

Women
BEL
Hanne DESMET
- Date of birth26 Oct 1996
- Height160 CM
- ProfessionAthlete
- HometownMechelen
- Place of birthWilrijk
- Start skatingShe took up short track at age 11 with the Ice Racing Team Antarctica club in Wilrijk, Belgium.
- Club Ice Diamonds Antwerp [IDA]: Belgium
- HobbiesDancing
- LanguagesDutch, English, French
- FamliyPartner Joey Mantia
- CoachJoey Mantia
- Former CoachN/A
- General Interest
- Sport Specific Information
She won the Deurne Sports Trophy as Athlete of the Year at the 2022 Gala of the Sports Trophy in Deurne, Belgium. (pzc.nl, 11 Feb 2023)
She received the 2015 Sports Merit Trophy in Wilrijk, Belgium. (wilrijk.n-va.be, 25 Feb 2016)
She won the Deurne Sports Trophy as Athlete of the Year at the 2022 Gala of the Sports Trophy in Deurne, Belgium. (pzc.nl, 11 Feb 2023)
She received the 2015 Sports Merit Trophy in Wilrijk, Belgium. (wilrijk.n-va.be, 25 Feb 2016)
She became the first short track skater representing Belgium to win a medal at the Olympic Winter Games by claiming bronze in the women's 1000m at the 2022 Games in Beijing. (SportsDeskOnline, 08 Nov 2022; olympics.com, 15 Feb 2022; vrt.be, 11 Feb 2022)
Her brother Stijn. (Athlete, 15 Dec 2023)
She sustained a concussion at the start of the 2023/24 season. (rtv.be, 02 Oct 2023)
The early part of her 2021/22 season was disrupted by a concussion and a problem in her vestibular system [inner ear] that affected her balance. The effects of her concussion prevented her from competing at the 2021 World Cup event in Dordrecht, Netherlands. (hln.be, 11 Feb 2022; hbvl.be, 17 Jan 2022; schaatsen.nl, 25 Nov 2021; sporza.be, 06 Oct 2021)
In December 2020 a back injury forced her to withdraw from the 1000m A final at the International Invitation Cup in Heerenveen, Netherlands. She had struggled with the injury since September 2020. (hbvl.be, 06 Dec 2020; kbsf.be, 22 Oct 2020)
She broke her collarbone in 2016 and missed the start of the 2016/17 season. (Athlete, 05 Dec 2019; radioreflex.be, 09 Mar 2017)
She won bronze in the 1000m at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing. It was Belgium’s first Olympic medal in Short Track (olympics.com, 15 Feb 2022)
Desmet became 1000m World Champion in 2025 in Beijing, China. (isu-skating.com/short-track, 23 November 2025).
Desmet won the European Championships gold medal in the 1000m in both 2022-23 and 2023-24 (isu-skating.com/short-track, 23 November 2025).
She followed her brother into the sport. "My brother always wanted to skate. When I was 11 years old, I followed him and skating did not let us go."
Joey Mantia


