Winter Olympics: Ireen Wust wins 1500m gold and sets record
- Published
Speed skater Wust wins her sixth Olympic gold
24th Winter Olympic Games |
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Hosts: Beijing, China Dates: 4-20 February |
Coverage: Watch live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer, BBC Red Button and online; listen on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds; live text and highlights on BBC Sport website and mobile app |
Speed skater Ireen Wust became the first person to win an individual gold medal at five different Olympics by retaining her 1500m title in stunning fashion at Beijing 2022.
The Dutchwoman set an Olympic record of one minute 53.28 seconds to beat Japan's Miho Takagi, with Wust's compatriot Antoinette de Jong in third.
It is a record-extending 12th Olympic speed skating medal for 35-year-old Wust, who is retiring next month.
"It's insane," she told reporters.
"A lot of emotions, especially the good ones."
Wust, who has now won six Olympic gold medals, is also racing in the 1,000m here.
She had come into the Games ranked seventh in the World Cup rankings, with world record holder Takagi viewed as the favourite.
But the Netherlands' most decorated Olympian, who also won this event at Vancouver 2010, first laid down a marker then watched as the Japanese faded in the final lap of the final pairing.
She added: "There's something magical that gets to me when it comes down to the Games. There's something that brings out the best in me."
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Italy's Arianna Fontana retained her women's short track 500m title, claiming a 10th career Olympic medal in a time of 42.488 seconds, with the Netherlands' Suzanne Schulting second and Canada's Kim Boutin third.
Fontana, 31, the most decorated short tracker in either the women's or men's events, now has two more medals than American Apolo Ohno and Russian Viktor Ahn.
There was controversy in the men's 1,000m short track final as Hungary's Liu Shaolin Sandor crossed the line first but was disqualified for earlier initiating contact when overtaking China's Ren Ziwei.
Both racers also collided heavily as they lunged for the line but Ren was cleared of wrongdoing in the official review and upgraded to gold, ahead of compatriot Li Wenlong and Sandor's brother Liu Shaoang.
Smeding ends long wait for Great Britain
Lower down the field in the women's 1500m event, Britain's Ellia Smeding finished 27th as she became the first speed skater for 30 years to represent the country at an Olympics.
The 23-year-old said she had wanted to "make the country" proud and show people in Great Britain - which does not have a long track oval - what the sport is about.
"It was definitely nerve-wracking - all the emotions, but really cool to be able to call myself an Olympian now," said Smeding, who is the first female to represent the country in the discipline at a Games since Kim Ferran and Mandy Horsepool in 1980.
"I think there were things that could have gone a bit better, but it was my debut and there were a lot of external things going on with nerves and stuff. For my first race, it was fine."
Her boyfriend, Cornelius Kersten - with whom she set up a coffee business to fund their Olympic dream - competes for Great Britain on Tuesday in the men's 1500m.
Smeding, meanwhile, will return to Beijing's Ice Ribbon for the women's 1,000m in 10 days' time.
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