INTERNATIONAL SKATING UNION OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER
INSIDE • ISU NEWS • GRAND PRIX • WORLD CUP REPORTS • RESULTS
NO 43 JANUARY 2011
I have finally decided to expose a dilemma that I, as a sport administrator, have been suffering from for a long time.
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The question is: are measurable sport activities in a better or worst position than that of sports mainly based on subjectivity? One can easily assert that subjectivity is the privilege of all and a sport performance can therefore be perceived on the basis of the personal point of view. No doubt that the majority of team competitions, especially those based on a match, attract more fans and more media. They are, in two words, more popular. But contrary to the above indicated aspects there is the important detail which is that when a sport performance cannot be measured one might have indeed a doubt on the actual level expressed therein. There are other types of entertainment, not specifically measurable, that unite the passion and interest of spectators. As an example allow me to mention movies, theatre representations, music and in general most artistic performances. One might now object that the consensus of a large group of people is enough to determine whether a performance is good or not. But this is not the point. The matter is that a large consensus does not automatically mean that the performance has been precisely measured. Let’s move to the other side of the coin. When an athlete is placed according to electronic time keeping, measures obtained, for instance in high jump, or specific sport results achieved, for instance in weightlifting, the situation is quite different. The dilemma is extremely difficult to resolve. This is something that cannot be argued. We can try to tackle the question through two quite different perspectives, namely from the point of view of the enthusiasm obtainable with something we can define as entertainment, or as an alternative in a specific sport performance that requires a totally different approach. For those who are more inclined to appreciate a sport event as entertainment, the purpose to precisely measure the performance is not that important. In fact what one seeks to obtain, in this case, is to be in a position to dedicate full interest to the entertainment, receiving back a personal psychological satisfaction. To those who are expert or at least good connaisseurs of a sport discipline, the time, the points, the measures performed by an athlete are something that demonstrates the level achieved and this is the kind of satisfaction that the so-called group of experts like to get. The embarrassing question resulting is that often, regardless of the specific athlete’s performance, it is the spectator who likes to consider what is the best. In the ISU, bearing in mind that we administer competitive sports, we tried to render all our disciplines as measurable as possible, but still Figure Skating, Ice Dance and Synchronized Skating maintain a few aspects that are in line with subjectivity. Speed Skating and Short Track on the contrary are quite different; the result is certainly more direct, transparent and please do not misunderstand these adjectives. Tribute is to be paid to the ISU that is able to present a pretty wide variety through its sport disciplines to satisfy both groups involved in the dilemma of the thoughts in this message. Personally, allow me to conclude by saying that until there is a podium to be formed, it is our duty to do the utmost to ensure an accurate determination of the performance. This is my approach and point of view on the dilemma exposed. What is yours? Ottavio Cinquanta President, International Skating Union ISU World is the official newsletter of the International Skating Union Published and produced by ISU, Chemin de Primerose 2, 1007 Lausanne, Switzerland Telephone: +41 21 612 66 66. Facsimile: +41 21 612 66 77. Editorial board: Fredi Schmid, Devra Pitt Getaz, Selina Vanier, Rodney Lajoie. Designed by www.moserdesign.ch. Front cover photograph: Daisuke Takahashi (JPN) © Getty Images Photography: ©Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee© Getty Images, ©Christopher Lee, ©Feng Li, ©Matthew Stockman ©Jamie Squire ©AFP ©Mike Hewitt
ISU COUNCIL At its autumn meeting on October 15-17, 2010 in Munich (GER), the ISU Council appointed Ms Krisztina Regöczy (HUN) as the Sports Director Figure Skating. See Communication 1655 for other decisions. The Spring ISU Council meeting 2011 will take place in Helsinki (FIN) from April 8 – 10, 2011. Readers interested in keeping up with important ISU Communications can subscribe to an RSS feed via the front page of the isu.org website.
ISU SPORTS DIRECTORATE
On November 29, 2010 the Sports Directorate met to discuss the proposed new Team Event at the Olympic Winter Games, which is likely to be included in the Olympic Program for the first time in 2014. Also on the agenda were the significant modifications for the ISU Championships including a preliminary round for qualification which necessitated the updating of all competition documents and schedules. Other priorities in this pre-Championship period include the Figure Skating Seminars in Berlin and Oberstdorf, as well as a new concept for the Global Seminar in Frankfurt. In the Speed Skating branch preparatory work continued ahead of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games. In Short Track event presentation remained the key focus area. Speed Skating Mass starts have also been the subject of detailed evaluation and several mass start events have been scheduled during the World Cup season.
ISU TECHNICAL COMMITTEES Single & Pair Skating
In the period of autumn 2010 the Committee Members were involved in moderating various ISU Judges Seminars (Beijing, China and Eindhoven, Netherlands - September, Portland, USA and Melbourne, Australia - November, December). They served as Technical Controllers and Referees at various Grand Prix and Junior Grand Prix Events. At the Initial Judges Meetings and Round Table Discussions of these Events they explained all the nuances of the ISU Technical Regulations 2010 which contain some differences with the previous Regulations. The Committee Members in this period were also involved in correspondence with the Officials Assessment Commission on all cases of anomalies
ISU NEWS in judging and following possible letters of Assessment. Also work has begun on the quality of the Referees and Technical Controllers Reports for the competitions held in autumn 2010 and picking out useful proposals for the next season 2011-2012.
Ice Dance
The Ice Dance Technical Committee has been busy during this period evaluating Official Assessment Commission Reports from the ISU Junior and Senior Grand Prix of Figure Skating and the Finals. In addition numerous Referee and Technical Controller Reports from various ISU events have been received and evaluated. Committee members have served as Officials at several events during this period. Feedback has been sought at these competitions about the success of the introduction of the Short Dance this season. Preparations are underway for the annual meeting with the Coaches and Skaters at the upcoming World Championships in order to help them prepare for next season’s programs. The Committee has begun a project to find examples at all levels from previous competitions which will help Judges evaluate Program Components specifically with Ice Dance examples. The examples and analyses will be distributed by DVD during the next season.
