Heerenveen / Switzerland

The ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships 2015 will take place in Heerenveen (NED) from February 12 to 15, 2015. For the first time in the history of the ISU these Championships will not take place in March, so the non-Olympic Speed Skating season resembles the schedule of the Olympic season.  The other novelty this season is the fact that the qualifications for the Championships are no longer based on the ranking following the ISU World Cup Speed Skating Final, but on the results of the ISU World Cup Speed Skating events that took place in November and December 2014.

The maximum quota per country is three in the 500m, 1000m, 1500m ladies and men, 3000m ladies and 5000m men. In the 5000m ladies, 10,000m men and Mass Start the quota is reduced to two. In the Team Pursuit only one team per country can be entered.

The Championships will skate off on Thursday at 18:00 with the 3000m Ladies and Men’s longest distance with the 10,000m.  Same start time on Friday with the Ladies 1000m and then Men’s 1500m followed by the ladies 5000m and the Team Pursuit for the men will conclude the day.  Saturday’s competition starts at 13.00 with the 5000m Men, the Ladies 500m and Men’s 1000m followed by the second 500m for ladies and finally the ladies’ Team Pursuit. The Program will conclude on Sunday with the Men’s 500m, 1500m ladies and the second 500m for men. During the last hour the Men and Ladies Mass Start races will take place in that order.

With 11 gold medals each, German Ladies Anni Friesinger and Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann hold the largest number of ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships titles. Behind them Martina Sábliková has 8 gold medals, just as many as the male record holder Sven Kramer (NED) who is only entered in the 5000m and Team Pursuit this time. Claudia Pechstein (GER) has a record of 25 medals, 5 gold, 12 silver and 8 bronze. She was the first World Champion and made the 5000m podium 13 times in 15 editions. Bob de Jong (NED) has a record of 20 medals of different colours, 7 gold, 8 silver and 5 bronze. He made the 10,000m podium 13 times as well; he won the title 5 times but will be absent for the first time.  Martina Sábliková (CZE) holds the record for winning the 5000m title six times in a row (from 2007).

Ladies

Track Records per distance

Sochi 2014 OWG Champion

2014/15 World Cup leader

2014/15 Fastest qualifying time

World record holder

500m 37.60

2x500m 75.32

Sang-Hwa Lee

(KOR)

Sang-Hwa Lee

(KOR)

Sang-Hwa Lee (KOR)

37.69

Sang-Hwa Lee (KOR)  36.36;  

double 74.19 Heather Richardson

1000m

1:14.63

Hong Zhang

(CHN)

Qishi Li

(CHN)

Heather Richardson (USA)

1:14.63

Brittany Bowe (USA) 1:12.58

1500m

1:53.31

Jorien ter Mors

(NED)

Ireen Wüst

(NED)

H. Richardson (USA)

1:53.87

Cindy Klassen (CAN) 1:51.79

3000m

3:58.68

Ireen Wüst

(NED)

Martina Sáblíková

(CZE)

Carlijn Achtereekte (NED)

4:00.80

Cindy Klassen (CAN) 3:53.34

 

5000m

6:49.31

Martina Sáblíková (CZE)

Claudia Pechstein (GER)

7:07.77

Martina Sáblíková (CZE) 6:42.66

 

Team Pursuit

2:59.65

NED

NED

NED

2:59.69

CAN

2:55.79

 

Mass Start

N/A

Ivanie Blondin

(CAN)

-

-

 

Men

Track Records per distance

Sochi 2014 OWG Champion

2014/15 World Cup leader

2014/15 Fastest qualifying time

World record holder

500m 34.31

2x500m 69.06

Michel Mulder (NED)

Pavel Kulizhnikov (RUS)

Pavel Kulizhnikov (RUS) 34.58

Jeremy Wotherspoon (CAN) 34.03;

double 68.31

1000m 1:08.25

Stefan Groothuis (NED)

Pavel Kulizhnikov (RUS)

Pavel Kulizhnikov (RUS) 1:08.77

Shani Davis (USA)

1:06.42

1500m 1:44.48

Zbigniew Bródka (POL)

Jan Szymanski (POL)

Jan Szymanski (POL) 1:45.92

Shani Davis (USA)

1:41.04

5000m 6:10.37

Sven Kramer (NED)

Bob de Jong (NED)

Sven Kramer (NED) 6:12.74

Sven Kramer (NED)

6:03:32

10,000m 12:45.09

Jorrit Bergsma (NED)

 “

Bob de Jong (NED) 13:17.51

Sven Kramer (NED)

12:41.69

Team Pursuit 3:39.76

NED

KOR

KOR

3:43.68

NED

3:35.60

Mass Start

N/A

Seung-Hoon Lee (KOR)

-

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