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Ireen Wüst Makes Olympic History

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Bisexual Speed Skater Ireen Wüst is making Olympics history!

She won gold in the 1,500-meter speed skating race in Beijing, making her the first athlete to win gold at five straight Olympics. Wüst also became the first known LBGTQ+ competitor to win a medal at the Beijing Olympics. Not to mention, she also set an Olympic record time of 1 minute, 53.28 seconds!!

 

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“It’s really hard to describe,” Wüst told Yahoo shortly after the event. “A lot of emotions, especially the good ones. I don’t realize it yet. It’s insane, actually.”

 

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If you want to talk about what’s insane, it’s Wüst’s career. The Netherland skater has more Olympic medals than any other women’s speed skating competitor. She won gold at the 2006 games in Torino, then again at Vancouver in 2010, Sochi in 2014, and Pyeongchang in 2018.

 

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While Wüst won, she beat out another member of Team LGBTQ+. USA Team member Brittany Bowe was also competing for a medal but came in tenth overall. However, Bowe said competing against Wust was an honor.

“Words can’t describe her class. I mean, she’s the greatest of all time as her performance shows,” Bowe said according to Reuters. “Another Olympic gold medal in Olympic record fashion. I’m honored to have competed against her for so many years and even more so to call her a friend.”

 

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Wüst is looking ahead, as this will be her last Olympic games. The 35-year-old is planning on getting married to her long-time girlfriend and starting a family!

Ireen Wüst Makes Olympic History
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