Synchronized Skating
In October, an ISU Recognized Synchronized Skating Judges and Referees Seminar
took place in Dübendorf, Switzerland which gathered 7 Referees and 27 Judges from 12 Members, moderated by Christopher Buchanan and Mika Saarelainen. Two months later in December another successful ISU Recognized Synchronized Skating Judges Seminar was held in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA with 11 Judges from 3 Members in attendance and moderated by Philippe Maitrot and Gale Tanger. The Synchronized Skating Technical Committee will be conducting Official Trial Judging and holding the Synchronized Skating ISU Judges Examination on the occasion of the ISU Synchronized Skating Junior World Challenge Cup 2011.
Speed Skating
In a busy pre-Christmas season the Committee has been involved in the preparation and monitoring of 8 ISU Speed Skating Events on three continents (5 Essent ISU World Cup competitions and 3 ISU Junior World Cup competitions). On the occasion of the first World Cup of the season in Heerenveen the Committee met with a group of top skaters to discuss some of the new racing rules introduced at the 2010 ISU Congress. A meeting with representatives of coaches was held at the occasion of the World Cup in Berlin, and efficient channels of contact between the Committee and coaches have been established. The next Committee meeting will be held on the occasion of the World Sprint Championships in Heerenveen, including a joint meeting with ISU Speed Skating Council
Members to discuss important issues for the future development of Speed Skating.
Short Track
Due to the large increase in participation of the World Cup events, the Short Track Technical Committee is working on qualifications and systems to better provide greater athlete participation while protecting the integrity of the World Cup at a high level. The start of the 2010-2011 season saw the introduction of new racing rules for Short Track. These innovations mark the first such rules changes in over 30 years, therefore a large amount of work has been carried out to ensure their successful implementation.
MR. JEAN HECKLY
It is with profound regret that the ISU learned of the death of the former ISU Honorary Vice President Mr. Jean Heckly on October 24rd, 2010 at the age of 88. Mr. Heckly began his ISU office holder career as a substitute member of the Speed Skating Technical Committee from 1959 - 1963. He then went on to become a full member in 1963 a role which he carried out for the following 19 years. He was elected as the substitute member of the ISU Council in 1982 and became a Speed Skating Council Member in 1984. He was elected to ISU Vice Presidency in 1986, a position he held until 1992 before becoming ISU Honorary Vice President. The ISU pays tribute to Jean Heckly’s devoted service to the ISU and asks Members to remember him with affection.
ISU SECRETARIAT
After more than six years Ms. Devra Pitt Gétaz, ISU Communications Coordinator leaves the ISU at the end of this Olympic and Congress year for family reasons. We thank Ms. Pitt Gétaz for her work and wish her much success with her future. Ms. Selina Vanier has joined the ISU as the new Communications Coordinator. In other changes, with the aim to reinforce the ISU’s commercial and marketing activities, Mr. Pierre Eymann has been named Sports/Marketing Coordinator. Mr. Fabrice Prahin has taken over Mr. Eymann’s former role as Speed Skating Sports Coordinator. We congratulate them on their appointments. Figure Skating and Short Track Speed Skating Olympic venue: Sochi Olympic Skating Center under construction, November 2010
ISU WEBSITE: WWW.ISU.ORG
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ISU GRAND PRIX OF FIGURE SKATING The ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series showcased the excitement of figure skating and the depth of up and coming talent in the post-Olympic season. Newcomers from the junior ranks debuted successfully on the senior circuit.
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42 Men, 37 Ladies, 29 Pairs and 30 Ice Dance couples competed in the Grand Prix of Figure Skating this year. The series began in October in Nagoya (JPN) and Kingston (CAN) before moving on to Beijing (CHN) and Portland (USA), followed by Moscow (RUS) and Paris (FRA). The Grand Prix season concluded in December with the combined ISU Grand Prix and Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Beijing (CHN), where the top six skaters and couples (senior) and the top eight ranked junior skaters and couples in each discipline competed for the Grand Prix titles. Reigning World silver medallist Patrick Chan (CAN) won a gold and a silver medal in his Grand Prix events before claiming his first title in the Grand Prix Final in what was his third appearance with a new personal best score of 259.75 points. Nobunari Oda (JPN) collected three silver medals – two in the Grand Prix and one in the Final. Takahiko Kozuka (JPN) earned the bronze in the Final after taking two golds on the circuit. Reigning World Champion Daisuke Takahashi (JPN) won his two Grand Prix competitions, and finished fourth in the Final. Tomas Verner (CZE) and Florent Amodio (FRA) also competed in the Final. Competition among the men was tight and substitutes Jeremy Abbott (USA) and Brandon Mroz (USA) were edged out of the Final by the second tie-breaker. Adam Rippon (USA) was the third substitute.
