Canadian speed skaters Rose Laliberté-Roy, Rose-Anne Grenier, Antoine Roger, and Jake Weidemann secured their maiden national titles on the concluding day of the competition in Quebec City on Sunday. Laliberté-Roy triumphed in the women’s 1,000m event with a time of 1:18.372 after clinching second place in the women’s 500 meters earlier. She was flanked on the podium by Julia Snelgrove from Dartmouth, N.S., and Skylar Van Horne from Winnipeg.
In the men’s 1,000m race, Quebec City’s Roger claimed victory in 1:09.981, outpacing Cédrick Brunet from Gatineau, Que., and Yankun Zhao from Calgary. The competition introduced a new mass start format where the last skater in each sprint lap was eliminated, leading to intense finishes in both the men’s and women’s categories.
Grenier from Sainte-Marie, Que., emerged victorious in the women’s mass start event with a time of 9:15.361, closely followed by Laurie Cayer from Lévis, Que., and Selena Dallaire from Saskatoon. Ottawa’s Weidemann seized the men’s mass start title with a time of 8:31.444, overtaking Max Halyk from Calgary and Eric Orlowsky from Prince George, B.C.
Laura Hall dominated the women’s 5,000m race, while Graeme Fish excelled in the men’s 10,000m event. Hall, hailing from Salmon Arm, B.C., secured victory in 7:18.296, with Grenier and Cayer finishing closely behind. Fish, representing Moose Jaw, Sask., triumphed in 13:23.106, followed by Aimé Perreault from Lévis and Jack Hanson from Fort St. John, B.C.
The national championships will play a crucial role in selecting Canada’s team for the upcoming long-track World Cup season.
