Calgary World CupBart Hoolwerf has spectacularly won the mass start at the World Cup in Calgary. In the individual distances there were victories for Angelina Golikova, Joey Mantia and Nao Kodaira.
The 23-year-old Hoolwerf of Team Jumbo-Visma took advantage of an early escape attempt and finished solo after sixteen laps exhausted, rarely seen on this part. The Belgian Bart Swings, the leader in the World Cup classification, won the sprint of the peloton.
Hoolwerf quickly rode away from the pack with the German Felix Rijhnen. Partly due to the controlling work of his teammate Kars Jansman, the duo was able to take a big lead. Three laps before the end, the Dutch champion took off alone. In character he managed to stay out of the clutches of the chasing pack. Fellow refugee Rijhnen was able to finish third. Hoolwerf and Jansman had qualified for the final via the semi-finals earlier on Saturday.
Start ticket safe, Hoolwerf in tears
For debutant Hoolwerf it was the first time this World Cup season that he was allowed to participate in the final of the mass start. With that, he immediately secured the second Olympic starting permit for the Orange in this part. Earlier, specialist Jorrit Bergsma had secured a place in the top 24 of the World Cup standings. This is one of the reasons why the Frisian veteran skipped the race in Calgary. Due to Hoolwerf’s successful performance at the mass start in Calgary, the Netherlands can now also participate in the Winter Games in China with the maximum number of nine men and nine women.
Hoolwerf reacted emotionally to his surprising victory in Calgary. He had been criticized for his performance in the World Cup earlier this season. However, when it was necessary, the marathon skater was indeed able to excel at the highest level and that moved him to tears. ,,There was quite a lot of pressure on it, yes, of course you feel that’, Hoolwerf admitted to the NOS. “I tried to put that off me. That actually worked out pretty well, I just slept well here. I woke up with good legs and was really looking forward to it. I felt really good today.”
Golikova wins 500 meters in national record
Angelina Golikova has won a World Cup race in the 500 meters for the first time this season. The world champion in this event triumphed on the fast Canadian ice in a personal best of 36.66 seconds. She also broke the national record at this distance.
Olympic champion Nao Kodaira took silver in 36.76. The Japanese also finished second behind the Russian Olga Fatkulina (36.72) on Friday. American Erin Jackson, winner of four World Cup races in the 500 meters this season, finished third on Saturday in 36.92. Fatcoolina didn’t start in the second moto. Jackson leads in the World Cup standings.
Dione Voskamp and Michelle de Jong both set personal bests. De Jong won the mutual duel in a time of 37.52, good for twelfth place. Voskamp ended up in thirteenth place with 37.57. Marrit Fledderus drove the fifteenth time with 37.90. Dutch champion Jutta Leerdam and Femke Kok are missing in Calgary. They prefer a training program on the way to the Olympic qualifying tournament, at the end of this month in Heerenveen.
In the World Cup standings after four tournaments, Kok (thirteenth), Michelle de Jong (fourteenth), Voskamp (fifteenth) and Leerdam (sixteenth) are in the top twenty. As a result, three Dutch sprinters are allowed to start at the Winter Games in Beijing on the 500 meters in February.
Mantia again the best on king number
Joey Mantia has won a World Cup race in the 1500 meters for the second time in a week. The American won the skating mile in Calgary with a time of 1.41.86. He triumphed last weekend in Salt Lake City in 1.41.15. Canadian Connor Howe finished second in Calgary in 1.42.42. Norwegian Allan Dahl Johansson took bronze with 1.43.27.
Marcel Bosker and Louis Hollaar were the only Dutch players to play in the A-division. They rode against each other in the first stage and played a supporting role in the entire field of participants. Bosker finished in fourteenth place with 1.44.83 and Hollaar ended up in sixteenth place with 1.45.76.
The Dutch top on the skating mile missed the World Cup in Calgary. Olympic champion Kjeld Nuis, world champion Thomas Krol and Patrick Roest had in principle already collected enough points for the Netherlands during the first three World Cups to obtain three starting tickets at this distance at the Olympic Games in February in China. However, there was not much honor for the Dutch at the World Cup in the 1500 meters this season. Only Krol ended up on the podium (third) last week in Salt Lake City.
The Chinese Zhongyan Ning also did not start on Saturday in Calgary in the 1500 meters. As a result, he had to relinquish his leading position in the World Cup to Mantia. Kars Jansman, Marwin Talsma and Tijmen Snel will compete in the 1500 meters in the B-division in the Dutch night from Saturday to Sunday in Calgary.
Kodaira trumps Bowe at 1000 meters
Nao Kodaira won the 1000 meters during the fourth World Cup in Calgary. The Japanese speed skater finished in the last stage in a time of 1.12.51. With that, she narrowly referred American favorite Brittany Bowe to second place (1.12.54). The Russian Olga Fatkulina won bronze with a time of 1.13.15.
Bowe further strengthened her leading position in the World Cup standings in the 1000 meters. The world champion at this distance triumphed earlier this World Cup season in Poland and Norway. The Japanese Miho Takagi did not start in Calgary. She won the World Cup race in the 1000 meters in Salt Lake City last week. Takagi dropped to third place in the World Cup standings behind Kodaira.
Jutta Leerdam, Ireen Wüst and Femke Kok did not play in Calgary either. They have opted for a different preparation in the run-up to the Olympic qualifying tournament in Heerenveen. Before the start of the fourth World Cup in Canada, the Netherlands was already assured of three Olympic starting tickets in this part.
Lotte van Beek finished in fourteenth place in the A-group as the first Dutch (1.14.65). Letitia de Jong ended up in sixteenth place with 1.14.86. In the Dutch night from Saturday to Sunday, Femke Beuling, Dione Voskamp and Marrit Fledderus will compete in the B-division in the 1000 meters.
Canada win in team pursuit
Canada has won the women’s team pursuit at the Speed Skating World Cup in Calgary. The home team defeated Olympic champion Japan by a small margin: 2.52.06 against 2.52.89. China finished third in 2.58.42.
The Canadian women’s team had also won the World Cup pursuit races in Poland and Salt Lake City earlier this season. Valerie Maltais, Ivanie Blondin and Isabelle Weidemann appeared on the Canadian ice on behalf of the winning formation.
Reina Anema, Evelien Vijn and Sanne in ‘t Hof came into action on behalf of the Netherlands. No podium place could be expected from this occasional team. The inexperienced trio ended up in sixth place with a time of 2.59.54. The Netherlands is reigning world champion in this discipline. Ireen Wüst, Irene Schouten and Antoinette de Jong won the World Cup gold last winter. They chose to skip the World Cup in Calgary.
Schouten and Wüst won silver behind Canada with Melissa Wijfje last week at the World Cup in Salt Lake City. That performance was sufficient for an Olympic starting permit in this part for the Netherlands.
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