Park Ji-woo skates in the women’s 1,500 meters at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics at the speedskating stadium in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 20. [Photo by Yonhap]
South Korean speedskater Park Ji-woo of Gangwon Provincial Office reached the Olympic women’s mass start final for the first time in her third Games appearance.
Park advanced Saturday (Korean time) at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics, finishing third in the second semifinal heat at the Milan speedskating stadium. She earned 20 sprint points and secured one of the eight final berths awarded in each heat.
The mass start is a 16-lap race scored by points at intermediate sprints and at the finish. At laps 4, 8 and 12, the top three skaters receive 3, 2 and 1 sprint points, respectively, and up to 60 points are awarded based on the final placing.
Park stayed near the back early before moving into the lead pack with two laps remaining. She closed the race in third place.
Park also competed in the mass start at the 2018 Pyeongchang and 2022 Beijing Olympics but did not reach the final. This is her first final appearance in the event.
The final is scheduled for 1:15 a.m. Sunday at the same venue.
In the first semifinal heat, Lim Ri-won finished 10th and was eliminated.
Park advanced Saturday (Korean time) at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics, finishing third in the second semifinal heat at the Milan speedskating stadium. She earned 20 sprint points and secured one of the eight final berths awarded in each heat.
The mass start is a 16-lap race scored by points at intermediate sprints and at the finish. At laps 4, 8 and 12, the top three skaters receive 3, 2 and 1 sprint points, respectively, and up to 60 points are awarded based on the final placing.
Park stayed near the back early before moving into the lead pack with two laps remaining. She closed the race in third place.
Park also competed in the mass start at the 2018 Pyeongchang and 2022 Beijing Olympics but did not reach the final. This is her first final appearance in the event.
The final is scheduled for 1:15 a.m. Sunday at the same venue.
In the first semifinal heat, Lim Ri-won finished 10th and was eliminated.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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