VIDEO | Dutch have unique fascination with American Speedskater Jordan Stolz

Just a mention of Stolz, and a Dutch fan pulls out his phone to show highlights of the lightning fast 21-year-old from his teen years and 2022 in Hamar. “He’s the next Eric Heiden,” said Jacob, wearing his traditional Netherland colors.

The Dutch are a little defensive when it comes to speedskating. Their roots run deep as culturally skating dates to an era where bones were once laced to the bottom of boots so people could propel themselves across the marshland or ice.

“He’s F’n crazy,” said a well-oiled skating fan. The Dutch are as flamboyant with their language as they are with their personalities and fashion.

Dressed in red, white, and blue team colors, Dag Ulr sat with his mates over a beer, rehashing the second gold medal and second track record broken by the American phenom.

“I have to talk to Jordan eye to eye,” said Ulr. “Because we have a problem in Norway now. We used to own this sport, at least we did before Jordan.”

Over the weekend the Thialf arena was packed with speedskating fans. Known as the Mecca for speedskating, fans fill the entire bowl of the rink. Their cheers are loud for Dutch skaters and equally loud during the introduction of American Jordan Stolz.

While some fans stoke the rivalry, others at The Thialf in Heerenveen were a little more complimentary.

“It’s impressive,” said Thigman.  “I just like the fact someone can make such a big effort and such a big success.”

Acknowledging Stolz was injecting some American blood into the sport, Thigman said it was good all around. “It’s okay because if a sport would only stay in one country, it’s less interesting. So make it as broad as possible.”

Dressed in a Japanese warrior headdress, Luna of the Netherlands was showing her support for her Asian heritage while cheering the Dutch. Ask her about the Americans and she’s very well versed.

“Jordan Stolz, Brittany Bowe, Erin Jackson… do you want more?”

“Jordan is really, really good. He is amazing. I think he’s going to get five Olympic gold medals. I hope so,” said Luna.

Coming up December 12 – 14, Stolz and Team USA will skate at the ISU World Cup in Hamar, Norway. Watch for full coverage at WashingtonCountyInsider.com

December 7, 2025 – Heerenveen, Netherlands – On the final day of the ISU World Cup at the Thialf, 21-year-old Jordan Stolz — dubbed by the Dutch announcers as “The Phenom from America” — shattered yet another track record, blazing to a 33.90 in the 500m, his third record-breaking performance of the weekend.

But the blistering speed wasn’t the only drama. A chaotic moment during the race nearly ended the run before it began.

“Somebody was trying to pass on the inside and they fell and just took out my feet. I couldn’t do anything about it,” Stolz said. “I didn’t see it, but I’m glad they didn’t land on me. He told me about it afterward.”

Stolz bounced up immediately. “I feel fine. I didn’t hear anything in the fall and I got back up.” While media tried to point out the risks of mass start and the greater potential for injury, Stolz didn’t bite. “I’ll keep doing it.  Hopefully it doesn’t happen again.”

With Stolz downplaying the fall, the conversation turned to his latest track record in the 500 meter where Stolz beat the previous record, 33.98, set by Jenning Du Boo in October 2025.

Even after three track records, Stolz believes there’s more ahead.

“I think I could do a little bit better,” he said. “In Calgary I was cruising in… I wasn’t thinking I’m going to kill myself to try and win.”

When asked if the world needs to wait until Milan 2026 to see his true peak, Stolz said, “I don’t know. I was planning on doing pretty well today until that fall ended it.

“I didn’t expect it either,” he said, as he entered Heerenveen without being fully rested. “I trained after Calgary until Friday. From Friday until the Friday I raced, I did one interval workout. I didn’t feel recovered until Wednesday or Thursday.”

Yet he broke records on what may be the most competitive oval in the world.

“I was really surprised because I hadn’t planned on it. It’s not like I peaked or anything.”

Coach Bob Corby said he too was just as stunned with Stolz third track record in as many days.

“Pretty phenomenal,” Corby said of the 500m record. “It was not planned or expected. So it was pretty surprising.”

Stolz mentioned earlier in the weekend, ahead of one of his races that he didn’t even feel like he raced the day before.

Questioned whether that was the case today, Corby said, “Today he was a little bit more sore, but I think he was surprised the 1500 didn’t bother his legs very much. That’s why he went so hard from the beginning in that thousand yesterday.”

And as for the chatter around the rink?

“It’s kind of like they’re not saying anything,” Corby said with a grin. “I think the other coaches are a little bit discouraged and can’t believe this kid is back winning everything again.”

Looking back at the end of last season, Stolz was battling illness and while he still climbed atop the post-race podium, he was not in the his traditional gold-medal spot. Some were thinking his reign may have been over, however Stolz attributed his second and third-place finishes to being under the weather.

Over the summer, Corby knew Stolz training would have to be ramped up to build toward the Olympics — not December.

“Yeah, this is proving it’s all working,” he said. “It’s working a little bit too well. We need to start training again and slow him down, because he needs to be doing what he’s doing this past weekend — and better — in two months.”

Corby doesn’t believe Stolz’s success automatically lights a fire under rivals.

“It doesn’t matter, because you don’t get better by ramping up training right now. You have to have the base and strength built in the summer to make it all work.”

Corby admitted one event still keeps him on edge. “The mass start scares me,” he said. “He can get taken out… but it’s okay once they do it. He’s young and fearless.”

The issue of the fall in the mass start, kept the post race conversation going in the media pit.

One reporter relayed, Dutch skaters now feel they must “hunt Jordan.” Stolz isn’t bothered.

“I’m sure they’re trying to beat me — it just comes with it. I’m not worried about it. I’m also trying to stay ahead of them.”

Stolz brushed off the fall as “unlucky” and said the focus shifts immediately to the next event.

“I was hoping to do well today, but it didn’t happen. We wait for next week. I’m pretty sure I’ll be doing it.”

With three track records in three days — without peaking and The Phenom from America hasn’t even reached top gear.

Onto Hamar, Norway and the fourth ISU World Cup on the season begins Friday, December 12, 2025. Stay tuned for live coverage on WashingtonCountyInsider.com

On a side note:

There was a lot of ceremony behind the scenes as three times Stolz was in the spotlight to pull a black ribbon and unveil his name had been added to the record board at The Thialf.

With a countdown of 5-4-3-2-1 the ribbon fell revealing Stolz name is now in the record books for the 500m, 1000m, and 1500m.

Below is a preview article about the 500m and mass start at The Thialf in Heerenveen.

December 7, 2025 – Heerenveen, Netherlands – On the heels of two races and two new track records at the Thialf in Heerenveen, Netherlands, Jordan Stolz laces up for his final two races of the weekend with the 500 meter and the mass start.

Stolz will skate in the ninth pairing in the 500m against Water Morishige of Japan. The 25-year-old comes into the 500m with a personal best of 33.940 set in November 2025, in Calgary. That time was worthy of a sixth-place finish.

Stolz will be toeing the line with a personal best of 33.69; he secured a gold medal with that time during the World Cup in November 2025 in Calgary. The 21-year-old Stolz will be trying to knock down another track record set by Jenning De Boo who finished 33.98 in October 2025.

The world record set in March 2019 is held by Pavel Kulizhnikow at 33.61.

The final race of the weekend is the mass start. Stolz will be one of 24 skaters on the ice aiming to complete the 16-lap pack-start race.

Stolz will be wearing No. 177. In Calgary he finished with the bronze.

Stay tuned for live coverage at WashingtonCountyInsider.com

November 24, 2025 – Calgary, CA – Jordan Stolz added two more medals to his fast-growing World Cup résumé over the weekend, claiming gold in the 500m and securing his first career Mass Start podium with a gritty bronze at the ISU World Cup in Calgary.

The Mass Start marked a milestone for the 21-year-old from the Town of Wayne, who is only beginning to test himself in the 16-lap discipline.

Asked how it felt to finally land on the podium, Stolz said, “Feels good. I thought I had a nice last little inner turn. I cut some people off, which probably wasn’t the nicest thing to do, but yeah, it turned out well.”

Stolz, who grew up racing pack-style events, said the chaotic nature of the race wasn’t unfamiliar. “I did a lot of pack racing… from the time I was 5 until 14, it was all pack races,” he said. “So I’m pretty used to it.”

Still, the senior Mass Start is a different beast.

Stolz noted he felt stronger in Calgary than he did earlier in the season. “I felt a little bit better than I did in Salt Lake City… I wasn’t as tired at the end. So I think I just positioned myself better.”

The pace, he admitted, was no joke: “The pace is hard and they won’t let a break go.”

He said he made at least one tactical mistake, following a move he mistook for a pace lift rather than a sprint lap: “I then realized that was like the sprinting lap, so I probably shouldn’t have followed that.”

Despite the learning curve, Stolz’s instincts carried him through the final laps. “This one I kind of conserved a little bit of my energy versus the last one… I just positioned myself better. I took some risky moves… I didn’t really have a strategy like some of the other guys, I just kind of went for it and I think that’s how I got the bronze medal.”

On the sprint side, Stolz once again demonstrated why he is one of the world’s premier 500m talents. Though he insisted he wasn’t at peak freshness — “My legs were a little tired” — everything clicked the moment he stepped onto the ice.

“When I got on the ice this morning for warm-up, I just felt really connected… And then in the race, I just felt it was just like clockwork.”

Coming off the final corner nearly level with Jun-Ho Kim of China, Stolz found yet another gear in the closing meters. Asked where that extra speed came from, Stolz shrugged: “I don’t know. I guess it’s from all the endurance training I do… maybe [it’s] a mental thing.”

Looking back on his weekend, Stolz said he was pleased — but far from satisfied.

“I’m happy with it… we’re almost in December now. Still got January and a little bit of February to go. I think from now there’s a lot I can improve and I think it’ll be good.”

He pointed to his second 500m race as a highlight: “Probably the second 500… going into that knowing there’s more to improve, not just putting more power into the ice — like speed to get better.”

Stolz said he and teammate Ethan Cepuran didn’t plan Mass Start tactics for this race: “We didn’t discuss anything because he was dead from the first mass start and then the team pursuit… I’m sure we will get the opportunity to [in the future].”

Fans often ask how he manages to deliver big races across so many distances. Stolz insisted there’s no magic answer: “I don’t know the answer… I’ve been feeling really good. So all of the training has really paid off, I guess.”

As for the upcoming holidays, training comes first. “Not really [celebrating]. I’ll probably be training right through that.”

Stolz heads to Heerenveen next: “I’m leaving from here to go on Thursday. So I’ll get some training and then race another World Cup.”

With confidence climbing, and now a Mass Start medal to match his sprint dominance, Stolz leaves Calgary looking like one of the most versatile—and dangerous—skaters on the circuit heading into 2026.

November 23, 2025 – Calgary, CA – The second time was the charm as Jordan Stolz captured his third gold medal of the ISU World Cup in Calgary. Stolz was paired against Saturday’s gold medalist Jun-Ho Kim of China and he hammered demolished the time in the 500m from Saturday with a final skate of 33.79.

The time Jun-Ho Kim clocked Saturday in the 500m was 33.99.

Stolz had it dialed in and posted a 9.6 in the first 100m followed by a 24.1 finish.

Kim finished third, 33.99, and Damian Zurek finished second in 33.85.

In Saturday’s 500m Stolz finished with a bronze in the 500m and a time of 34.028, just behind silver medalist Jenning De Boo, 34.022.

Stolz will now race the mass start. Comments will follow post race.

November 23, 2025 – Calgary, CA – A solid performance on Day 2 of the ISU World Cup in Calgary as Jordan Stolz hit the podium twice following two races. Stolz struck gold in the 1500m with a 1:42.10 finishing .21 ahead of Germany’s Finn Sonnekalb.

One of the most anticipated elements of the 1500m was Stolz’s pairing with rising star Finn Koskinen (referred to simply as Finn) of Germany; it’s a matchup fans hope will become a long-running rivalry.

“I didn’t want to lose to him ’cuz he got my junior world record,” Stolz said. “So when we were going to the last corner, maybe I had it like that much more.”

Saturday marked the first time the two had ever raced head-to-head.

“He’s a good skater,” Stolz said. “We’ll see how he does in the Games,” he said referencing the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Stolz finished with a bronze in the 500m and a time of 34.028, just behind silver medalist Jenning De Boo, 34.022 and Jun-Ho Kim of China who secured the gold clocking in at 33.99.

It was one of the tightest fields in recent memory.

“It’s really like the top five, top six are all within three-tenths of a second,” he said. “We’re all pretty equal… obviously I was pretty close today. Hopefully when I’m feeling better, I can still have a nice gap.”

Stolz expects the picture to change later in the Olympic season.

“In the 500, everybody’s really close. I think once it gets to Milan it’s going to change around — at least some different people doing well.”

Another heavy racing weekend left him with little downtime.

