Bart Swings (BEL) concluded the jam-packed final day of the ISU Speed Skating European Championships in Poland by taking his fourth consecutive Mass Start title.

Damian Zurek and Marek Kania (POL) gave the home crowd in the sold-out Arena Lodowa a Polish 1-2 in the 500m, with their good friend Bjørn Magnussen (NOR) coming in third. His countryman Peder Kongshaug (NOR) had started Sunday successfully defending his European 1500m title.

Swings back on top

"Four in a row," Swings smiled after coming off the Mass Start podium. "It's a relief that I can still win, it's been a while." 

The Olympic Mass Start champion from Belgium has been struggling to get back to form after a knee injury, and finally felt that he was back with the best when he took a silver medal at the fourth World Cup event in Hamar in December 

"It's great to be back and executing a race tactic instead of playing the waiting game and seeing what happens," he added.

Bart Swings (BEL) bounced back from injury to win his fourth successive European Mass Start title from Bart Hoolwerf (NED) © ISU

In Tomaszów Mazowiecki, Swings’ tactic was to make attack early in the final part of the race. While Italy's Riccardo Lorello kept the pace high in the final laps to set up team-mate Andrea Giovannini for a bunch-sprint, the experienced Belgian attacked from behind at 700m from the finish.

"I didn't know how my shape was if I went flat-out for 700-800 meters, but this was an ideal moment to give it a try. With the [Olympic] Games coming up, it's the right time to see how the cards are dealt.

"It's a good sign that I can count on this tactic, but I'm still working to fine-tune a couple of things. The pure top-speed has to improve and my last two corners were not great, but I've still got a couple of weeks to improve."

Swings kept Bart Hoolwerf (NED) at bay in the finale. The Dutchman caught up with the Belgian, but had a coupe of mis-strokes in the final 200m and bowed his head 10 meters from the finish line. 

Hoolwerf was a little frustrated to be left out of the Dutch Olympic selection, and was content to have maneuvered himself into a position to sprint for victory. 

"I had to prove something to myself. I haven’t been in the position to sprint all year, and today I had the chance,” he said.

“It was a bit unfortunate to make a mistake in the final corner, cause it might even have been a better result, bit that can happen in the Mass Start.

"I showed that I can compete with the World's best and I think I also showed that they [the Dutch squad] are going to miss someone at the Games."

Hoolwerf (left) saw his gold hopes evaporate with a late error; Andrea Giovannini (ITA) took bronze © ISU

Despite his teammate Lorello’s work Andrea Giovannini (ITA) was not able to sprint against Swings and Hoolwerf. The Italian eventually finished third.  

"I lost a little bit of time, when Bart Swings started the sprint. He started early, and that surprised us a little bit," he said.

"I lost the right moment, but then to take third place is a good result."

Magnussen joins Polish friends on 500m podium 

Damian Zurek (POL) also posted a good result. In winning the 500m, he seized his second gold medal after already having won the 1000m title on Friday.

Zurek skated in the penultimate pairing against Bjørn Magnussen (NOR). The Norwegian had a better opener, but he had a mis-stroke in the first corner and Zurek managed to reel him in, stopping the clock at 34.52s. 

Magnussen finished in 35.12s to take bronze, because Marek Kania (POL) had already set 34.82s in the eighth of 10 pairings.

Damian Zurek (POL) delighted the home crowd by adding the European 500m title to Friday's 1000m gold © ISU

Zurek had enjoyed skating against Magnussen, whom he considers a good friend. 

"I'm really happy that I skated against Bjørn. We have skated a lot together. When I won my first medal at the World Championships in Calgary in 2024, I also skated against him,” said the hometown favorite.

"Here, I could catch up with him in the first corner and I got a really good draft on the back-stretch, that was perfect for me."

Kania was happy to take silver after already having won 500m bronze at the 2024 European Championships. 

"I never had individual silver medal at the Euros, so it's my best individual result. I'm super satisfied, and this tells me that the preparations [for the Olympic Games in Milan] are going in a good direction."

For Magnussen, bronze was his first medal at an international championships. 

"I've been close so many times: fourth place, fifth place, sixth place," he said.

"I'm fifth in the World Cup standings and I still haven't got a podium. I feel like when you're top five overall, you have to be pretty consistent, but I always had the hundreds on the wrong side."

Marek Kania (left) joined Zurek in a Polish 1-2, Bjørn Magnussen (NOR, right) completing the podium with his first international medal © ISU

Magnussen had enjoyed sharing the podium with Zurek and Kania.

"We are good friends. We skated together since we were young, and before this season started, I joined a training camp with Team Poland in Inzell (GER), so I trained with them for three weeks, and got to know them even better."

Kongshaug relief at retaining 1500m title 

Peder Kongshaug (NOR) won the 1500m on Sunday afternoon. The World Champion clocked a time of 1 minute and 46.08s to keep Vladimir Semirunniy (POL) 0.42s behind. The Norwegian retained his 2024 title, but the winning feeling was different second time around.

"This time, anything but gold would have been a disappointment," he said. "It's more a feeling of relief, while the one in 2024 was pure joy.

"I feel this is a good step in the right direction. I don't think this is my top level, so I'm looking forward to see what I can do in Milan.”

Peder Kongshaug (NOR) retained his 1500m European title and is looking ahead to February's Olympic Games © ISU

While other top skaters decided to skip the European Championships in the run-up to the Olympic Games, the Norwegian decided differently.

“I really understand the guys who skated Olympic trials in Holland. It's probably almost impossible to skate there and then here and be in shape in Milan, but for me, two months almost without racing would not have been good for my shape. 

“I had a really good training period in December, after the World Cup in Hamar, and then this is kind of in that block as well, but I want to keep the rhythm of racing too."

Before Kongshaug skated the fastest time, Semirunniy had set the bar at 1:46.50 in the fifth of 10 pairings. The Polish long-distance specialist had the fastest last lap of the field, and all the other skaters except Kongshaug capitulated in the last 400m.

"I always have the same tactic starting fast, but here on slower ice, I took it a little easier at the start, that's why I could skate a very fast final lap."

Semirunniy thinks slow ice favors long-distance skaters over ones that originally come from the sprinter's side in the 1500m, and that might give him a chance in Milan. 

"[Multiple 5000m World Champion] Patrick Roest (NED) won Olympic silver at the 2018 Olympic Games, so its possible and I expect the ice in Milan also to be slow, so…" he said.

Vladimir Semirunniy (POL, left) had taken an early lead with a blistering last lap but settled for silver. Tim Prins (NED, right) took bronze © ISU

Tim Prins (NED) took 1500m bronze. The Dutchman, who was still disappointed to have been left out of the Dutch Olympic selection, did not feel in top shape, but was proud to have been able to compete.  

Going into the final lap, Prins still had a two-second advantage over Semirunniy, but he had a difficult final back-stretch with pair-mate Gabriel Odor (AUT), and faded in the last two hundred meters to finish in 1:46.61.

"I have to be content. If I look at the guys ahead of me, Kongshaug is the World Champion and Semirunniy is in great shape here, so it's OK. I did lose silver, because I was too kind for my opponent on the final back-stretch but in the end silver or bronze doesn’t really make a difference for me. 

"I came here to win, and if I had been in good shape I could have, but this is what it is for now."