kim
Four
years ago, just before the Calgary World Cup, me and Dany Lemay, the
best short track announcer, were excited to see how many world
records would fall during the competition. I pushed my thinking
further wondering how many skaters would beat their personal best or
the national records of their respective countries. So, I decided to trace all
the national records of the countries present on the circuit four years ago, with
the help of other foreign skaters in my contacts and
internet researches.
The
idea was quickly appreciated by the skaters taking part in the
competitions, but also by the spectators and the organizers. Not only
were world records highlighted, but also the incredible performances
of smaller countries that are not necessarily at the forefront. These
skaters who improve these records are still the fastest in their
respective countries, which is still a great achievement! Now, when Dany is
announcing during competition, I make sure to send him the new
records after every day, even in the middle of the night when he’s
in Asia. Thanks Internet!
Today,
my database has tripled since I started making this compilation. This
work requires a lot of effort, because I need to check all the
results of the competitions around the world. With this colossal
task, I estimate my file to be 95% correct. There are still some
records that I could miss, of course! Last year, there were 122 new
national records, including three world records.
This
season, we have already achieved 53 national records, including one
world record. Only for the first weekend of the World Cup season in
Calgary, there were 49 national records. Luxembourg was the most
successful, with 9. Kazakhstan follows with 6. It’s with these
records that we can see the evolution of the sport, but also that the
smaller countries are making their way from the shadow to the
forefront. We can expect much more national records with the World
Cup in Salt Lake City this weekend. But there are also other fast ices in the world, like Montreal (World Juniors) and Dresden (World Cup
#5).
I will
give you a report of the national records beaten after each World
Cup, in addition to those broken during other competitions. Only on
the first day of the first World Cup of the season in Calgary, 20
national records were broken. For the 2018-2019 season, you can find
the national records I’ve compiled so far HERE.
If you ever see errors in
some national records, do not hesitate to contact me at
caro.truchon@gmail.com
Hoping that you will
appreciate these statistics as much as I do!
Caroline
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