Irene Schouten of the Netherlands competes in the women's 5,000m event at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing, Feb. 10, 2022. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Fresh from her victory in 3,000m, Irene Schouten of the Netherlands won her second Beijing 2022 gold with an Olympic record time in the 5,000m race.
BEIJING, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Dutch speed skater Irene Schouten snatched her second gold medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics with a new Olympic record in the women's 5,000m here on Thursday.
The Dutchwoman, who has already won the women's 3,000m, clocked a winning time of six minutes and 43.51 seconds, lowering the Olympic record of 6:46.91 set by German Claudia Pechstein 20 years ago.
"I feel really good. Two races, two golds. I'm so happy. You cannot be better," said Schouten, who is now closer to her quest of becoming the second female speed skater in history to win four golds at a single Olympic journey. The 29-year-old will then compete in the women's mass start and team pursuit.
This is the fifth Olympic record shattered in as many events at the National Speed Skating Oval, or known as the Ice Ribbon, and the fourth gold medal for the Netherlands, all of which came from speed skating competitions.
Irene Schouten of the Netherlands displays her gold during the awarding ceremony of the women's 3,000m speed skating event at the Beijing Winter Olympics in Beijing, Feb. 6, 2022. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)
Long distance World Cup leader Isabelle Weidemann of Canada seized the silver with a personal best of 6:48.18, while Martina Sablikova of the Czech Republic finished third in 6:50.09.
Chinese skater Han Mei set her personal record of 7:08.37 to take the 11th place. "I haven't done much training in endurance, so I think my performance was neither that good nor that bad," said the 24-year-old who gave credit to the smooth ice of the Ice Ribbon. ■
