Controversy Over Remarks by Dutch Speed Skating Coach
Skater Defends Her Coach
The Netherlands, which has continued its "gold medal parade" at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, has become embroiled in a gender discrimination controversy.
On February 18 (Korean time), British outlet the Daily Mail reported, "Dutch speed skater Kok said she heard a sexist remark from her coach during her victory speech. Fans immediately poured criticism on the coach, but Kok defended the remark and calmed the fans' anger."
According to the outlet, Dennis van der Gun, coach of the Dutch national speed skating team, praised Femke Kok, who won gold in the women's 500m, saying, "You have won the World Cup, the World Championships, and now an Olympic gold medal, so there is nothing more to wish for," and then added, "There is just one thing missing: a really great boyfriend."
Coach van der Gun congratulated Kok on her gold medal, saying, "On behalf of all the people of the Netherlands, I am truly proud of what you have achieved," but his follow-up remark turned out to be a misstep.
The Dutch speed skating team has produced excellent results at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics. On the 10th, Jutta Leerdam won gold in the women's 1000m. After the race, Leerdam unzipped her suit to reveal her sports bra, generating an advertising effect estimated at 1 million dollars (about 1.5 billion won) for Nike, the bra brand.
Then on the 16th, Kok beat Leerdam to win gold in the women's 500m. In this way, the Netherlands has achieved outstanding success in speed skating.
The outlet reported on the atmosphere, saying, "There were some boos from the crowd at the time, and Kok brushed off the awkward situation with a laugh."
As the situation escalated, Kok moved to calm fans via her social media, writing, "Unfortunately, a joke that I thought was funny has been misinterpreted online. Coach van der Gun has played a major role in my gold medal, and he is a great coach and a great person. I am grateful to him for everything."
She continued, "Coach Dennis has greatly helped me win this gold medal," adding, "He is a coach with whom I feel really comfortable as a female athlete."
In the final part of her message, she wrote, "I am very grateful to my coach," even adding a heart symbol, and then said, "Thank you also for all the sweet stories you have sent me in private messages," before stressing again, "This part is a joke."
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