Canadian lengthy observe speedskater Laurent Dubreuil is sounding the alarm in regards to the lack of funding for Canadian novice sports activities and the results it might have on the nation’s success on the Winter Olympics going ahead.
The Quebec native didn’t conceal his bitterness on Tuesday, coming off a bronze medal within the 500 metres through the Milan Cortina Video games.
In an interview revealed Tuesday within the Journal de Québec and the Journal de Montréal, Dubreuil denounced the a lot bleaker actuality, simply two days after the Olympics.
“Issues have to vary. So long as athletes get good outcomes, it sort of masks the issues,” Dubreuil mentioned later in a video convention from Heerenveen, Netherlands, the place he’ll participate on the planet lengthy observe speedskating championships from March 5 to eight.
He famous the difficulty of funding was a small drawback within the short-term, but it surely might change into an enormous one in the long run. Whereas the Milan Cortina Video games wasn’t a catastrophe, he mentioned it wasn’t their finest both.
“I can’t converse for different athletes in different sports activities, as a result of our federation is without doubt one of the finest funded, however despite the fact that I’ve been on the nationwide workforce for 16 years, I’ve seen that with every Olympic cycle, there are fewer funds accessible than within the earlier cycle, and it’s not due to our outcomes; we received 5 medals in Italy, the identical quantity as in Beijing (in 2022),” Dubreuil mentioned.
“We now have to appreciate that we’re heading straight for catastrophe if this doesn’t change, and that it’s not that simple to search out options,” mentioned the speedskater from Lévis, Que., simply south of Quebec Metropolis.
Relatively than returning house to see his family members and savour his Olympic triumph, Dubreuil selected to go on to Heerenveen, a call that allowed him to avoid wasting on the price of aircraft tickets. He’s additionally moved in with a number household to avoid wasting on prices. Dubreuil described his life-style when he’s competing as “frugal.”
Dubreuil, 33, can also be involved in regards to the subsequent era in his sport, particularly since they don’t at the moment appear to have the ability to compete with the world’s elite. Fellow Olympic medallists Valérie Maltais and Ivanie Blondin, are each 35 years outdated and will quickly be contemplating retirement as effectively.
“Each athlete on the Olympic Video games has a primary reminiscence of watching an idol on tv on the Video games who impressed them by profitable medals,” defined Dubreuil, who received silver within the 1,000 meters on the 2022 Beijing Video games.
“For me, it was Marc Gagnon and Jonathan Guilmette (on the Salt Lake Metropolis Video games) in 2002. Two Quebecers on the rostrum, it was unimaginable! It marked a era of skaters,” Dubreuil mentioned.
“However the purpose for me is to not win medals, however merely to encourage younger individuals. You probably have good athletes in a lot of sports activities, that’s the way you encourage younger individuals to get off the TV and different apps like Instagram.”
To treatment the funding shortfall, Dubreuil used the instance of Norway, which topped the medal standings on the 2026 Olympics with 41 medals (18-12-11), regardless of being a rustic with barely greater than half the inhabitants of Quebec.
“They’ve arrange a state lottery the place a part of the proceeds of that are redistributed to sport,” Dubreuil mentioned.
“It may very well be that, or it may very well be one thing else, but it surely takes concrete motion (to extend funding for athletes), then we’ll see the consequences on the outcomes,” he mentioned.
Within the meantime, Dubreuil, the 2021 500-metre world champion, continues his preparation for the world championships.
Dubreuil will try and trigger one other splash in one in every of his favorite distances, the 500-metre or 1,000-metre dash.
He acknowledged that American Jordan Stolz and Dutchman Jenning de Boo will as soon as once more be the favourites in these distances, however he believes he can compete with the opposite skaters for the third spot on the rostrum.
“I anticipate a lot of the world’s finest skaters to be there within the males’s dash. (…) It is going to be very aggressive, with Stolz, de Boo, Poland’s Damian Zurek, the three favourites, and even China’s Ning Zhongyan … They’re all medal contenders, and I should beat a few of them if I wish to climb onto the rostrum,” he mentioned.
Though he isn’t as effectively supported financially by the federal authorities as he would really like, Dubreuil mentioned he can rely on unwavering assist through the upcoming worlds from his household.
They’ll be a part of him at his host household’s house — who’ve change into “actual associates,” he mentioned, noting that “tickets (for the world championships) are loads cheaper than these for the Video games in Milan.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first revealed Feb. 24, 2026.