Alissa Czisny (USA) winner of the Ladies’ ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final
Alissa Czisny (USA) had a strong start into the season with a gold and a bronze in her Grand Prix events before skating off with the title in the Final. She had a new personal best of 180.75 points. Carolina Kostner (ITA) celebrated a comeback as well with a gold and a bronze on the circuit and the silver in Bejing. Reigning World Junior Champion Kanako Murakami (JPN) qualified with a gold and a bronze for the Final in her first year on the senior circuit and captured the bronze in the Final. Akiko Suzuki (JPN), Miki Ando (JPN) and, for the first time, Rachael Flatt (USA) also were in the Final after medalling in their Grand Prix events. Kiira Korpi (FIN) won the first Grand
FIGURE SKATING 2010 ISU CHAMPIONSHIPS FIGURE SKATING European Championships
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Venue: Bern (SUI) Dates: 24 - 30 January
2010 European Champions Ladies: Carolina Kostner (ITA) Men: Evgeni Plushenko (RUS) Pairs: Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov (RUS) Ice Dance: Oksana Domnina / Maxim Shabalin (RUS)
Four Continents Championships Venue: Taipei City (TPE) Dates: 15 - 20 February
2010 Four Continents Champions Ladies : Mao Asada (JPN) Men : Adam Rippon (USA) Pairs : Dan Zhang / Hao Zhang (CHN) Ice Dance : Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje (CAN)
World Junior Championships Venue: Gangneung City (KOR) Dates: 28 February - 6 March
2010 World Junior Champions Ladies: Kanako Murakami (JPN) Men: Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN) Pairs: Wenjing Sui / Cong Han (CHN) Ice Dance: Elena Ilinykh / Nikita Katsalapov (RUS)
World Championships Venue: Tokyo (JPN) Dates: 21 - 27 March
2009 World Champions
Ladies: Mao Asada (JPN) Men: Daisuke Takahashi (JPN) Pairs: Qing Pang / Jian Tong (CHN) Ice Dance: Tessa Virtue / Scott Moir (CAN)
World Synchronized Skating Championships Venue: Helsinki (FIN) Dates: 8 - 9 April
2010 World Champions Team: Team Finland 1
Richard Dornbush (USA) winner of the Men’s ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final
Prix gold medal for a Finnish skater in Paris and was the first substitute for the Final. Mirai Nagasu (USA) and Ashley Wagner (USA) were the other substitutes as they did well on the circuit. Reigning World Champion Mao Asada (JPN) competed in two events but did not qualify for the Final. Two-time World Champions Aliona Savchenko/Robin Szolkowy (GER) not only struck gold in their two Grand Prix events
but also recaptured the Grand Prix Final title they had won once before in the 2007/08 season. After claiming two gold medals on the circuit, Qing Pang/Jian Tong (CHN) settled for the silver in their hometown. Reigning World Junior Champions Wenjing Sui/Cong Han (CHN) impressed in their international senior-level debut with two medals on the Grand Prix and the bronze in the Final. Liubov Iliushechkina/Nodari Maisuradze (RUS), Vera Bazarova/Yuri
Larionov (RUS) and Kirsten Moore-TowersDylan Moscovitch (CAN) all competed in their first Grand Prix Final. Narumi Takahashi/Mervin Tran (JPN) were the first substitutes with two medals on the Grand Prix and competed in the Junior Final as they had also competed successfully on the Junior circuit. Caitlin Yankowskas/John Coughlin (USA) and Paige Lawrence/Rudi Swiegers (CAN) were the other substitutes after winning their first medal on the circuit.
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Ice Dancers Meryl Davis/Charlie White (USA) dominated the Grand Prix with two gold medals and defended last year’s title with a new personal best of 171.58 points. Last year’s bronze medallists Nathalie Péchalat/Fabian Bourzat (FRA) moved up one step on the podium and en route claimed their first two gold medals in their Grand Prix events. Vanessa Crone/Paul Poirier (CAN) came back to the Final with a gold and a silver from the circuit and claimed the bronze, their first medal, in the Final. Ekaterina Bobrova/ Dmitri Soloviev (RUS), Kaitlyn Weaver/Andrew Poje (CAN) and Nora Hoffmann/ Maxim Zavozin (HUN) all qualified for the Final for the first time. Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani (USA) claimed two bronze medals in their Grand Prix events and were the first substitutes. Madison Chock/Greg Zuerlein (USA) completed a strong showing of the North American dance teams with two bronze medals and were the second substitutes. Ekaterina Riazanova/Ilia Tkachenko (RUS) were the third substitutes after winning their first medal in the Grand Prix.
JUNIOR GRAND PRIX The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating entered its 14th season in 2010 and saw 93 junior men, 140 junior ladies, 34 junior pairs and 67 dance teams coming from more than 50 ISU members with an opportunity to compete at the international level. Malaysia was represented for the first time in an ISU competition. The junior circuit started in Courchevel (FRA), went on to Brasov (ROU), Graz (AUT) Karuizawa (JPN), Sheffield (GBR) and Dresden (GER) before ending in Ostrava (CZE).
Wenjing Sui/Cong Han (CHN)
The U.S. Men had a strong showing on the Junior circuit and were represented with four competitors in the Final. 19-year-old Richard Dornbush (USA) won the gold in one Junior Grand Prix event and placed
FIGURE SKATING fourth in the other before claiming the title in the Junior Final in what was his third appearance in the event. Han Yan (CHN) secured the silver at home in Beijing in his first Final after winning his two Junior Grand Prix events. Andrei Rogozine (CAN) also qualified with two gold medals for his first Final and clinched the bronze medal. Max Aaron (USA), Keegan Messing (USA), Joshua Farris (USA), Zhan Bush (RUS) and Gordei Gorshkov (RUS) also competed in the Final. Like last year, the USA and Russia dominated in the Junior Ladies and were represented with three entries each in the Final. The gold in Beijing went to 14-year-old Adelina Sotnikova (RUS), who had also claimed victory in her two Junior Grand Prix events. 13-year-old Elizaveta Tuktamisheva (RUS) took home the silver in the Junior Final and two gold medals
Nathalie Pechalat/Fabien Bourzat (FRA)
from the circuit. Zijun Li (CHN), who came as a late replacement for Kiri Baga (USA) to the Final, surprised with the bronze medal. All three medallists debuted on the Junior circuit. Risa Shoji (JPN), Polina Shelepen (RUS), Christina Gao (USA), Yasmin Siraj (USA) and Kristiene Gong (USA) completed the field in the Final. Pair skating was concentrated in four events in Austria, Great Britain, Germany and the Czech Republic. Last year’s silver medallists Narumi Takahashi/Mervin Tran (JPN) medalled in both their Junior Grand Prix events and captured the title in the Final. World Junior bronze medallists Ksenia Stolbova/Fedor Klimov (RUS) earned the silver medal and the bronze went to newcomers Xiaoyu Yu/Yang Jin (CHN). Taylor Steele/Robert Schultz (CAN), Natasha Purich/Raymond Schultz (CAN), Brittany Jones/Kurtis Gaskell (CAN), Anna
Silaeva/Artur Minchuk (RUS) and Ashley Cain/ Joshua Reagan (USA) all competed in their first Junior Final. Sui/Han had actually also qualified for the Junior Final after competing on both the junior and senior circuit. Russia dominated the Junior Ice Dance. Six out of eight couples in the Final represented Russia and in the Final Russia swept the podium. Ksenia Monko/Kirill Khaliavin defended last year’s title while Victoria Sinitsina/Ruslan Zhiganshin and Alexandra Stepanova /Ivan Bukin took the silver and bronze medals after qualifying for their first Junior Final with medals on the circuit. Also competing in the Final were Ekaterina Pushkash/Jonathan Guerreiro (RUS), Charlotte Lichtman/Dean Copely (USA), Evgenia Kosigina/Nikolai Moroshkin (RUS) and Marina Antipova/Artem Kudashev (RUS).
