SPEED SKATING
Stolz (USA) pips Kongshaug (NOR) in photo finish to secure 1500m World Cup Trophy
21 Feb 2025
For a split second, Peder Kongshaug (NOR) thought he had beaten Jordan Stolz (USA) for the first time this season in the 1500m, but then the photo finish showed that Stolz’s skate crossed the line just inches ahead of Kongshaug’s. The American phenomenon thus took his fifth gold in five 1500m races to secure the World Cup Trophy in the distance this season. Earlier on Friday night at the ISU World Cup Speed Skating in Tomaszów Mazowiecki (POL), Stolz had already seized 500m gold.
Stolz blows away 500m field with 'crazy' second gear
After he lost his 18-race winning World Cup streak at the hands of Tatsuya Shinhama (JPN) at the World Cup in Milwaukee three weeks ago, Stolz picked up the count from zero at the start of the 500m race in Tomaszów Mazowiecki.
When he took this ice against Laurent Dubreuil (CAN) in the final pairing, Kim Jun-Ho (KOR) was on top with a time of 34.77s, Shinhama finishing 0.04s short of the Korean.
His 18-race ISU World Cup winning run over, Jordan Stolz (USA) began a new streak with victory in the 500m in Tomaszów Mazowiecki (POL) © ISU
Dubreuil got out of the blocks well. His opener of 9.56s was 0.07s faster than Stolz. Coming from the outer lane, the Canadian was able to make perfect use of the draft and he even hoped to be able to catch his opponent in the second turn.
“I thought I had a chance,” Dubreuil said. “Honestly, after 200-250m, I was ahead at that point. I thought, you know.
“And then, his last 200 is just incredible. He and Jenning [Dutchman Jenning de Boo, who is absent in Poland], they just have a second gear; most of the guys drop off a bit, the legs get a bit heavy, and the top speed is not quite the same. Him [Stolz] and Jenning just skate away at the end. It's crazy.”
Laurent Dubreuil (CAN) delivered a faster opener than Stolz but could not keep up with the American over the final 200m © ISU
Stolz had a different perspective: “I could see him [Dubreuil] in my peripheral vision exiting the [second] turn, and by the time we got about 40 meters down the straight, I couldn't see him anymore, and I could hear him getting further back. So then I knew I had it.”
Stolz’s second gear got him to the finish in a time of 34.49s, which ended up 0.24s faster than Dubreuil, who took silver. Kim was left with the bronze medal at 0.04s from the Canadian.
Kim Jun-Ho (KOR, right) took the bronze medal behind Stolz, center, and Dubreuil, left. © ISU
Stolz stretched his lead in the 500m World Cup ranking to a solid 144 points with three races to go. Dubreuil pushed the absent De Boo out of second place, the Dutchman dropping to fourth place as Shinhama retained third place, seven points behind Dubreuil.
Kongshaug denied by photo finish in 1500m
Having finished the 500m barely an hour before, Stolz took on Kongshaug (NOR) in the eighth pairing of the 1500m. The Norwegian had been the last skater to beat Stolz in a 1500m when he edged out the American by 0.07s in Tomaszów Mazowiecki in December 2023.
Kongshaug likes the ice in the Arena Lodowa, and he felt good at the start.
“It was maybe the first time at the starting line [this season] where I thought: now I can beat him [Stolz], and that's necessary if you want to win races, to believe that you're capable of it,” Kongshaug commented after the race.
The Norwegian took a 0.30s advantage over his American rival at the 300m split and expanded his lead to 0.41s at the 700m split. Crossing the line at the 1100m split, Kongshaug was still 0.34s ahead and the had the advantage of the last inner turn.
“I felt like I was in full control the whole race, which is very unusual, skating against Jordan,” Kongshaug went on. “But then, I fumbled a bit on the last 100m.”
Yet, when he crossed the line, Kongshaug thought he’d won, because his name appeared on top of the scoreboard for a split second. In just the blink of an eye, his joy turned into frustration, as the photo finish showed his skate crossing the line just inches behind Stolz’s.
“I thought I was in front, but apparently I wasn't. The thousandths aren't my friends, I've lost many races on thousandths, but this one felt quite disappointing to be honest.”
Peder Kongshaug (NOR) thought he had the beating of Stolz in the 1500m right until the photo finish declared the American the winner by just 0.004s © ISU
Stolz and Kongshaug both finished in a time of 1 minute and 45.08s, which was 0.36s faster than Stolz’s track record in February 2023. Stolz claimed the new record by just 0.004s from Kongshaug.
Unlike Kongshaug, the American had struggled to find his groove on the ice in Poland.
“I think Peder really likes the track here,” Stolz said. “He said himself that he prefers this ice. It may not be the fastest, but it suits him well.
“I felt like I just went too slow in the opener. I was trying to use more pressure instead of rhythm, which was a bad idea here [at the Arena Lodowa].
“The ice has lots of grip, but I couldn't gage what speed I was going. I thought he [Kongshaug] was going really hard to try and catch my draft, but it turned out I was actually going kind of slow."
In the weeks between the last World Cup in Milwaukee and this weekend in Poland, Stolz had been seriously ill.
“I had strep throat and pneumonia, and needed to use antibiotics,” he explained. Although it definitely had affected his skating, Stolz wasn’t too worried about his fitness anymore.
“I'm not in too bad of shape, as we could see. I think if I wouldn’t have been sick the past two weeks, it could have been much faster, but I'm happy with how it went.”
Ning Zhongyan (CHN, right) took 1500m bronze a full second behind the time of Stolz, center, and Kongshaug, left. © ISU
Almost a second behind Stolz and Kongshaug, Ning Zhongyan (CHN), who had won the 1000m and the 1500m at the Asian Games in Harbin, China, just a little over a week ago, took bronze in 1:46.06.
With a 71-point lead over second-ranked Kongshaug in the 1500m World Cup classification, Stolz has already secured the season Trophy for the distance with one race to go next week in Heerenveen, the Netherlands.
Tomaszów Mazowiecki program
The Tomaszów Mazowiecki ISU World Cup Speed Skating will start with the first of two 500m races and the 1500m for both genders on Friday. Saturday’s program comprises the 3000m for women, the 5000m for men and the 1000m for both genders, while on Sunday both genders will skate the second 500m, and the Mass Start, to conclude with the Team Sprint.
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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