A pulsating ladies’ 500m final was the highlight of a dramatic final day full of home success as the 2018-19 Short Track speed skating World Cup season ended amid jubilant scenes in Torino, Italy.
Thomas Krol (NED) won his career first World Single Distances Championships gold with an impressive track record in the 1500m in Inzell on Sunday, before Joey Mantia (USA) brought four days of thrilling competition to a close by retaining his Mass Start title with a spectacular display of wit and power in the final stages.
On an emotion-fuelled final day of the ISU World Single Distances Championships, Ireen Wüst (NED) won the 1500m in a track record time and tearfully dedicated her title to her friend and former World Allround champion Paulien van Deutekom, who died in January. Wüst's compatriot Irene Schouten won her career second world title in the Mass Start.
Olympic silver medalist Shoma Uno of Japan rallied in the Free Skating, coming from fourth place, to strike gold in the Men’s event at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 in Anaheim (USA) Saturday.
Olympic silver medalists Wenjing Sui/Cong Han of China clinched victory in the Pairs event at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 in Anaheim (USA) on Saturday by just 0.06 points, overtaking Canadians Kirsten Moore-Towers/Michael Marinaro. Cheng Peng/Yang Jin, also from China, earned the bronze medal.
World No.1 Kim Gun Woo led the Korean Short Track speed skating team to yet another day of golden glory as the World Cup in Torino, Italy started in the same manner as last weekend’s edition in Dresden, Germany finished.
Martina Valcepina shook off the expectation of being Italy’s poster girl and delivered the 500m gold Torino was hoping for as the final Short Track speed skating World Cup of the season got under way on Saturday.
The Dutch dominated the men’s podium in Inzell on Saturday as Kai Verbij (NED) clinched the Netherlands’ first individual gold medal of the World Single Distances Championships. The European Sprint champion won the 1000m, with compatriots Thomas Krol and Kjeld Nuis collecting silver and bronze, before Jorrit Bergsma (NED) took gold in the 10,000m narrowly ahead of runner-up Patrick Roest (NED), with only bronze medallist Danila Smerikov (RUS) preventing an all-orange afternoon.
In a triumph for age and experience, veteran Martina Sáblíková (CZE) managed to fend off the challenge of 23-year-old Olympic champion Esmee Visser (NED) to win her tenth consecutive 5000m world title in Inzell on Saturday. Also on Day 3 of racing at the World Single Distances Championships, the Ladies’ 1000m was won by Brittany Bowe (USA), who left 500m aces Vanessa Herzog (AUT) and Nao Kodaira (JPN) behind to top the podium for the first time since 2015.
Rika Kihira of Japan skated off with the gold in an eventful Ladies’ Free Skating at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 in Anaheim (USA) with the standings turning upside down. Kazakhstan’s Elizabet Tursynbaeva pulled up from sixth to claim the silver and Mai Mihara of Japan surged from eighth to snatch the bronze medal.
World silver medalists Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue (USA) captured the Rhythm Dance at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 in Anaheim (USA) on Friday. Teammates Madison Chock/Evan Bates (USA) and Canada’s 2018 World bronze medalists Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje follow closely in second and third place respectively.
Canadian Champions Kirsten Moore-Towers/Michael Marinaro edged Olympic silver medalists Wenjing Sui/Cong Han of China for a narrow lead in the Pairs Short Program at the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships 2019 in Anaheim (USA) on Friday. Cheng Peng/Yang Jin, also from China, came third.
Ruslan Murashov (RUS) stepped out of the shadow of his feted countryman Pavel Kulizhnikov to win the first world title of his career on Thursday. The 26-year-old took gold in the 500m at the World Single Distances Championships in Inzell, while world record holder Kulizhnikov could only finish seventh. To conclude the second day of competition, Netherlands won gold in the Men’s Team Pursuit, taking revenge on Norway for the semi-final defeat at last year’s Olympic Winter Games.
After racing unbeaten in the 500m since November 2016, sprint queen Nao Kodaira (JPN) finally lost her crown to Vanessa Herzog (AUT) at the ISU World Single Distances Championships on Thursday. The Austrian challenger skated a personal best and a track record (37.12) on the rink in Inzell that she calls home. In the Team Pursuit, Japanese honour was restored when Japan ladies defeated the Netherlands by 0.42 seconds to take home gold.
Today Douwe de Vries from the Netherlands was elected to the ISU Athletes Commission as the Speed Skating representative.