Jutta Leerdam finally got the Olympic moment she had spent years chasing. Now, just months after standing on top of the podium, the Dutch speed-skating star has decided to walk away from competition for the rest of the season.
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Leerdam made the announcement through an 11-minute ‘Life Update’ on her YouTube channel, revealing that she will not race during the 2026-27 season. Yet she was equally clear about one thing: this is not retirement.
“So to come back to the question, am I retiring? One thing is for sure, you will not see me skate this season. That’s for sure. I won’t be competing this year, so you will not see me on the ice. Retirement just feels very final. It feels like I’m closing a door fully to something that I really love. Like I said, I’ve had an obsession with skating. It’s a big part of who I am. It’s a big part of my heart. To me, it would not feel right to fully close that door. I love it too much,” she said.
The Dutch star further added, “I’m 27. Life changes, feelings change, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable saying I’m fully retiring forever. Am I taking this time to myself to learn new skills, to be happy, and to just do what makes me feel good? Yeah, that’s what I’m going to do. That’s my new motivation. That’s my new goal. And I think I also allow myself right now to have that brain space and that freedom. And right now, what feels right is choosing me.”
For the 27-year-old, that distinction matters. Speed skating has been at the center of her life for years, and even after reaching the ultimate prize at the Milano Cortina Olympics, she does not feel ready to close that chapter. Instead, she wants to give herself room to discover what comes next. “I am following my feelings,” she said.
With 6.3 million Instagram followers and several projects already in the works, she will have plenty to keep her busy away from the ice.
The timing is particularly striking because Leerdam is stepping away at the peak of her career. Earlier this year, she won the 1,000m Olympic title in Milan with a record-breaking 1:12.31, adding the gold to her 500m silver. It was the breakthrough she had been chasing since settling for silver in the 1,000m at Beijing 2022.
And perhaps that is part of why this pause feels different. She has already reached the summit.
Revisiting the magical moment from 2026 that brought tears to Jutta Leerdam’s fiance
The image from Milan is difficult to forget. Leerdam had just stopped the clock at 1:12.31, bettering compatriot Femke Kok’s Olympic record from minutes earlier. She was crying on the ice, overwhelmed by what she had accomplished.
In the stands, her fiancé Jake Paul was struggling to hold back his own emotions. The boxer and social-media personality was visibly in tears as he watched Leerdam finally claim Olympic gold.
Leerdam’s victory was not simply another medal. She had fallen short in Beijing, where Japan’s Miho Takagi took the 1,000m title, and Leerdam had to settle for silver. Four years later, she lined up against the same rival in Milan, knowing that another chance might not come around.
This time, she delivered.
Kok briefly seized the Olympic record with a 1:12.59, raising the pressure before Leerdam’s final heat. But the Dutch star responded with the performance she had imagined for years, finishing 0.28 seconds faster than her compatriot. Takagi took bronze in 1:13.95.
The emotion afterward said everything.
“I knew that if during the race I would feel tired, I wasn’t allowed to feel tired,” Leerdam said after winning. “You have 80 years to recover from this. You can feel tired after. You don’t want to live with that regret. You fought so hard for this.”
That mentality helped define Leerdam’s career. She became a world champion, collected major medals, and established herself as one of the most recognizable figures in speed skating. But the pursuit also came with enormous pressure.
Now, she appears ready to experience life without constantly preparing for the next race.
Her decision has understandably disappointed Dutch skating fans, particularly with the new season approaching. The World Cup qualifying season begins on October 30, with the international campaign building toward the first World Cup stop in Beijing in November.
Still, there is already hope that this is only a pause. Former Dutch champion and analyst Mark Tuitert believes Leerdam could eventually return with another Olympic target ahead of her.
The 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps are four years away. By then, Leerdam would be 31 – an age Tuitert believes is still young enough to make another run.
For now, though, Leerdam is choosing something different. The skater who spent years asking how much more she could squeeze out of herself is finally allowing herself to stop asking.
She has the Olympic gold. She has the record. And she has nothing left to prove this season.
What comes next can wait.