Laurent Dubreuil enjoyed his first World Cup victory of the season on Sunday in Tomaszow Mazowiecki, Poland, where he won the 500m. The Lévisien stopped the clock at 34.73 s to finish ahead of the one who had beaten him the day before, the Chinese Gao Tingyu (+0.06 s).
The Pole Damian Zurek (+0.14 s) pleased the spectators by capturing the bronze medal.
“I’m really happy,” said the man who got his hands on the 34 by videoconference from the outset.e World Cup medal, his sixth gold. “It ends very well an autumn which was a little more difficult than the last three seasons. […] At the end of the week, I really found my feelings and the level I expect of myself. »
Dubreuil, silver medalist in Saturday’s 500m, was once again able to skate lightly. Even if he hadn’t been the fastest on Sunday, he would still have been satisfied.
“When we cross the line [d’arrivée], there is a 2 second pause before the result is displayed. Both races this weekend, I was satisfied with my performance before knowing my time. I knew I skated well and did what I could. That’s what I’m proud of! […] I’m very happy with how I was able to bounce back at the end of the week and get my feeling back. »
Dubreuil has had a checkered fall, except that he confirms that he has just found a new lease of life at this last World Cup before the holiday break. He also went from fourth to second place in the cumulative distance ranking, except that the 60 points which separate him from the Japanese Wataru Morishige (378) mean that he does not think he will be able to steal from him. the title at the end of the season.
I knew that my level was still there [cet automne], because it wasn’t like I finished sixth thinking I had had my best race. I made mistakes that I could correct.
Laurent Dubreuil
The 31-year-old skater remembered that no matter what happened in the final weeks, this period would never be as difficult as the week he experienced between the disappointment of his fourth place in the 500m at the Beijing Olympics and his gold medal. silver in the 1000m won at the end of the Games.
“I know my worth as an athlete and bad times don’t scare me. At some point, I’m going to be too old and it won’t work anymore, but now, I’m not and I’m able to come back! I always had confidence,” added the veteran, who says he made the right choice to skip the 1000m this weekend in order to concentrate on the 500m.
Valérie Maltais in good shape, but poorly positioned
Valérie Maltais placed sixth in the women’s mass start won by Dutchwoman Irene Schouten, who beat Ontarian Ivanie Blondin and American Mia Kilburg-Manganello. The athlete from La Baie, who already had second, third and fourth places since the start of the season, wore the yellow cap of leader in the provisional general classification of the event at the start.
PHOTO YAN DOUBLET, LE SOLEIL ARCHIVES
Ivanie Blondin
“Keeping the yellow cap was a challenge and my weekend here left me wanting more. At the end of today, I was stuck in traffic and I had some energy at the end. […] Races that end in a sprint aren’t always my strength, but I realize more and more that I have speed. I just need to position myself better,” said Maltais, regretting not having been aggressive enough in the finale.
The Quebecer slips one place overall and is second with 183 points behind Kilburg-Manganello (187).
Finally, in the 1000 m of group B, Béatrice Lamarche ranked 16e due to his time of 1 min 19.74 sec.
The World Cup circuit will restart at the end of January in Salt Lake City. A week earlier, the Olympic Oval of the 2022 Games will host the Four Continents Championships.