Amazing day for Canada in Dordrecht

Canada was dominant in Dordrecht on the first day of the medals stage of the competition. Here's our video recap of the day.

To watch our day 4 recap click HERE.

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All eyes on the olympic trials

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.

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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Going around in circles

Text: Catherine Mailloux
Translation: Carl Savard

Photos: Tony Chung (@SHORTTRACKHD)  and Catherine Mailloux

“All you do is go around in circles”, those words came from a classmate as I was delivering a speech about the sport I love, the one I have been practicing all my life: speed skating.

This memory came back to me earlier this year during Easter holidays while I was wandering through my old neighborhood, observing all the things that have changed since I had left, soaking up the memories from the places I use to visit routinely as a kid. When I stopped in front of my old elementary school, the outside look of it was different, the daycare was rebuilt but the souvenir of this presentation I had done years ago was still vibrant. I remembered how hurtful it felt. These words : “All you do is go around in circles” were stuck in my head. At the time, I had no answer for this uncalled for and ignorant remark resonating in the classroom. After all these years, I now have one.  

Speed skating has always been part of my life, but I realise now that what I get from it is different. As a kid, it helped me develop basic skills that will serve me all my life but a big part of my passion for the sport was also linked to the relationships I built with my teammates and coaches. This is true in most sports, but I think my fellow speed skaters would agree that speed skating is a different animal. We would like to help people understand each and every aspect of our sport that is not related to going around in circles on a track marked by fourteen little black blocks. The part that is never shown by the media. Considering our sport is rarely seen on television, there would be a lot to share

For us skaters, the complexity of our sport doesn’t rely on the fact that we are going around in circles, always turning left. To be quite frank, it is the part we never think about. It is the part we learned right away. The part that we never question ourselves about. Turning left in circle is natural for our body, it’s a fact, a necessity. Our mind normally surfs the waves of everything else related to our beloved sport: coordination, strength, anticipation. We think about the details related to pushing, racing, thinking, breathing, sliding, counting and decision making. You will see us smile sometimes during races because of how satisfying it is to feel like you are mastering every aspects not related to going around in circles. We work on defying the law of gravity, to become one with it, while others chose to defy judicial laws.

«The thought occurred to me that if they were not killed by it, it meant pain doesn’t kill¹.» »

Pain is a ferocious beast that we battle daily and the more we challenge it, the more we learn to tame it, to cope with it. The irony of pain is that it can chew you up and spit you out to the point of giving up but it can also take your hand and lead you to those glorious feelings linked to success and fulfillment. For most people, working alongside pain is against nature. It requires time and hard work physically but also psychologically. The line between our physical and psychological reactions is so tin that we are always on the razor’s edge: on one side quitting out of exhaustion on the other, one more repetition, one more push, one more lap. Everytime we succeed, we realise that pain is a beast that does not kill.

If it was only the physical pain. Psychologically, the need to succeed can also be painful. In a sport where results are individual but training is done as a group, comparing yourself with others can become a burden that will undermine your capacity to enjoy your own success. Then, there is also the part where things can go wrong with our equipment, most importantly the blades. Curved at the bottom like a rocking chair and sideways to help us turn the corners, everyone has their own preferences when it comes to settings but the purpose is the same: keeping us in touch with the ice surface, as steady as possible. These adjustments of millimeter precision, allow us to stick to the ice in the classic leaning pose defying gravity at high speed in the corners. The smallest thing can change those important settings without notice: a small bump, the sharpening session, the tension of the blades. You probably won’t be surprise if I tell you that those small changes can modify our feelings on the ice and make us hesitant. Add those imponderable elements to the pressure to perform and it becomes easy to understand how fast one may feel disheartened.

In retrospect, that is the answer I would give my classmate if I could go back in time and redo that presentation. I could go on and on but in short, speed skating is a complex sport, requiring a great discipline, an unshakeable concentration level and a deep understanding of who you are. Just going around in circle is not enough.

__________________ ¹ Free translation / original quote from HARPMAN Jacqueline, Moi qui n’ai pas connu les hommes, Paris, Le livre de Poche, 1995, p.82

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Spectaculaires championnats d’Europe à Lagos

Les championnats d’Europe 2017 de roller course ont été un franc succès et plusieurs patineurs se sont bien démarqués en remportant plusieurs titres.

Par Jackob Savard

Photo gracieuseté de Diccon Scrivens: Dixs Pixels

Voici certains des patineurs juniors et séniors qui ont obtenu d’excellents résultats lors de ces spectaculaires championnats.

Francesca Lollobrigida (Senior dames)

Si vous avez suivi les championnats, vous n’êtes pas sans savoir que la patineuse italienne Francesca Lollobrigida a été dominante tout au long des compétitions sur route et sur piste. Elle a remporté cinq titres de championne d’Europe et deux titres de vice-championne lors des sept épreuves individuelles auxquelles elle prenait part, en plus d’aider l’Italie à atteindre la deuxième marche du podium au relais sur route. 

Nolan Beddiaf (Senior Hommes)

Plusieurs hommes ont très bien performé à ces championnats, mais le Français Nolan Beddiaf a su se démarquer en remportant les deux courses de fond sur le circuit routier. Aidé par une équipe française très solide, il a su survivre aux éliminations du 20 000m et récolter le plus de points au 10 000m. Il a terminé bon deuxième du marathon après une excellente performance. Il a également aidé la France à monter sur le podium lors des relais.

Giorgia Bormida (Junior A Dames)

L’Italienne Giorgia Bormida a été la plus dominante des juniors A en remportant trois des quatre distances sprint, soit le 500m et le 300m sur piste, et le tour sur route. Elle a également terminé deuxième lors du 100m sur route. Elle a en plus contribué aux victoires de l’Italie aux relais sur piste et sur route dans sa catégorie.

Valentin Thiebault (Junior A Hommes)

Le Français Valentin Thiebault a été fumant sur les sprint à Lagos. Il a été sacré champion d’Europe au 300m et au 500m sur piste, et a aidé la France dans sa victoire au relais 3000m. Il a continué sa domination sur la route en remportant le tour et en finissant troisième au 100m. Il était également de la victoire au relais sur route des Français.

Mathilde Pedronno (Junior B Dames)

La jeune française a été tout simplement parfaite sur la piste avec une victoire au 300m contre-la-montre et au 500m. Elle a aussi été du relais féminin victorieux avec les Française sur la piste. Elle sera à surveiller dans les prochaines années avec de telles performances.

Jason Suttels (Junior B Hommes)

Le jeune Belge Jason Suttels a été très impressionnant sur les longues distances chez les juniors B en remportant le 5000m aux points et le 10 000m à élimination sur la piste, ainsi que le 15 000m à élimination sur la route. Il a surpassé les Italiens et les Français qui étaient très forts dans cette catégorie.

Quelques oubliés

Il y a énormément de performances qui mériteraient d’être relatées, notamment les victoires de Martin Ferrié chez les juniors A ou les performances constantes de l’Espagnol Patxi Peula chez les seniors. Ioseba Fernandez et Daniel Niero ont également eux d’excellentes performances. Sandrine Tas et Vanessa Herzog ont eux aussi eu un très bon championnat chez les seniors dames.

Les championnats connurent un franc succès pour ce qui est des courses, mais aussi de l’organisation qui était, selon plusieurs patineurs, impeccable. Parions que Lagos n’a pas fini d’organiser des événements de roller de grandes envergures comme celui-ci.    

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