Photo L: Matthew Mitchell of Fort St. John Speed Skating Club competes in Italy, courtesy Fort St. John Speed Skating Club Facebook. Photo R:courtesy Peace Wapiti Speed Skating Club Facebook.

By Erika Rolling

Speed Skating

Peace Region speed skaters competing in national and international competitions

Feb 7, 2025 | 11:53 AM

Four local athletes are hitting the track this weekend in both Canada and overseas in Europe.

International competition

Fort St. John speed skater Matthew Mitchell is set to compete Saturday, February 8, 2025, in Collabo, Italy at the ISU World Junior Speed Skating Championships.

Mitchell competed from February 1-3 in long track speed skating in the same place for the ISU Junior World Cup 3; where he finished 8^th in the Junior Men’s Mass Start, 8^th in the Semi Final and 10^th in the Final. He also finished 8^th in the Junior Men’s 3000m and 7^th in the Junior Men’s Team Sprint.

He earned his spot on the national team at the Canadian Long Track Junior National Championships which were held in Fort St. John, B.C. December 13–15, 2024.

National competition

Also this weekend, three members of Grande Prairie’s Peace Wapiti Speed Skating will be in Fort St. John to compete in the 2025 Canadian Youth Long Track National Championships.

This event is for youth aged 11-13, there will be youth athletes from across Canada for this competition weekend.

Competitors who qualified for competition with the Peace Wapiti Speed Skating Club are; Ola Gawlak, Autumn Munn, and Chase Krawetz.