Vincent de Haître has taken another step closer to his goal of qualifying for the World Long Distance Speed Skating Championships.
On the occasion of the last day of the selections, which will take place at the ice center, de Haître won the 1000 meters this afternoon to get his ticket to the last two stages of the World Cup, which will take place in February in Poland. He crossed the finish line in 1 min 9.79 s.
“The goal for the weekend has been reached,” summed up the triple Olympic champion. It would have been ideal to qualify for the 1500m as well, but I almost fell and lost my speed. The qualification was in the foreground, not the time. I’m one step closer to my goal of qualifying for the World Championships in Heerenveen in March.”
In Poland, the French-Ontarian skater must score a better time than any of the other three Canadians present. Laurent Dubreuil, Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu and Connor Howe, already pre-qualified for the final two stages of the World Cup, skipped selection for the weekend in Quebec.
“It’s possible to qualify for the World Championships,” said de Haître, who competed in the Tokyo Olympics in the summer of 2021 on a track bike before returning to skating. I’m not where I want to be yet, but I still have a few weeks of training to continue my progress. I still have options to go faster. It would be worrying if I tried everything and didn’t get better, but that’s not the case.”
“During the second World Championships in Calgary, I was 0.1s behind Laurent and Antoine after chasing Haître. I’m getting closer and it’s better, but I still need to make changes. There is always a risk when you make changes.”
The French-Ontarian skater is convinced he can always progress. “I’m not a rabbit,” he said. I’ve withdrawn from others because of my focus on cycling in anticipation of Tokyo, but I still have the qualities that have allowed me to be successful in the past. Just put the pieces back together.”
Still the Canadian 1000m record holder, de Haître had his best career moments in the 2016-2017 season.
David La Rue, who was victorious in the 1500m on Thursday, which sees him return to the World Cup for the first time since 2020, finished second in the 1000m with a time of 1:10.01s.