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From front to back: Charles Hamelin (CAN), Sung Si-Bak (KOR), Olivier Jean (CAN), Jon Eley (GBR), Tyson Heung (GER)
SHORT TRACK The Short Track season got off to a roaring start with the North American and Asian competitions of the ISU World Cup Short Track series. In the series individual races are held over 500m, 1000m and 1500m in both ladies’ and men’s competitions. In addition, there are relay events for national teams over 3000m (ladies) and 5000m (men). The first of the six events of the season kicked off at the Maurice Richard Arena in Montreal, Canada where a total of 23 countries participated; however, Korea was notably not in attendance. The absence of the world’s top nation provided the opportunity for countries like Canada, China and the United States to take control of the racing. Taking advantage of local support and fans, Canada finished the weekend with 11 medals, followed by the United States who took 10 medals. China earned a total of 5 medals with other medals going to France (3) and Italy (1). On October 29-31, 2010 in Quebec City, Canada the world’s best short track speed skaters resumed competition for the second round of the series with skaters competing at
the Pavillon de la Jeunesse in Quebec City. A total of 21 countries participated, but with the Korean team absent for a second consecutive World Cup. As in the previous weekend, the team from Canada led the medal count, earning a total of 9. Having the first two stops of the ISU World Cup Short Track circuit on home soil was definitely an advantage for the Canadians, who were cheered on by the local fans. However, the competition was tight, with the team from the United States taking home 7 medals and China 6. Italy had a great weekend, earning 4 medals, and France returned home with 2. Other countries to earn medals were Great Britain (1) and Japan (1). On December 3-5, 2010 the action moved east to Changchun, China for the third round of the 2010-11 ISU World Cup Short Track season. The event marked the first of two consecutive World Cup competitions in China, and featured the return of the Korean team to World Cup competition, with a total of 22 countries participating. The Chinese team looked as if they’d been taking careful note of the Canadian team’s playbook, taking full advantage of skating on home soil. They dominated the medal count, earning a total of 9. With the return of the Korean team, it was no surprise to see its skaters stepping on to the podium throughout
the weekend; they took a total of 7 medals. The other countries to earn medals were United States (4), Canada (3), France (3), Japan (1), Netherlands (1) and Russia (1). Back to back one week later the Short Trackers picked up the pace in Shanghai, for the series second consecutive stop on Chinese soil, and with a total of 24 countries participating. The team from Korea dominated the medal count, winning a total of 14 medals. The next best performance was by China, who earned 7 medals. Canada earned 3 medals, while France and the Netherlands earned two medals each. The other countries to earn medals were: Italy (1) and Japan (1). The ISU World Cup Short Track takes a break for the holiday season, and will resume in the New Year, on February 11-13, 2011 in Moscow, Russia before the final event on February 18-20, 2011 in Dresden, Germany. See the current standings after the four of six events completed so far on page 14 of this edition of ISU World. Video of all Short Track World Cup events is available free of charge via the ISU website. Viewers can watch the ISU World Cup Short Track series via a delayed broadcast stream link from the front page of www.isu.org
SPEED SKATING SPEED SKATING
2011 ISU CHAMPIONSHIPS SHORT TRACK European Short Track Speed Skating Championships
World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
2010 European Champions
2010 World Champions
World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships
World Short Track Speed Skating Team Championships
2010 World Junior Champions
2010 World Team Champions
Venue: Heerenveen (NED) Dates: 14 – 16 January
Ladies: Katerina Novotna (CZE) Men: Nicola Rodigari (ITA)
Venue: Courmayeur (ITA) Dates: 25 - 27 February
Ladies: Jihyun Choi (KOR) Men: Jinkyu Noh (KOR)
Venue: Sheffield (GBR) Dates: 11 – 13 March
Ladies: Seung-Hi Park (KOR) Men: Ho-Suk Lee (KOR)
Venue: Warsaw (POL) Dates: 19 - 20 March
Ladies: Republic of Korea Men: Republic of Korea
SPEED SKATING European Speed Skating Championships Venue: Collalbo (ITA) Dates: 7 - 9 January
2010 European Champions Ladies: Martina Sábliková (CZE) Men: Sven Kramer (NED)
World Junior Speed Skating Championships Venue: Seinäjoki (FIN) Dates: 25 - 27 February
2010 World Junior Champions Ladies: Lotte Van Beek (NED)
Venue: Heerenveen (NED) Dates: 22 - 23 January
500 meters: Yekaterina Aydova (KAZ) 1000 meters: Lotte Van Beek (NED) 1500 meters: Lotte Van Beek (NED) 3000 meters: Lotte Van Beek (NED) Team Pursuit Ladies: Netherlands
2010 World Sprint Champions
Men: Koen Verweij (NED)
World Allround Speed Skating Championships
500 meters: Artur Nogal (POL) 1000 meters: Brian Hansen (USA) 1500 meters: Brian Hansen (USA) 5000 meters: Koen Verweij (NED) Team Pursuit Men: Norway
World Sprint Speed Skating Championships
Ladies: Sang-Hwa Lee (KOR) Men: Kyou-Hyuk Lee (KOR)
Venue: Calgary (CAN) Dates: 12 – 13 February
2010 World Champions Ladies: Martina Sábliková (CZE) Men: Sven Kramer (NED)
World Single Distances Championships Venue: Inzell,(GER) Dates: 10 – 13 March
