There was one small surprise in the women’s team chase: Canadian speed skaters defeated the favorite Japanese in a dramatic final.
Canada surprisingly won the gold medal in the team chase. The North Americans defeated defending champions Japan in a thrilling final.
Japanese Falls
The Japanese, who set a new Olympic record of 2:53.61 minutes in the quarterfinals, were ahead of the Canadians just before the end. But then the Japanese Takagi fell in the last corner and lost the gold medal that was considered safe.
Canada won the Olympics in 2:53.44 minutes, taking away the Olympic record from the Japanese.
The Netherlands decides for itself a “short final”.
The Dutch women, along with Olympic champions Irene Schöten and Irene Wurst, were narrowly defeated by Canada in the semi-finals. In the short final against the Russian Committee, the Dutch got off to a good start and quickly extended their lead. In the end, he was 1.80 seconds ahead of ROC and took the bronze with a timing of 2:56.86 minutes.