Canadians dominated the second day of the world single distance long-track speedskating championship Friday as Jeremy Wotherspoon and Kristina Groves captured gold medals in Nagano, Japan.

Wotherspoon, of Red Deer, Alta., won the men's 500 metres and also set a rink record by clocking in a combined time of one minute 9.46 seconds. Wotherspoon finished 0.22 seconds ahead of South Korea's Lee Kyou-hyuk and 0.39 in front of bronze medallist Joji Kato of Japan.

Canada's Jeremy Wotherspoon skates his way to the gold medal in the men's 500 metres Friday in Nagano, Japan.
(Itsuo Inouye/Associated Press)

Wotherspoon had already clinched the World Cup title in the 500 in Heerenveen, the Netherlands, on Feb. 23.

The Alberta native also holds the World Cup record in the men's competition with 66 victories.

The victory was especially sweet for Wotherspoon, who sat out all of last season to consider his future in the sport.

"I've been really happy that I've been able to stay consistently at the top," said Wotherspoon, who won nine of 10 500-metre World Cup races this season.

"It just confirms for me that I did the right thing last season taking a break. I was ready to race this weekend and do things right."

Wotherspoon said the key to his win on Friday was a fast start.

"I'd been working on my start and building speed through the first turn the last couple of weeks in practice," said Wotherspoon.

"I didn't think I was at my best in those two aspects at the last World Cups. But today I brought those into the race really well. That's a big reason I was able to do so well."

Winnipeg's Mike Ireland and Vincent Labrie, of St-Romuald, Que., finished sixth and 15th respectively.

On the women's side, Ottawa's Groves continued her successful championship after winning the 3,000 in a rink-record time of 4:05.03 — 0.46 seconds ahead of silver medallist Paulien van Deutekom of the Netherlands. Daniela Anschutz Thoms of Germany took home the bronze in 4:05.76.

'Great thrill'

"It's a great thrill to say world champion," said Groves, who kicked off the medal haul for Canada on Thursday when she earned a bronze medal in the 1,500.

"I think I won the race in the fifth and sixth laps. That's where I gained on the field. I didn't start as fast as some of the other girls. I had to make some ground towards the end."

Groves, 31, has been on the national team for 11 years and has improved every season.

"I [get a] great deal of satisfaction that all the hard work I've done over the years has paid off," said Groves. "It's hard to describe the feelings you have when a race like that happens. Everything comes together at the right time and the right place.

"It's not chance. It's the product of years and years of hard work. This is what we all strive for."

Clara Hughes finished sixth in 4:09.88, while fellow Winnipeg native Brittany Schussler was 13th in 4:17.49.

With files from the Associated Press