HEERENVEEN, Netherlands | One of the most dominant Quebec athletes in the world, Laurent Dubreuil is poised to write an important page in Canadian speed skating history as he prepares to defend his world 500m title, which begins March 2 in the Netherlands begins.
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After his 2021 win in the Heerenveen bubble in the Netherlands, a country where the best skaters have the same star status as Quebec NHL players, Dubreuil is seeking a second career title, something no Quebecois has yet achieved.
Dubreuil will obviously arrive pumped up, he who on Saturday confirmed his first-place finish of the season for the second straight season.
File photo, Stevens LeBlanc
Laurent at the National Speed Skating Championships in Quebec, October 13, 2022.
The journal will also be there to describe this moment that could mark the sport of Quebec and also reveal the admiration that the skater from Lévis has aroused in the Netherlands.
In the Mecca of long-distance speed skating, Dubreuil two years ago became the third figure skater from the Belle province to win a world title in the 1000m, following legendary Gaétan Boucher in 1984 and 1985 and Sylvain Bouchard in 1998.
Dubreuil’s win was Canada’s first in 13 years.
A force of nature
Don’t bet against the skater, who has had the best moments of his career in three years after a few difficult years and the doubts that germinated in his mind about the prospects of dominating his sport as he envisioned it at the age of 18.
As of fall 2021, Dubreuil has won 13 medals in 14 World Cup starts over 500m. Only once did he miss the podium.
This “mistake” happened at the last race in 2022. Dubreuil did not open the machine fully to minimize the risk of falls and ensure he won the World Championship Overall title, a goal he had always cherished.
Dubreuil’s 2019 explosion oddly coincides with the birth of his daughter Rose (see other text below) and the arrival of fitness trainer Jonathan Pelletier-Ouellet. A more balanced life and the return of bodybuilding transformed the Lévis skater.
Photo courtesy of Laurent Dubreuil’s family
His first outings with his father Robert in December 1994.
Turned on by speed
Photo courtesy of Laurent Dubreuil’s family
In 1997, at the age of four and a half, young Laurent took part in his first competition.
After his first short track competition at the age of four, Dubreuil got his first long skates.
“I hated it the first time I trained,” he says. I told my mother that I wasn’t good and that I didn’t drive any faster than the older ones. Two weeks later things went faster. Speed has always turned me on and I never liked long distances. Explosive stuff has always been my forte and interest. »
Photo courtesy of Laurent Dubreuil’s family
Club St-Étienne’s very first sports card (1997-1998 season) when he was five years old.
Dubreuil wasn’t the best when he started. “By the time I was five or six, I couldn’t cross corners. Other youngsters were capable and they were faster than me even though I beat them in a straight line. »
rise
Author of a first Canadian record at the age of 14 while with the national team, Dubreuil continued his rise by winning five medals.
Among other things, he won three golds at the 2011 Canada Games in Halifax before ending his junior career with a bang in Japan 2012 by taking first place in the 500m.
A few weeks earlier he had set a world record in Salt Lake City, a mark recently surpassed by American phenomenon Jordan Stolz.
In the autumn following his coronation in the Land of the Rising Sun, Dubreuil wowed the gallery by finishing fourth in his first career senior World Cup.
A different skater since he’s a dad
File photo, Stevens LeBlanc
Holding her daughter Rose on her return from the Beijing Olympics on March 31 at Quebec City Airport.
Two events have had a significant impact on Laurent Dubreuil’s meteoric rise since 2019.
Despite having some success, winning a medal at the World Championships here and there and winning bronze in the 500m World Cup in 2015, Dubreuil has been dominant since the birth of his daughter Rose and his association with fitness trainer Jonathan Pelletier-Ouellet in the summer of 2019.
“I don’t know which event is more important because it happened at the same time, but it was a 180 degree turnaround in my career, Bild Dubreuil, who has been a father for the second time since September 2022. I unlocked it and moved on to another level. From that moment I became the skater I am today. »
Rose’s presence allowed Dubreuil to take the skate off a bit.
“I wasn’t balanced enough, he admits. I had no interests other than skating and training. »
Gregor Jelonek agrees.
“He comes home after a bad day of training and his daughter doesn’t care,” says his longtime coach. She’s just happy to see her father. The same goes for his son and his wife. There is something other than performance and the mental load has decreased. »
Back to body building
Due to a back injury that had plagued him for a long time, Dubreuil had given up bodybuilding and his results suffered.
Understanding his new protégé’s decision in the face of pain, Pelletier-Ouellet also knew full well that Dubreuil’s success preceded a return to bodybuilding.
“If Laurent wanted to fight with the best, we had to reintroduce bodybuilding because it lacked strength and power,” he explains. Laurent was able to pull out a good race or two a year because of his talent and technique, but he didn’t have the consistency that we see from him today. There is a reason for this consistency. »
The fitness trainer started slowly.
“Between the weights is day and night [60 kg contre plus de 200 kg] which he raised in the beginning and now. For a guy of his caliber, the weights he was lifting were ridiculous. »
While he agrees that bodybuilding played a key role in the creation of his protégé, Pelletier-Ouellet also highlights another important shift.
“Becoming a father allowed him to put things in perspective. It’s not the end of the world to have a bad day when your kids and wife are waiting for you at home. After a poor performance, he is not at home and roars his life out. Skating is nice, but too much is like too little. The birth of his children had a major impact on his approach to the competition. »