ISU

Following the conclusion of the following ISU World Cup Speed Skating Competitions designated for qualification of event quota places for the XXII Olympic Winter Games 2018:

Colombia will make its Speed Skating Olympic debut at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang. A record number of 27 nations will participate in Speed Skating events at the Gangneung Olympic Oval.

Olympic seasons tend to be a little different form regular seasons in speed skating. Suit colors can suddenly become a topic of discussion, especially if a team claims that blue makes you skate faster than red.

As 2017 comes to a close the ISU President, Mr. Jan Dijkema, has a special message for all skating friends.

I was eight years old and I was doing swimming but me and my sister didn't really like it and we told my dad we wanted to do something else, so he took us to the ice rink. In Australia we obviously don't have any frozen lakes or anything like that.

According to the Team Event Qualification System for the Figure Skating Team Event, the following Teams have qualified for the Figure Skating Team Event at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, in PyeongChang / KOR (in order of qualification).

Qualification of event quota places for the Olympic Winter Games 2018 based on Special Olympic Qualification Classification (SOQC)

Ted-Jan Bloemen (CAN) wrapped up the Salt Lake City World Cup with a superb world record in the Men’s 5000m. The Canadian blew away the previous best of 6 minutes, 3.32 seconds, set by Sven Kramer (NED) in Calgary 10 years ago, as he finished strongly in 6:01.86. It was the fourth world record this weekend at the Utah Olympic Oval.

Natalia Voronina (RUS) won the second World Cup gold medal of her career and broke her own national record in the Ladies 3000m at the Utah Olympic Oval in Salt Lake City on Sunday.

After his 1500m world record on Saturday, Denis Yuskov (RUS) concluded his Salt Lake City World Cup campaign with the 1000m gold on Sunday. Training partner Koen Verweij (NED) took silver again and Pavel Kulizhnikov (RUS) clinched the bronze.

Nao Kodaira (JPN) blamed high air pressure for her missing a 500m world record on Friday, but she made amends by skating the fastest ever Ladies 1000m in 1 minute, 12.09 seconds in Salt Lake City on Sunday.

Francesca Lollobrigida (ITA) surprised the pack and herself when she pulled off a breakaway win in the Ladies Mass Start that gives her a clear lead in the World Cup rankings.

Lee Seung-Hoon (KOR) added another Mass Start gold to his tally on Saturday. The 29-year-old Korean edged out Livio Wenger (SUI) and Bart Swings (BEL) in the final sprint, to leave them with silver and gold respectively.

While Nao Kodaira (JPN) rules the Ladies 500m, her compatriot Miho Takagi is queen in the ‘Race of the Kings’. On Saturday in Salt Lake City, Takagi maintained her immaculate record in the 1500m World Cup, taking her fourth gold this season. Marrit Leenstra (NED) and Yekaterina Shikhova (RUS) took silver and bronze respectively.

After falling agonizingly short a week ago, Denis Yuskov (RUS) lived up to expectations and wrote his name in the history books when he skated 1 minute and 41.02 seconds in the 1500m in Salt Lake City to take gold and shave 0.02 seconds off the world record.