Valerie Maltais of Canada clinched the silver medal in the women’s 3,000 meters event, while Beatrice Lamarche secured the bronze in the women’s 1,000 meters at the World Cup speed skating competition opener on Friday. Maltais finished with a personal best time of three minutes and 56.53 seconds, with Joy Beune from the Netherlands seizing gold in 3:53.698 and Ragne Wiklund claiming bronze in 3:57.19.
Expressing her contentment with the race and her preparation, Maltais mentioned her strong summer training and the uncertainty of her performance standing. She emphasized the tough competition in the 3,000 meters and aimed to deliver her best performance on the international stage.
The 35-year-old athlete from La Baie, Quebec, previously won a team pursuit gold at the 2022 Winter Games alongside Ivanie Blondin and Isabelle Weidemann. She also competed in short-track speed skating at the 2010, 2014, and 2018 Olympics, achieving a silver medal at the Sochi 2014 Games in the 3,000 team relay.
Weidemann, from Ottawa, finished in fifth place, Blondin, also from Ottawa, secured the eighth spot in the 3,000 meters event, and Laura Hall from Calgary finished in 13th place.
On the other hand, Lamarche celebrated her first individual-distance World Cup medal by clinching bronze in the 1,000 meters event, becoming the first Canadian woman to reach the podium in that distance since Christine Nesbitt in 2012-13. The 27-year-old from Quebec City finished with a personal best time of 1:12.77, just shy of the Canadian record. Jutta Leerdam (1:12.35) and Femke Kok (1:12.43) from the Netherlands secured gold and silver, respectively.
Thrilled with her achievement, Lamarche expressed disbelief at earning the bronze and stated her excitement for the upcoming races this season. The next speed skating World Cup event is scheduled to take place in Calgary next week.
Coverage of the Utah leg of the World Cup circuit will continue throughout the weekend on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. Viewers can access the full streaming schedule on CBC’s website for details on how to watch.
