Vanessa Herzog sprinted to the desired World Championships medal in Heerenveen despite a stuttering start. Austria’s figurehead in speed skating was beaten by Femke Kok from the Netherlands by just 0.05 seconds to win silver in the 500m on Friday. The ÖESV athlete thus expanded her collection of medals at the individual distance world championships. In 2019, Herzog won over 500 m gold and over 1,000 m silver in Inzell.
“It was super close. I didn’t start the run well, didn’t have the best start and wobbled before the first corner. Then the race was perfect,” reported Herzog.
In the last World Cup race of the season in Poland, the 27-year-old won the 500m for the first time in almost three years. And now I’ve taken the momentum with me to the individual route. “There are five, six, seven girls who can win, including me,” Herzog had said in advance of the group of medal candidates.
“Whenever I’ve been fit, I’ve been in the top two, but the World Championships are a separate race, a different track, the Dutch are always good at their home races.” She was right and placed in the “Dutch sandwich” between Kok (37.28 seconds) and Jutta Leerdam (+0.26). Overall World Cup winner Min-Sun Kim from South Korea also struggled with Herzog’s time.
After two herniated discs in 2021, the Tyrolean has now survived a whole season well – and in the end also successfully. “The back is doing great,” said Herzog. “Every now and then it pinches, but that’s the case with everyone.” In Heerenveen, Herzog will also run the 1,000 m on Saturday and the 1,500 m on Sunday to mark the end of the season.
Above all, over the kilometer distance, Herzog wants to have a say in the top rankings again. “In terms of the lap times, I’m there, today I was absolutely the fastest on the lap. I have nothing to lose.”