Posted at 1:21 p.m., Friday, November 9, 2007
Speedskating: Canadian sets world 500-meter record
Associated Press
KEARNS, Utah — Speedskater Jeremy Wotherspoon of Canada set the world record for 500 meters today, and Erben Wennemars of the Netherlands tied the record for the 1,500 in the World Cup at the Utah Olympic Oval.Skating against Shani Davis of the United States in the next-to-last pairing, Wennemars matched the mark of 1 minute, 42.32 seconds Davis set in Calgary, Alberta, on March 4. Davis finished in 1:42.92, taking third place behind Canada's Denny Morrison, who was timed in 1:42.79 in the final pairing.
In the earlier 500, Wotherspoon was timed in 34.03 seconds and broke the mark of 34.25 set by South Korea's Kang-Seok Lee during the 2007 World Single Distance Championships at the Utah oval March 9. It was the first World Cup race in 20 months for the three-time Olympian, who rested last season.
Lee skated minutes after Wotherspoon in the final pairing, and nearly reclaimed the record. He set a South Korean national mark and improved on his previous world record, finishing in 34.20 but falling short of Wotherspoon.
