Korean and Canadian golds to conclude the event
In the men’s relay event Canada won the race ahead of the Chinese in an incredibly close race. In the women’s competition South Korea prevailed, as with the relay win they have pocketed six golds out of the eight on offer.
Both Hungarian relay squads were competing in the B finals in the two final heats of the day. It was important for both genders to finish in the best possible position regarding the Olympic qualification. The 3000m relay squad in the composition of Bernadett Heidum, Andrea Keszler, Zsófia Kónya, Petra Jászapáti faced a race just against the French squad due to disqualifications in the semi-finals. The two teams were advancing forward in each other’s heels, the French edged out the Hungarian squad only by thousands of a second. The Hungarian quartet finished sixth overall.
Andrea Keszler
We couldn’t make it as we wanted, we had expected more from this final, we should have won it. We couldn’t fulfil the tactics totally either, but this is it, next week we’ll try again. At the moment I can’t really figure out what we should improve, we have to watch the videos and analyse the mistakes, and then next week set out again and do it.
Hungary’s men’s relay team had a fierce battle in the B final of the 5000m relay event with the Olympic Champion Russian team as well as the Kazakh and the US team. Csaba Burján, Alex Varnyú, Sándor Liu Shaoiln and Liu Shaoang in team Hungary did their best in an extremely tough race. Nearly all teams were in the leading position for a lap or two. At the end the Hungarians took the first position and in the finish they forced their rivals behind them, thus taking the fifth position overall.
Sándor Liu Shaolin
It was a very exciting final race, with many overtakes and actions, so we were enjoying it from start to the finish. Alex has to gain a lot of experiences, still he tackled the situation very well and skated the final spotlessly. It’s good to know that we have such a good squad. I think we should be glad with the fifth position, even if no medals were placed around our neck, still we won a heat, which is very positive, and I think everybody has approached the case this way. Unfortunately, I made a mistake in 1000m, but I’ve learnt a lot from it, and hopefully it’ll be better next time. We have to learn how to skate in front of the home audience, as it differs greatly from competing abroad. I was getting used to the atmosphere at the end. I hope there will be lots of such events in Hungary, as it has given us an extra boost.
Men’s 5000m relay
1. Canada 6:46.191
2. China 6:46.196
3. Japan 6:47.825
…5. Hungary
Ladies’ 3000 m relay:
1. Republic of Korea 4:08.393
2. Canada 4:09.817
3. Russia 4:10.382
…6. Hungary
Medal table based on the World Cup’s eight events:
