Speed skating-Rijpma-de Jong completes her medal set with 1,500m gold at Milano Cortina
MILAN, Feb 20 : Dutchwoman Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong finally completed her Olympic medal set on Friday by winning the women's 1,500 metres at the Milano Cortina Games, securing her first gold and her nation's third speed skating title of these Games.
Norway's Ragne Wiklund took silver, while Canada's Valerie Maltais claimed bronze to round out the podium.
Rijpma-de Jong - who took the bronze in this distance at Beijing 2022 - stopped the clock at one minute 54.09 seconds, earning her second medal of Milan Cortina after her silver in the team pursuit.
"This medal means everything to me. I already had Olympic silver and bronze medals, but gold was the one still missing. I'm so proud I did it. It can't get any better...," Rijpma-de Jong said.
"Skating here with a full crowd of Dutch people, all yelling me to the finish line, was incredible.
"Yesterday I said, 'One medal I don't have is the gold medal'. I had one chance and now I have it. I'm really proud."
Competing at her fourth Olympics, the 30-year-old joins Jutta Leerdam and Femke Kok as Dutch speed skating champions at Milano Cortina.
Considered one of the favourites in the distance after finishing second behind Takagi in the 2025-26 ISU Speed Skating World Cup standings, Rijpma-de Jong was drawn in the penultimate pairing. She skated in the outer lane, with American Brittany Bowe alongside her in the inner lane.
Once she crossed the line, all eyes turned to Miho Takagi, who set off in the 15th and final pair with the Czech Republic's Nikola Zdrahalova, but the 31-year-old Japanese great could only manage the sixth-fastest time.
Once the Dutch-dominated crowd realised Takagi would not beat Rijpma-de Jong's time, they burst into cheers.
It is the Netherlands' seventh gold of these Olympics - with only Norway, the United States and Italy having topped more podiums so far.
Takagi remains the world record holder in the 1,500m, having set the benchmark of one minute 49.83 in Salt Lake City in March 2019.
Rijpma-de Jong's triumph ends years of Olympic near misses. She won silver in the team pursuit at Pyeongchang 2018, along with 3,000m bronze that same year. At Beijing 2022, she added a team pursuit bronze and the 1,500m bronze.
Wiklund, who took silver in the 3,000m and bronze in the 5,000m at these Games, was thrilled with another podium finish.
"I did not think it would be enough for gold, but when I saw that it was so close during the last lap, I was starting to gain a bit of hope," the 25-year-old said.
Bowe, 37, competing in her final Games, was inspiring as she went toe-to-toe with Rijpma-de Jong early in their race, before finishing just outside the medals in fourth.
Kok, the Olympic 500m champion, finished fifth.
Home favourite Francesca Lollobrigida, the two-times Olympic gold medallist, received one of the loudest ovations of the day. The 35-year-old Italian, however, had to settle for the 13th fastest time.
