Gerard Kemkers (born 8 March 1967) is a former
speed skater
Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating. ...
from the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, who represented his native country at the
1988 Winter Olympics
The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games (french: XVes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Calgary 1988 ( bla, Mohkínsstsisi 1988; sto, Wîchîspa Oyade 1988 or ; cr, Otôskwanihk 1998/; srs, Guts ...
in
Calgary, Canada
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making ...
. There he won the bronze medal in the 5000 metres.
[
Kemkers retired from international competition in 1990 and became a coach.][
During the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, he coached ]Ireen Wüst
Irene Karlijn (Ireen) Wüst (; born 1 April 1986) is a Dutch former long track speed skater. Wüst became the most successful speed skating olympian ever by achieving at least one gold medal in each of five consecutive Winter Olympic appearances ...
to two medals: 3000 m gold and 1500 m bronze, and Sven Kramer
Sven Kramer (; born 23 April 1986) is a retired Dutch long track speed skater who has won an all time record nine World Allround Championships as well as a record ten European Allround Championships. He is the Olympic champion of the 5000 meter ...
to a silver medal on the 5000 m.[
During the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver he coached ]Sven Kramer
Sven Kramer (; born 23 April 1986) is a retired Dutch long track speed skater who has won an all time record nine World Allround Championships as well as a record ten European Allround Championships. He is the Olympic champion of the 5000 meter ...
to the gold medal at the 5000 m and Ireen Wüst
Irene Karlijn (Ireen) Wüst (; born 1 April 1986) is a Dutch former long track speed skater. Wüst became the most successful speed skating olympian ever by achieving at least one gold medal in each of five consecutive Winter Olympic appearances ...
to the gold medal on the 1500 m. During Kramer's 10 km race, Kemkers made a mistake and guided Kramer to the wrong lane. Kramer finished first, with a time of 12:54.50 (even though he skated an extra lap in the outer lane) but was disqualified for failing to change lanes. As a result, Lee Seung-hoon
Lee Seung-hoon (Hangul: 이승훈, Hanja: , ; born 6 March 1988) is a South Korean speed skater. He won a gold medal in the 10,000 metres, a silver medal in the 5000 meters at the 2010 Winter Olympics, becoming the first and only Asian man ...
won gold with a new Olympic record, 12:58.55. Kramer later said, "At the end of the day, it is my responsibility. I am the skater on the ice, I have to do it".
Records
Personal records
Source:
World records
Tournament overview
Source:
Medals won
Overview of championships won by speed skaters coached by Kemkers
Other achievements
* Netherlands sport coach of the year (2006 and 2013)
References
External links
Gerard Kemkers at SpeedSkatingStats.com
Photos of Gerard Kemkers
*
1967 births
Living people
Dutch male speed skaters
Olympic bronze medalists for the Netherlands
Olympic medalists in speed skating
Olympic speed skaters of the Netherlands
Speed skaters at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Sportspeople from Groningen (city)
World Allround Speed Skating Championships medalists
Medalists at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Dutch speed skating coaches
Dutch sports coaches
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