Montreal native Francois-Louis Tremblay
and Olivier Jean of Lachenaie, Que., won gold and silver
respectively on Saturday in the men's 500-metres at the
season-opening short track speed skating World Cup competition.
Tremblay rocketed from the start and was unchallenged until the
finish in the four-man final, clocking 42.139 seconds. Jean was
second in 42.271 while Kim Byeong-jun of South Korea was third.
The Canadians capitalized on a new rule for this season with the
starting positions determined by the fastest times from the previous
round. Previously, the start positions were determined in a draw.
``It's great to start the season on such a strong note,''
Tremblay said. ``The key for me today was to skate fast through
every round (quarter-finals, semifinals, final). That way, I
guaranteed myself the best starting position on the line. In the
final, I just did the same as in the previous round by gaining the
lead right from the start.''
Jean is making his World Cup debut this weekend. He kept second
spot from start to finish in the final.
``I guess I'm a little surprised to be on the podium,'' said
Jean, 22. ``I just feel in great shape right now and as I went
through each round I gained more and more confidence. The final was
a very fast race and I was focusing on just maintaining my
position.''
Charles Hamelin of Ste-Julie, Que., was disqualified in the
semifinal.
In the men's 1,500, world-record holder Ahn Hyun-soo clocked
2:20.585 to lead South Korea to a 1-2 finish, while Lee Ho-suk, the
Olympic silver medallist, finished second.
Marc-Andre Monette of Pointe-aux-Trembles, Que., and Canadian
champion Mathieu Giroux of Montreal, also World Cup rookies, reached
the final and placed fourth and fifth respectively.
In the women's 500, Kalyna Roberge of Ste-Etienne-de-Lauzon,
Que., was second in the B final for sixth overall while Anouk
Leblanc-Boucher of Montreal and Anne Maltais of Quebec City were
eliminated in the quarter-finals.
Meng Wang led China to a medal sweep in the final.
In the women's 1,500, Montreal's Nita Avrith and Raphaele Lemieux
of Riviere-du-Loup, Que., were eliminated in the semis. Jin Sun-yu
led South Korea to a 1-2-3 finish in the final.
