WASHINGTON, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- China collected two medals in the men's sprint events at the ISU Speed Skating World Cup in Salt Lake City on Saturday, with Olympic champion Gao Tingyu taking bronze in the men's 500m and Ning Zhongyan finishing runner-up in the men's 1,500m as the season opened on one of the world's fastest rinks.
In a disrupted men's 500m marked by crashes and a brief ice repair, American sensation Jordan Stolz, fresh from 1,000m gold on Friday, registered another triumph in 33.88 seconds. Poland's Damian Zurek, runner-up in Friday's 1,000m, again finished second, 0.02 seconds behind. Gao clocked 33.93 to secure China's first podium of the weekend, as five skaters broke the 34-second mark.
Zurek, who overcame a false start, said: "I'm super happy that it's silver again, and I'm starting the season in a good position."
In the men's 1,500m, China's Ning refreshed his own national record, taking silver in 1:41.02, 0.54 seconds behind Stolz, who completed a sweep of the men's 500m, 1,000m and 1,500m over two days at the Utah Olympic Oval.
"I thought about it before the race," Stolz said about Kjeld Nuis' 1:40.17 world record. "I think if I were a little bit more rested going into it, not having done the 1,000m and then a 500m before, even if it wasn't just the 500m, maybe I could have gotten it."
Germany's 18-year-old Finn Sonnekalb placed third in 1:41.33, breaking the junior world record previously held by Stolz. The American acknowledged the challenge from his young rival, saying: "He just did really good. I think he's going to do good at senior level too, he's on the podium today."
Elsewhere on Saturday, Dutch sprinter Femke Kok skated 36.48 seconds to win women's 500m. Kok acknowledged she felt the pressure seeing Japan's Yukino Yoshida open with 36.88: "When I saw 36.88s, I knew I almost had to skate a personal best to beat it."
Kok's time also prompted her to reflect on Lee Sang-hwa's 2013 world mark of 36.36: "Crossing the line, that was the first thing I thought: it's getting really close now, only 0.12s... The world record is super sharp, but I hope to be able to continue improving."
American Erin Jackson finished second in 36.87, and Yoshida claimed a bronze.
In women's middle distance, Joy Beune of the Netherlands added the 1,500m title to her 3,000m victory from Friday, crossing the line in 1:51.05. Her teammate Antoinette Rijpma-De Jong took silver in 1:51.71 and Norway's Ragne Wiklund claimed bronze in 1:51.96.
This season's Salt Lake City stop is one of four World Cups that double as qualification events for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games. Competition continues Sunday with the second 500m, mass start and team events. ■
