Speed skater Valérie Maltais concluded the World Allround Championships by taking ninth place in the 1500m presented on Sunday at the Olympic Oval in Hamar, Norway. This result was not enough to participate in the final race of the event, but it allowed the Quebecer to finish tenth overall.
Posted at 1:50 p.m.
Provisionally 12and after the first day of activities at the worlds, Valérie Maltais had the firm intention of improving her situation and she left everything on the ice in the 1500m, where she recorded a time of 1 min 58.9 s.
“I’m happy with my race in general. It had been a while since I had done this distance and I was looking forward to skating. I had an aggressive start and was able to keep a good pace until the very end. I really gave everything, so I can only be satisfied with my effort,” she commented in an interview with Sportcom at the end of the day.
In the end, Maltais trailed Japan’s Miho Takagi by 3.06s, first with a time of 1:55.03s. This result could not allow the athlete from Saguenay to obtain his ticket for the 5000 m, an event reserved for the eight best competitors of the event.
Maltais’ performance nevertheless made her jump two places in the general classification of the World Championships to finish in tenth place, a peak among the Canadians present in Hamar.
“There was still a little missing to place me in the top 8, but I remain very happy with my weekend. It’s the best result of my career at the All Distances World Championships and it’s really encouraging for the future”, underlined the one who says she is more motivated than ever to make her place among the elite of her sport.
I see that I’m here with the best in the world and I’m just missing a little something to join them. I know I can still improve, especially in speed and endurance. It’s all very positive and I know I’m capable of doing even better next time.
Valerie Maltai
The Dutch Irene Schouten (1589.74) was crowned world champion at the end of the competition. She was accompanied on the podium by Miho Takagi (+3.31) and Antoinette de Jong (+8.24), also from the Netherlands.
Vice-world champion in 2020, Ottawa’s Ivanie Blondin ranked 11andwhile Manitoba’s Lindsey Kent finished 16and.
The skaters will now head to Heerenveen, the Netherlands, to prepare for the World Cup final scheduled for next weekend. Despite the fatigue that is slowly starting to be felt, Valérie Maltais feels ready for this last event of the international season.
“All events will be worth double points and I’ll be ready for the occasion, even if I’m a little more tired. I still feel very good right now and I’m able to skate well thanks to all the training I’ve had over the past year. It makes all the difference and it proves that the work has paid off. My goal will be to be consistent and to use strategy in my races”, concluded the one who will participate in the 1000m, 3000m and mass start in Heerenveen.