Jutta Leerdam wins Olympic speedskating gold as fiance Jake Paul sobs

MILAN, Italy – The moment Jutta Leerdam skated across the finish line triumphantly in the women’s 1,000 meters at the 2026 Winter Olympics might be one remembered forever.

But there was no other as gripping than what followed.

Leerdam, a speed skating star from the Netherlands, cried. And her fiancee, Jake Paul, sobbed.

There wasn’t enough Kleenex at Milano Speed Skating Stadium to dry all of those tears after Leerdman’s gold medal-winning performance.

Leerdam, 27, won the gold with an Olympic-record time of 1:12.31. And it was enough to bring a You-Tuber-turned-boxer to tears.

"That was really cute,’’ Leerdam said of Paul. “He knows the pressure I felt and the buildup and everything.’’

Leerdam had her own predicament to handle.

“Oh, my makeup was everywhere,'' she said of her own emotional state.

Leerdam said she hasn’t attended as many of Paul’s boxing matches as she’d like. But she was there for the biggest spectacle – Paul fighting Mike Tyson in 2024 and prevailing against the erstwhile Baddest Man of the Planet.

“I’ve been supportive but I’ve not been able to go to his last fights because of skating,’’ she said. “So it would be nice to be there more.

“But he has supported me a lot, more even the past years and went to a lot of my races and stuff. So yeah, very grateful for that.’’

Shortly after Leerdam received her Olympic medal on the podium, Paul congratulated to wife-to-be with a sweet message on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

"We just witnessed one of the most important sporting moments ever. The doc will tell. Words can't describe how proud of you I am," Paul wrote in the post.

Something that was missing

Speed skating In the Netherlands is like the NFL in the United States.

Leerdam has won seven world championships and six European championships. But the Olympic gold medal eluded her.

At the 2022 Beijing Games, she won silver in the 1,000.

Upon arrival in Milan, Leerdam appeared to be under significant pressure. She initially refused to talk to the media, then gave a broadcast interview, then shut down.

Of course, she answered dozens of questions after won the 1,000 meters, during which she skated in the final pair.

At one point, she gazed down at the gold medal hanging around her neck.

“It feels heavy, but it feels very good,’’ she later.

Later, she elaborated.

“What it means to me, this gold medal is just, I’ve won a lot of things in my career,’’ she said. “And I was world champion but I’ve never seen Olympic champion. So this is really something that was still missing.

“So it feels very complete. It’s surreal.’’

What are Jutta Leerdam's plans?

During Leerdam’s press conference, a reporter asked what were her plans for the future while noting there were suggestions she might quit skating.

On Sunday, Paul posted a video on his Instagram page showing him presenting flowers to Leerdam at the Milano Cortina Winter Games.

Paul, indicating he was addressing the couple's future children, looked at the camera and said, “Hey little kids. You guys are not even born yet but we’re making a video for you. …Your mom is about to go for gold.’’

So what are Leerdam’s plans?

“Yeah, I really don’t know yet to be honest,’’ she said. “I’m just trying to let this sink in first."

Jake Paul posts support for Leerdam

Jake Paul showed support to fiancee Jutta Leerdam on social media ahead of her race today.

How to watch Jutta Leerdam in Olympic speedskating 1,000 meters

The women's 1,000-meter speedskating race begins at 5:30 p.m. ET. The race and will be televised on USA Network and can be streamed on Peacock.

When does Jutta Leerdam skate in Olympic speedskating 1,000 meters?

Jutta Leerdam will be in the 15th and final pairing of the event, racing against Japan's Miho Takagi. Leerdam is the No. 2 ranked speedskater in the world in the 1,000 meters, while Takagi is ranked fourth in the distance.

Orange crush

The Milano Speed Skating is beginning to look like the Denver Broncos Stadium at Mile High. Which is to say lots of orange, the color in which Netherland fans are decked out. And, of course, the color proud Broncos fans wear. The fans from Netherlands are here in particular to cheer on one of their speed skating stars, Leerdam.

Why do they wear orange? According to the Dutch Amsterdam website, here's why: "Orange is the color of the Dutch Royal Family, which hails from the House of Orange.'' Wearing orange is a way to pay tribute to the Dutch Royal Family.

How old is Jutta Leerdam?

The Dutch speedskating star is 27. She was born Dec. 30, 1998 in 's-Gravenzande, Netherlands.

Jake Paul delivers flowers  

On Sunday, Paul posted a video on his Instagram page showing him presenting flowers to Leerdam at the Milano Cortina Winter Games.

“Thank you for coming,’’ Leerdam told Paul after kissing him.

Paul, indicating he was addressing the couple's future children, looked at the camera and said, “Hey little kids. You guys are not even born yet but we’re making a video for you. …Your mom is about to go for gold.’’

The couple started dating in the spring of 2023 and got engaged in March 2025.

In recent years, Leerdam has supported Paul during his boxing matches. Now Paul will be the cheerleader.

He is expected to be among the spectators at Milano Speed Stadium to watch Leerdam’s first race of these Olympics. Leerdam also will compete in the 500m Feb. 15, when Jackson, the American star, will try to defend her Olympic title in the event.