Mid-season bulletin in short track: Canada

The first part of the 2018-2019 short track season took place between November 2nd and December 9th, where the best skaters in the world competed in three World Cups. Here is our mid-season recap for team Canada.

By Florence Gauthier

Photo: Danny Kim (@dk_st)

Among the countries that stood out in these competitions, we find Canada. The young skaters of the Canadian women’s team won their first medals at the first World Cup in Calgary, Canada, while the men's efforts were rewarded at the second competition in Salt Lake City, USA, and at the third one in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

A good start for the Canadian women

At the first World Cup in Calgary, the women's team was made up entirely of rookies. They were there to gain experience, but the home crowd was sure pleased to witness them do better than expected. Alyson Charles got off to a strong start on the weekend winning the bronze medal in the 500m. Teammate Courtney Lee Sarault followed her when she climbed on the second step of the podium in the 1500m. In the second 500m, Alyson Charles again finished in third place. To add a cherry on top of a great weekend, Alyson Charles, Courtney Sarault, Camille de Serres-Rainville and Claudia Gagnon finished ahead of the Dutch team and ended up on the third step of the podium in the women's relay.

Rookies still on a roll

In Salt Lake City, new faces stood out. Camille de Serres-Rainville made her first World Cup A final in the 1500m and finished 5th. Alyson Charles went on the podium for the fourth time this season winning her first gold medal on the circuit in the 1000m event. On the men's side, Steven Dubois faced veterans in the 1500m A final. He managed to beat Japan's Keita Watanabe by 0.067 seconds, which placed him on the third step of the podium. The young man from Lachenaie, Qc, was all smile wearing his first World Cup individual medal around his neck.

The return of Kim Boutin

After a 2017-2018 season full of emotions, Kim Boutin didn't take part in the first two World Cup events of the 2018-2019 season. She arrived in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in top form and won silver in the 1000m and bronze in the 1500m. With her teammates, Danaé Blais, Alyson Charles and Camille de Serres-Rainville, Boutin finished in third place in the women's relay. As for the men, Samuel Girard won his first medal of the season getting at the top of the podium in the 500m. He also won the silver medal in the relay event with his teammates Pascal Dion, Steven Dubois and Charles Hamelin. After two B finals in the two first World Cups, the Canadian mixed relay team composed of Cédrik Blais, Kim Boutin, Charles Alyson and Samuel Girard, won the gold medal in Almaty.

See the Canadian skaters in action at the next World Cups, February 1st to 3rd in Dresden, Germany and February 8th to 10th in Torino, Italy.

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