BEIJING, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- China's Olympic champion Ning Zhongyan opened his 2026-27 season in an impressive fashion on Friday, claiming gold in the men's 1,000m with a new track record as the ISU Speed Skating World Cup got underway in Beijing.
Staged at the National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the "Ice Ribbon," the Beijing leg is the opening stop of the 2026-27 season, kicking off a new Olympic cycle following the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics earlier this year.
Ning, who won the men's 1,500m title in Milan, clocked 1 minute 7.43 seconds in the fourth pair to secure victory, taking 0.19 seconds off the previous track record set by American sensation Jordan Stolz at a World Cup event in 2024.
"To be honest, I originally thought that winning a medal in the 1,000m would already be a very satisfying result for me. Since it's not my main event, I didn't put too much pressure on myself. I never expected to win gold, let alone break the track record. It was a real surprise and a great boost to my confidence," Ning said.
The 27-year-old said he was "obviously very happy" to have surpassed Stolz's record, although he felt a slight sense of regret that he had not had the opportunity to beat the American head-to-head, as the two-time Olympic champion skipped the Beijing leg.
"If he had been competing and I had beaten him, I think the result would have carried even more weight," Ning said.
The Netherlands' Joel Wennemars and China's Lian Ziwen finished second and third, respectively, in the same pair. Wennemars edged past Lian in the final sprint to finish in 1:08.00, just 0.07 seconds ahead of the Chinese skater.
Lian, who claimed his first individual World Cup medal, said: "For me, this is just a beginning. Things will only get better from here."
The men's 5,000m also saw the track record fall, with Czechia's Metodej Jilek taking gold in 6:04.77, improving the previous mark of 6:08.84 by 4.07 seconds. Norway's Olympic champion Sander Eitrem claimed silver four seconds behind, while Italy's David Ghiotto took bronze in 6:10.61.
In the women's 1,000m, three-time Winter Youth Olympic champion Angel Daleman of the Netherlands, 19, claimed gold in 1:14.07, ahead of Kazakhstan's Kristina Shumekova (1:15.64) and Poland's Wiktoria Dabrowska (1:15.85).
In the women's 3,000m, Olympic silver medalist Ragne Wiklund of Norway took the title in 3:58.75, ahead of Dutch skaters Mariike Groenewoud (3:59.06) and Joy Beune (4:01.40).
The World Cup continues on Saturday, with gold medals in the men's and women's 500m and 1,500m events up for grabs. ■
