ISU Short Track World Championships kicks off as China fields young squad

MONTREAL, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The 2026 ISU Short Track World Championships opened at the Maurice Richard Arena on Friday, bringing the season to a close with host Canada and the Netherlands looking to cap dominant campaigns on home ice.

Canada's Courtney Sarault and William Dandjinou arrived in Montreal as this season's ISU Crystal Globe winners, but the spotlight at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics belonged to the Netherlands. In Italy, Dutch stars Xandra Velzeboer and Jens van't Wout each captured two individual gold medals, powering a five-gold haul for the Netherlands. Canada managed one gold, with Dandjinou taking silver in the men's 1,500m, though the women's and mixed relays both reached the podium.

On Friday, China fielded a young lineup as it began its campaign across all distances. With Olympic medalists Lin Xiaojun, Liu Shaoang and Sun Long absent, the men's squad saw 19-year-old Zhang Bohao, the team's only skater with Olympic experience, advance in the 500m, 1,000m and 1,500m. Li Kun moved on in the 1,000m but entered the 500m repechage, while Song Guixu entered the 1,500m repechage.

The Chinese women's team kept most of its Milan-Cortina squad, with Wang Ye replacing veteran Fan Kexin as the only change. Wang Xinyan, Wang Ye and Zhang Chutong all progressed in the 500m event. Gong Li and Zhang advanced in the 1,000m, while Gong and Yang Jingru reached the 1,500m semifinals.

In the relays, China's men finished first in the 5,000m quarterfinal, setting up a semifinal against South Korea, the United States and Kazakhstan. The women's team took second behind the Netherlands in the 3,000m quarterfinal, and the mixed relay squad also advanced to the semifinal as group runner-up.

Saturday's finals will decide the men's 500m and 1,500m, the women's 1,000m and the women's 3,000m relay. ■