Utah Resident Erin Jackson Fails To Defend Medal In Speed Skating 500m

MILAN, Italy — Utah resident and Team USA speed skater Erin Jackson failed to defend her gold medal from the 2022 Olympics, finishing fifth in the Speed Skating Women’s 500m event on Sunday.

Two Netherlands racers, Femke Kok and Jutta Leerdam, claimed gold and silver, with Japan’s Miho Takagi getting the bronze.

Erin Jackson looks to defend her title in the women’s 500m speed skate, right now on @nbc and @peacock! ⚡️#WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/V482EPpPIH

— Team USA (@TeamUSA) February 15, 2026

At the 2022 Beijing Games, she became the first Black American woman to win a medal in speed skating and the first Black woman to win an individual Winter Olympic gold. She was also the first American woman to claim a 500m gold since Bonnie Blair in 1994.

Jackson had the chance to defend her 2022 performance in her third Olympics overall in Italy.

Paired with Kok in the final race, Jackson burst out of the gates with second best 100m start in the field. Unfortunately, the end wasn’t as spectacular as the beginning.

She still finished with an impressive time of 37.32 seconds, just five hundredths of a second slower than the bronze medal.

The hopes were very high for Jackson in the 500m after coming in sixth in the 1000m last week. The podium in that event ended up standing strong in the 500, with the first and second places swapped.

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Chandler Holt is a co-host of the Jazz Notes podcast, a Locals In The NFL Insider, and Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com. Follow Chandler on X for Utah Jazz and Locals In The NFL updates.

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