Skater Jenning de Boo was on a planet far, far away. Last Thursday, the teenager launched himself light-years into space with two 500-meter rockets in his first national championship. One from 34.33, the other from 34.49. He also won the 1000 metres.
De Boo admitted with some embarrassment that the 19-year-old ice skating star had to clarify with his friend Janno Botman two days ago whether the 500 meter races at the national championships consisted of one or two races. “I could use my reading a little better.”
And rightly so, because in the coming days he will compete at the European Championship distances in Heerenveen. The 1000 meters are expected on Friday and the 500 meters are expected a day later.
It took some getting used to winning. After De Boo won the first 500 meters in Thialf as a teenager, he wanted to go to the hall where his sponsor guests would be happy to touch him. “Should I do this now?” “Wait until the second sprint race is over,” the staff whispered to him.
Fastest lap ever
Innocence against deadly sharp knives. But De Boo vehemently refused to clear in the first lap of the 1000 meters race last Saturday. His time of 24.45 was the fastest lap ever set at Thialf, the fastest lap ever done on the lowland circuit. This also gave him the winning time: 1.07.36. The mileage was covered only four times faster in Heerenveen.
And this is for a skater who was a sprinter on the Frisian practice squad last year.
“Surprisingly good,” said Kjeld Nuis, looking for his Reggeborgh teammate. Coach Gerard van Velde made a great move last summer. The mileage Olympic champion from Salt Lake City (2002) brought De Boo to the team when the 19-year-old talent fully decided on the long track.
Curling his 1.95 meter body with cat-like flexibility, his envious cornering technique from short distance and the tips given by a coach with a similar physique proved to be a cosmic encounter. Things moved quickly from the first few laps. Too fast.
In the first few months, De Boo broke his own personal record by running 1000 meters in 3.3 seconds. He now runs 500 meters 1.4 seconds faster. The real question is what awaits him for the rest of the season. First of all, this weekend’s European Championship distances.
big grin
The youngest star of the Dutch ice skating world admits that the joy of victory has not yet left her body. “Of course you can’t get rid of them. But for me, my nerves get the better of them. Healthy nerves. I think that’s the prevailing feeling. “It started a little bit yesterday, but of course they will be there tomorrow.”
He is scheduled to run the 1000 meters on the opening day of the three-day tournament. His speed lap ahead of the European Championships proved that all the problems that followed the successful weekend – “I’ll save most of that for after the European Championships” – did not affect his pace.
“I just left Kjell there,” he said with a huge grin on his face. “It was nice for a while. “I was five hundred times faster.”
There seems to be little cause for concern. Or nerves. “Yes, but you could also say: After a weekend like this there is extra pressure. And it is there unnoticed. I hope this is a healthy pressure.”
De Boo notes that maybe he still feels the same, but something has definitely changed. “I had a great foreign position. This was really great. It’s over now. I hope I can still drive very fast. “We will see that this weekend.”
Groninger doesn’t dare say whether this will actually work. “This is hard for me to say. Yes I can win. “There’s definitely a chance.” inside. This is one of the funnier parts. But I don’t dare make guesses.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
