|
Ning won gold in 1:45.16 and took the lead in the World Cup
rankings from South Korean Kim Min-Seok, who won bronze in
Stavanger. American Joey Mantia took the silver medal to
complete the podium.
Ning, who stepped up his game after last week's silver medal in
the Poland leg of the World Cup, said the gold medal will boost
his confidence before the 2022 Winter Olympics begin in Beijing
on Feb. 4.
"It's very important for me to win this medal. It gives me great
confidence for the Olympic year going forward," Ning said in a
statement https://www.isu.org/isu-news/news/130-wc-speed-skating-news/13809-ning-chn-gearing-up-for-beijing-with-1500m-gold-as-shinhama-jpn-takes-second-500m-win?templateParam=15.
"Yes, there's some degree of pressure for sure with the Olympics
in China but I believe athletes from other countries have
pressure too."
World Champion Thomas Krol and Olympic champion Kjeld Nuis had
yet another disappointing week, with the Dutchmen finishing
fifth and seventh, respectively.
Japan celebrated three gold medals on Sunday, thanks to Tatsuya
Shinhama, Nao Kodaira and Miho Takagi.
Shinhama won his second 500m race of the new World Cup season,
though Canada's Laurent Dubreuil held on to the lead in the
rankings after finishing second.
Kodaira and Takagi won the women's 500m and 1500m, respectively.
Kodaira completed the medal set in Stavanger, having won 1000m
bronze on Friday and 500m silver on Saturday.
(Reporting by Manasi Pathak in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline
Wong)
[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content. |
|
