CHARLOTTE Gilmartin claimed a hat-trick of second placed finishes for the second weekend running as she starred at the International Skating Union Star Class Cup held at Nottingham’s National Ice Centre.
Team GB, inspired by the prolifically successful Elise Christie who won gold medals at all three distances in which she competed, dominated the international speed skating competition and won 14 medals.
The action unfolded in an arena full of inspired young children as the three-day competition saw Christie race to victory in all three of her distances in the senior ladies category – 1,500m, 1,000m and 500m – and Gilmartin come second in all three to finish second overall.
These were also the finishing positions in the previous weekend’s British Short Track Speed Skating Championships at the same venue.
The ISU Star Class Cup, which attracted over 100 competitors from 14 nations, is designed to give skaters the opportunity to hone their racing skills in a competitive environment and Christie said: “This weekend has been really useful for me to fine tune my racing skills and focus on the technical side of things.
“It’s been good competing on home ice and not having to travel has helped me to mentally prepare. I feel that my skating hasn’t been as strong this season – I’ve been fast but not as efficient and the Star Class was the perfect opportunity to work on that. It’s always a nice feeling to win, especially taking first and second with my team-mate Charlotte (Gilmartin).
“I’m now looking ahead to the European Championships in Holland (January 23-25). This weekend has been good practice going into that, where we will face some tougher challenges when we come up against more experienced skaters.”
In the men’s racing Nottingham’s Jack Whelbourne claimed the top spot in the men’s overall classification after winning a tense and exciting 1,000m final on Sunday between Team GB and the Netherlands.
In the 1,000m Billy Simms took second place after crossing the line a split second after Whelbourne.
On Saturday, the spotlight was on Jon Eley and Paul Stanley as they took first and second respectively in the men’s 500m event. Richard Shoebridge took silver in the men’s 1,500m on Friday, finishing just behind Dutch skater Dennis Visser.
Stuart Horsepool, GB Short Track Performance Director, commented: “It’s easy to get carried away with medals, but we were always going to win quite a lot at this level of competition. Saying that, I am very pleased with the squad’s performances this weekend.
“There was a lot of pressure for them to do well since they were skating on home ice and they handled that well by going out and putting in some strong performances. There were a few mistakes as well, but that’s to be expected and this competition is designed for them to develop their racing skills.
“The competition on home ice in Nottingham has been ideally timed as it’s been great practice for the squad and we can now get straight back on the ice and continue to prepare for the European Championships at the end of January.”
Nottingham-born Jack Burrows, who skated in the Junior B (U17) events, also did really well, claiming gold, silver and bronze medals across the three distances, which put him in second place in the overall classification.
Horsepool added: “I was very pleased with Jack’s skating. He has continued to improve throughout the season and he’s winning against people that he didn’t beat before.
“Within his age group, he’s a formidable athlete. He needs to continue to work hard next season when he will move into the Junior A (U19) age group, racing and competing in the Junior World Championships, hopefully following in the footsteps of Jack Whelbourne, Elise Christie, Charlotte Gilmartin and Jon Eley in reaching a final and medalling at Junior World level.”
Charlotte Gilmartin is now gearing up for the European Championships. Picture by John Rowley. (s)
