Dutch Speedskater Shatters 37.28 Barrier in Final Race of Season
Femke Kok carved her name deeper into speed skating history Sunday evening, obliterating the women’s 500-meter world record with a blistering 37.12 at the Calgary Olympic Oval. The 24-year-old Dutch sprinter shaved 0.16 seconds off her own mark, set just three months ago at the same venue.
Racing in the final pair of the ISU World Cup finale, Kok exploded from the line with a 10.23 opening 100 meters – the fastest split ever recorded by a woman. She maintained her devastating pace through the back straight, hitting the 400-meter mark in 26.89 before unleashing a closing 100 that left the partisan Canadian crowd on their feet.
Perfect Conditions Meet Perfect Execution
Calgary’s notoriously fast ice lived up to its reputation Sunday night, with ambient temperatures hovering near -2 degrees Celsius and barometric pressure reading 30.15 inches of mercury – conditions that veteran speedskaters call “rocket fuel.”
“The ice was singing to me today,” Kok said through a translator, still catching her breath in the mixed zone. “Every stroke felt effortless. When I saw 10.2 on the first 100, I knew something special was happening.”
The previous world record of 37.28, which Kok set during the World Cup stop in Calgary last December, had stood as the benchmark for modern women’s sprint skating. Sunday’s performance represents the culmination of a methodical assault on the record books that began when she lowered Nao Kodaira’s 37.34 mark from 2017.
Technical Mastery Fuels Record Chase
Kok’s dominance this season extends far beyond raw speed. The Sneek native has won seven of eight World Cup 500-meter races, with her lone defeat coming on a tactical error in the opening corner at Tomaszów Mazowiecki in November.
Her season-long split times tell the story of systematic improvement. Where she averaged 10.31 over her first 100 meters in early competitions, recent races have seen consistent sub-10.30 starts. The closing 100-meter segments have dropped from 10.46 averages to Sunday’s record-setting 10.23 finish.
“Femke has revolutionized how we think about 500-meter pacing,” said Dutch national coach Jac Orie, who has guided multiple Olympic champions. “Most skaters try to survive the back straight. She accelerates through it.”
Olympic Gold Within Reach
The record positions Kok as the overwhelming favorite heading into next month’s World Single Distances Championships in Inzell, Germany. She holds a commanding 47-point lead in the World Cup 500-meter standings with one race remaining.
Her closest competitors have struggled to match her consistency this season. Japan’s Miho Takagi, the defending Olympic champion, sits second in World Cup points but trails by nearly two-tenths of a second in personal best times. American Erin Jackson, who won Olympic gold in Beijing, has battled injury throughout the campaign and finished fourth in Sunday’s race with a 37.89.
The performance also serves notice ahead of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics, where Kok will enter as the presumptive gold medal favorite in both the 500 and 1000 meters.
Breaking Barriers in Skating’s Sprint Revolution
Kok’s assault on the record books reflects broader changes in sprint speedskating technique and training. Her low, aggressive skating position – refined through countless hours of video analysis with biomechanics experts at the Dutch skating federation – has become the template for emerging sprinters worldwide.
The 5-foot-6 speedskater generates exceptional power through her crossover technique in the turns, maintaining speeds that would have been unthinkable a generation ago. Her stroke rate of 51 per lap represents the perfect balance between frequency and power output.
“Watching Femke skate is like watching physics in motion,” said Calgary Oval track manager Mark Messer. “She’s pushing the boundaries of what’s humanly possible on ice.”
Kok’s world record caps a remarkable rise from a promising junior who struggled with consistency to the planet’s fastest female speedskater. Her breakthrough came during the 2022 Beijing Olympics, where she claimed bronze in the 500 meters despite entering with modest expectations.
The final World Cup race of the season takes place next weekend in Heerenveen, Netherlands, where Kok will race before a home crowd looking to extend her perfect season.
