Metoděj Jílek won his second speed skating medal at the World Championships in Hamar on Thursday Martina Sáblíková won silver in the 3,000-meter race. The 18-year-old Czech talent and junior world record holder in the 10km race won a bronze medal on the same course. Nikola Zdráhalová (28) also had the race of her life in Norway, finishing fifth in the 1500 metres. The Czech representative was only 46 hundredths of a second away from winning bronze.
The gold medal went to the favoured Italian Davide Ghiotto, who followed up his triumphs from the previous two years. Jilek and Ghiotto were accompanied on the podium by the second Pole Vladimir Semirunnij, who improved on his bronze from the top five.
Jílek took part in the penultimate race together with Ghiotto, thus the senior and junior world record holders competed. The faster Italian was faster from the beginning, but the Czech discovery of the season was only two seconds behind Ghiotto for a long time and held second place in the results. But in the last three kilometres he started to fall further behind and was finally beaten by Semirunnij.
Zdráhalová set her career high
Zdráhalová scored the best result in her career at top international events. The twenty-eight-year-old Czech national team member was only 46 hundredths of a second away from winning the bronze medal. Joy Beune of the Netherlands, who also dominated the 3000m race at the championships and was a member of the winning team, was the winner.
At the World Championships, Zdráhalová was still ninth in the kilometre and tenth in the 3000m.
Sáblíková won her 35th medal at the World Championships of all types
In the 3000m race, the three-time Olympic champion was beaten only by Joy Beune of the Netherlands, who was 18 hundredths of a second faster.
Sáblíková was third on this track in Calgary a year ago, and her coach Petr Novák's charges won a total of 27 medals at the world championships on individual tracks. Another eight were won at the World Championships in the all-around.
In the current season she has only managed to reach the podium once in the World Cup, in January she was third in the 5000m race in Calgary. However, she prepared well for the peak of the season and confirmed that she is one of the best long-distance speedskaters.
Overview of medals Martina Sábliková at the Olympic Games, World Championships, European Championships and World Cups from 2006 to 2024 here.
CTsport/ livesport.cz/ gnews.cz - RoZ
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