#ShortTrackSkating

Van ‘t Wout grabs double gold on dominant Dutch day in Dresden

Jens van ‘t Wout (NED) is skating like a dream at the moment. “He is so smooth, it is like he is flying,” said his teammate Sven Roes (NED) – and he was the star turn at the ISU European Short Track Championships at the JOYNET Arena, Dresden on Saturday. 

The 23-year-old won the 1500m in the opening final of the event – his second European Championship gold in this distance – and then backed it up with victory, in a chaotic 500m, to show that he is currently Europe’s finest male skater.

Jens van ’t Wout (NED) leads the pack in the Men’s 1500m ahead of Daan Kos (NED), Furkan Akar (TUR) and Luca Spechenhauser (ITA)  in the European Short Track Championships in Dresden, Germany © ISU

Dutch lead way in 1500m

Jens van t’ Wout executed a perfect race in the longest distance of the weekend.

He led for the first few laps, pursued by promising young teammate Daan Kos (NED). Halfway through the race, Luca Spechenhauser (ITA) took out Roberts Kruzbergs (LAT) with a mistimed pass, leaving the two Dutch racers, and their teammate Roes, left at the front.

It looked like it would be an all-orange podium, but Stijn Desmet (BEL) got ahead of Kos late. 

Van ‘t Wout looked a cut above the rest, physically and technically, to grab gold; Roes (NED) and Desmet (BEL) shared the silver, clocking the same time in hundredths of seconds.

(L-R) Silver medalist Sven Roes (NED); gold medalist Jens van ’t Wout (NED); and Stijn Desmet (BEL) also takes silver in the Men’s 1500m in the European Short Track Championships in Dresden, Germany © ISU

“It was heavy, it was fun,” said Van ‘t Wout. “With three Dutch at the front, you don’t want to screw with each other too much. 

“I feel physically very fit right now, but it is Short Track. I’ve had a lot of times where I feel strong, and I haven’t won the race. My fitness is good, but I just have to race smart.”

The Dutchman has already won a gold at Short Track World Tour level this season, which includes racers from the dominant nations of Korea, China and Canada, and he lies third in the overall world rankings. His superiority here was evident.  

“It is obvious that Jens is feeling very good,” said silver medallist Desmet. “I was not close enough today to threaten him. The efficiency on the ice he has is really nice. He is skating super smoothly, so he is able to lead for a lot of the race, and still have energy for the last lap. It’s hard to beat guys like that.”

Nevertheless, it was Roes who was perhaps the happiest man in Dresden on Saturday. He has suffered two seasons of injury agony: first a hip operation, then back problems.

Jens van ’t Wout and Sven Roes (NED) take the gold and silver medals in the Men’s 1500m at he ISU European Short Track Championships 2025 Dresden, Germany © ISU

“This is really special,” he said. “It’s silver, but it really does feel like gold, after everything I’ve been through, physically and mentally. This is the cherry on top of the cake. 

“During the lap of honour, I thought about those moments [when] I didn’t know if I would ever get back to this level. I’m a very emotional guy. When you can’t do what you love most, it breaks your heart. I’ve  thought about quitting so many times.

“I’m glad I kept on pushing. It’s amazing to be back.”

Van ‘t Wout has helped Roes with his journey. “He is big motivation for me,” said Roes. “We have trained together for a long time. We make each other strong.”

Van ‘t Wout emerges victorious from 500m mayhem 

The 500m provided further remarkable Short Track scenes. 21-year-old powerhouse Michal Niewinski (POL) went out like a rocket, building a significant lead on the favourite, Van ‘t Wout. The Netherlands racer kept his cool however, reeling in the Pole lap by lap. 

He finally went for the pass, and the two came together. Niewinski fell, swivelling dramatically, with his skate just narrowly missing the stomach of Pietro Sighel (ITA).

Van ‘t Wout crossed the line first ahead of Sighel in second, and Quentin Fercoq (FRA), who was third. After much judge deliberation, the Pole was deemed to be at fault for the collision, and the Dutchman had his second win of the event.

Pietro Sighel (ITA), takes silver, Jens van ’t Wout (NED), gold, and Quentin Fercoq (FRA), bronze  in the Men 500m Final in Dresden, Germany © ISU

Sighel was relieved to avoid Niewinski’s blade. “It was my best move of the day,” he said. “I almost fell down. I don’t know how I could stay up. Without that, maybe I could have tried to pass Jens. After the contact, he lost speed, but I couldn’t do it.”

The Italian won all three distances at last season’s European Championships, but was content with a medal here. “It is enough for today for me, I am happy. I won everything last year and Jens is almost there to win everything this year. He is so good.

“This year I have another goal, we have my first (World Cup) race in Italy. It’s a test event for the Olympics and it’s really important for me and the team.” 

Fercoq was also satisfied. “It was a tough race, not my best, but there’s a medal at the end of it, so I will take it. My season didn’t start too well, so I’m happy to have this. It has been a long way to get here. We are starting to build something for next year.

“Jens is very strong at the moment, so hard to beat. He is always in front of us, so for us we just want to catch him. He is the goal now, the man to beat.”

They will have another chance to try again tomorrow in the 1000m, as the ISU European Short Track Championships continues in Dresden on Sunday.

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