Lausanne, Switzerland

To kick-off a spectacular second day of competition at the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships in Salt Lake City, Graeme Fish (CAN) won the grueling Men's 10,000m.

The Men's 10,000m is always one to reward stamina, and in Salt Lake City it turned out to be an all-or-nothing race.

For Kazakhstan’s Dmitry Morozov, Nicola Tumolero of Italy and Aleksandr Rumyantsev (RUS) it turned out be to nothing: the trio started fast but were simply not able to complete the 25 laps of the Utah Olympic Oval.

Canada’s Graeme Fish started fast too.

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Graeme Fish (CAN) at the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships 2020©International Skating Union (ISU)

"I wasn't really focused on skating a world record, I was just doing what I was doing the whole year," the 22-year-old said.

"After my starting time, I knew that I was in the wheelhouse [for a world record] and I didn't know exactly how close I was. But once I started building the high 9s [29 second laps] my coach was saying ‘world record, world record’ and that was when I knew [I had to] keep doing what I did."

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Graeme Fish (CAN) and Ted-Jan Bloemen (CAN) at the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships 2020©International Skating Union (ISU)

Keep doing it he did, posting a blistering 12:33.86 to lower the world’s-best mark set by his team-mate and mentor Ted-Jan Bloemen on the same ice in 2015. Bloemen himself had to settle for silver, 11.14 seconds behind his compatriot.

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Graeme Fish (CAN) at the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships 2020©International Skating Union (ISU)

Fish's victory means that a Dutch skater has not been crowned ISU World Speed Skating Champion in Men's 10,000m for the first time in the 20 occasions that the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championship has been held.