The Essent ISU World Cup season for 2010/2011 consists this season of eight events of which five took place before the end of 2010. They started in Heerenveen (NED) moving on to Berlin (GER), Hamar (NOR), Changchun (CHN) and Obihiro (JPN). On the 500m ladies, Jenny Wolf (GER) currently leads with 720 points. She won the first four races but due to back problems she struggled and lost the last three races to the Olympic champion Sang-Hwa Lee (KOR) who ranks second with 650 points. Jing Yu (CHN) came in second place twice, ahead of Wolf, but Yu missed the European World Cups. Nao Kodaira (JPN) is third in the ranking with 475 points. With 55 World Cup victories in her career, Wolf only needs one more to be on equal level with her compatriot Anni Friesinger. In Heerenveen, Wolf overtook Bonnie Blair (USA) as the most frequent winner of a World Cup Speed Skating 500m race. Christine Nesbitt (CAN) won all the 1000m and 1500m races in which she participated, but missed the two 1000m races in Obihiro. Heather Richardson (USA) took advantage of Nesbitt’s absence to win twice the 1000m in Obihiro after being the runner-up three times. Richardson took the lead with 490 points; she had never been on a World Cup podium before this season. Nesbitt is in second place with 400 points followed by Kodaira who has three podium finishes. Margot Boer (NED) is fourth both in the 500m and 1000m ranking, and fell out of the top three when she decided to skip Obihiro. She is still a strong candidate for the World Sprint Speed Skating title in January 2011 along with Kodaira, Lee, Richardson and possibly Nesbitt. After three 1500m races, Christine Nesbitt leads with the maximum 300 points, Marrit Leenstra (NED) follows, while Brittany Schussler (CAN) is third. Norway has a young skater in 6th place, Ida Njåtun (NOR) who seems to be in her break-through season. On the long distance for the ladies, Stefanie Beckert (GER) leads after two victories. Jilleanne Rookard (USA), who became the first 3000m winner from the USA, follows in second place. Martina Sáblíková (CZE) is third after missing the first race because of illness, but she has not yet won a race. Asian skaters dominated the 500m. Joji Kato (JPN) leads after three victories, closely followed by Kang-Seok Lee (KOR) with two. They have 615 and 590 points respectively. Keiichiro Nagashima (JPN) is third with
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one victory and 488 points. There were five different winners in eight races, among them Tucker Fredricks (USA) and Pekka Koskela (FIN). Also Kyou-Hyuk Lee (KOR) frequented the podium and is fourth, only few points behind Nagashima.
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Kyou-Hyuk is a strong candidate for the World Sprint title. He won three times, as he combines a strong 500m with the World Cup lead in the 1000m. Shani Davis (USA) is second in the 1000m, with three victories and a second place and was absent in Changchun. He lost the last race to surprise winner Samuel Schwarz (GER), after being unbeaten in the 1000m since March 2009. Stefan Groothuis (NED) is currently in third, having won 2 races in Obihiro, Fourth is Simon Kuipers (NED) and Schwarz is fifth. The 1500m is very tight. Shani Davis is leading with 210 points. He won the first race and also came third in another. But Simon Kuipers is only 5 points behind with 2 silvers, and Trevor Marsicano (USA) is 9 points behind
Christine Nesbitt (CAN)
Davis. He won the last race and was second in Berlin. Håvard Bøkko (NOR) is fourth in the ranking, and he won the Berlin race. Stefan Groothuis and Olympic Champion Mark Tuitert (NED) both reached the podium once. The long distance skaters had two 5000m races, one in Heerenveen, the other in Berlin and one 10,000m in Hamar. In the absence of the recuperating champion Sven Kramer (NED), this World Cup distance was up for grabs. Kramer’s compatriot Bob de Jong has occupied that leading position. He won both in Heerenveen and Hamar in front of the Russian Ivan Skobrev. Skobrev is second in the ranking, followed by Jonathan Kuck (USA), who after a fourth place in Heerenveen was second in Berlin, behind Seung-Hoon Lee from Korea, the Olympic 10,000m champion who missed the Hamar World Cup. There were third place finishes for Remco Olde Heuvel (NED), Håvard Bøkko and Jorrit Bergsma (NED). The US men won the Team Pursuit races both in Berlin and Hamar. With Shani Davis, Trevor
Marsicano and Jonathan Kuck the Americans have proved to be the team to beat. The Norwegian team is second with 50 points less, after a second place finish and a third place in Hamar behind the Canadians, who are third in the overall ranking. The Dutch team is fourth; they completed the podium in Berlin. In the ladies team pursuit, the Dutch are in the lead; they finished second in Berlin and third in Hamar and have a score of 150 points, only 5 points ahead of the German ladies, who won in Berlin but were only sixth in Hamar. Despite the fact that the Canadian team won the last race and are considered the strongest team with Christine Nesbitt, Brittany Schussler, Cindy Klassen and Kristina Groves, they are only ranked fifth as they did not finish the first competition. Russia and Norway are ranked ahead of the Canadian team with 130 point each. As the Championship season gets underway in the New Year the remaining Essent ISU World Cup races will take place in Moscow (RUS) from 28-30 January 2011 and Salt Lake
SPEED SKATING
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Joji Kato (JPN)
City (USA)from 18-19 February 2011 before the series comes to a conclusion in Heerenveen (NED) from 4-6 March 2011.
ISU JUNIOR WORLD CUP The ISU Junior World Cup Speed Skating series kicked off in November and took place across 3 continents. The Canadian, American and Romanian skaters went to Calgary (CAN), the Japanese, Chinese and Koreans chose Tomakomai (JPN) and other skaters gathered in Zakopan (POL). The series gives young speed skaters a platform at top international junior level providing additional challenges and nurturing competitive spirit as athletes move towards senior level. In the ISU Junior World Cup series the participants are either A or B juniors, which means that they are in the last four years of being eligible to participate at junior level (aged 15-19 years). They skate all in one division, and the program includes 500m, 1000m,
1500m and 3000m as well as the Team Pursuit for both men and ladies. For the men the 3000m is at times replaced by the 5000m. The ladies skate 6 laps in the Team Pursuit and the men skate 8 laps. The event is supported by ISU’s Development Program. Prize money will be awarded for the three best skaters or teams in the final overall classification of each distance/event. Skaters can earn points through the World Cups. Some of the highlights of the Junior World Cup so far: In Calgary, Kali Christ (CAN) won the ladies’ 1500m in 2:00.20, which is the best time ever in the Junior World Cup. Brianne Tutt (CAN) did not finish that race but she is a promising allrounder, as she won all other distances, from 500m to 3000m in good times. In Tomakomai there was only one Korean lady per distance. Bo-Reum Kim won the 1500m and 3000m and Hyun-Yung Kim was the best sprinter, with Erina Kamiya winning the other 500m and Misaki Oshigiri winning the 1000m. Times here were much slower.
