China wrapped up the 2024-25 International Skating Union (ISU) Short Track Speed Skating World Tour in Beijing with an impressive performance, securing gold medals in both the mixed team relay and the men's 5,000-meter relay on Sunday.
The final day kicked off with an exhilarating mixed relay final. Team China, consisting of Fan Kexin, Gong Li, Liu Shaoang, and Sun Long, completed the race in 2 minutes and 39.115 seconds, outperforming South Korea, the USA, and Poland to take first place in final A. The Netherlands dominated final B, followed by Canada and Italy.
\"It was an incredibly intense race, especially in the final moments of the mixed relay,\" said Gong Li. \"Everyone gave it their all, and I'm thrilled we secured first place.\"
In the women's 1,500-meter event, American skaters Kristen Santos-Griswold and Corinne Stoddard took the top two spots in final A, with South Korea's Kim Gil-li finishing third. Competing in final B, Gong Li won with a time of 2:45.032, reflecting her determination despite feeling fatigued from consecutive events.
Gong shared, \"After competing in both yesterday's and today's events, I felt a bit fatigued, which affected my performance in the 1,500m semifinal. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to final A, which is a regret. I need to work on building my stamina in future training.\" She also discussed adapting to the new competition format, highlighting the challenges of short intervals between races and the adjustments made during training.
Canada's Felix Roussel emerged victorious in the men's 1,000-meter race with a time of 1:25.352, followed by Poland's Michal Niewinski and Britain's Niall Treacy. In the women's 500-meter event, Dutch world record holder Xandra Velzeboer set the pace, finishing first in 42.078 seconds, with Canada's Florence Brunelle and Rikki Doak taking second and third places respectively.
Reference(s):
China win two golds on last day of ISU short track tour in Beijing
cgtn.com
