Schulting and Botman Claim Dutch Sprint Titles, Earn World Championship Berths
Suzanne Schulting and Janno Botman have been crowned Dutch sprint champions, securing their places at the upcoming World Championship sprint event in Heerenveen. The competition concluded on Sunday, February 29, 2026, after two days of intense racing at the Daikin NK sprint.
Schulting successfully defended a substantial lead from Saturday’s opening day, while Botman held off a late challenge from Tim Prins on the final distance. The Dutch National Sprint Championships serve as a crucial qualifier for international competitions, including the World Championships.
Joining Schulting at the World Championships will be Marrit Fledderus, who also qualified through her performance at the NK sprint. Jutta Leerdam and Femke Kok had previously been designated for the event, but Leerdam announced she would be skipping the World Championships, opening up two additional spots.
For the men, Janno Botman secured the lone remaining World Championship ticket. Jenning de Boo and Joep Wennemars had already qualified and did not participate in the NK sprint.
On the second 500-meter race, Schulting and Fledderus both clocked in at 37.67 seconds, but Schulting was faster by thousandths of a second. This maintained her approximately 0.6-point advantage, giving her a 1.2-second cushion heading into the final 1,000-meter race. Schulting then extended her lead, finishing the 1,000 meters a full second ahead of Fledderus. Pien Smit rounded out the podium, securing third place with her fourth-place finish in the 1,000 meters.
The men’s competition saw a dramatic finish, with the final race of the 1,000 meters initially appearing to be a showdown between Botman and Merijn Scheperkamp after Sebas Diniz withdrew due to illness. Still, it was Tim Prins who set a blistering pace with a time of 1:07.80 in the penultimate heat.
Schulting, who previously achieved personal bests on the first day of the competition, expressed her delight with the victory, stating it was a significant achievement after a challenging season. Prins, however, acknowledged a disappointing result, calling it a “mislukt seizoen” (a failed season).
