Speed Skating Canada – CALGARY, ALBERTA – Ivanie Blondin of Ottawa, ON and Laurent Dubreuil of Lévis, QC each took home the national title in their respective 1000m disciplines at the 2018 Canadian Single Distance Championships in Calgary.

In her first race of the competition, Blondin, a two-time Olympian who typically excels in the longer distances, won the Ladies 1000m with a time of 1:15.98. Her time easily met the World Cup qualifying standard of 1:16.18. 

Blondin is already pre-qualified for the World Cup in the Ladies 3000m distance based on her results from last season.

Kaylin Irvine of Calgary, AB finished in second place with a time of 1:16.49, narrowly defeating third place finisher Béatrice Lamarche of Quebec City, QC, who finished the distance in 1:16.52. Both competitors just missed out on meeting the World Cup qualifying time.

“It was not a super fast 1000m for me, probably one of my slowest in the past several years at this competition,” said Irvine, who also finished second in the Ladies 500m yesterday.

Laurent Dubreuil, a member of the 2018 Olympic team, won the Men’s 1000m with a time of 1:08.48, edging out Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu of Sherbrooke, QC, who finished his race in 1:08.69. Both Dubreuil and Gélinas-Beaulieu posted times fast enough to meet the World Cup qualifying standard of 1:09.11.

It was the second win of the competition for Dubreuil, who captured the Men’s 500m title earlier in the week with a time of 34.64, which also met the World Cup qualifying standard.

“It was an ideal week for me in terms of my results in comparison to others and my times,” said Dubreuil. “I met the standard in both of my races and I won both of my races. I’ve never won the Canadian championship – it was the first time for me in the 1000m.”

“I skated some very good times given the period of the season,” he added. “I’ve never skated such fast times so early in the year.”

David La Rue of Saint-Lambert, QC placed third with a time of 1:09.18, just off the required pace.

The competition at the 2018 Canadian Single Distance Championships wraps up tomorrow with the Men’s and Ladies 1500m races, along with the men’s and ladies mass start races. Athletes are vying for a spot on the team that will represent Canada at World Cup events and the World Championships for the 2018-19 season.

For more information on the event, including schedules and results, visit www.speedskating.ca/events/canadian-single-distance-championships. The races will be live streamed on the Calgary Olympic Oval’s YouTube channel – www.youtube.com/theolympicoval.

About Speed Skating Canada
Speed Skating Canada (SSC) is the governing body for long track and short track speed skating in Canada. Founded in 1887, SSC is comprised of 13 provincial and territorial associations. Together, we aim to: Challenge and inspire Canada to thrive through the power of speed skating. SSC celebrates the 63 Olympic medals won by Canadian athletes since 1932 and recognizes the coaches, officials, volunteers and other dedicated individuals who helped them on their journey.

Speed Skating Canada would like to thank its sponsors:

Premium Partner: Intact Insurance

Funding Partners: Government of Canada (Sport Canada), Own The Podium, Canadian Olympic Committee

Official On-Ice High Performance Apparel: Li-Ning

Official Suppliers: Auclair, USANA

Official Technical Equipment Supplier: Nagano Skate

Sport Development Partners: Winsport Canada, Calgary’s Olympic Oval, University of Calgary, Institut national du sport du Québec, Government of Quebec, Canadian Sport Institute-Calgary, City of Montreal, Quebec City, Excellence sportive Québec-Lévis

 

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For more information, please contact:
Nicole Espenant
Manager, Marketing, Communications & Partnerships
Speed Skating Canada
Email: nespenant@speedskating.ca 
Phone: 613-797-1630