Steven Dubois wins gold in men’s 500m short track speed skating

CITYnews halifax / DIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

By Sportsnet Staff

After a rough start to the Winter Olympics in individual events, Steven Dubois bounced back in a big way on Wednesday.

Dubois, 28, captured Canada’s first short-track gold medal of Milano Cortina 2026 with a win in the men’s 500 metres.

It marked Canada’s fourth gold medal of the Games, and fourth in as many days. Canada now has 14 overall medals, with five coming in short-track.

Canada’s William Dandjinou finished fifth, missing the podium for a third consecutive individual event after leading the World Tour standings for much of the past two seasons.

Melle van ‘t Wout of the Netherlands won silver, while his brother Jens took bronze.

The Dutch brothers grew up in Bracebridge, Ont. before moving to the Netherlands after age-10.

Dubois helped the Canadian mixed relay team win silver on Day 4, but was eliminated in the men’s 1,000-metre heats and finished sixth in the men’s 1,500 metres.

They were unusual results for Dubois, who won four gold medals at last year’s world championships, including a triumph in the 500 metres.

Dubois won three medals at the 2022 Olympics, including bronze in the 500 metres.