Best in years, but not quite enough as Dubreuil finishes eighth in 1000m
Laurent Dubreuil skated his best 1,000-metre race in years and it still wasn’t good enough to get back on the podium at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games Wednesday.
The 2022 Olympic silver medallist in the distance, Dubreuil skated in one of the early pairings and posted a 1:08.21 time that stood through half the field, but by the time the field of 29 skaters was finished, Dubreuil had slipped to a final placing of eighth.
“I knew that if I wanted a shot at a medal I had to be first (in my pairing) on the ice,” said the 32-year-old Quebec City native. “That said, it’s a tenth faster than my time in Beijing; it’s my best 1,000 metres in several years. I can’t do better at my age. I’ll probably never be able to go faster than this in the 1,000 metres.”
Skating in the fifth pairing, Dubreuil had an explosive start and was pacing ahead of pairing rival Daniele di Stefano of Italy. But the Canadian faded in the final 75 metres and the Italian overtook him by the line, finishing in 1:08.17
“I was so far ahead at the start, I didn’t expect Stefano to catch up to me like that,” said Dubreuil. “The 1,000 metres isn’t really my comfort zone, so I don’t really have much margin for error, compared to the others.”
Dubreuil sees the 500 metres, coming up Saturday, as his best medal chance at these Games.
“My medal chances are really better in the 500 metres,” he said. “I’ve got the legs to compete, and I think I’ll have a good race in three days. I think I’ve got the legs to win medals this year and for a few more years.”
David la Rue, 27, of Saint-Lambert, Que., made his Olympic debut and finished 18th in 1:09.31 while Anders Johnson, 28, of Fort Francis, Ont., finished 22nd in 1:09.54.
American phenom Jordan Stolz outskated Jenning de Boo of the Netherlands in the final pairing of the day to capture the gold medal in an Olympic record time of 1:06.28 while de Boo took the silver in 1:06.78. China’s Zhongyan Ning took bronze in 1:07.34.