MILAN – Courtney Sarault made Canadian short track history Wednesday, and Kim Boutin joined rare company, as the women’s 3,000-metre relay team won bronze at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
Danaé Blais of Châteauguay, Que., Florence Brunelle of Trois-Rivières, Que., Boutin of Sherbrooke, Que., and Sarault of Moncton, N.B., finished three-tenths of a second behind South Korea in the final.
The medal was Sarault’s fourth in Milan, making her the first Canadian short track speedskater to win four at a single Winter Olympics.
It was Boutin’s second medal at these Games and the sixth of her career, tying Charles Hamelin and Cindy Klassen as Canada’s most decorated Winter Olympians.
Host Italy claimed silver, 0.093 seconds back of the Koreans.
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It was a race that Canada led for long stretches before slipping to third.
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“It was a crazy race; we had to be locked in with the teams we were going against. They are really strong teams,” said Sarault.
“We raced amazingly. I could not be more proud of the girls for how we handled everything that happened in the race. We had collisions, some close calls.”
Three of the four skaters — Boutin, Brunelle and Sarault — had finished a gutting fourth with Alyson Charles at the 2022 Beijing Games. Brunelle said the team needed a moment to process Wednesday’s result.
“It’s really special. We all know that short track is a very intense sport. So coming to the finals, I think we knew we had a really strong team, and we were going to give it (our) all,” she said.
“And finishing with bronze, at first we were like, looking at each other, ‘OK, are we happy? And then we’re like, ‘Man, we’re happy.'”
For Boutin, competing at her third Olympic Games, the moment carried added weight.
“That’s super cool. For me, six medals with the girls, and finally, a medal that I really wanted to work forward to. So I’m pretty happy,” said Boutin.
Fontana was already the most decorated short track speedskater in history.
The relay bronze, combined with Steven Dubois’s gold in the men’s 500 metres, gives Canada 14 medals overall and five in short track speedskating at the Games.
Italy’s silver was the 14th Olympic medal for Arianna Fontana at her sixth Winter Games, setting a record for most medals by an Italian athlete.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2026.
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