PAUL NEWBERRY
AP National Writer
RICHMOND, British Columbia – Coasting along in the practice lane, Ireen Wust realized she had another gold while the last two skaters were still on the track.
The Dutch woman pumped both arms toward the roof of the Richmond Olympic Oval, while a stunned home crowd watched favorite Christine Nesbitt labor across the finish line.
With an astonishing final lap, Wust answered all those who questioned her success four years ago by winning gold in the 1,500 meters Sunday.
Canada had two strong medal contenders in Nesbitt and Kristina Groves. But Nesbitt, winner of the 1,000, burned herself out and had nothing left for the final lap, fading to a disappointing sixth-place finish.
Groves did give the Maple Leaf-waving crowd something to cheer about, claiming the silver. Martina Sablikova of the Czech Republic added to the gold she won in the 3,000 by taking bronze at half that distance.
Wust was only 19 when she won gold in the 3,000 and bronze in the 1,500 at the 2006 Turin Games. But she failed to build off that strong performance, drawing scrutiny in her homeland from those who felt that those two medals must have been a fluke.
No way.
Skating in the 15th of 18 pairs, Wust was faster than anyone on the last lap and powered across the line with a time of 1 minute, 56.89 seconds. Groves was next in 1:57.14, while Sablikova took third at 1:57.96.