Speed Skating is a sport not many have the time for, but being one that has actually tried this, it’s well worth the time to take in an event, locally, Nationally or even on the Olympic stage.

On the international stage it was Canada’s Marsha Hudey (27) who won her first-ever individual Silver medal in the women’s 500m.

This was on the first day of the second stage of the ISU World Cup Long Track Speed Skating season that will be held until Sunday in Stavanger, Norway.

In the first of two 500m races slated for the weekend, Marsha Hudey (White City, SK) posted a time of 37.87 on Friday, making her one of only four athletes to skate under the 38-second mark, to earn silver and her first-ever individual medal at the international level.

She is in her fifth season on the World Cup circuit and finished narrowly behind the Gold medal winner Nao Kodaira of Japan (37.08), while Austria’s Vanessa Herzog took home a Bronze with a time of 37.96.

“It’s amazing! I’m so happy with today’s race,” said Hudey. “It was just a matter of putting together a good race, of executing what I wanted to execute. After falling in last week’s first 500m, I wanted to have a good one today, and I managed to focus on doing the right things. I’m just happy it worked out and turned into a medal!”

Following the four Fall World Cups, she would be prequalified for the 500m as per some conditions (including that Canada qualifies at least one spot in this event) if she manages to finish among the top 5 in the Special Olympic Qualification Classification, which is an overall ranking that takes into account the four World Cup stages to be held this Fall.

Winnipeg’s Heather McLean placed 8th (38.16) while Calgary’s Kaylin Irvine finished with a time of 38.75, good for 15th place.

Gilmore Junio (Calgary, AB) was the top Canadian of the day in the men’s 500m, as he skated to sixth place in 34.88, 0.24 seconds away from gold-medal winner Håvard Holmefjord Lorentzen of Norway (34.64).

Laurent Dubreuil (Lévis, QC) was 13th in 35.07, followed by William Dutton (Humboldt, SK) in 14th place in 35.143 and Alex Boisvert-Lacroix (Sherbrooke, QC) in 15th place in 35.148. Alexandre St-Jean (Quebec City, QC) came in 19th with a time of 35.248.

1000m: De Haître 8th

Vincent De Haître (Cumberland, ON), who is hoping to prequalify for the Olympic Games in the 1000m by winning a medal in this distance at some point this fall on the World Cup circuit, had to settle for 8th place in Friday’s 1000m.

He clocked a time of 1:09.416 in a race that was won by Norway’s Håvard Holmefjord Lorentzen with a time of 1:08.22. Alexandre St-Jean (Quebec City, QC) came in 11th with a time of 1:09.75.

Vincent De Haître, who is in a position to prequalify after earning a silver medal in the 1000m event at last spring’s World Single Distance Championships, as a podium finish in this distance at one of the Fall World Cups would give him a spot at the 2018 Olympic Games, provided Canada qualifies a spot in the 1000m.

Kaylin Irvine (Calgary, AB) was 16th in the women’s 1000m A group, with a time of 1:17.03. The race was won by Japan’s Nao Kodaira in 1:14.33.

The men’s and the women’s second 500m will take place on Saturday, as will the 1500m for both genders.

Thanks Patrick Godbout with Speed Skating Canada for the info.