Flying Dutchman Kjeld Nuis 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.
Going out in the fourth of 10 pairings in the 1000m, Lorentzen watched as his time of 1 minute and 8.99s remained on top of the leaderboard when Nuis took to the ice in the final match-up. The Dutchman smashed the Norwegian’s mark by 0.88s, but to Lorentzen it still felt like victory.
As he recalled: “My last World Cup medal was a 500m bronze at the third World Cup in 2019 in Tomaszów Mazowiecki.” Lorentzen did manage to claim a bronze medal at the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing, but since his Olympic 500m triumph in PyeongChang, he has been fighting hip and back problems - until the current season.
Håvard Lorentzen's (NOR) silver at the ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Beijing, China was his first World Cup podium in four years © ISU
“The last four years I've been struggling to find a rhythm and timing [in] my skating - then it's hard to go fast at this level,” he said.
“It's been frustrating because I can see what I do wrong, I just can't fix it. Now I feel free on the ice.”
Nuis also felt liberated, overcoming an Olympic demon. After failing to qualify for the Olympic 1000m, the Dutchman had to settle for 1500m gold in Beijing. It hurst to miss out on a chance to repeat his 2018 Olympic double, however.
“I just thought: these are my Games,” he said. “I’m still convinced I would have won that [1000m] two years ago. I was better than ever, and I had to sit in the stands and watch.”
Having already won Friday’s 1500m, Nuis left the Ice Ribbon with a 100 per cent record, also counting his Olympic 1500m victory. “Three in three,” he laughed. “I did not have [as] good a feeling as I did before Friday’s race, but once on the ice it even went better. I hit every stroke well and the speed came easy. To win by 0.88s … it’s been a while since the gap was so big.”
Is Nuis worried he’s peaked too early in the season, though? “That’s something I don’t believe in. We’ve trained all summer and now we get a chance to do races, to compete with the best in the world. I hate skipping races. Racing at the highest level can only make you better.”
Double gold medalist Kjeld Nuis (NED) celebrates at the ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Beijing, China © ISU
Ning Zhongyan (CHN) claimed bronze, adding to the 1500m bronze and the Team Sprint silver he collected earlier this weekend.
“I feel really good,” Ning said. “My family is from Harbin and they came over so there’s so many people cheering. It’s been a great weekend.”
Ning climbed to second place in the World Cup standings, behind Nuis, with last week’s winner Masaya Yamada (JPN) dropping to third after coming in 17th on Sunday.
Ning Zhongyan (CHN), who took 1000m bronze on home ice © ISU
Italian duo ‘take revenge’ in Mass Start
In the Mass Start, Andrea Giovannini (ITA) and Daniele Di Stefano (ITA) left the rest of the field for dead with a blistering final sprint.
Timothy Loubineaud (FRA) made a solo breakaway halfway through the race but Marcel Bosker (NED) controlled the gap and the rest of the pack closed it with about three laps to go.
Giovannini and Di Stefano had been biding their time, and with one-and-a-half laps to go, Di Stefano struck.
Giovannini explained: “Last week we were too early because the lap counter was wrong. So we were very angry and we wanted to take revenge today. Daniele makes the pace to set me up for the sprint.”
Italians Andrea Giovannini (right) and Daniele Di Stefano make amends in the Mass Start © ISU
The experienced Italian followed his younger team-mate, and managed to take his speed into the final straight to claim the fifth Mass Start win of his World Cup career. Di Stefano held off Bart Swings (BEL) to earn second – his first-ever World Cup podium.
Bart Hoolwerf (NED), who won last week, finished fourth to keep the lead in the World Cup rankings.
“The Italians were just too fast today,” Swings admitted. “They’ve done a real good job. I had positioned well, but my legs just were not fast enough today.”
Where to watch
Viewers will be able to watch the World Cup sessions via their national broadcaster/channel.
For countries where there are no broadcasters, the ISU will offer a live stream with English commentary on the Skating ISU YouTube Channel. You will find the full list on the Where to watch webpage here.
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ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating Series events 2023/24:
Nov 10 - 12, 2023 Obihiro /JPN
Nov 17 - 19, 2023 Beijing /CHN
Dec 01 - 03, 2023 Stavanger /NOR
Dec 08 - 10, 2023 Tomaszów Mazowiecki /POL
Jan 26 - 28, 2024 Salt Lake City /USA
Feb 02 - 04, 2024 Québec /CAN
About ISU World Cup Speed Skating Series
The ISU World Cup Speed Skating is a Series of Speed Skating competitions which have taken place annually since 1984. The series comprises six events (four during an Olympic season), with A Division and B Division races. Skaters can earn points at each competition, and the Skater with the most points on a given distance at the end of the series is the World Cup winner in that distance. The four World Cup Competitions held from November to December serve as qualifying events for entry quotas at the ISU European Championships, and the ISU Four Continents Championships. The whole series of six events serves as qualifying events for the World Single Distances Championships, and/or the World Sprint and Allround Speed Skating Championships.
World Cup titles are awarded in 500m, 1000m, 1500m, combined 5000m/10,000m, and Mass Start for men, and 500m, 1000m, 1500m, the combined 3000m/5000m, and Mass Start for women. Both genders also compete for the World Cup titles in Team Pursuit and Team Sprint. New in the 2023/24 program is the Mixed Gender Relay over six laps, in which teams of one man and one woman compete.
(For full explanation of this season’s ISU World Cup (entry rules, formats, qualifying, and prizes: https://www.isu.org/speed-skating/rules/ssk-communications/31562-isu-communication-2587/file)
