Parkite Casey Dawson has yet to jet off around the world for the ISU World Cup speed skating season, yet he’s already set a record at this past weekend’s USA Long Track Championships, held in Milwaukee.
Dawson lined up in the 5,000m event last Friday against the best in the country and not only came out on top, but shattered the Pettit National Ice Center’s record in the event. Dawson’s record time was 16.15,61, around 12 seconds faster than second place Ethan Cepuran, Dawson’s team pursuit teammate. The record at the center had stood for 16 years.
Dawson competed in four additional events at the championships, which wrapped up Sunday. The event was an excellent lead in to the 24 year old’s upcoming season, which will continue Nov. 15-17 with the Four Continents championships in Japan. Dawson will compete in seven Cup events this season, running from November through March.
“I was pretty close in 2022 to breaking it (5,000m track record) at the Olympic trials,” said Dawson. “It felt really good because the guy that had it before is the current national record holder. … It’s cool to have my name on the track record list there.”
The 5,000m result also qualified Dawson for the national team in that distance for the first time. Dawson will also be on the 1,500m and team pursuit teams. He finished last season ranked number one in the world in the team pursuit for the third-straight year and 40th in the 1,500m.
The fourth Cup and the only U.S. one will return to Milwaukee Jan. 31-Feb. 2. That Cup and Four Continents were moved away from the Utah Olympic Oval this winter. Dawson isn’t disappointed the events got moved; rather, he’s happy for his teammates who grew up in the Midwest.
Dawson feels great heading into the season and will look to use the shattered record as added momentum heading overseas. After Four Continents, the first Cup of the season will be held Nov. 22-24, also in Japan, and the second Nov. 29-Dec.1 in Beijing. There is a lengthy, nearly two-month break between the second and third Cups, where Dawson will likely return home to enjoy the holidays and train more.
“I’m in better shape than I was last year,” said Dawson on his form. “I want to grow or climb the ranks a little bit. I was top 10 in the 5K last year, so I want to maybe crack the top five, maybe at least once or twice this year. In the team pursuit, our main focus this year is trying to win out worlds. We want to maintain our strong dominance in the team pursuit.”
Dawson races the team pursuit with Cepuran and Emery Lehman. The trio would also like to medal at the world championships in March, which they haven’t yet done. Dawson and Lehman were part of the bronze medal-winning team at the 2022 Beijing Games.
The team ramped up their season preparations yet again with the 2026 Milan Games on the horizon. They upped their biking, dry-land and strength training in the offseason, training in Salt Lake and Park City. Dawson anticipates another hard offseason ahead before the team and individuals final push to Milan.
Dawson moved back to Park City from Salt Lake over the summer and said he is loving being back in town. His parents still reside in town, too.
Dawson’s team has their eyes on the entire field, specifically the Dutch and Norwegian skaters as some of their likely stiffest competition this winter. He also noted the Italians as up-and-comers. Dawson wants to remain strong throughout the season and peak at the year-end world championships.
“We need to come out the gates strong and try to be on top from day one,” added Dawson. “We want to assert our dominance in the team pursuit from the first World Cup. As far as the 5K goes, I definitely want to have a strong performance, too. There’s an A and B division for the 5K, and I ended up in the A division last year and I want to stay in the A division. You can always get bumped out of A division if you’re in last place.”
The first Cup result will also determine seeding for those to follow. Not every Cup has a team pursuit race, so doing well at the first Cup where there is one is crucial.
Dawson hopes he and his team are in Olympic shape this Cup season. These races will help them build form heading into a truncated season before the next Games. The Olympics are the biggest event in speed skating, and Dawson also finished 28th in the 1,500m in 2022.
To track Dawson and his team’s results this season, see the ISU’s website. Four Continents will be available on Peacock and the ISU Youtube channel, and the first two Cups will be on U.S. Speedskating’s Youtube channel.