Jordan Stolz falls at US speed skating trials but still qualifies for Olympics | Speed skating
Star speed skater Jordan Stolz shockingly tripped on the ice just after the start of the men’s 1,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic long-track speed skating trials on Saturday, but he still finished with the third-fastest time and will head to the Milan Cortina Winter Games.
Stolz caught the tip of one of his skates on the slippery surface, lost his footing and stumbled after less than five strides at the Pettit National Ice Center, about 40 miles south of his hometown of Kewaskum. It’s the kind of thing that just doesn’t happen to the best in the world at what they do — someone who expects to win multiple medals and be one of the faces of the Olympics Feb. 6-22.
He quickly got back up and continued running, doing well enough to post the third-fastest time out of 33 participants.
“I just tried to get it all out, right? Go as hard as I could and see what would happen, where I would end up,” Stolz said.
He noted a recent cold which prevented him from preparing normally.
“I just didn’t have the right feeling,” the 21-year-old said. “I was sitting a lot. I was a little cramped, dehydrated, so that was even more of a problem today.”
He is not only seen as a medal contender in at least three events, including the 1,000m, in Milan – he could well be the favorite for gold.
In addition to holding the world record in the 1,000 m, Stolz is a two-time world champion in the 500, 1,000 and 1,500 m.
Due to his previous results, Stolz was pre-qualified for these three Olympic races and only needed to compete in them on Saturday to officially lock up a spot on the team. Despite the misstep, he clocked a time good enough to make the trio of automatic qualifiers in the 1000m, joining Conor McDermott-Mostowy and Cooper McLeod.
McDermott-Mostowy clocked 1 minute, 7.606 seconds, with McLeod 0.24 behind and Stolz 0.36 behind.
“He handled the situation very impressively,” McLeod said of Stolz’s recovery. “He handled it like the multiple world champion that he is.”
Earlier Saturday, Erin Jackson qualified in the women’s 1000m by finishing faster than her good friend, world record holder Brittany Bowe.
At the trials four years ago, Jackson slipped in the 500 and failed to earn a spot in that event. But Bowe, who qualified in the 500m, gave way to Jackson, who then traveled to Beijing and became the first black woman to win an individual gold medal at the Winter Olympics.
Bowe posted the fastest time Saturday before the final two-man heat, when Jackson completed the 1,000 in 1:14.63. This was 0.39 faster than Bowe. They both grew up in Ocala, Florida, and began inline skating before moving to ice.
Jackson’s performance Saturday was all the more impressive considering she tore her left hamstring just before the start of a World Cup competition in December.
“At the beginning of this week, I wasn’t really sure if I could run or not,” Jackson said. “But the last few days it started to feel really nice. It got better at just the right time.”
Bowe placed second in the United States in the women’s 1000m. She turns 38 next month and is heading to her fourth – and final – Olympics.
Bowe won a bronze medal in the 1000m in Beijing and a bronze medal in the team pursuit at the Pyeongchang 2018 Games.
“Being able to be 1 and 2 with [Jackson] It’s awesome,” Bowe said, “and to be able to go back to the Olympics with her, and for her to have another chance to do something amazing, it’s going to be fun.”