“Yeah, I have another 500 tomorrow. Yeah, doing the mass, too. It’ll be good training,” he said.

Questioned whether the early-season World Cups are part of a planned training block, Stolz explained, recovery is the priority.

“There’s no way I’d be able to train between these ’cuz I’m so tired from the weekends,” he said. “But just the way we’re scheduling things works out well.”

Stolz remained encouraged by the base he built over the offseason.

“I can see where it’s going. My base and everything is stronger,” he said. “It’s not totally in the races yet, so I think there’s still improvement to be made.”

The 500m, in particular, is still developing.

“My start right now is good. I don’t really have a lap yet because I haven’t really done a lot of tempo-type training. So that’s where the races come in and kind of fix that.”

With two more medals in Calgary, Stolz again showed why he’s one of the most exciting names in speedskating — even on days when he’s “not feeling the vibe.”

The Olympic season is young, and the reigning world champion seems to be building toward something big.

Sunday’s final day of competition starts at 8:44 a.m.  The men’s and women’s team pursuit is expected to be a huge fan favorite as the women face the home team Calgary and the men are expected to set the ice on fire with their record-setting performance.

Stolz skates the 500m at 2:34 p.m. He skates in the eighth pairing against Jun-Ho Kim of China who won the 500m on Saturday.

The mass start begins at 3:38 p.m. and Stolz, who has announced he plans to race the mass start at the 2026 Winter Olympics will see how he does in his second mass start competition of the season.

Below is a preview published about the 500m and 1500m races.

November 22, 2025 – Calgary, CA – Warmups are nearly finished as the mens 500m is set to begin around noon today, Saturday, November 22, 2025 and the track record was set last year by Jordan Stolz.

The 21-year-old from the Town of Wayne clocked a record time of 33.69 in February 2024. 

This afternoon, Stolz will skate in the ninth pairing opposite Yevgenly Koshkin of Kazakhstan. The 22-year-old personal best in the 500m is 33.670 set Nov. 16, 2025 in Salt Lake City.

Stolz personal best on the season is 33.69, so this will be some tough competition, including the 10th pairing where Dutch rival Jenning De Boo has skated a 33.63 last week in Salt Lake City to win gold.

Stolz will also skate the 1500m later this afternoon. He is in the ninth pairing and up against Finn Sonnekalb of Germany. Sonnekalb, 18, is a fresh face on the Speedskating scene.  He set a PR in the 1500m in Salt Lake City last week with a time of 1:41,330.

Stolz holds the track record in the 1500 with a time set in January 2025 at 1:41,22. Kjeld Nuis holds the world record at 1:40,17.

Stolz personal best on the season came in a gold-medal finish last week in Salt Lake at 1:40,480.

Below are stories from earlier this year regarding Stolz performance in the 500m and 1500m in Calgary.

On a side note: After a racer crosses the finish, the skater’s momentum carries them for another entire lap around the ice.

January 26, 2025 – Calgary, CA – It was a hat trick for USA speed skater Jordan Stolz this weekend as he picked up his third gold medal in the 500m at the ISU World Cup in Calgary.

Team USA will fly home and then start prepping to do it again as the ISU World Cup comes to Milwaukee, January 31 – February 2.

January 26, 2025 – Calgary, CA – The ISU World Cup in Calgary wraps up Sunday afternoon with a can’t-miss race as American Jordan Stolz puts his game face on for the 500 meter against some mighty stiff competition, especially from Dutch skater Jennings De Boo.

De Boo is just 5 months older than Stolz. So far this weekend, De Boo has come in second to the American, however his split times at the 200m mark and 600m mark have been faster than Stolz.

“The first 600 meter is my specialty,” said De Boo.

Questioned about the Stolz streak, De Boo said he’s on the American’s heels.

“I don’t want to say he’s unbeatable because I’m getting closer,” said De Boo. “He is the man to beat and he’s just good at every point of the race. It’s difficult to make a strategy where to beat him because he’s just good in every part of the race.”

Click HERE to compare lap times between Stolz and De Boo in the 1000m

As far as personal best; Stolz best 500m is 33,69 and he holds the track record in Calgary set February 16, 2024.

De Boo’s personal best 500m is 34,21. His season best is 34,29.

The world record at the Olympic Oval in Calgary is 33,61 set by Pavel Kulizhnikov in March 2019.

So far this weekend, Stolz has taken gold in both the 1500m and 1000m.