South Korea’s Park Ji-woo (Gangwon Provincial Government) and Lim Ri-won (set to enroll at Korea National Sport University) finished in the lower half of the field in the women’s 1,500 meters.
They skated in the final on Feb. 21 at the Milan speedskating stadium at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. Park placed 21st in 1:58.26, and Lim was 28th in 1:59.73.
Lim, skating in the third pair, went through the first 300 meters in 26.49 seconds, starting faster than Erura Groenewoud, but was passed after the midway point. It was Lim’s first Olympic race. She had originally qualified only for the mass start, but was added to the 1,500 after an opening in the field and was notified three days earlier that she could compete.
Park raced Austria’s Shanin Rosner in the fifth pair and opened in 26.26 seconds for the first 300 meters. She held a slight edge early, but the gap grew in the closing laps as she finished 21st.
Both skaters were preparing for the mass start later Feb. 21.
The gold medal went to the Netherlands’ Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong in 1:54.09. Rijpma-de Jong, who won silver in the women’s team pursuit, earned her first gold of the Games to become a multiple medalist. Norway’s Ragne Wiklund took silver in 1:54.15, and Canada’s Valerie Maltais won bronze in 1:54.40.
Japan’s Miho Takagi, the women’s 1,500 world record holder, finished sixth in 1:54.86.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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