'Is she an Olympian or a celebrity?'
Dutch speedskater Jutta Leerdam, 28, arrived at the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics on a private jet with her fiancé, a famous YouTuber. She drew criticism from some sports fans after posting Instagram content showing herself watching the opening ceremony from her hotel bed and training at the local track. Critics questioned whether she came to compete or to vacation.
Leerdam answered her detractors with performance, not words. On February 10, she won the women's 1000m event at Milan's speedskating stadium with an Olympic record time of 1 minute 12.31 seconds. The previous record holder Miho Takagi of Japan took bronze at 1:13.19, while Femke Kok of the Netherlands claimed silver, finishing 0.28 seconds behind Leerdam.
Leerdam upgraded her medal color from the silver she won at the 2022 Beijing Olympics 1000m. As she crossed the finish line and roared in triumph, Jake Paul—the American "YouTuber boxer"—shed tears in the stands.
"My boyfriend Paul knows how much effort I put in and how mentally difficult it was," Leerdam said.
Paul has 21 million YouTube subscribers, while Leerdam's Instagram following exceeds 5.5 million. Her follower count stood at just over 5 million at the start of the Games, gaining 500,000 in just days.