William Dandjinou | Quick on his skates, quick in his head

William Dandjinou is not the classic prototype of the short track speed skater. He is 6ft 3in tall, studies pure sciences and can quote George Orwell in an answer. The Montrealer with a thousand passions is allergic to hierarchies and preconceptions. All he wants is to do things his way.

His victory at the Canadian Championships at the start of the season had the effect of an earthquake in the Canadian speed skating ecosystem. The day of his 22^e anniversary, Dandjinou stole the crown from Steven Dubois, champion for the previous three years. Finally, he emerged from anonymity.

Five months later, Dandjinou sits at the top of the World Cup rankings in the 1500m event, in addition to occupying third place in the general ranking. An impressive performance considering his absence at the final stage of the World Cup calendar due to a concussion suffered in training from which he has now recovered. He will therefore be at his post for the World Championships which will begin on Friday in Rotterdam.

“Not long after the Nationals, there were the World Cups in Montreal. So there was a crescendo effect,” revealed the skater, sitting on a folding chair at the edge of the ice at the Maurice-Richard arena at the end of training.

If the word “crescendo” receives a very low rate of solicitation among athletes taking part in the interview game, we must expect this kind of fantasy when speaking to Dandjinou. When you talk to him, he listens. When he speaks, he thinks. The basis of all conversation, some would say. An increasingly rare ability, others will say.

The student-athlete has long sought to become the person he is today. A big sports fan himself, finding himself in the shoes of those he admired when he was younger serves as motivation for him. It was quickly identified as a viable project by the leaders of the national federation. All the coaches asked of him was to deliver.

“Coming into the National Center at a very young age, there were a lot of expectations. With Samuel Girard who won an Olympic medal at 21, you follow in his footsteps and you tell yourself that things will go well. Eventually, things happen and the progression and situation of the athletes are different. It allowed me to put things into perspective, which meant that I no longer expected to have such good results, so young. »

On the world circuit, few young skaters obtain similar performance. Even fewer have his style and his taste for learning. This is what makes it otherwise dangerous.

More than a skater

You only need to look at the 1500m races on the World Cup circuit to see to what extent Dandjinou stands out among his rivals. In the way he skates, uses his big frame and celebrates.

He has a particular style, he recognizes it. He is different, he is aware of it. Above all because it is thanks to this singularity and this originality that he managed to make his place.

When he stands on the starting line, at his height of 6 ft 3 in, he almost looks like a physical education teacher who is about to race with his students, the difference in size is so spectacular. But most of the time, it’s him who finishes in front at the crossing of said line at the end of the last lap, imitating the flapping of the wings of a bird taking flight, his new trademark.

“My family always encouraged me in that, reminding me that I was my own person. And it comes with a certain confidence too. You may not fit the mold, but you are capable of performing by being you. Sometimes you can get lost in being just “another” skater, he says, miming quotation marks, but I take pride in being different from the mold. »

His family members, moreover, quickly encouraged him to broaden his horizons. To aspire to be more than a talented and promising skater.

Thanks to them, he is able to satisfy himself and grow through passions that have nothing to do with skating. Turning the last page of a book or throwing a “checkmate” can also fill him with happiness. Which is an incredible wealth in a world like his where everything must revolve around sporting performance.

— What do you do when you’re not skating?

“It’s more: What am I not doing? For a while, I had a new passion every two months. I bought podcast equipment, photo stuff, anime manga. Otherwise, I read a lot. Chess comes from my grandfather. I’m never going to let go of that. »

He quotes 1984, by George Orwell, as his favorite novel. “It’s the parallels that interest me. Being able to read a story that you could take at face value, but trying to understand, reading between the lines, that’s what interested me. Same thing for Animal Farm, it’s the same principle. I also read fantasy and all that. But these books appeal to more depth than just entertainment. »

Our scholar has just finished Foundation, adapted for television by Apple TV+. “The guys on the team were talking about it. I don’t have Apple TV+, so I figured I’d read the book to talk about it with them. »

Through his five gold medals, two silver medals and two bronze medals won since the fall, Dandjinou is continuing his studies in pure sciences at the same time. Simply because he fell into it when he was little.

“My mother is a doctor and my father has a doctorate in microbiology. It came with pressure when I was young. At the moment, I am still in CEGEP. I took science because I felt obligated because of my family heritage, it seemed obvious. I don’t know if I’ll go to science at university, but I really like it.

“For me, it’s more than the cerebral side, it’s the human side. Whether I go into science or not, there has to be a human side, to share with people, because that’s the most important thing. »

A world title in the sights

In his early days, it would have been unthinkable for him to consider the possibility of fighting for a world championship title. Yet this is what he is about to do.

This remarkable season could end in the best possible way if he manages to get his hands on gold in the 1500m event.

Nevertheless, with or without a world title, the 2023-2024 season will remain a huge success for him: “My season could end today and I would be satisfied. »

Dandjinou is also not one of those champions who arrive at their workplace as if they were entering a factory. He takes jealous care to maintain his capacity for wonder.

The memory of a recent discussion with Marc Gagnon came to mind to conclude the interview, perfect for summarizing the character’s sincere motivations: “I told him that I didn’t have more fun skating in internationally than when I was 5-6 years old, when I started and I was skating at the regional level. For me, the pleasure is the same. The difference is that I can share it with more people. That’s what’s magical about what I do. »