Speed skating world record holder Lee Sang-hwa is a sure bet to become a two-time Olympic champion in the women’s 500 meters at the upcoming Winter Games in Sochi, her Canadian-born coach said on Thursday.

Kevin Crockett said it was easy to see that the 24-year-old had been “dominating.”

“I don’t expect that to change,” Crockett said on the sidelines of a pre-Olympic function for Winter Games athletes at the National Training Center in northern Seoul. “I don’t expect (the women’s 500 m in Sochi) to even be a close race. I wanted her to go in there and win by so much after the first race (of the two races in the final) that she’s comfortable.”

Lee set her first world record in January this year and then broke it three times in November alone.

Lee has so far overwhelmed her chief rivals, such as Jenny Wolf of Germany and Wang Beixing of China.

Crockett also dispelled concerns about Lee’s health and her Olympic preparations. She decided to skip the Korean national sprint championships this week. Her absence could jeopardize her eligibility for the upcoming world sprint championships in Tokyo.

Lee, who skipped her final World Cup race earlier this month with a cold, could go almost two full months without live competition before Sochi. But Crockett insisted there’s no need to worry.

“I think she’s proven to the Korea Skating Union and the world how great she is,” the coach said. “I call it race management. I think it was too much racing. I just like to play it safe with her.” (Yonhap News)