Steven Dubois wins silver in Beijing / Redemption day for Hwang Dae Heon

A peaceful day in terms of controversy today in short track that saw Hwang Dae Heon crowned champion and Steven Dubois win the first Olympic medal of his career.

By Carl Savard

Photo by Speed Skating Canada - Greg Kolz

It was an unusual scenario in the grand final of the 1500m today in Beijing as ten skaters qualified or were advanced to the main event. An atypical situation that could have led to a race full of ugly clashes but to everyone's delight, it did not. The weaker skaters who had been advanced because of penalties in the previous round could not keep up with the pace set by the top skaters and the cream of the crop came back to the surface in a clean and exciting final.

After a few laps at the back of the pack, Korea’s Hwang Dae Heon, who had not been able to do himself justice over 1000m at the beginning of the week due to a penalty, used his great power to increase the pace and pass the whole group by the outside. A decision that allowed him to take the lead. Following in Hwang's footsteps, Steven Dubois used the same strategy, relying on his stamina to move into second place. The other eight skaters would have to fight for the bronze medal because both men looked poised and confident as pack leaders. Finally, Hwang Dae Heon became Olympic champion in the 1500m, he had won silver in the 500m in Pyeongchang, while Canada’s Steven Dubois won his first Olympic medal by finishing 2nd. A fully deserved medal that completed the change of the guard of the Canadian team as Charles Hamelin was penalized earlier in the day in the last individual Olympic race of his career. Semen Elistratov representing the Russian Olympic Committee finished in 3rd place.

In addition to the full 1500m competition on the men’s side today, the women raced their 1000m qualifying rounds and 3000m relay semifinals. While most of the favorites in the 1000m made their way to the next round, Canada’s Kim Boutin unfortunately crashed out of the last turn as she was sailing in first place towards the finish line. In the 3000m relay, the four power houses in short track speed skating will face off in the grand final as Canada, the Netherlands, China and South Korea have secured their tickets to the big show.

For the complete schedule and results click HERE

Read our previous articles about the Olympics 

Don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter, follow our Facebook page, our Instagram account and our Twitter account for daily news and results about speed skating.