Jenning de Boo won the world sprint title for the first time on Friday evening in the Thialf ice stadium, beating his American rival Jordan Stolz. During the Winter Olympics in Milan, the 22-year-old from Groningen was unable to beat top favorite Stolz, where he won silver in the 1,000 meters.
With the second time of 1.07.40 for the 1,000 meters, De Boo stayed ahead of his competitor in the rankings. Stolz won the 1,000 meters in 1.07.26 and came second in that classification. Due to the final stage against Laurent Dubreuil, De Boo had gained a large margin against Stolz, allowing him to skate 1.8 seconds slower than his rival.
“I’m very happy to have finished,” De Boo said beamingly to the press after the race. “You see people fall, and all kinds of scenarios go through your head.” “It didn’t happen, I made it happen.” And with a world record points: 134,670. “I think this is the best skating weekend of my life.”
Third place went to Ning Zhongyan from China. The Dutch Joep Wennemars came fourth. De Boo finished second behind Ning Zhongyan at the 2024 World Sprint Championships. Stolz did not participate at the time. Jenning de Boo was successful in short track until 2023, until long track beckoned. In 2025 he became world champion in the 500 meters.
Earlier in the evening, Femke Kok became world sprint champion among women for the first time. She was the top favorite prior to the World Cup.
Also read
His status as a skater has changed, but Jenning de Boo himself has not