Also in the men’s field, the one Korean participant won the distance (Sung-Gyu Kim the 500m and 1000m, Tae-Hoon Koh the 3000m), except in the 1500m, where Bailin Li (CHN) was the fastest and Koh only fifth. In Zakopane, Yekaterina Aydova (KAZ) won the 500m and was second behind Lotte van Beek (NED) in the 1000m. Pien Keulstra won the ladies’ 1500 and 3000m. The men’s 500m was dominated by the Russian, Pavel Kulizhnikov who won both races but lost the 1000m to Maurice Vriend (NED). Sverre Lunde Pedersen (a member of the successful Norwegian senior Team Pursuit team), won the 1500m in a track record and Frank Hermans (NED) improved the 3000m track record, only 0.01 ahead of Lunde Pedersen in a straight duel. This series will continue in Baselga di Piné (ITA) from 29-30 January, Milwaukee (USA) from 4-6 February, Seinajöki (FIN) from 25-27 February on the occasion of the ISU World Junior Speed Skating
FIGURE SKATING Grand Prix of Figure Skating – standings after six of six events (full results on www.isu.org )
Ladies
12
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Miki Ando Alissa Czisny Carolina Kostner Kanako Murakami Akiko Suzuki Rachael Flatt Kiira Korpi Mirai Nagasu Ashley Wagner Amelie Lacoste Cynthia Phaneuf Ksenia Makarova Agnes Zawadzki Joshi Helgesson Haruka Imai Alena Leonova Valentina Marchei Mao Asada Elene Gedevanishvili Bingwa Geng Myriane Samson Viktoria Helgesson Sofia Biryukova Amanda Dobbs Sonia Lafuente
Men
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Takahiko Kozuka Daisuke Takahashi Patrick Chan Tomas Verner Nobunari Oda Florent Amodio Jeremy Abbott Brandon Mroz Adam Rippon Kevin Reynolds Samuel Contesti Yuzuru Hanyu Alban Preaubert Armin Mahbanoozadeh Shawn Sawyer Brian Joubert Artur Gachinski Kevin Van Der Perren Javier Fernandez Tatsuki Machida Daisuke Murakami Chafik Besseghier Nan Song Takahito Mura Ross Miner
NHK Skate Trophy Canada
Samsung Anycall Cup Skate Rostelecom of China America Cup
Trophée Eric Bompard
JPN 1st 1st USA 1st 3rd ITA 1st 3rd JPN 3rd 1st JPN 2nd 2nd USA 2nd 2nd FIN 4th 1st USA 4th 2nd USA 5th 3rd CAN 3rd 5th CAN 4th 4th RUS 2nd 7th USA 6th 4th SWE 7th 4th JPN 5th 6th RUS 3rd 9th ITA 8th 5th JPN 8th 5th GEO 6th 7th CHN 5th CAN 7th 8th SWE 9th 6th RUS 6th USA 6th ESP 10th 7th
NHK Skate Trophy Canada
Samsung Anycall Cup Skate Rostelecom of China America Cup
Trophée Eric Bompard
JPN 1st 1st JPN 1st 1st CAN 1st 2nd CZE 3rd 1st JPN 2nd 2nd FRA 3rd 2nd USA 2nd 3rd USA 2nd 3rd USA 3rd 4th CAN 4th 4th ITA 6th 4th JPN 4th 7th FRA 6th 5th USA 3rd CAN 5th 8th FRA 4th RUS 7th 6th BEL 8th 6th ESP 5th 9th JPN 5th 11th JPN 5th FRA 5th CHN 10th 6th JPN 6th USA 9th 7th
Total Points
30 26 26 26 26 26 24 22 18 18 18 17 14 13 12 11 10 10 9 7 7 5 5 5 4
GRAND PRIX 9 – 12 December,
Final - Ladies 1 2 3 4 5 6
Alissa Czisny Carolina Kostner Kanako Murakami Akiko Suzuki Miki Ando Rachael Flatt
Final - Pairs
1 Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy 2 Qing Pang / Jian Tong 3 Wenjing Sui / Cong Han 4 Lubov Iliushechkina / Nodari Maisuradze 5 Vera Bazarova / Yuri Larionov 6 Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan Moscovitch
GER CHN CHN RUS RUS CAN
JUNIOR GRAND PRIX 9 – 12 December,
Total Points
30 30 28 26 26 24 24 24 20 18 14 13 12 11 10 9 9 8 7 7 7 7 5 5 4
USA ITA JPN JPN JPN USA
Final - Ladies 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Adelina Sotnikova Elizaveta Tuktamisheva Zijun Li Risa Shoji Polina Shelepen Christina Gao Yasmin Siraj Kristiene Gong
RUS RUS CHN JPN RUS USA USA USA
Final - Pairs
1 Narumi Takahashi / Mervin Tran 2 Ksenia Stolbova / Fedor Klimov 3 Xiaoyu Yu / Yang Jin 4 Taylor Steele / Robert Schultz 5 Ashley Cain / Joshua Reagan 6 Brittany Jones / Kurtis Gaskell 7 Natasha Purich / Raymond Schultz 8 Anna Silaeva / Artur Minchuk
JPN RUS CHN CAN USA CAN CAN RUS
Pairs
OF FIGURE SKATING FINAL Beijing, China
Final - Men
Patrick Chan Nobunari Oda Takahiko Kozuka Daisuke Takahashi Tomas Verner Florent Amodio
CAN JPN JPN JPN CZE FRA
Final - Ice Dance
Samsung Anycall Cup Skate Rostelecom of China America Cup
1 Aliona Savchenko / Robin Szolkowy GER
1 2 3 4 5 6
NHK Skate Trophy Canada
1st
2 Qing Pang /Jian Tong
CHN 1st
3 Vera Bazarova / Yuri Larionov
RUS 2nd
Trophée Eric Bompard
1st
1st
4 Kirsten Moore-Towers / Dylan Moscovitch CAN
2nd
5 Lubov Iliushechkina / Nodari Maisuradze RUS
1st
2nd
Total Points
30 30 26
2nd
26
4th
24
2nd
24
6 Wenjing Sui / Cong Han
CHN
3rd
7 Narumi Takahashi / Mervin Tran
JPN 3rd
8 Caitlin Yankowskas / John Coughlin
USA 4th
9 Paige Lawrence / Rudi Swiegers
CAN
10 Amanda Evora / Mark Ladwig
USA
11 Caydee Denney / Jeremy Barrett
USA 5th
12 Yuko Kavaguti / Alexander Smirnov
RUS
13 Marissa Castelli / Simon Shnapir
USA
2nd
24
3rd
20
