By Jolanda Abbes

You indicated before, the World All-rounds would be one of the most important competitions for you this season. So how do you look back now? Overall satisfied?

"I like to continue to improve on my results, year to year, so being fifth at last year’s World All-round Championship competition, it made me put emphasis on having a better performance this year. I was fifth last year and tenth this year, and although I was initially disappointed with this result, I see my performances in the 500m and 1500m as great successes. Also, this year compared to last, I see my overall performance as a reflection of having extra emphasis put on the Sprint competition three weeks before the All-rounds, taking away from my longer distance races, although I am still satisfied with my 5k. Also, I believe that this year’s result in the 1500m made this competition better than last year’s, because I believe not only that the 1500m crowd this year was much stronger than last year, but also the field of competitors this year was stronger overall than last year. So for me, this means that a greater result than last year in the 1500m is a big plus, while a weaker result in the overall crowd is acceptable, given the strength of the field this year."

Why did you not race more 5k’s and 10k’s this season when the World All-rounds were one of the most important competitions for you? Did you train specifically for the longer distances or did you focus more on sprints?

"I would have liked to race more long distance races this year, but you are correct to say that the main focus of my training was on the sprints – 1500m and down. I raced two 5k races in the fall in Calgary, and both went very well. At the fall trials I was second to Arne Dankers in the 5k by only four seconds, while beating Justin Warsylewicz and Steven Elm. I then skated a 10k in Moscow, which also went well, relative to the times of my teammates. Unfortunately these three races were the only times I took advantage of racing anything longer than a 1500m before the World All-round Championships, but given the amount of base training I did in the summer to prepare me for these races, and the decent results which were shown in these three races, it seemed I was prepared enough to skate a successful All-round competition. However, the Sprint competition in between the summer training plus fall competitions and the World All-round Championships appears to have offset that preparation."

Would you consider your 500m an improvement compared to the ones you raced at the World Sprints?

"Yes. This 500m felt much more controlled than the races at the World Sprints. I had a more solid technique in the straights, and my corners had much more even pressure than at the Sprints."

You did not look too pleased with your 5k right after the race, has that feeling changed now? It seemed to be a fairly solid race with pretty flat lap times.

"I think the main reason why I was not happy with my 5k race right away was because Erben beat me by so much. Who knew he was such a great all-round skater? Seeing that now makes it easier to accept."

Can you give an analysis of your 1500m?

"This 1500m was better than previous 1500m races this season, because my final lap is finally coming around. I am finding better ways to skate my straights efficiently, while still having a good top speed early in the race. This way I can save energy for the last lap, and in this particular race, I haven’t felt as good in the final lap since the World All-round Championships in Calgary – and I think that it will be even stronger in the competitions to come!"

Are you happy with your 10k?

"Not really. I found it difficult to get into a good rhythm in the longer distances – 10k especially – on the Heerenveen ice. Not having a rhythm in a 25 lap race will hurt you... and it certainly did that to me. I was fighting to maintain sub 34 second laps – with 15 laps to go. It was not a pretty sight."

Was it fun to skate in Thialf this weekend, with the crowd going crazy?

"The Thialf is always an amazing place to compete at, and I am always excited to race in Heerenveen. Especially these World All-round Championships, with the biggest, loudest, happiest group of speed skating fans I have ever seen, it was a lot of fun to compete in front of this group. I especially love seeing signs with my name on them! There may not be as many signs with my name as there are with Dutch names, but I still take pride in being recognized by people who I don’t even know, who are the best speed skating fans in the world!"



Now you only have two important competitions left for this season: the World Cup in Calgary, and the World Single Distances Championships in Salt Lake City. How do you look forward to those?