Valérie Maltais and sprint team earn Canada silver at final speed skating World Cup

Valérie Maltais took silver in the women's mass start at the season-ending World Cup in Inzell, following a bronze in the 3,000 metres, and Canada also won silver in the women's team sprint.

Valérie Maltais won silver in Sunday's women's mass start at the final speed skating World Cup of the season in Inzell, Germany. The 35-year-old from La Baie, Que., had picked up a bronze in the women's 3,000 metres on Saturday. Canada also earned silver in the women's team sprint at the same meet. The national long-track team will stay in Inzell for a training camp before travelling to Italy for the Olympic competition. Key results: - Valérie Maltais finished second in the women's mass start in 8:38.77, behind Marijke Groenewoud of the Netherlands (8:38.32). - Maltais took bronze in the women's 3,000 metres with a time of 3:59.920, edging Kazakhstan's Nadezhda Morozova (4:00.198). - Ottawa's Ivanie Blondin finished the mass start in 8:39.29, a margin of 0.01 seconds behind American Mia Manganello at the line. - Canada won silver in the women's team sprint (Ivanie Blondin, Beatrice Lamarche, Carolina Hiller-Donnelly) in 1:26.84; the Netherlands set a track record to take gold in 1:25.52 and Germany was third in 1:28.45. - Maltais has qualified for her fifth Olympic Games earlier this winter; the women's 3,000 metres at the Olympics is scheduled for Feb. 7. Summary: Canada finished the World Cup season with several podiums, including Maltais's mass-start silver and the women's team sprint silver. The team will remain in Inzell for a week-long training camp and then head to Italy where Olympic racing at the Milano Ice Park temporary oval in Rho runs from Feb. 7-21.