Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong secured the gold medal in the 1,500 meter speed skating event at the Winter Olympics, narrowly finishing ahead of Norway’s Ragne Wiklund.
According to NOS Schaatsen, the 30-year-old Dutch skater completed the race in Milan with a time of 1:54.09, edging out Wiklund by just 0.06 seconds. Canadian Valérie Maltais took the bronze medal. This victory marks Rijpma-de Jong’s first Olympic gold, adding to her previous medals including silver in the team pursuit earlier at these Games.
Rijpma-de Jong posted her leading time during the penultimate heat and was able to maintain her lead when the event’s main favorite, Japan’s Miho Takagi, failed to surpass it in the final heat. This gold medal is Rijpma-de Jong’s sixth Olympic medal overall, achieved in her fourth Winter Olympic appearance. She previously won individual bronze medals on the 3,000 meter in 2018 and the 1,500 meter in 2022, as well as silver and bronze medals in team pursuit events.
In addition to Rijpma-de Jong’s success, Femke Kok placed fifth in her international debut in the 1,500 meters, finishing with a time of 1:54.79. Kok had to compete early due to a lack of international races this season but was considered a strong contender after setting a track record in Heerenveen last October and finishing second to Rijpma-de Jong at the Olympic qualification tournament. Another Dutch skater, Marijke Groenewoud, finished tenth with a time of 1:55.16, adding to her earlier disappointments in the 3,000 and 5,000 meter events, although she earned a silver medal in the team pursuit and will race in the mass start event scheduled for Saturday.
Notable by her absence was reigning world champion Joy Beune, who did not qualify for the Olympics. The Japanese skater Miho Takagi was the favorite for the gold, having won the only World Cup event this season won by Beune and finishing second to Ireen Wüst in the previous two Winter Games. Despite being considered a medal hopeful, Rijpma-de Jong was not the top favorite prior to the race.
Wiklund set a strong time in the heat before Rijpma-de Jong with a well-paced race finishing in 1:54.15, which raised the standard for the Dutch skater to beat. Rijpma-de Jong gained most of her advantage with an exceptionally quick opening lap of 25.26 seconds, nearly half a second faster than Wiklund. Although she lost some of this lead in subsequent laps, her final lap was faster than Wiklund’s, resulting in the narrow 0.06 second margin of victory.
Rijpma-de Jong’s win continues a streak for the Netherlands, as she is the fifth consecutive Dutch woman to win Olympic gold in the 1,500 meters. She succeeds Ireen Wüst, who had taken the gold in both 2018 and 2022. Before Wüst, Jorien ter Mors was the champion in 2014, while Wüst also won the event in 2010. The Olympic speed skating program will conclude on Saturday with the mass start events for both men and women.
