(MENAFN) Canada and South Korea each secured two gold medals at the opening leg of the 2025–26 ISU Short Track World Tour on Saturday, kicking off the Olympic qualification season with powerful performances on home ice in Montreal.

Reigning Crystal Globe champion William Dandjinou led the charge for the host nation, claiming a decisive victory in the men’s 500m. He beat out Italy’s Pietro Sighel and fellow Canadian Steven Dubois, while China’s Lin Xiaojun failed to advance past the quarterfinals.

In the women’s 1,000m, Canadian standout Courtney Sarault electrified the crowd, taking gold ahead of South Korea’s Kim Gil-li and United States skater Corinne Stoddard.

South Korea's Rim Jong-un made a stunning debut on the World Tour, seizing the men’s 1,500m title. Veteran teammate Hwang Dae-heon followed with silver. China's Sun Long clinched bronze with a late surge, having stayed in the pack before making his move in the final two laps. Sun and teammate Liu Shaoang reached the final after placing second in their respective semifinals, while Lin was again knocked out earlier in the competition.

The Korean team returned to the podium in the women’s 3,000m relay, notching their second gold of the day. The Netherlands secured silver, with Canada taking bronze.

Saturday’s competition also marked the beginning of the Special Olympic Qualification Classifications (SOQC) for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games. Final SOQC rankings will be based on the top three results from four World Tour events: two in Montreal and upcoming stops in Gdansk, Poland, and Dordrecht, Netherlands, in November.

Each National or Regional Olympic Committee may qualify up to three skaters per distance for individual events. In relay disciplines, the top eight committees in the men’s 5,000m and women’s 3,000m SOQC standings will qualify, with the host nation guaranteed a spot if not already among the eight.

A maximum of 12 teams will be eligible for the mixed team relay, provided their delegations have earned at least two quota places per gender.

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