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Speedskating Rivalry Between Top Women Gets Sharper

Friesinger seems to have the momentum.

The battle for speedskating gold in Salt Lake City may very well come down to a duel between Germany's top women skaters, as a tense rivalry has heated up in recent weeks. Anni Friesinger, a 25-year-old Bavarian, seems to have the momentum, coming off of 10 wins on the World Cup circuit. Her rival, Claudia Pechstein, skipped the last World Cup competition before the games in mid-January because of the flu. But the 29-year-old Berliner managed to deal Friesinger her only defeat at the European Championships, held the first week in January in Erfurt, in the 5000-meter race. Pechstein holds the world record in the 3000-meter. But Friesinger already has a Salt Lake win under her belt, taking the 2001 World Single Distance Championship in the 3000-meter there.

Friesinger and Pechstein won't be the only German women to watch on the oval in Utah. Monique Gabrecht-Enfeldt and Sabine Voelker are also strong medal contenders. The deeply talented women's team is expected to make a strong showing in all five long-track events.

While Friesinger is looking to improve on her one bronze medal finish in the 1998 Nagano games (in the 3000-meter behind Pechstein), Pechstein is going for an unprecedented third consecutive gold medal in the 5000-meter. She would like to add that to her one Olympic silver and two bronze medals. Both athletes are chasing the legacy of Germany's Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann who holds eight Olympic medals, including three gold, from the 1992 and 1998 games, and for whom the stadium in Erfurt is named. Niemann-Stirnemann is pregnant and won't be competing at these games.

Speedskaters Claudia Pechstein (left) and Anni Friesinger will likely battle each other for top podium spots.

The athletic rivalry between Friesinger and Pechstein moved off the ice this month as the two have exchanged verbal barbs in the media. It's not the first time they have sparred, and the volley of interviews and quotes has only served to raise Friesinger's already high media profile. In addition to prize money, she profits from numerous commercial endorsements and is considered a media darling.

Friesinger trains on an outdoor oval in her hometown of Inzell in southeastern Bavaria, the cradle of modern German speedskating. National championships and international competitions were held on the natural track on the Frillensee from 1960 to 1963. The stunning lake venue at an altitude of 3038 feet made the name Inzell synonymous with German speedskating and attracted athletes from Austria, Holland, Switzerland and Finnland to train there. A newer outdoor stadium has hosted numerous World Championship speedskating events over the past three decades and will again be the site of the World Championships in March.

Friesinger is sure to have her hometown behind her when she takes the ice in February, even if some of her comments have left Pechstein and other teammates cold. Her family may even offer her tips in addition to cheering her on as her mother is a former Olympian for her native Poland and her brother and sister both skate competitively. Friesinger's father coached her until his death in 1996.

Germany at the Olympics

Reisehinweise f�r Deutsche

Medal Contenders 2002
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   Ski Jumping
   Speed Skating
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