Valérie Maltais of La Baie, Quebec, secured her first individual Olympic medal by winning bronze in the women’s 3,000 metres speed skating event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan.
According to CBC Sports in Canada, Maltais finished the race in 3 minutes 56.93 seconds at the Milano Speed Skating Stadium, earning Canada’s first medal at the Milano-Cortina Games.
The 35-year-old athlete was competing in her fifth Winter Olympics and had shown strong form this season, with multiple top finishes in World Cup events, including a silver medal in a 3,000 metres race in Salt Lake City. In January, she also earned two medals at a World Cup meet in Inzell, Germany, with silver in the mass start and bronze in the 3,000 metres.
In the Olympic final, Italy’s Francesca Lollobrigida took gold in an Olympic record time of 3:54.28, while Norway’s Ragne Wiklund earned silver with 3:56.54. Maltais’ Canadian teammate Isabelle Weidemann, who won bronze at the 2022 Winter Olympics, finished fifth with a time of 3:59.24. Laura Hall, another Canadian competitor making her Olympic debut, placed thirteenth.
Weidemann is a veteran skater who earned multiple medals at the 2022 Games, including gold in the women’s team pursuit and silver in the 5,000 metres. Both Maltais and Weidemann have been strong competitors throughout the current season, ranking closely in World Cup long-distance standings. Hall earned her Olympic spot after winning the 3,000 metres race at the Canada Cup and Olympic Skate-Off event in Quebec City earlier this year.
Laura Hall’s brother Daniel is also an Olympic debutant this year, competing in men’s events, continuing the family tradition following their father Mike’s participation in the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics as a speed skater.
