ISU

Davide Ghiotto and Michele Malfatti (both ITA) jumped for joy after they won gold and bronze in the men’s 10,000m at the ISU World Cup in Stavanger on Saturday. Ghiotto took a firm lead in the long-distance World Cup ranking, while his team-mate celebrated a career first individual World Cup podium. 

Miho Takagi (JPN) won yet another gold in the 1500m at the ISU World Cup in Stavanger on Saturday. Making amends for a sloppy 1000m on Friday, she made it three out of three in the longer distance in this season’s World Cup. Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong (NED) added another silver medal to her tally after having finished second in the 1000m on Friday too, and Marijke Groenewoud (NED) seized the bronze.

Kjeld Nuis (NED) and teammate Marcel Bosker (NED) completed a Dutch sweep of all four men’s and women’s events on the first day of the ISU World Cup in Stavanger on Friday. Nuis took gold in the 1000m with what he described himself as ‘a terrible race’, before Bosker won the Mass Start, finishing as the sole survivor of an early breakaway.

Jutta Leerdam (NED) and Irene Schouten (NED) made amends for their disappointing results in Beijing two weeks ago on an all-orange Friday night at the ISU World Cup event in Stavanger, Norway. Leerdam bounced back to win 1000m gold while Schouten, relegated to the long distance B Division after finishing eighth in the 3000m in Beijing, won the Stavanger Mass Start convincingly.

On December 3, 2023, the International Skating Union (ISU) will celebrate Ice Skating sports all around the world by launching the second edition of the World Ice Skating Day (WISD). To date, 50 countries on all continents have confirmed their participation in this initiative and will organize a variety of events hand in hand with local skating clubs, rinks and national skating federations in a spirit of inclusion and joy.

After a spectacular start to the season in Asia, the ISU World Cup Speed Skating moves to Europe and Stavanger (NOR) from 1-3 December. The Japanese and Chinese skaters who thrived on home ice in Obihiro and Beijing, hope to continue their winning ways in Norway this weekend. The endurance specialists will look forward to Stavanger with specific interest, because it’s the only World Cup with a 10,000m for men and a 5000m for women instead of the 5000m and 3000m respectively.

Issa Gunji (JPN) led Japan’s impressive medal haul at the first ISU World Cup Speed Skatingin Baselga di Piné, Italy, winning both the men’s 500m and 1000m. Metoděj Jílek (CZE) also seized two individual gold medals in the men’s competition, while Hana Noake (JPN) dominated the women’s field winning gold, silver and bronze at the outdoor rink in northern Italy.

With the international senior season well under way after the first two ISU World Cup Speed Skating events in Asia, the ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating starts this weekend in Baselga de Piné, Italy. The first two of the three-legged Series are qualifying events for the Gangwon 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG), which will be held at the 2018 Gangneung Olympic Oval in Gangwon (KOR) on January 19–February 1, 2024. 

Despite the return of Olympic champion Irene Schouten (NED), Ragne Wiklund (NOR, pictured) took gold in the 3000m at the ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Beijing on Sunday. In the 500m, Erin Jackson (USA) added a second gold of the weekend to make it a three-race winning streak, before an improvised Dutch squad completed the women’s competition with victory in the Team Sprint.

Flying Dutchman Kjeld Nuis (pictured) left Beijing with a 100 percent record after beating Håvard Lorentzen (NOR) in the 1000m on Sunday to add another gold to Friday’s 1500m win. For 2018 Olympic 500m champion, Lorentzen, it was a first World Cup podium in four years, finally being able to skate freely after years of injury trouble. To wrap up the second ISU World Cup weekend of the season, Andrea Giovannini and Daniele Di Stefano made it an Italian one-two in the Mass Start, making amends for an ill-timed attack last week in Obihiro.

“He’s the best in the world right now,” said both Laurent Dubreuil (CAN) and Yuma Murakami (JPN) after they settled for silver and bronze behind Wataru Morishige (JPN, pictured) in the men’s 500m at the ISU World Cup in Beijing on Saturday. Morishige took his second gold of the weekend and his third consecutive in the World Cup. Patrick Roest (NED) made it back-to-back golds in the 5000m, while the US men won the Team Sprint in experimental fashion.

Miho Takagi (JPN) edged out Kimi Goetz (USA) by 0.01s to win her second gold medal of the weekend, ahead of Jutta Leerdam (NED), who had won her previous six 1000m World Cup races. In the Mass Start Marijke Groenewoud (NED) won after a powerful solo effort, with Canada’s Ivanie Blondin and Valérie Maltais (CAN) taking silver and bronze. Olympic champion Irene Schouten (NED) had to settle for fifth place on her return to the track where she celebrated three golds and a bronze at the Beijing 2022 Olympics.

Kjeld Nuis (NED) got back in his Beijing bubble to top the 1500m podium at the second ISU World Cup of the season. In an exciting race against home skater Ning Zhongyan (CHN), the double Olympic champion won in 1:44.80, with Ning taking bronze. Wataru Morishige (JPN) won the 500m to take the sole lead in the World Cup rankings, while Olympic champion Gao Tingyu (CHN) returned to the ice with a fast time in the B Division.

Erin Jackson (USA) got back to winning ways in Beijing on Friday. At the track where she claimed Olympic 500m gold in 2022, the 31-year-old beat compatriot Kimi Goetz (USA) by 0.01s. Miho Takagi (JPN) made it back-to-back golds in the women’s 1500m, with Chinese duo Han Mei and Li Qishi sucking in the inspiration from the home crowd to take silver and bronze. It was Han's first individual World Cup medal of her career.

Speed skating is back in Beijing (CHN), cherishing the memories of the spectacular Winter Olympic Games last year. The second event of the ISU World Cup 2023/24 is the first international speed skating event to be held in the host city since the Games. With three gold medals and two bronze, Irene Schouten (NED) was the speed skating queen of Beijing 2022. After skipping the first World Cup in Obihiro, she’ll get her first taste of international competition this season at her beloved Ice Ribbon Oval.