CALGARY — Canada's golden trio is gearing up for its last Olympic Games.
Isabelle Weidemann, Ivanie Blondin and Valerie Maltais, who won speedskating team pursuit gold together in Beijing, each did some mental and physical housekeeping in 2024 to ensure they would be ready for the next Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy, in just over a year.
Blondin, a mass start silver medallist in Beijing, spent last summer racing for a pro cycling team in the United States. The 34-year-old married retired speedskater Jordan Belchos and completed the psychology certification in her multi-disciplinary bachelor's degree last year. The three women lead Canada's team of 28 skaters into an ISU World Cup on home ice Friday to Sunday at Calgary's Olympic Oval. It's the third World Cup this season after stops in Nagano, Japan and Beijing.
Ottawa's Weidemann and Blondin and Maltais of Saguenay, Que., will concentrate on their individual races in Calgary. Other Canadian contenders include Calgary's Ted-Jan Bloemen and Graeme Fish of Moose Jaw, Sask., who claimed world championship silver and bronze respectively in the men's 10k last year. They race that distance Saturday.
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