Canadian speed skaters win 3 gold medals at short track World Cup in Montreal

After winning his first individual medal in the 1,000 metres last week at the Maurice Richard Arena, Montreal's William Dandjinou secured his very first gold medal at the ISU short track speed skating World Cup on Saturday in the 1,500 race.

The Montreal native, who won bronze last week, jumped out to a quick lead and was never caught, finishing in two minutes 21.78 seconds to claim his first World Cup victory.

The 22-year-old Dandjinou had qualified for the final round with a late pass in the semifinals at the expense of his compatriot Pascal Dion, who was relegated to the B final as a result.

In the B final, Dion finished in fifth place.

WATCH l Dandjinou skates to gold on home ice: 

Jordan Pierre-Gilles, of Sherbooke, Que., added to Canada's medal haul with a gold in the 500 final, winning the first individual event of his career in a time of 40.349.

Steven Dubois was leading the race when Chinese skater Liu Shaoang caught up with him, but both skaters fell to end their medal hopes. Chinese skaters Liu Shaolin and Lin Xiaojun took advantage and reached the podium.

In the semifinal, Maxime Laoun lost his balance, preventing him from advancing to the A final.

WATCH l Pierre-Gilles tops men's 500m podium: 

Canada's female skaters didn't win any individual medals last week. But Rikki Doak, of Fredericton, and Danaé Blais, of Chateauguay, Que., made sure history didn't repeat itself by winning gold in the 500 and bronze in the 1,500, respectively.

In both cases, the Canadian skaters benefited from penalties given to their competitors to improve their positions.

Doak initially finished in second place, but Dutch skater Xandra Velzeboer, who thought she had won, was penalized and disqualified. Dutch skater Selma Poutsma and