Jeremy Wotherspoon

Jeremy Wotherspoon

Jeremy Wotherspoon at a World Cup speed skating event in Heerenveen, Netherlands
Personal information
Born	(1976-10-26) October 26, 1976 (age 40) Humboldt, Saskatchewan
Height	1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Weight	85 kg (187 lb; 13.4 st)
Sport
Country	Canada
Sport	Speed skating
Medal record Men's speed skating Representing  Canada International speed skating competitions Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 0 1 0 World Championships (sprint) 4 4 1 World Championships (distances) 4 3 3 Total 8 8 4 Olympic Games 1998 Nagano 500 m World Championships (sprint) 1999 Calgary Sprint 2000 Seoul Sprint 2002 Hamar Sprint 2003 Calgary Sprint 1998 Berlin Sprint 2004 Nagano Sprint 2005 Salt Lake City Sprint 2008 Heerenveen Sprint 2001 Inzell Sprint World Championships (distances) 2003 Berlin 500 m 2004 Seoul 500 m 2008 Nagano 500 m 2001 Salt Lake City 1000 m 2001 Salt Lake City 500 m 1998 Calgary 1000 m 2004 Seoul 1000 m 1998 Calgary 500 m 2000 Nagano 500 m 2005 Inzell 500 m

Jeremy Lee Wotherspoon (born October 26, 1976) is a Canadian speed skater, widely recognized as one of the greatest speedskating sprinters of all time.

In December 2003, Wotherspoon became the most successful male skater in World Cup history when he claimed the 49th victory of his career. He finished his career with a record 67 World Cup wins at 500 and 1,000 metres.

Wotherspoon broke the 500 m world record on three occasions. His last standing record was broken in November 2015 by Pavel Kulizhnikov of Russia. He broke the 1000 m world record seven times.

Wotherspoon was born in Humboldt, Saskatchewan, but grew up in Red Deer, Alberta. There he first became involved in speedskating after signing up for a power skating class in an effort to improve his ice hockey abilities. Initially, Wotherspoon competed in both short track and long track events. He eventually chose long track as a specialty and climbed through the junior ranks, moving to Calgary to train with the Canadian national team at the age of 17. Wotherspoon soon won medals on the World Cup circuit, with his first victories in 1997.

Wotherspoon dominated sprint events and held world records in both the 500 m and 1000 m distances. He is a four-time World Sprint Champion, taking the title four times in five years between 1999 and 2003, and a 13-time World Cup Overall Champion on the 500 m and the 1000 m. During the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Wotherspoon won a silver medal in the 500 m, despite being the favorite.