SPEED SKATING

Hoolwerf (NED) edges out Swings (BEL) as Stolz (USA) leaves Asia undefeated

01 Dec 2024

#SpeedSkating

Throwing his skate at the line in extremis, Bart Hoolwerf (NED) pipped Mass Start master Bart Swings to gold in Beijing on Sunday. Before the spectacular pack-style race, Jordan Stolz (USA) had extended his undefeated ISU World Cup streak this season to eight with gold in the second 500m at the Ice Ribbon. Jenning de Boo (NED) finished 0.08s adrift, but found redemption with gold in the Team Sprint alongside Stefan Westenbroek and Tim Prins.

Powerful final lap seals Hoolwerf gold

“It’s all about timing,” concluded Bart Hoolwerf (NED) after his Mass Start gold. The 26-year-old Dutchman took his career fifth World Cup gold, leaving Bart Swings (BEL) and Daniele Di Stefano (ITA) unable to match his final lap after an eventful 16-lap race.

Bart Hoolwerf (NED) took gold in the Mass Start by just 0.03s from Bart Swings (BEL) at the end of a thrilling pack-style race © ISU

The referees needed a photo finish to see who had won, but Hoolwerf had no doubts as he threw his hand up in the air after crossing the line before victory was confirmed by just 0.03s.

“Somehow, that might be a sprinters’ thing, I just feel if I got it or not when it’s a close finish. When I throw my foot out, I always look at the line.”

The Dutchman got a little help from teammate Jorrit Bergsma (NED) in the final.

“[Bergsma] was not fully fit and skipped the 5000m to save himself for the Mass Start,” Hoolwerf explained.

“He told me that he would go for some intermediate sprint points and then control the race for me to sprint in the final. That gave me a lot of confidence."

Despite that confidence, Hoolwerf had to dig deep.

“I came from far behind. Lee [Lee Seung Hoon, KOR] attacked at 700m, which I hadn’t expected, so there was a small gap and I had to chase. Swings came on my inside an I had a moment of doubt, losing quite a few meters.

“But after that, I had enough space and something to chase after. I could choose my own lines, and the guys in front of me went into the corner together, so they couldn’t do that.

“I skated one of my fastest final laps ever in 23.2s, that’s about 0.3s faster than the rest. That’s what makes the difference.”

After last week’s bronze medal, Hoolwerf climbs to the top of the Mass Start ranking. Di Stefano (ITA) retains second place and Swings (BEL) moves up to third.

Swings, left, had no answer to Hoolwerf's blistering final lap; Daniele Di Stefano (ITA), right, took bronze to retain second place in the World Cup rankings © ISU

For Di Stefano the ranking was more important than anything else.

“We [himself and teammate Andrea Giovannini, who finished fourth] got close. It is very difficult, but it's OK for now. I really want to focus on the overall ranking,” he said.

Stolz leaves Asia undefeated

Before the Mass Start, Jordan Stolz (USA) concluded his three-week Asian Tour undefeated. After four gold medals at the Four Continents Championships in Hachinohe two weeks ago, the American phenomenon won all eight World Cup races he competed in at the Nagano and Beijing World Cup events, finishing with a narrow victory in the second Beijing 500m.

Jordan Stolz (USA) leaves Japan and China having won 12 races out of 12, but admitted that fatigue might have set in had the Asian tour continued another week © ISU

Stolz was not able to match the track record of 34.27s he set on Friday, clocking the exact same time with which Jenning de Boo (NED) seized silver two days ago. The Dutchman was not able to match his previous time either, stopping the clock in 34.47s.

“This could have been the day [to beat Stolz],” De Boo said. “But you still have to do it and my race was just not so good. Well, silver is not too bad either.”

De Boo was 0.01 faster than Stolz in the full lap and skated the fastest full lap of the field. He knows what to work on if he wants to beat his American nemesis: “It’s the opener where I’ve got work to do.”

Stolz felt that the Asian Tour had just about lasted long enough, before the fatigue could have led to an unexpected defeat.

“I could maybe have managed another weekend, but that's about it. It feels like it's catching up [with me] right now, especially in the longer distances. In the 500m, I can still force a good one, but the 1500m is different.”

Jenning de Boo (NED), left, was left frustrated by another missed opportunity to beat the American; Kim Jun-Ho (KOR), right, won his first medal of the season with 500m bronze © ISU

Kim Jun-Ho (KOR) seized bronze in a time of 34.67s to win his first World Cup medal of the season.

With Stolz on top, De Boo retained second place in the 500m World Cup ranking. Tatsuya Shinhama (JPN) decided to skip the second 500m for precautionary reasons as he continues to recover from a back-injury last season. As a result, the Japanese sprinter dropped to fourth place in the ranking, with Cooper McLeod (USA) climbing to third after finishing fifth on Sunday.

De Boo ends the weekend on top

Together with teammates Stefan Westenbroek and Tim Prins (NED), De Boo found redemption for his 500m silver medal by concluding the Beijing World Cup weekend with gold in the Team Sprint.

The Dutch trio clocked a time of 1 minute and 18.35s, keeping USA’s Austin Kleba, McLeod and Zach Stoppelmoor 0.15s behind.

“Great to finish the weekend this way,” De Boo said. “I haven’t been on the highest podium spot yet, so I’m glad to be able to end like this together with these guys.”

De Boo, sixth from left, ended the weekend with a Team Sprint gold medal alongside Dutch colleagues (left to right) Tim Prins and Stefan Westenbroek © ISU

Home skaters Liu Bin, Lian Ziwen, Ning Zhongyan (CHN) finished the weekend on a high note with bronze in 1:18.61.

ISU World Cup Speed Skating Series events 2024/25:

Nov 22 - 24, 2024 Nagano / JPN

Nov 29 - Dec 01, 2024 Beijing / CHN

Jan 24 - 26, 2025 Calgary CAN

Jan 31 - Feb 02, 2025 Milwaukee / USA

Feb 21 - 23, 2025 Tomaszów Mazowiecki / POL

Feb 28 - Mar 02, 2025 Heerenveen / NED

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