Kim Boutin wins 1,000m speed skating title at Canadian short track championships
Steven Dubois takes men's crown in Montreal despite Saturday loss to Pascal Dion
Kim Boutin continued a dominant week of speed skating on Saturday, capturing the 1,000-metre women's crown after securing the 500 title earlier in the week at the Canadian short track championships in Montreal.
The 26-year-old from Sherbrooke, Que., stopped the clock in one minute 29.188 seconds in the 1,000 final for her second straight victory, defeating New Brunswick's Courtney Sarault (1:29.259) and Montreal's Alyson Charles (1:29.499).
"The final that I raced – staying in second and watching how Courtney [Sarault] was going to finish the race before making my move – was a really great accomplishment. I made some small errors in my first 1,000 [metre race], but I learned a lot from them," Boutin told Speed Skating Canada.
"Things went very well for me on Wednesday and today, which gave me three good results in the 1000 and helped me in the overall standings."
WATCH l 2021 Canadian Short Track Championships: 1,000m finals:
Boutin won the 500 title on Wednesday and the overall women's title with 40,000 points, nearly 10,000 more than Florence Brunelle (30,496) and Charles (27,277).
Steven Dubois of Lachenaie, Que., won two of three races to take the men's 1,000 title but bowed to Montreal's Pascal Dion in Saturday's competition.
'Very confident in my race strategy'
Dion prevailed in 1:25.611 to edge Dubois (1:25.634) and Alphonse Ouimette of Spencerville, Ont. (1:26.876). He finished second to Dubois in the first two races of the week.
"I was very confident in my race strategy today. I knew I had the legs, so as soon as an opportunity presented itself, I made a pass to get to the front," Dion said.
"Once I was in the front there was a lot happening in the back including a crash, but it didn't really affect me. I felt Steven [Dubois] working his way back to the front so I used a defensive track to try and keep my first-place position."
Dubois compiled 36,000 points overall to Dion's 30,389 while Jordan Pierre-Gilles of Sherbrooke had 24,797.
Dion raced from the front for much of the final and that helped him avoid a big collision between Maxime Laoun and Pierre-Gilles, who crash violently into the protective mats. He also held off Dubois, who lost momentum because of the crash.
Action concludes Sunday with the 500 and 1,500 events at 10:50 a.m. ET.