3rd
5th
18
3rd
18
4th
16
5th
4th
1st
15
6th
14
14 Mylene Brodeur / John Mattatall
CAN 6th
4th
14
1 2
Meryl Davis / Charlie White Nathalie Pechalat / Fabian Bourzat
USA FRA
15 Maylin Hausch / Daniel Wende
GER 7th
3rd
11
16 Katarina Gerboldt / Alexander Enbert
RUS
3 4 5 6
Vanessa Crone / Paul Poirier Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje Nora Hoffmann / Maxim Zavozin
CAN RUS CAN HUN
17 Felicia Zhang / Taylor Toth
USA
7th
18 Ksenia Stolbova / Fedor Klimov
RUS
5th
7
19 Meagan Duhamel / Eric Radford
CAN
5th
7
20 Britney Simpson / Nathan Miller
USA
6th
7th
5
21 Stefania Berton / Ondrej Hotarek
ITA
6th
5
22 Nicole Della Monica / Yannick Kocon
ITA
6th
5
23 Klara Kadlecova / Petr Bidar
CZE
Ice Dance
OF FIGURE SKATING FINAL Beijing, China
Final - Men 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Richard Dornbush Han Yan Andrei Rogozine Max Aaron Keegan Messing Joshua Farris Zhan Bush Gordei Gorshkov
USA CHN CAN USA USA USA RUS RUS
Final - Ice Dance 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Ksenia Monko / Kirill Khaliavin RUS Victoria Sinitsina / Ruslan Zhiganshin RUS Alexandra Stepanova / Ivan Bukin RUS Ekaterina Pushkash / Jonathan Guerreiro RUS Charlotte Lichtman / Dean Copely USA Evgenia Kosigina / Nikolai Moroshkin RUS Anastasia Galyeta / Alexei Shumski UKR Marina Antipova / Artem Kudashev RUS
NHK Skate Trophy Canada
4th
Samsung Anycall Cup Skate Rostelecom of China America Cup
5th
6th Trophée Eric Bompard
1 Meryl Davis / Charlie White USA 1st 1st 2 Nathalie Pechalat / Fabian Bourzat FRA 1st 1st 3 Vanessa Crone / Paul Poirier CAN 1st 2nd 4 Ekaterina Bobrova / Dmitri Soloviev RUS 2nd 1st 5 Kaitlyn Weaver / Andrew Poje CAN 2nd 4th 6 Nora Hoffmann / Maxim Zavozin HUN 4th 2nd 7 Maia Shibutani / Alex Shibutani USA 3rd 3rd 8 Madison Chock / Greg Zuerlein USA 3rd 3rd 9 Ekaterina Riazanova / Ilia Tkachenko RUS 5th 2nd 10 Elena Ilinykh / Nikita Katsalapov RUS 4th 3rd 11 Pernelle Carron / Lloyd Jones FRA 5th 4th 12 Kristina Gorshkova / Vitali Butikov RUS 6th 4th 13 Xintong Huang / Xun Zheng CHN 5th 5th 14 Sinead Kerr / John Kerr GBR 2nd 15 Lucie Mysliveckova / Matej Novak CZE 6th 5th 16 Federica Faiella / Massimo Scali ITA 3rd 17 Alexandra Paul / Mitchell Islam CAN 4th 18 Kharis Ralph / Asher Hill CAN 7th 6th 19 Cathy Reed / Chris Reed JPN 7th 7th 20 Anna Cappellini / Luca Lanotte ITA 5th 21 Penny Coomes / Nicholas Buckland GBR 8th 8th 22 Lynn Kriengkrairut / Logan Giulietti-Schmitt USA 6th 23 Madison Hubbell / Keiffer Hubbell USA 6th 24 Isabella Cannuscio / Ian Lorello USA 7th 25 Sarah Arnold / Justin Trojek CAN 7th
9 7
5
Total Points
30 30 28 28 22 22 22 22 20 20 16 14 14 13 12 11 9 9 8 7 6 5 5 4 4
13
SPEED SKATING
ESSENT ISU WORLD CUP SPEED SKATING – overall standings after five of eight events
14
Ladies 500m
Total Points
Ladies 1000 m
Total Points
Ladies 1500 m
Total Points
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
720 650 475 410 344 295 279 255 246 220
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
490 400 339 260 218 213 212 199 181 180
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
300 186 170 165 150 127 113 113 80 77
Jenny Wolf Sang-Hwa Lee Nao Kodaira Margot Boer Heather Richardson Maki Tsuji Judith Hesse Jing Yu Laurine Van Riessen Shuai Qi
GER KOR JPN NED USA JPN GER CHN NED CHN
Heather Richardson Christine Nesbitt Nao Kodaira Margot Boer Shannon Rempel Judith Hesse Maki Tsuji Gabriele Hirschbichler Miho Takagi Monique Angermüller
USA CAN JPN NED CAN GER JPN GER JPN GER
Christine Nesbitt Marrit Leenstra Brittany Schussler Cindy Klassen Ireen Wüst Ida Njåtun Laurine Van Riessen Jilleanne Rookard Yekaterina Lobysheva Margot Boer
CAN NED CAN CAN NED NOR NED USA RUS NED
Men 500m
Total Points
Men 1000 m
Total Points
Men 1500 m
Points
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
615 590 488 475 434 352 312 275 249 207
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
402 380 330 290 253 253 217 213 211 170
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
210 205 201 182 162 126 120 100 97 95
Joji Kato Kang-Seok Lee Keiichiro Nagashima Kyou-Hyuk Lee Tucker Fredricks Akio Ota Jan Smeekens Dmitry Lobkov Yuya Oikawa Jacques de Koning
JPN KOR JPN KOR USA JPN NED RUS JPN NED
Kyou-Hyuk Lee Shani Davis Stefan Groothuis Simon Kuipers Samuel Schwarz Jan Bos Nico Ihle Mikael Flygind-Larsen Denny Morrison Hein Otterspeer
KOR USA NED NED GER NED GER NOR CAN NED
Ladies 3000/5000m
Total Points
Total Points
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
270 200 160 150 146 144 120 96 95 92
1 2 3 4 5
Stephanie Beckert Jilleanne Rookard Martina Sábliková Brittany Schussler Eriko Ishino Cindy Klassen Kristina Groves Ireen Wüst Christine Nesbitt Ida Njåtun
GER USA CZE CAN JPN CAN CAN NED CAN NOR
