Skater Jenning de Boo experienced many highlights during his stormy debut year among the seniors. With his Groningen friends in the stands, he would like to add another one at the World Sprint Championships in Inzell.
They’re at it again. Jenning de Boo’s Groningen team of friends traveled to Inzell to support their comrade on Thursday and Friday during the World Sprint Championships. Just like at the beginning of this year at the European Championship distances in Thialf.
Coincidence or not, but De Boo rose above himself there. In addition to the gold in the 500 meters, he also took silver (1000 meters) and bronze (team sprint). He is looking forward to seeing his friends. That doesn’t happen that often. Certainly not this skating season, because De Boo immediately became a big boy in his first senior year, flying all over the world.
“I see them once every six months,” says the sprinter from Reggeborgh. “That’s why it’s nice to speak to them during this tournament. I’ve known them since I was in primary school. It’s wonderful that they come to watch such a race at 1,100 kilometers.”
Sick at the wrong time
The Boo wants to be at his best one more time. Not only because there are many acquaintances in the Max Aicher Arena, but also because he feels he still has something to put right. The world distance championships in Calgary were not what he expected. There was still silver in the team sprint, but De Boo did not play a significant role in the 500 and 1000 meters.
His inexperience became his downfall. At the World Cup in Salt Lake City, De Boo no longer felt completely fit just three weeks before the World Cup distances in Calgary. Doubt. Whether or not to go to Quebec for the next international meeting. “In retrospect, I should have stayed in Salt Lake City.”
His trainers gave varying signals. One said that it was better not to go, the other that he should just enjoy driving. He traveled away. “I am new and would like to drive everything, but in retrospect I should not have made that long journey.”
De Boo fell ill and was 4.5 kilos too light at the start of the World Championships. He saw his chances go up in smoke. “Calgary was the biggest game for me. I had a better chance of winning gold there than at the World Sprint Championships.”
Kilos are back
He has not often ridden such a four-way event as in Inzell. In the hotel in the Ruhpolding winter sports resort, he points to a corner where teammate Kjeld Nuis is sitting. “Grandpa Kjeld,” says De Boo jokingly about the 34-year-old sprinter, who has won just about everything. “Such experienced men can get through four distances more easily.”
However, the youngster does not give up in advance. He is fit and the kilos are back, except for one. The fact that he was able to skip the National Sprint Championships, because he had already secured the ticket to Inzell at the end of December, was a good thing. He was able to refuel nicely.
Yet De Boo sat in the stands during the National Sprint Championships with mixed feelings. “It’s starting to get itchy. But in the end I was happy that I didn’t have to do four races with that jet lag.”
Around the world together
It is sometimes a bit surreal that he found himself in that luxurious position. Just as the entire year is an accumulation of highlights that he did not expect in advance. That started during the qualifying tournament for the World Cups, where he qualified together with his buddy Tim Prins. “Nobody saw that coming.”
The youngsters traveled everywhere together. Prins is not present in Inzell for the first time. He was no longer fit enough at the National Sprint Championships to excel himself again. “It’s a real shame,” says De Boo. “I had hoped there would be three of us here.” But De Boo can also rely on the experienced Nuis. “He knows exactly how everything works.”
Stolz is missed
There is someone else who will miss De Boo for the next two days. The American prodigy Jordan Stolz is missing from the sprint tournament. He focuses on the World All-round Championships for a battle with Patrick Roest, another teammate of the Groninger.
De Boo thinks this absence is a pity. “Suppose you win,” he explains. “Then you want to be able to say that you have beaten everyone. Otherwise you are world champion, but not everyone was there. For a moment I thought that Stolz would participate in both tournaments. I can see him doing that.”
Stolz’s absence also provides opportunities. There is a world title for which there are now several contenders. De Boo doesn’t say it out loud, but if the form he had at the beginning of this year is back, he can easily compete for the prizes. He would love to make his Groningen friends cheer again.