Salt lake: France’s Timothy Loubineaud broke the men’s 5,000-meter world record at the ISU Speed Skating World Cup season-opening leg in Salt Lake City with a time of 6:00.23, more than one second faster than the previous mark of 6:01.56 set by Sweden’s Nils van der Poel.
According to Namibia Press Agency, Loubineaud, who transitioned from inline skating only seven years ago, expressed his astonishment at the achievement. “I never expected this in my life. As a French guy, we don’t have any tracks in France, and I’m also not the most talented guy,” Loubineaud remarked. He recounted how he found unexpected strength during the race, saying, “I started the race, and I didn’t care about the time. I was just going. After a few laps, I don’t know what happened, but I felt so good and I just kept improving the pace.”
Metodej Jilek of the Czech Republic finished second with a time of 6:02.78, while Norway’s Sander Eitrem claimed third place in 6:03.38, both setting new national records.
In the men’s 1,000m, American skater Jordan Stolz secured a win over reigning world champion Joep Wennemars of the Netherlands. Stolz clocked a time of 1:05.66, slightly behind his own record, thanks to a fastest final lap. Poland’s Damian Zurek finished second in a personal best of 1:06.02, and Jenning de Boo of the Netherlands finished third in 1:06.34. China’s Ning Zhongyan achieved a personal best of 1:06:47.
The women’s 1,000m race saw Dutch skaters Jutta Leerdam and Femke Kok in a close contest, with Leerdam edging out Kok by just 0.08 seconds in 1:12.35. Canada’s Beatrice Lamarche achieved her first career World Cup podium finish, securing third place with a time of 1:12.77.
World champion Joy Beune of the Netherlands, recovering from illness, posted a personal best of 3:53.69 to win the women’s 3,000m title. Canada’s Valerie Maltais took silver with a time of 3:56.53, and Norway’s Ragne Wiklund finished third in 3:57.19.
This season’s Salt Lake City event is one of four World Cups that serve as qualification events for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games. Competitions are set to continue with the men’s and women’s 500m and 1,500m events.