Newly minted Olympic gold medalist Jutta Leerdam was praised for her display of sportsmanship Monday after securing the top spot on the podium in the women’s 1,000-meter speed skating final at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games.
Moments after clinching gold in the event and setting a new Olympic record of 1:12.31, the Dutch athlete swiftly located and embraced teammate Femke Kok, who nabbed silver with a time of 1:12.59, in a scene that was celebrated online following a polarizing Olympic lead-up for Leerdam.
“Where is Jutta running to? Of course….to Femke Kok! Let’s stop shouting that she’s mega arrogant and only focused on herself!” one social media user commented, according to the Daily Mail.
“Jutta Leerdam and Femke Kok: what a performance, what class! Pure elite sport, pure orange love,” another penned.
The 27-year-old Leerdam was overcome with emotion at the Milano Speed Skating Stadium after realizing her Olympic dream in front of a packed house that included her fiancé, YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
“I knew that if during the race I would feel tired, I wasn’t allowed to feel tired,” Leerdam said.
“I told myself, ‘You have 80 years to recover from this, you can feel tired after. You don’t want to live with that regret. You fought so hard for this.’”
Paul, who was brought to tears by Leerdam’s gold-medal finish, took to social media to celebrate afterward.
“We just witnessed one of the most important sporting moments ever. the doc will tell. words cant describe how proud of you i am,” Paul, 29, wrote on Instagram.
Leerdam’s Olympics triumph comes nearly a year after Paul popped the question.
2026 WINTER OLYMPICS
“We can’t wait to spend forever together,” he posted on Instagram in March 2025.
Although the celebrations were rolling for Leerdam on Monday night, her arrival at the 2026 Olympics wasn’t exactly met with fanfare.
The speed-skating star was labeled a “diva” after flying to the Winter Games aboard a private jet instead of traveling with her Dutch teammates.
Leerdam also skipped the Opening Ceremonies.
The Milan Cortina Games run through Feb. 22.