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Canadian speed skater Isabelle Weidemannhas come full circle. One of the world's top long trackers,Weidemannnow finds herself in the same position as her heroes before her— passing the torch to the next generation.
Ottawa native excited to compete at 3rd Olympics, pass torch to new generation
Zack Smart · CBC Sports
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Canadian speed skater Isabelle Weidemannhas come full circle.
One of the world's top long trackers, Weidemann now finds herself in the same position as her heroes before her — passing the torch to the next generation.
The 29-year-old from Ottawabecame a household name after winning three Olympic medals at the Beijing Games in 2022, including Canada's first-ever goldin the women's team pursuit alongside Ivanie Blondin andValérie Maltais.
"There are young girls that come up to us all the time, young speed skaters or other athletes, and they're like, 'We watched your race at the Olympics!' And[we] just get to be those people a little bit now that get to pass the torch,"Weidemannsaid in a Thursday interview with CBC Sports' Anastasia Bucsis.
"We've been doing this sportfor a really long time. We are veterans of this national team now, and to think thatone day we do get to pass onthat legacy and to keep it goingis so amazing and I feel so honoured to be able to do that."
WATCH l Weidemann looks forward to her 3rd Olympic Games:
Isabelle Weidemann looks forward to her 3rd Olympic Games at Milano Cortina 2026 5 days ago Duration 9:28
Weidemann wasCanada's flag-bearer for the Beijing closing ceremony, just like one of her idols, Cindy Klassen,at the 2006 Turin Olympics.Canadian women won seven medals at those Games,including five by Klassen, while a youngWeidemann watched from home, mesmerized and inspired.
"I remember being 11 years old and watching the 2006 Olympics and being so in awe by watching Cindy Klassen or watching Clara [Hughes], watching that team of speed skaters," Weidemannsaid.
"I was just newly involved in speed skating;I didn't even really have an idea of what the sport actually entailed. But just watching the Olympics and knowing that I get to help continue that legacy is just really special."
- Canadian speed skater Weidemann wins bronze at Beijing World Cup
Following in the footsteps oflegends,Weidemann is part of a new golden age of Canadianspeed skating.
Canada set a national record with 10 medals at last winter's world single distance championships in Calgary, which followed a World Cup season that saw the team win 23 medals — including five gold — across six stops.
Weidemannnow has her sights set on herthird Olympics atMilano-Cortina 2026, something she thinks about often.She says she has changeda lot since makingher Olympic debut in 2018 inPyeongchang, South Korea— both on and off the ice.
"I feel like a different athlete, maybe a bit of a different version of myself that went into it eight years agowhen I went to [PyeongChang]2018 and then four years ago when I went to [Beijing] 2022," Weidemann said."I feel like I've changed as an athlete andchanged as a person."
Weidemann plans on enjoying it more this time around, recapturingthatsame sense of wonder she had as an 11-year-old watching Klassen and Hughes.
"I'm kind of clinging to that childhood specialness of it to not feel so nervous and not feel so pressured, just tobask in it a little bit more and to enjoy it and share that with everybody around me."
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Weidemann will competeon Canadian ice later this month at aWorld Cup stop onCalgary's Olympic Oval (Jan. 24-26). She will look to claim her second medalof the season after earning 3,000-metre bronzein November at the same Beijing venueas her Olympic triumph.
"I'm getting really excited for the World Cup here in Calgary. We've got a few weeks left of hard training before we getto taper for the eventbut I'm stoked," Weidemann said.
There are three more World Cup stops after Calgary before this year'sworld single distance championships, which are being held in Hamar, Norway fromMarch 13-16.
The Canadian team will compete inMilwaukee, Wisc., (Jan. 31-Feb. 2),Zakopane, Poland, (Feb. 21-23) andHeerenveen, Netherlands (Feb. 28-March 2).
Watch live coverage of all theWorld Cup action on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. A live streaming schedule is available here.
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