CROSS-COUNTRY 20 KM MASS START
The final mountain event of the Torino 2025 FISU Games Winter, the men’s and women’s Cross-Country 20 km Mass Start, was nothing short of extraordinary.
The Men’s 20 km competition wrapped up the cross-country skiing events under tough conditions. Despite the rainy weather in Pragelato Plan, Finland’s Markus Kasanen claimed gold in 56:08.7, delivering a brilliant performance in a closely contested race. The Finnish athlete displayed remarkable strategy and pacing. While he wasn’t in the lead during the early stages, he always kept close to the top and finally claimed the lead, maintaining his position until the end. “This was my first University Games, but also my last. To leave with three medals—especially finishing with a gold—is the perfect way to say goodbye. I didn’t think this would be possible, but the reality has been so much better than I could have imagined. I’m very happy.”, declared Kasanen. Japan’s Daito Yamazaki delivered a steady and determined performance to secure silver with a time of 56:17.7, just +9.0 seconds behind Kasanen. Yamazaki faced a slower start, however, his ability to climb steadily up the leaderboard showcased his strong endurance. Although he couldn’t hold off Kasanen’s late charge, he earned a well-deserved place on the podium. Finland’s Nico Bennert got off to a blazing start, however, as the race progressed, he lost the lead to Kasanen, finishing +12.7 seconds behind the winner, securing bronze.
In the women’s competition Estonia’s Keidy Kaasiku claimed gold in 1:03:49.4, with her twin sister Kaidy Kaasiku taking silver, finishing just +17.8 seconds behind. Their spectacular one-two finish made for an emotional and historic conclusion to the Games. The twins delivered a masterclass in endurance, strategy, and sibling synchronicity. Keidy Kaasiku took the lead early in the race and maintained a steady pace throughout the race. “I am very happy that it worked out today and that I could share this podium with my sister. I had hope this morning, but still, it’s very emotional right now. The whole organization and also the idea with the ambassadors was very good and I enjoyed these Games“, said the gold medallist. Kaidy Kaasiku stayed close behind, pushing her sister and solidifying a dominant Estonian performance. Izabela Marcisz (POL) fought hard to secure the bronze medal, finishing in 1:04:47.6, +58.2 seconds behind Keidy Kaasiku. Despite the challenging conditions and tough competition, Marcisz demonstrated her resilience, delivering a strong finish to cap off an excellent performance.
SPEED SKATING: CHINA OVERTAKES SOUTH KOREA AND ATTAINS A GOLD MEDAL IN MEN’S 5000M RELAY
China has unexpectedly overtaken the South Korean team attaining a marvellous triumph in the last short track speed skating’s event of these FISU Games, the Men’s 5000m Relay. The Chinese finished the race in the impressive time of 6:57.044: after eight victories and for the first time at these Torino 2025 FISU Games the top step of the podium isn’t Korean. The Japanese team secured the second place on the podium after displaying a great performance, winning the nineteenth medal of these games for its country. Lastly, we find Kazakhstan on the third spot of the podium, a country that has once again lived up to its traditional competitiveness in winter sports. It was an unlucky race for the South Korean team, who ended up being fourth despite being considered the most likely candidate to win the gold medal.
Song and Li shared with our microphones their stories behind their love for speed skating. “When I was a kid there was a river near my house: seeing other people skating used to make me happy, so I started too”, revealed Guixu, with a bit of nostalgia. On the other hand, Kun said with a smile: “When I was a kid, I was kind of naughty and in the north of China it was very cold in winter. So, my school teacher used to make me skate on the ice as a punishment, while my friends were skating elsewhere”.
The men’s 5000m relay final took place right after the men’s 1000m final, which was literally dominated by Koreans. South Korea managed to place three of its athletes on the podium. 23-years-old Tae-sung Kim won the race followed by its teammates Seo-chan Bae and Dong-hyun Lee.
The women’s 1000 m final was dominated by Republic of Korea, who won both the gold and the silver medal. Gilli Kim finished the race in 1:31.558, securing the gold medal with her outstanding performance. Her teammate Whimin Seo took the silver medal, while the bronze went to China’s Weiying Hao, +0.260 behind Kim.
Another gold medal went to Republic of Korea in women’s 3000m relay, where the team – formed by Eunseo Kim, Geonhee Kim, Gilli KIm, Jim Lee and Whimin Seo – accomplished to take the first place, finishing -1.066 before China. Finally the bronze medal went to France, who finished in 4:19.184.
NORWAY AND JAPAN SHINE IN CURLING FINALS
Norway claimed the gold medal in the men’s tournament, beating the USA 8-4 in the final, which began at 2 pm. The match was a high-level challenge, showcasing great skill from both teams: Norwegians were down twice, before overtaking in the sixth hand and winning the final. The bronze medal went to Switzerland, who beat Canada 6-1 in the final for third place on January 22nd.Lukas Hoestmaelingen (NOR) said: “I feel fantastic! We set ourselves this goal a year ago, so it’s really nice to see that we have achieved it. This was my first time at a FISU Games: I tried to qualify last time and we didn’t, so it’s really nice to finally be here. Hopefully, we’ll make it to the Olympics one day and then we’ll see what we can do. We’ll try our best” In the women’s curling final, however, Japan wins against South Korea (7-5) in a heart-stopping match, clinching victory with the last stone in the extra end. The Japanese women’s team – which consists of Yuina Miura, Kohane Tsuruga, Eri Ogihara, Rin Suzuki, and Ai Matsunaga – had only two defeats throughout the tournament, one of which was against South Korea, who were later beaten in the final. After Japan and South Korea, Canada secured third place on the podium by defeating Norway with a decisive score of 7-3.
