ISU

Around 15 minutes after his sister Hanne had made history for Belgium by winning the country’s first ever major international Short Track gold medal, her brother Stijn Desmet (BEL) added a second.

Short Track never loses its ability to surprise. After she won the 1500m and 500m in commanding style on Saturday, almost nobody in the Hala Olivia, Gdansk, would have placed a bet against Suzanne Schulting (NED) triumphing in the 1000m. But then came Belgian Hanne Desmet. She stormed from third place to overtake Schulting and Xandra Velzeboer (NED) on the line with a mighty burst of speed.

Suzanne Schulting (NED) arrived at the ISU European Short Track Championships 2023 in Gdansk, Poland with the declared intention of returning home with five gold medals. She duly completed parts one and two of her mission on Saturday in singular style, triumphing in both the 1500m and 500m, despite some stern challenges.

The ISU European Short Track Championships 2023 in Gdansk, Poland always looked likely to produce some new star names – and Saturday at the Hala Olivia did not disappoint. 21-year-old Jens van ’t Wout (NED) won his first major tournament gold in the 1500m, before adding silver in the 500m to continue his rise to the top of Short Track.

The ISU Skating Awards 2023 show, taking place in Zurich (SUI) on February 5th in collaboration with Art on Ice, will be presented by the star-studded duo Johnny Weir and Elma Smit. The two hosts will combine their expertise in the sports and entertainment industries to deliver an exceptional Awards ceremony: behind-the-scenes interviews of world-famous Figure Skaters, breathtaking performances on the ice and live musical acts by international superstars are all on the program.

The 2023 ISU European Short Track Speed Skating Championships take place in Gdansk (POL) from 13-15 January 2023, and the question everyone will be asking is: can anybody stop the Dutch? Skaters from the Netherlands are bossing women’s racing on a world level, not just the European one, and a new generation of men are threatening to do the same in their disciplines, too.

Fresh coaches, an influx of youthful talent, and a supportive atmosphere are helping turn what was a strong if aging China Short Track Speed Skating squad into one that is looking to the future with relish.

After the first half of the Speed Skating season, Miho Takagi (JPN) comfortably leads the Women’s 1500m World Cup ranking. Collecting silverware on the ice may seem to be business as usual for the Japanese superstar, but Takagi seriously contemplated hanging up her blades after winning three Olympic silvers and a gold in Beijing last season. She eventually decided to go on, but chose a different path, leaving the Japanese national squad to team up with former Japan national coach Johan de Wit (NED) as her private trainer.

“It was a beautiful Netherlands-Norway battle,” said Patrick Roest (NED) after he retained the European Allround title in a tight dual with home favorite Sander Eitrem (NOR) in Hamar, Norway. The Dutchman almost blew his chances with a mistake at the final crossing with his Norwegian rival in the 1500m, but managed to regroup in a thrilling final 10,000m.

Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong (NED) took her third consecutive European Allround title in Hamar on Sunday. Building a solid lead with distance victories in the 500m and the 1500m, the 27-year-old Dutchwoman managed to keep in touch with Marijke Groenewoud (NED) and Ragne Wiklund (NOR) in the long distances to seize the overall classification.

“Winning a sprint combination is about skating four distances and you can’t afford any mistakes,” agreed the Dutch gold and silver ISU European Sprint Championship medalists on Saturday, for very different reasons. Merijn Scheperkamp (NED) said it with a big smile after he bagged his career first European Sprint title in Hamar; Hein Otterspeer (NED) said it in agony after blowing his title chances with a near-crash in the second 500m on Saturday.

“This was one of the goals on my list for this year,” Jutta Leerdam (NED) said after she successfully defended her European Sprint title in Hamar, Norway. The 24-year-old Dutchwoman finished the tournament in style, winning both the 500m and the 1000m on Saturday.

With only 0.995 points separating the first seven skaters in the ranking, the men’s Sprint tournament at the ISU European Speed Skating Championships in Hamar (NOR) is very tight at the halfway point. Hein Otterspeer (NED) leads by just 0.14s after making amends for a bumpy 500m with a solid win in the 1000m.

Jutta Leerdam (NED) was in a league of her own on the first day of the women’s European Sprint Championships in Hamar, Norway. After coming second in the 500m, the defending champion crushed the field in the 1000m to take a 0.590-point lead over Femke Kok (NED) at the halfway point. Austrian Vanessa Herzog follows in third place, 1.750 points behind the leader.

This year, the ISU European Speed Skating Championships at the Hamar Vikingskipet  (January 06-08, 2023) in Norway, will be held in an Allround and Sprint format this season. Two years ago, all four titles went to the Netherlands. In Hamar, Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong and Patrick Roest will defend their Allround titles, while Jutta Leerdam hopes to retain her Sprint crown. The Men’s Sprint Champion Thomas Krol did not qualify at the Dutch trials, leaving the title up for grabs in an open field.