Ladies Team Pursuit Netherlands Germany Russia Norway Canada
150 145 130 130 100
Men 5000/10000m
Total Points
Total Points
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
260 200 185 166 140 136 134 120 115 78
1 2 3 4 5
Bob de Jong Ivan Skobrev Jonathan Kuck Håvard Bøkko Seung-Hoon Lee Bob de Vries Jorrit Bergsma Wouter Olde Heuvel Alexis Contin Dmitry Babenko
NED RUS USA NOR KOR NED NED NED FRA KAZ
Men Team Pursuit USA Norway Canada Netherlands Russia
200 150 130 120 100
Shani Davis Simon Kuipers Trevor Marsicano Håvard Bøkko Stefan Groothuis Mark Tuitert Ivan Skobrev Jonathan Kuck Alexis Contin Mikael Flygind-Larsen
USA NED USA NOR NED NED RUS USA FRA NOR
SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING
ISU WORLD CUP SHORT TRACK SPEED SKATING – overall standings after four of six events
Ladies 500m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Nannan Zhao Kexin Fan Qiuhong Liu Marianne St-Gelais Arianna Fontana Yui Sakai Valerie Lambert Erika Huszar Jessica Gregg Shin-Young Yang
CHN CHN CHN CAN ITA JPN CAN HUN CAN KOR
Men 500 m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Charles Hamelin Thibaut Fauconnet Jialiang Han Francois-Louis Tremblay Wenhao Liang Si-Bak Sung Jin Yang Simon Cho Semen Elistratov Ryosuke Sakazume
CAN FRA CHN CAN CHN KOR CHN USA RUS JPN
Total Points
3000 2080 2010 2000 1644 1132 968 787 726 722
Total Points
1722 1635 1590 1512 1475 1410 1184 1178 1134 996
Ladies 1000m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Yang Zhou Katherine Reutter Qiuhong Liu Lana Gehring Marie-Eve Drolet Marianne St-Gelais Nannan Zhao Alyson Dudek Ha-Ri Cho Shin-Young Yang
CHN USA CHN USA CAN CAN CHN USA KOR KOR
Men 1000m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Thibaut Fauconnet Travis Jayner Anthony Lobello Jinkyu Noh Michael Gilday Byeong-Jun Kim Charles Hamelin Yongjun Yu Si-Bak Sung Sjinkie Knegt
Ladies Relay 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
China Canada USA Republic of Korea Japan Netherlands Italy Russia Germany Poland
Men Relay 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Canada USA Republic of Korea China Netherlands Italy Russia France Germany Japan
FRA USA USA KOR CAN KOR CAN CHN KOR NED
Total Points
2440 1968 1690 1538 1480 1440 1050 1036 1000 1000
Total Points
2800 1702 1664 1512 1456 1000 1000 930 922 816
Total Points
3000 1952 1850 1800 1536 1378 1260 1066 852 336
Total Points
3000 2240 1640 1536 1460 1260 1250 1220 918 564
Ladies 1500 m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Katherine Reutter Yang Zhou Ha-Ri Cho Marie-Eve Drolet Biba Sakurai Dam Min Kim Valerie Maltais Bernadett Heidum Seung-Hi Park Jorien Ter Mors
USA CHN KOR CAN JPN KOR CAN HUN KOR NED
Men 1500 m 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Maxime Chataignier Jeff Simon Cheol Min Kim Guillaume Bastille Weilong Song Xianwei Liu Yuzo Takamido Jinkyu Noh Michael Gilday Yuma Sakurai
Ladies Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
China Canada Japan USA Republic of Korea Netherlands Italy Russia Germany Poland
Men Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Canada China USA Republic of Korea France Russia Japan Netherlands Italy Germany
FRA USA KOR CAN CHN CHN JPN KOR CAN JPN
Total Points
2800 2440 1800 1538 1490 1414 1152 1132 1128 1056
Total Points
1920 1850 1774 1747 1522 1296 1230 1035 1026 1000
Total Points
3800 2850 1946 1920 1600 1496 1148 996 756 472
Total Points
3240 2880 2152 2000 1434 1410 1246 1100 882 732
15
PAST MASTER RINTJE RITSMA (NED): BORN 1970 Olympic Winter Games Men’s 1,500 m Silver Medal 1994 Men’s 5,000 m Bronze Medal 1994 Men’s 1,500 m Bronze Medal 1998 Men’s 5,000 m Silver Medal 1998 Men’s 10,000 m Bronze Medal 1998 Team Pursuit Bronze Medal 2006 World Allround Speed Skating Championships Men’s Gold Medal 1995, 1996, 1999, 2001 Men’s Silver Medal 1998, 2003 Men’s Bronze Medal 1993, 1994, 2000 ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships Men’s 1,500 m Gold Medal 1997 Men’s 1,500 m Bronze Medal 1999 Men’s 5,000 m Gold Medal 1997 Men’s 5,000 m Silver Medal 1998 Men’s 10,000 m Silver Medal 1997 ISU European Allround Speed Skating Championships Men’s Gold Medal 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 Men’s Silver Medal 1997, 2003 Men’s Bronze Medal 1992, 1993 Rintje Ritsma is one of the most successful skaters of the nineties and considered by many as one of the greatest allround skaters of all times. In his long career, he won the World Allround Championships four times, six European titles and in 1997 he won two gold medals in the 1500m and 5000m at the ISU World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships. He also won six Olympic medals between 1994 and 2006.