Canadian speed skater Ivanie Blondin has won the silver medal in the women’s mass start event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, replicating her result from the 2022 Games.
CBC Sports, Canada.
Blondin completed the race in 8 minutes 35.09 seconds, narrowly finishing 0.39 seconds behind gold medalist Marijke Groenewoud of the Netherlands and 0.3 seconds ahead of American Mia Manganello to claim silver. The 35-year-old athlete from Ottawa has consistently performed well in mass start competitions, having won silver at each of the last three world championships and capturing World Cup gold in Calgary earlier this season. During the 2025-26 World Cup campaign, she also earned additional silver and bronze medals.
Valérie Maltais, another Canadian competitor from La Baie, Quebec, finished in fifth place with a time of 8 minutes 36.10 seconds despite an early fall caused by a skate collision. In the men’s mass start event, Jorrit Bergsma of the Netherlands won the gold medal in a commanding performance at age 40, becoming the oldest Olympic speed skating gold medalist. Bergsma earned 68 points and completed the race in 7 minutes 55.50 seconds, finishing five seconds ahead of Denmark’s Viktor Hald Thorup, who took silver. Italy’s Andrea Giovannini secured the bronze medal.
Canadian Antoine Gélinas-Beaulieu placed sixth in the men’s race, scoring three points with a time of 8 minutes 4.76 seconds among a field of sixteen skaters. These results continue to reflect strong Canadian performances in the speed skating mass start disciplines at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
