Classic battles and a new kid on the block made for a great second day of racing at the ISU World Cup in Calgary on Saturday. But after the dust settled, Femke Kok (NED) and Joy Beune (NED) remained unbeaten in this season’s World Cup 500m and 1500m respectively.

Former international inline skater Chen Ying-Chu (TPE) took her first World Cup podium on ice in the 500m, while veterans Miho Takagi (JPN) and Brittany Bowe (USA) took silver and bronze in the 1500m.

Kok happy to see Chen on podium

In the women’s 500m, Chen surprised herself and the rest of the speed skating world when she stopped the clock at 37.14 seconds after a blistering 10.30-second opener.

“I never, never thought I could do this. I only switched from inline skating to ice skating three years ago,” she said. “This result, this time, I’m so surprised. It’s my PB, too.”

Chen Ying-Chu (TPE) was an inline skater before turning to speed skating. On Saturday, she took 500m silver for her first podium at an ISU World Cup. © ISU

Chen, who was promoted to the A Division after winning last week’s first 500m race in the B Division, was the only one of 20 women in the 500m A Division to skate a personal best. 

The only person who wasn’t surprised by Chen’s explosion was also the only one who managed to beat her — and the only woman to post a sub-37-second race on the day. Kok clocked 36.65 to take her fifth consecutive World Cup gold in the 500m, going back to the final two races of last season. 

Bumping into each other in the media mixed zone after the race, Kok congratulated her new challenger.

“It’s nice to see new names on the podium,” Kok said. “I really don’t know (Chen), but when I was doing my warmup yesterday, I saw her opener in the B Division 1000m and I thought: that’s fast. So I’d already expected her to do well today.“

Femke Kok (NED) battled compatriot Marrit Fledderus in the final 500m pairing at the ISU World Cup in Calgary (CAN) on Saturday. © ISU

Kok had mixed feelings about her own race. Her opener was 10.36 seconds, compared with 10.19 last week in Salt Lake City.

“My opener was not so good. I was not very sharp today, and then the way I entered the last corner was wretched, but my speed is all right so I’m happy to be able to post a time like this after those mistakes, and to still win by such a big margin.”

Kok finished .49 seconds ahead of Chen.

Erin Jackson (USA) took bronze, just .01 seconds behind Chen, to retain second place in the 500m World Cup ranking. 

“I was feeling not as much oomph,” the Olympic champion said. “I wasn’t really feeling amped up, but the time difference with Femke was about the same as last week (.50 versus .48 in Salt Lake City), so there’s still a gap to bridge but that’s the fun part. I’m working on it.” 

Erin Jackson (USA), right, joins Chen Ying-Chu (TPE) and Femke Kok (NED) on the 500m podium in Calgary on Saturday. © ISU

Just .03 seconds behind Jackson, Marrit Fledderus (NED) finished fourth to climb up to third place in the World Cup rankings.

Takagi wins classic, but Beune takes gold

Before World Cup leader Joy Beune (NED) entered the rink versus compatriot Melissa Wijfje in the final pairing of the 1500m, World Record holder Miho Takagi (JPN) and former World Record holder Brittany Bowe (USA) crossed swords in the penultimate heat.

Bowe wasn’t afraid to step on the gas from the start. 

“I had to get it going because people were opening quite fast today, so I just dialed in,” she said. “I didn’t even see any of my laps, but when I crossed the line and I heard the crowd cheer, I just knew I had to get a really solid first lap after the first 300m. Then, I really focused on the second lap to try to make some ground up on Miho, because I knew I was going to the outer (in the last corner) and she would be chasing me down.”

Brittany Bowe (USA) settled for 1500m bronze on Saturday, finishing .16 seconds behind runner-up Miko Takagi (JPN) in Calgary. © ISU

And that’s exactly what Takagi did. She reeled in Bowe on the last inner corner to finish in one minute and 51.68 seconds. Bowe crossed the line .16 seconds later. 

Takagi and Bowe were on top of the leaderboard before Beune pushed them into silver and bronze. 

It was Bowe's first 1500m World Cup podium since winning the distance in Calgary four years ago.

“I’m super pleased with that race,” she said. “I haven’t skated that well in the 1500m in many years.”

Despite Beune running away with gold, Takagi enjoyed her classic battle with Bowe.

“That was fun. She was so fast in the first 300m, and then I had to catch up. I tried something new technically, what I had been practising over the last couple of days, but I also wanted to go full speed to get the podium. It was difficult to find a good balance.”

World Record holder Miho Takagi (JPN) won her pairing, but settled for silver Saturday at the ISU World Cup in Calgary. © ISU

In the final paring, Beune found the right balance in pacing her race. The reigning World Champion started more slowly than Takagi and Bowe, and was .72 seconds behind Takagi at the 1100m split, but she was the only woman to post a sub-30-second final lap to finish .51 seconds ahead of her Japanese rival.

Joy Beune (NED) posted the only sub-30-second lap of the day in the 1500m final to take gold at the ISU World Cup in Calgary. © ISU

“I know my power is in the last laps,” she said. “After 700m, that’s where I can win the 1500m. I know what I have to do, but it’s kind of nerve-wracking. After the first 700 meters, I knew I could win. The only thing I had to do is keep rhythm and stay focused, and that’s what I did. 

"Overall, this was a good race. I’m happy that I can make a plan and execute it.”