Women’s Speed Skating Pursuit Teams Advance to Semifinals at Milan Cortina 2026

The women’s speed skating team pursuit event at the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympics saw strong performances as the Dutch team secured their place in the semifinals with the third-best time.

Eurosport Netherlands reports that the Dutch women’s pursuit team, composed of Antoinette Rijpma-De Jong, Joy Beune, and Marijke Groenewoud, recorded a time of 2:55.65 in the quarterfinals, placing them behind Canada and Japan, who posted slightly faster times.

The race began with some difficulty for the Dutch squad. With four laps remaining, the Kazakhstani team briefly took the lead, clocking 1:00.50 to the Dutch team’s 1:00.47. Subsequently, the Netherlands regained control despite a minor misstep when De Jong accidentally made contact with Beune’s skate, momentarily disrupting their pace. Fortunately, this did not result in a fall.

Kazakhstan, which started out strong, encountered trouble when one of their skaters crashed into the barriers, preventing them from setting a competitive time. Japan gained an early advantage but only narrowly surpassed the Dutch team with a time of 2:55.52. Canada ultimately secured the fastest time at 2:55.03, earning the top seed heading into the semifinals.

The semifinals present a challenging path for the Dutch team as they face Japan, while Canada will compete against the United States, the lowest-ranked of the semifinalists. Other teams such as Belgium, China, and Germany posted times over three minutes and were not competitive with the top four teams.

The semifinals and finals for both men’s and women’s team pursuit events are scheduled for the afternoon of Tuesday, February 17. Eurosport and HBO Max are broadcasting the Olympic competitions live, providing comprehensive coverage including expert commentary and analysis.