1,000 metres, Women

Lyudmila Titova had already won the 500 metres in Grenoble and was the favorite, having won the 1,000 distance at the recent 1968 World Championships. The defending champion and world record holder was Lidiya Skoblikova, and although she was in Grenoble, she was skating only the 1,500 and 3,000. Titova started in the third pair and posted 1:32.9 to move into the lead. In the next pair was American Dianne Holum, who had tied for second in the 500 a few days earlier. Holum had placed third in the 1,000 at the 1967 World Championships but had struggled in 1968, finishing only 13th. She was better in Grenoble, finishing in 1:33.4 to move into second place. Their times held up until near the end when the Netherlands’ Carry Geijssen went off in the 13th pair. Geijssen had been a top sprinter since the early 60s, winning the 1,000 at the Dutch Championships in 1965 and 1966. Through 600 metres, Geijssen’s splits were the same as Titova and Holum had skated, but she finished stronger to secure the gold medal in 1:32.6. She would skate competitively for three more years, but never won another major distance race. This was the first gold medal ever won by a Dutch speed skater.