Jenning de Boo

Club / Team

Team Reggeborgh: Netherlands

Injuries	Illness prevented him from competing at the 2023 Short Track World Junior Championships in Dresden, Germany. (schaatsen.nl, 14 Apr 2023)
Other sports	He has competed in both short track and speed skating at international level. He represented Netherlands in short track at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne, Switzerland. He has also competed in inline skating at national level in Netherlands. (SportsDeskOnline, 08 Jan 2024; schaatsen.nl, 14 Apr 2023)

Reason for choosing this sport

He first tried playing rugby before focusing on skating. He initially combined short track and speed skating with inline skating. In 2023 he began focusing more on speed skating.

Awards and honours

In 2022 he was named Talent of the Year in Short Track by the Royal Dutch Speed Skating Federation [KNSB]. (schaatsen.nl, 28 Oct 2022)

Name of coach	Gerard van Velde [club], NED, from 2023
When and where did you begin this sport?	He began skating at age seven.

Other information

SWITCHING TO LONG TRACK After emerging as a top competitor in the junior ranks in short track, in 2023 he joined Dutch speed skating team Reggeborgh after being spotted by renowned coach Gerard van Velde. “It's not that I don't like short track anymore, because I have a lot of fun in both disciplines. But I have the feeling that I have already given 100 percent to short track. I am curious about what I can achieve if I fully commit to speed skating. I am incredibly proud that I will be racing for this team. There are a few tall skaters who can handle short distances well. I am also a long sprinter myself, so that fits in nicely. I am curious to see how my development will progress. Maybe I will soon be more of a rider for medium distances instead of 500 and 1000 metres. It is really a different sport than short track. I will see what suits me best.” (schaatsen.nl, 14 Apr 2023; volkskrant.nl, 30 Dec 2023) HEIGHT He is 1.95 metres tall, which makes him the tallest within Team Reggeborgh for the 2023/24 season. He says his short track experience has helped him with the turns in speed skating. "It remains difficult to control the bends with such a large body, but I can do that well. I think I'm here thanks to my short track experience." He also is known for wearing longer blades on his skates compared to other skaters. “I'm quite tall. The longer the blades, the more pressure you have to deliver. I'm quite strong, that suits me well. More surface area, more grip.” (volkskrant.nl, 30 Dec 2023; schaatsen.nl, 05 Jan 2024) STUDY BREAK He began studying medicine in Groningen, Netherlands, but decided to put his studies on hold in 2023 to focus on his sporting career after consulting with his coaches and parents. (schaatsen.nl, 28 Oct 2022)

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