Canadian speedskater Laurent Dubreuil world champion in men’s 500 metres

Canadian speedskater Laurent Dubreuil is the men’s world 500-metre champion after claiming the title Friday.

Dubreuil posted a winning time of

34.398 seconds in Heerenveen’s Thialf arena to beat Russian rival and world recordholder Pavel Kulizhnikov by .14 seconds.

“My race was just as I had imagined it,” Dubreuil said.

“It was really important for me to have a good start and I did just that. My first 300 metres was pretty good. In the last corner, I lost my balance a little bit, but at that speed it’s completely normal.

“The last 200 metres wasn’t my finest and it’s a part I would like to re-do, but overall, it was really good race, Maybe the best race of my career.”

The 28-year-old from Levis, Que., is the second Canadian to take that sprint title since Jeremy Wotherspoon in 2007, 2004 and 2003.

“Canadian speed skating has such an incredible history and I have had the chance to rub shoulders with a some of the legends of our sport,” Dubreuil said.

“I am far from being considered a legend, but if my performance can inspire just a few people it will be a tremendous honour for me.”