Sander Eitrem secured the men’s world allround speed skating title after overcoming a significant time deficit on the final 10,000 meter race, preventing Jordan Stolz from defending his championship.
NOS, published in the Netherlands.
At the World Allround Speed Skating Championships, Norwegian skater Sander Eitrem claimed the title following a strong final race where he erased a 23.7-second gap to American Jordan Stolz on the 10,000 meter event. This victory resulted in a Norwegian one-two, as Ragne Wiklund also secured a gold medal in the women’s competition. Stolz, who had won the world allround championship two years prior by defeating Patrick Roest, was unable to maintain his performance after competing in both the World Sprint and Allround Championships, participating in eight races in total. Stolz struggled during the 10,000 meters and finished outside the podium positions. The silver medal went to Metodej Jílek, with Vladimir Semirunniy taking bronze.
The competition was characterized by a contrast between Stolz, known for his sprinting prowess with Olympic titles in the 500 and 1,000 meters, and Eitrem, who specializes in longer distances, holding the Olympic title and world record in the 5,000 meters. On the final race, Eitrem nearly caught Stolz, even putting him a full lap behind, and during the overtaking moment, the two nearly made contact but avoided any collision.
The Dutch team did not reach the podium at the event, a rare outcome for the country in speed skating. Chris Huizinga finished seventh and Stijn van de Bunt eighth, while Marcel Bosker did not qualify for the last distance. This was the first time in twenty years that the Netherlands failed to produce a world allround champion in either the men’s or women’s categories. Despite Stolz’s strong performances in the 500, 1,500, and a solid 5,000 meters, Eitrem’s efforts proved stronger overall. Norwegian coach Bjarne Rykkje had expected Eitrem to lose significant time in the 1,500 meters, but his loss was less than anticipated at just over 0.8 seconds. Unfortunately for the Dutch team, they could not match the leading times, signaling a disappointing tournament for the defending powerhouse in speed skating.
