Laurent Dubreuil has adopted a wise word from Tiger Woods: “I don’t enter a tournament to lose. »
Even if the team sprint, an event absent from the Olympic program, is not one of his priorities, the speed skater from Lévis wanted to go all out with his friends Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu and Anders Johnson, Thursday afternoon , at the conclusion of the first day of the World Championships in Calgary.
Even more so when the powerful Dutch knocked down the world record which had belonged to the Canadians since 2017 in the first pair.
Despite minimal preparation, a new technique never tested and a lineup that was competing in its first race together, the Canadian trio produced a tour de force in the following start, going through the three laps in 1 min 17.173 s to regain their due… by two thousandths of a second!
Seeing the green light come on when he crossed the line, Gélinas-Beaulieu let out a scream of rare power which probably shook the columns of the old 1988 Olympic Oval.
“I think what I was expressing was: “This sport is really fun!” » said the Sherbrooke athlete while returning to the hotel by shuttle. “The emotion mainly came from the world record. It makes history, no matter how long it lasts. »
The four other countries competing did not manage to get close to the leaders’ time during this tight team sprint as never before. Lorentzen’s Norway took bronze in 1 min 17.31 s, or 14 hundredths more than the winners, thus reproducing the same podium as last year in Heerenven. China followed a hundredth further.
After a season of misery, Canada won a second consecutive world title. In the absence of Montrealer Christopher Fiola, injured, the composition of the trio varied according to the trials and the availability of the skaters. After a meeting with the coaches, it was determined that rookie Johnson, Dubreuil and Gélinas-Beaulieu formed the most promising combination… even though they hadn’t run a single race together before Thursday.
“Antoine and I grew up doing short track, him more than me,” noted Dubreuil, the only member of the trio who was there in 2017. “We have an agility and ease in skating together. I’m not stressed when Antoine is behind. It’s like reassuring. I know he will do the job. »
Little scare
The last two torchbearers still had a little scare when Dubreuil lost his balance at the exit of his last turn, when he had to extend his hand to Gélinas-Beaulieu. They waited a little longer than expected before the first put the second into orbit with a tirade at the start of the final loop. Not bad for a very first execution of this new technique in racing.
I had to not panic and wait for Laurent to regain his balance. He has so much power in this tirade. We are going in a direction at 60 km/h and we have to change trajectory a little. It’s very hard on the core muscles. Ultimately, this exchange was excellent. It really changes the game.
Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu
“The guy is already the fastest in the world, and he’s holding your hand. I had never experienced this feeling in a race. It’s crazy ! »
Johnson, a 26-year-old from Alberta, also threw Gélinas-Beaulieu “a little challenge” by leaving the blocks a little faster than during rehearsals. He had to grit his teeth to avoid losing track of Dubreuil’s buttocks in the first turn, which would have been prohibitive for the rest of the race. “It kind of awakened a survival instinct in me! »
After the event, Johnson told his two partners that they had given him the best moment of his career. Gélinas-Beaulieu replied that it was mutual.
Very happy too, Dubreuil nevertheless recalled that his real mission in Calgary was the 500m on Friday. The world vice-champion stressed that the absence of Jordan Stolz, his main rival, probably cost a podium, if not victory, to the Americans, sixth, 0.23 seconds from gold.
Morale is good and it also proves that the legs are good, because I was skating fast and well. After that, everything has to be done again and it’s a different race.
Laurent Dubreuil
Maltese settles for a 10e place
Earlier, Carolina Hiller, Maddison Pearman and Ivanie Blondin helped Canada achieve a second consecutive double in the team sprint. Canada was ahead of the United States (+ 0.90 s) and Poland (+ 1.49 s) respectively.
In the 3000 meters, Valérie Maltais was not able to achieve a magnificent season, failing in 10th place.e place, its worst result in 2023-2024. The skater from La Baie admits to having lost her concentration after the great departure of the future gold medalist, the Dutch Irene Schouten.
PHOTO RICK BOWMER, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Valérie Maltais
“What disappoints me and makes me emotional is that it seems like I was never in my timing,” Maltais described. I came out of it immediately when she left, faster than I thought. His lap times were nevertheless doable. These are exactly the times I did in my race preparation [mercredi]. I really skated them better. I was better supported in the ice. It’s really the execution that I missed. »
After this bad start, the 33-year-old athlete felt “a bit heavy-hearted”, unable to breathe well. “I finished the race and I had a hard time looking up and appreciating everyone and the schools who came to cheer us on. »
PHOTO RICK BOWMER, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Isabelle Weidemann
Maltais was both very happy and “a little taken aback” by the fast time recorded by her friend Isabelle Weidemann, silver medalist. Unlike the Quebecer, the triple Olympic medalist from Ottawa has had a difficult season, without a podium before Thursday. The indestructible Czech Martina Sáblíková won bronze, 25e medal of his career.
Very disappointed, Valérie Maltais will be able to recover on Friday with the team pursuit with Weidemann and Blondin.