Canadian short trackers show up in Milan as complete force less than one year from Olympics

The standings would tell you that Canada's short track speed skating team has enjoyed a thoroughly successful World Tour season.

But head coach Marc Gagnon said one thing is still missing.

"I have to say that some moments have to be bad to get even better, but the reality is that we didn't get that many bad moments this year," Gagnon said.

It's champagne problems for the Canadians as they arrive at the final World Tour stop of the season in Milan at the same venue that will host competition at the 2026 Olympics. Live coverage from Italy is available on Saturday at 7 a.m. ET and Sunday at 7:30 a.m. ET on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem.

Canada has all but locked up the first-ever team Crystal Globe, which takes every race into account but weighs relays slightly heavier, while star William Dandjinou leads the men's standings.

Now, the Canadians will hit the Milano Duomo ice with targets on their backs, which should provide a solid test run for the Olympics.

WATCH | Montreal's William Dandjinou earns gold in 1,500m short track World Tour final:

Montreal's William Dandjinou earns gold in 1,500m short track World Tour final

"Teams want to beat us right now. We're at the top pretty much everywhere. So we know that, but again, it's not our concern right now. It's to just stay focused on the process, to keep being there and to keep being good, no matter the target that we have," Gagnon said.

Part of the team's renewed success has come from a breakout year in the mixed relay event.

The four-person team of Kim Boutin, Florence Brunelle, Felix Roussel and Steven Dubois won bronze and gold in the first two events of the season in Montreal and has since added another bronze, too. The victory was just Canada's second since the discipline