In five World Cup finals so far this season, Kim Boutin has stepped on the podium each time. On Saturday, Boutin took home the silver medal in the 1500m at the ISU World Cup Short Track in Nagoya to continue her medal-winning streak on the circuit.
Boutin controlled much of the final race, only relinquishing the lead of the pack to gold medalist Ji Yoo Kim of Korea with two laps remaining. The Sherbrooke, Que. native’s time of 2:30.663 put her ahead of Italy’s Arianna Fontana on the podium.
“My final race had a lot of action and I was caught up a bit in the games of other skaters. Any time you open the door for the Koreans, they will take it. So I certainly learned a lot from the race and am eager to take on the challenge of the 1500m again soon.”
Other Results to Note
- Danaé Blais (Châteauguay, Que.) skated alongside Boutin in the first individual A Final of her career, finishing in fifth. In the ladies 1000m, Alyson Charles (Montréal, Que.) earned the same result.
- The lone Canadian male skater to race in medal contention on Saturday, Steven Dubois (Lachenaie, Que.) finished just off the podium in fourth place in the men’s 1000m.
- Participating in B Finals on Saturday, Pascal Dion (Montréal, Que.) and Jordan Pierre-Gilles (Sherbrooke, Que.), who made his World Cup début in Nagoya, raced to overall rankings of 13th in the 1500m(1) and 8th in the 1000m, respectively.
The World Cup in Nagoya concludes on Sunday with the men’s and ladies 500m and 1500m(2) events and the relay finals.
“I am really proud of myself, especially for being successful at qualifying out of the repêchage. Then, to have placed myself in the final, I was even happier. I didn’t have any expectations going into the race; I simply wanted to give it my and and be aggresive. I think I succeeded.”