Netherlands’ Nuis takes 1,000-meter gold

Kjeld Nuis won his second gold medal in speedskating, and he had Mika Poutala’s Olympic spirit to thank for it.

The Dutchman became the first speedskater to win two golds at the Gangneung Oval, but it is Poutala who deserves a special medal.

With Nuis going full out on the final straightaway in the men’s 1,000 meters on Friday, Poutala could easily have held him up on the crossover and denied him the title. But the Finn realized his chances for a medal were waning and instead of aggressively seeking the middle of the lane he stayed left, keeping the Dutchman’s path clear.

“Mika Poutala just saved my life,” Nuis said after adding the 1,000 title to his 1,500 gold. “If he would have thrown himself in front of me, I would have been the fool. He didn’t. That is so beautiful.”

As a result, Nuis kept his pace and finished 0.04 seconds faster than Havard Lorentzen, who was anxiously watching from the infield. The Norwegian, himself the 500 champion, was also chasing a second gold.

Nuis ended up winning in 1 minute, 07.91 seconds. Kim Taeyun of South Korea took bronze. medals, including three gold. Norway’s Alpine skiers also had seven medals, including one gold. on what went wrong,” Canadian third Marc Kennedy said. “But at the end of the day, it just comes down to individual performance.”