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Sunday, October 24, 2010

Dutton World Cup Bound


(Calgary) Humboldt Saskatchewan speed skater William Dutton is following a trail blazed by another Humboldt native, world renowned speed skater Jeremy Wotherspoon. Dutton, in his second year as a National development team long tracker, is on his way to the World Cup of speed skating where the name Wotherspoon is as revered as the name Gretzky.
"We (Humboldt skaters) used to look for Jeremy at the Oval when he was World Champion" Dutton said. "Now we see him every day and he helps with the coaching" he added. Apparently it's working. Dutton skates in the glory race of speed skating the 500. He moved up to second in Canada at the Canadian fall World Cup trials this weeend in Calgary. At the end of the 2009 season he was ranked 5th. He qualified for this years World Cup fall circuit in the sprints; the 500 and the 1000 meter races.
Dutton raced Wotherspoon last year as the Canadian team prepared for the Olympic team qualifier. In the Olympic trials he skated another Canadian speed skating Icon former World Champion Mike Ireland. "It seemed like every time I stepped up to the line I was skating one of the fastest guys in the world" Dutton laughed. He went on to race Denny Morrison, Jamie Gregg, and Kyle Parrott all Canadian 2010 Olympians. "I didn't win any of those races but when I was done I knew I could skate with them, that I belonged on the ice with them" he said.
Apparently he was right. Now he is on the ice with Gregg and the senior sprint team every day. Dutton skated against the fastest man on the Canadian team, Olympian Jamie Gregg, in the 1000 and both races of the 500 this weekend. When the skating was done he was fourth in the 1000 and second in the 500.
Dutton has worn the maple leaf twice in his young career. In 2009 he was a member of the Canadian junior team at the World Junior Championships in Poland and in 2010 he skated at the World Sprint Championships in Obihiro Japan. This will be his first time as a member of the Canadian World Cup team. "We race in four cities on two continents in the next six weeks. I won't have the same kind of first time jitters when I skate this year" Dutton said.
The Canadian team is young this year. Veterans Wotherspoon and Ireland have retired. They were followed off the ice by 2010 Olympic sprinters J.F. Roberge and Kyle Parrott. Gregg, an Own the Podium athlete, who came to speed skating from hockey is a veteran at age 25. Quebec skaters Vincent LaBrie and Muncef Ouardi are 27 and 24 respectively. Dutton is 20 and his Sault St. Marie room mate Richard MacLennan is 19. Junior Gilmore Junio is 18.
These young athletes are Canada's future in long track sprints. It remains to be seen if they can carry the torch thrown from Wotherspoon and Ireland. They quietly go about their business. Learning about the tension and stress of being on the line with the fastest skaters in the world.
When you ask them about it they shrug and smile. Then they head back out to the ice. After all, when you've raced Wotherspoon who could possibly intimidate you?We'll find out soon.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Dutton Makes Canadian World Cup Team


(Calgary) Humboldt speed skater William Dutton qualified for the International Speed Skating Union World Cup with a fourth place finish at Canadian World Cup trials in Calgary Thursday. Dutton 20, is a member of the Humboldt Speed Skating club, a small town club that is known as the "per capita speed skating capital of Canada".
Dutton, a National Development team member, nearly fell in the first few strides of the race. Fortunately he was saved by a false start by his team mate and opponent in the heat, Canadian Olympian Jamie Gregg of Calgary.
In the restart Dutton quickly closed on Gregg. Dutton took the lead late in the race but Gregg caught and passed him in the final corner. Despite nearly falling at the finish line Dutton managed a fourth place finish good enough to qualify for the International Skating Union World Cup fall races.
Dutton, Gregg, Denny Morrison, Phillipe Riopel and Richard MacLennan will form the Canadian 1000 meter team at the 2010 World Cup fall series in Holland, Germany, China and Japan.

Monday, October 11, 2010

The Next Ones - 2014 Olympics

(Calgary) In 2010 Canadian men's speed skating sprint coach Sprint Mike Crow was working with two World Sprint Champions, legends in the speed skating world. Crowe's focus was on getting speed skating icon Jeremy Wotherspoon and sidekick Mike Ireland back to their world beating best for the home town Olympics. It did not happen.

This season Crowe's sprint team is mostly raw and unproven. Five male sprinters skated for the Canadian Olympic team in Vancouver. Only one of them is still wearing the maple leaf, Jamie Gregg. The others have all retired or at very least taken the year off. Jeremy Wotherspoon is shadowing Crowe at the Oval in Calgary working with the young Canadian team and getting ready to coach in Europe. Mike Ireland is attending classes at the U of C. Kyle Parrott is working on his engineering not his skating. Francoise Roberge just announced his retirement. That leaves relative newcomer Jamie Gregg as the only Olympic veteran on the Canadian sprint team.

It seems strange that no one has made note of this changing of the guard but then it is an off year; that is the next Olympics are four years off. Who's left besides Gregg? Veterans who have not been able to get past the old guard and rookies who were too young to get it done.

The five fastest 500 skaters, as the team closes in on the World Cup trials are; Jamie Gregg (1985), William Dutton (1989), Vincent LaBrie (1982), Richard MacLennan (1991), and Muncef Ouardi (1986). The Olympics are four years away and the battle to represent Canada in 2014 in Sochi Russia starts October 21st in Calgary. The youngsters and not so young have their shot.

They have some very very big shoes to fill. Good luck gentlemen, may the fastest men win.

Will A Canadian man make the podium in World Cup group A?