Mirko Vuillermin

A strong 500 m skater, Vuillermin was known for his tactic to take off at high speed, hoping he would not get caught before the finish line. This helped him break the 500 m world record at the 1993 World Championships, but failed to earn him the title. At the 1994 Olympics, he seemed to be headed for the gold, but was pipped at the line by Chae Ji-Hun. But Vuillermin would still return home from the Games with a gold, which he won in the relay along with Maurizio Carnino, Orazio Fagone and Hugo Herrnhof. Vuillermin would go on to collect the relay world title in 1996 (adding to four silver and three bronze medals won at the Worlds), having already won the 1993 World Team Championships (with 4 additional medals won between 1992 and 1997). His other successes came at the then newly established European Championships in 1997, where he won the 500 m and 1,500 m, and placed 3rd overall. Sadly, his career ended on 20 June 1997. Just weeks after his team mate Orazio Fagone lost a leg in a motorcycle accident, Vuillermin nearly suffered the same fate. He crashed his motorcycle into a truck, suffering severe injuries. It took him a year and a half to recover, but he would never again ice skate competitively.