Three Dutch and a Russian get a gold on Day 2 in Minsk

The best speed skaters in the world were back on the ice in Minsk for the second day of racing at World Cup no.1. 

By Jackob Savard

Photo: Schaats Foto’s

The ladies’ 500m and 1500m as well as the men’s 1000m and mass start were on the program for this second day of racing in Belarus.

Russian double and a penalty to the reigning champion

Russian Olga Fatkulina won the ladies’ first 500m of the season establishing the new track record in Minsk with her time of 37.920. Her teammate Daria Kachanova took the silver medal and Japanese Nao Kodaira, who most of the time ends up on the highest step of the podium, got bronze. Reigning 500m World Champion Vanessa Herzog was penalised for false start in the last pair of the event and begins her season with a 20th place. 

One more track record as Krol wins the 1000m

Another track record was lowered in Minsk as Dutch Thomas Krol won the 1000m in 1:09.00. Promising twenty-year-old Chinese Zhongyan Ning finished second and world record holder on the distance Kjeld Nuis got third. 

Wüst 1500m winner in Minsk

Speed skating queen Ireen Wüst from the Netherlands won the ladies’ 1500m with her time of 1:56.468. Finishing second was Russian Yekaterina Shikhova and American Brittany Bowe took third. 

Bergsma sprints early to win the mass start

Peter Michael from New Zealand escaped the pack early in this mass start race and was all alone at the front for most of it. With two and a half laps to go, Dutch skater Jorrit Bergsma took the lead with an explosive acceleration. Bergsma never looked back and crossed the line in first place with a little gap on the rest of the pack. Koreans Jaewon Chung and Cheonho Um finished second and third. 

For our recap of day 1, click HERE

For the full results, click HERE

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