American short-track speedskaters excelled at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup in Salt Lake City, Utah, with Erin Jackson winning the 500 meters for her fourth World Cup victory (in eight tries) this season.
Jackson finished with a time of 36.90. Fellow American Kimi Goetz was second, and Korea’s Kim Min-sun placed third, Eurosport reported.
A user on X (formerly known as Twitter) praised Jackson, saying, “Black people are so ludicrously athletic LMFAO.”
Jackson, the world’s top-ranked skater in the event, got a spot in the 500-meter competition in 2022 due to a touching gesture made by her teammate and friend Brittany Bowe.
Bowe gave up her spot so that Jackson, who’d finished third at the trials, could compete in the Winter Olympics. Jackson didn’t waste Bowe’s sacrifice, becoming the first Black woman to win an
Olympic gold medal in speedskating and the first American woman to win one in an individual speedskating event since 2002, according to Bleacher Report.The U.S. men’s team pursuit trio of Ethan Cepuran, Emery Lehman, and Casey Dawson broke Norway’s world record three weeks ago, winning gold in a blistering 3:33.66. Italy took bronze, but the Americans secured the team’s World Cup trophy.
Jordan Stolz was the standout for the men, winning the men’s 500-meter
and 1500-meter races. In the 1500 meter, Stolz beat China’s overall World Cup leader Ning Zhongyan by 0.70 seconds in a new American record time of 1:40.87, according to Eurosport. Stolz then won the 500 meters in 33.96, edging out Canada’s Laurent Dubreuil by 0.09 seconds.It was an excellent day for American short track in front of a home crowd. Stolz and Jackson led the way with individual victories, while the U.S. men broke a world record and clinched a World Cup title.
The ISU event took place from Jan. 26 to Jan. 28, 2024.