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With just 15 months until the next Winter Olympics, it appears that long track speed skating will once again be a major source of medals for Canada.

In 2022, Canadian long track athletes won five of the country’s 26 medals in Beijing, behind snowboarders (six) for the most medals in a given discipline. And the skaters seem ready for another big mission next winter in northern Italy.

Canada won a national record 10 medals at the World Single Distance Championships last February in Calgary, behind the powerful Netherlands (13). The World Single Distance Championships are very similar to the Olympics in terms of races offered, although Canada’s only gold medals came in the two events not on the Olympic program: the men’s and women’s team sprints. .

However, eight medals in the 14 events that have a place on the Olympic program is pretty good, and several Canadians stood out.

Ivanie Blondin and Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu, who contributed to the victories in the team sprint, left with three medals each. Blondin won silver in the women’s team pursuit with Isabelle Weidemann and Valérie Maltais (the same trio that won Canada’s only long track gold medal at the 2022 Olympics) and added another medal. money from individual group. Gélinas-Beaulieu won silver in the men’s group start and bronze in the team pursuit.

WATCH | CBC Sports previews the new speed skating season:

Speed ​​skating preview: Canada’s depth, expectations for Jordan Stolz and Jutta Leerdam

CBC Sports’ Anastasia Bucsis and Signa Butler break down the upcoming season.

Canada’s other medalists are Laurent Dubreuil (gold in the men’s team sprint, silver in the 500m solo) and Weidemann. The flag bearer at the 2022 Olympics closing ceremony won silver in the women’s 3,000m, as well as silver in the team pursuit.

The 2023-24 season concluded with the World Sprint Championships and the World All-Around Championships, both of which take place in even-numbered years and require skaters to compete in multiple races over a range of distances for a series of medals. Dubreuil won the men’s bronze medal at the world sprint championships, while Maltais and Blondin finished eighth and ninth among the women at the more grueling general events at the same arena in Germany.

Canada is also coming off a successful World Cup season, winning 23 medals (including five gold) across the tour’s six stops to finish fourth in total medals behind the Netherlands, the United States and the Japan. Maltais and Blondin placed 1-2 in the women’s mass start standings while Dubreuil and 2018 Olympic gold medalist Ted-Jan Bloemen finished second in the men’s 500m and long distances, respectively.

A new World Cup season begins tonight in Japan, and if last week was any indication, the Canadians should remain a fixture on the podium. They accumulated 12 medals (including three gold) in three days at the Four Continents Championships – a sort of World Cup warm-up competition for non-European skaters.

WATCH | Dubreuil wins bronze at the Quatre Continents in the men’s 1,000m:

Dubreuil wins bronze in the men’s 1000m

Laurent Dubreuil of Quebec won bronze in the men’s 1000m at the ISU Four Continents Speed ​​Skating Championships in Hachinohe City, Japan.

Blondin led the way with two gold medals (mass start and team sprint) and two bronze medals (1,500m and 3,000m). Graeme Fish won Canada’s only men’s gold medal, in the 5000m, while Dubreuil collected three medals: silver in the 500m, bronze in the 1000m and bronze in the team sprint.

Of course, the competition will get tougher this week with the arrival of the Netherlands and other European nations and everyone will raise their game for the opening of the World Cup.

If you’re looking for just one international skater to watch this season, Jordan Stolz is the man for you. The incredibly versatile American phenom swept all three of his events (500m, 1000m, 1500m) at the single distances world championships for the second year in a row, then added his first all-around world title. Stolz was only 17 when he made his Olympic debut in Beijing, so he was not a serious contender for a medal. By 2026, he could become a household name.

Among the women, Dutchwoman Jutta Leerdam, 25, is a star on and off the ice. The six-time world title winner won Olympic silver in the 1,000m in 2022 and is currently dating Jake Paul. You may have noticed her in the ring after the mega-“struggle” with Mike Tyson last Friday night.

Watch the World Cup opener live starting at midnight tonight on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. Here is our complete broadcast schedule.