Calgary day 1: Roest and Takagi lead the pack, Sablikova sets a new world record

The allround championships got off to an exciting start yesterday in Calgary with thrilling performances by many of the sport’s top athletes.

By Maria Dalton

Photo by Maria Dalton

It may have been -30 outside in Calgary today but the skaters certainly turned up the heat inside the oval as the allround championships got underway.  Fans were treated to a world record performance by Martina Sablikova, as well as an excellent performance by Canadian Antoine Gelinas-Beaulieu in front of the home crowd.

Roest leads the pack

Patrick Roest, the reigning allround champion, showed fans that he is in fine form, finishing the day ranked first overall. The Dutchman finished second in the 500m with his time of 35.74 and skated to a first-place finish in the 5000m (6:08.27). Sverre Lunde Pedersen, who suffered a heartbreaking fall in the 10000m at last year’s championships, currently sits in second place. Pedersen finished third in both races today, finishing with times of 35:85 and 6:10.10 in the 500m and 5000m respectively. The legendary Sven Kramer rounds out the top-3 as we head into the final day of competition. Kramer finished ninth in the 500m but came back strong in the 5k where he finished second with a time of 6:08.83. Another skater to make note of is Antoine Gelinas-Beaulieu who finished atop the standings in the 500m with a new personal record time of 35.53. Heading into this weekend Gelinas-Beaulieu was hoping to play to his strengths by posting strong performances in the 500m and 1500m – helping him to qualify for the 10k on the final day.

Takagi, Sablikova shine on day one

Miho Takagi, the reigning allround champion, lead the way on day one in Calgary. The Japanese skater finished first in the 500m with her time of 37.22 and eighth in the 3k (4:00.16). Fans will be watching Sunday with bated breath as she tries to defend her title with strong performances in the 1500m and 5k. Martina Sablikova currently sits in second after an incredibly strong performance in the 3k and a thirteenth-place finish in the 500m. Sablikova toppled Cindy Klassen’s thirteen-year-old world record in distance with her time of 3:53.31. Rounding out the top-3 is Antoinette de Jong who finished 3rd in the 500m and 2nd in the 3000m today. Speed skating legend, Ireen Wust sits within striking distance in fourth place and will look to make up some ground on Sunday.

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