Canada’s short track speed skaters opened the ISU World Tour season with a bang on Saturday in Montreal, capturing a pair of gold and bronze medals.
Hometown skater William Dandjinou dazzled the fans with his victory in the men’s 500 metres, while Courtney Sarault of Moncton, N.B., also struck gold in the women’s 1,000m.
The six-foot-three Dandjinou, a 24-year-old rising star, led from start to finish while clocking a time of 40.350 seconds at Maurice Richard Arena, edging Italy’s Pietro Sighel (40.414).
Three-time Olympic medallist Steven Dubois of Terrebonne, Que., took the bronze medal in 40.480, finishing one spot ahead of Montreal’s Maxime Laoun.
Canadians William Dandjinou and Steven Dubois skated to gold and bronze medal in the men’s 500-metre race, at the season-opening ISU Short Track World Tour event in Montreal.
Sarault followed it up by coming out on top in a tight battle that saw her surge ahead down the final stretch.
The 25-year-old won the race in 1:28.185, beating out South Korea’s Kim Gil-li (1:28.250) and American Corinne Stoddard (1:28.279).
Courtney Sarault of Moncton, N.B., claimed gold in the women’s 1,000-metre race, at the season-opening ISU Short Track World Tour event in Montreal.
Sarault later helped the Canadian Ice Maples add to the Day 1 medal haul with bronze in the women’s 3,000m relay.
The quartet of Sarault, Danaé Blais, Kim Boutin, Florence Brunelle and Rikki Doak reached the podium with a time of 4:07.45. The Korean White Tigers (4:07.318) took gold in a photo finish ahead of the Dutch Lions (4:07.35).
The World Tour stop in Montreal continues Sunday, with live coverage starting at 1:30 p.m. ET on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem.
The World Tour season will help decide how many Olympic entries each country receives and who will compete at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Games in February.
Canada’s Danae Blais, Kim Boutin, Florence Brunelle, Rikki Doak and Courtney Sarault skated to a bronze medal in the women’s 3,000-metre relay, at the season-opening ISU Short Track World Tour event in Montreal.
