Canada's short track star Dandjinou wins 1,500m at World Tour event in Montreal

In front of a hometown crowd, Canada's William Dandjinou showed the short track skating world why he's ready to be a major contender at the 2026 Olympics in Italy.

The 23-year-old captured gold in the men's 1,500 metres in the opening-season World Tour event on Saturday at the Maurice-Richard arena in Montreal. Dandjinou, from Sherbrooke, Que., won the race in a time of two minutes 18.607 seconds.

Korea's Park Ji Won took silver 2:18.616, while Dandjinou's teammate, Steven Dubois, claimed bronze in 2:18.679.

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Dandjinou is coming off a breakout season, one that saw him win six individual World Cup medals, including three victories in the 1,500m. He capped off the year by winning the world title in the 1,000m.

In the days leading into Saturday's event, Dandjinou revealed his focus for this season and beyond.

"I want to succeed. My goal is to dominate the sport," he told CBC Sports reporter Devin Heroux. "I feel like I'm coming into my golden time in the sport. Short track is not a guarantee. You can fall. There are so many unknowns and a lot of anxiety. The goal is just to stay in the present."

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