Roest opens World Allround Championship with fourth time at 500 meters, strong start Van der Poel

Roest opens World Allround Championship

Patrick Roest has started the hunt for his fourth world all-round title in a row with the fourth fastest time in the 500 meters. De Lekkerkerker was almost a second faster than his Swedish competitor Nils van der Poel, who set a big personal record.

Roest came in the Vikingskipet with a time of 36.44 seconds. With that he had to tolerate the Kazakh Dmitry Morozov (36.12), the Japanese Riku Tsuchiya (36.40) and the Norwegian Peder Kongshaug (36.40).

Van der Poel, who won the Olympic title in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meters last month, set the fourteenth time with 37.33. 

With that, the Swede, who announced earlier this week that he will stop after this season, was 54 hundredths faster than his personal best.

Roest opens World Allround Championship with fourth time at 500 meters, strong start Van der Poel

Marcel Bosker was slightly faster than Van der Poel with 37.21 and recorded the thirteenth time. Chris Huizinga, the third Dutch participant in Hamar, finished fifteenth with 37.68.

Beau Snellink would actually be the third Dutch participant to make his debut at the World Allround Championships, but the twenty-year-old skater tested positive for the corona virus on Saturday morning.

Later in the day, the men will compete in the 5,000 meters. The 1,500 meters and the closing 10,000 meters are on the program on Sunday.

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