Erben Wennemars

Wennemars at the 2007 World Allround Championships
Personal information
Born	(1975-11-01) 1 November 1975 (age 48) Dalfsen, Netherlands
Website	www.erbenwennemars.nl
Sport
Country	Netherlands
Sport	Speed skating
Turned pro	1995
Retired	2010
Medal record Men's speed skating Representing the  Netherlands Olympic Games 2006 Turin Team pursuit 2006 Turin 1000 m World Single Distance Championships 2003 Berlin 1000 m 2004 Seoul 1000 m 2003 Berlin 1500 m 2005 Inzell Team pursuit 2007 Salt Lake City Team pursuit 2008 Nagano Team pursuit 1999 Heerenveen 500 m 2007 Salt Lake City 1500 m 2003 Berlin 500 m 2001 Salt Lake City 1500 m 2004 Seoul 1500 m World Sprint Championships 2004 Nagano Sprint 2005 Salt Lake City Sprint 1998 Berlin Sprint 2003 Calgary Sprint

Egbert Rolf "Erben" Wennemars (born 1 November 1975) is a Dutch former speed skater. He specialized in the sprint and middle distances of 500, 1000 and 1500 meters, and set six world records during his career.^[1]

Speed skating career

Wennemars was the first skater who skated the 1500 m faster than 1:50.00. His 1:49.89 in the summer of 1997, however, was not regarded as an official world record.

During the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, where Wennemars was qualified for the 500, 1000 and 1500 m, he dislocated his shoulder when Grunde Njøs from Norway fell and collided with Wennemars during the second 500 m race. Wennemars was not able to participate in the other distances after that.

Wennemars achieved his first big success in 2003 during the World Single Distance Championships in Berlin, Germany, by winning the gold medal at the 1000 m and 1500 m. One year later he became world champion in sprint in Nagano. In 2005 he defended his world sprint title successfully in Salt Lake City, United States.

Wennemars qualified for the 500 m, 1000 m, 1500 m and the team pursuit events at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. His teammates for the team pursuit were Sven Kramer, Carl Verheijen, Mark Tuitert and Rintje Ritsma.

In 2003, Wennemars was chosen as athlete of the year in the Netherlands, and in 2003, 2004 and 2005 as Dutch skater of the year. After failing to qualify for the 2010 Winter Olympics, he announced his farewell from competitive skating.^[2] On 11 January 2010, Wennemars officially retired as a speed-skating professional.

Records

Personal records

World records

Tournament overview

Season	Dutch Championships Single Distances	Dutch Championships Sprint	Dutch Championships Allround	World Championships Allround	World Championships Sprint	World Championships Single Distances	Olympic Games	World Cup GWC	World Championships Junior Allround
1994–95	THE HAGUE 16th 500m 14th 1000m								SEINÄJOKI 25th 500m 31st 1500m 14th 1000m DNQ 5000m NC overall(24th)
1995–96	GRONINGEN DQ 500m 6th 1000m 5th 1500m	ASSEN 14th 500m 7th 1000m 11th 500m 7th 1000m 10th overall
1996–97	THE HAGUE 500m 1000m 1500m	GRONINGEN 4th 500m 1000m 4th 500m 4th 1000m overall						22nd 500m 28th 1000m
1997–98	HEERENVEEN 500m 1000m 1500m	GRONINGEN 500m 1000m 500m 4th 1000m overall			BERLIN 9th 500m 6th 1000m 6th 500m 1000m overall		NAGANO DNF 500m	10th 500m 7th 1000m
1998–99	GRONINGEN 500m 4th 1000m 7th 1500m 20th 5000m	GRONINGEN 500m 5th 1000m 500m 1000m overall			CALGARY 13th 500m 4th 1000m 5th 500m 1000m 5th overall	HEERENVEEN 500m 4th 1000m		14th 500m 5th 1000m 18th 1500m
1999–2000	DEVENTER 500m 1000m 7th 1500m	UTRECHT 16th 500m 1000m 500m 1000m 4th overall			SEOUL 4th 500m 5th 1000m 4th 500m 1000m 5th overall	NAGANO 10th 500m 6th 1000m		6th 500m 4th 1000m
2000–01	THE HAGUE 500m 1000m 1500m	HEERENVEEN 500m 1000m 500m 1000m overall			INZELL 4th 500m 1000m 15th 500m 1000m 5th overall	SALT LAKE CITY 18th 500m 6th 1000m 1500m		10th 500m 5th 1000m 4th 1500m
2001–02	GRONINGEN 500m 1000m 4th 1500m	GRONINGEN 500m 4th 1000m 500m 1000m overall			HAMAR 8th 500m 6th 1000m 6th 500m 1000m 5th overall		SALT LAKE CITY 10th 500m 5th 1000m	10th 500m 5th 1000m 1500m
2002–03	UTRECHT 500m 1000m 1500m				CALGARY 4th 500m 1000m 5th 500m 1000m overall	BERLIN 500m 1000m 1500m		500m 1000m 1500m
2003–04	HEERENVEEN 500m 1000m 1500m	UTRECHT 500m 1000m 500m 1000m overall			NAGANO 9th 500m 1000m 7th 500m 1000m overall	SEOUL 11th 500m 1000m 1500m		11th 500m 1000m 1500m
2004–05	ASSEN 500m 1000m 1500m	GRONINGEN 23rd 500m 1000m 4th 500m 1000m 21st overall			SALT LAKE CITY 4th 500m 4th 1000m 500m 1000m overall	INZELL 9th 500m 9th 1000m 7th 1500m team pursuit		9th 500m 1000m 1500m
2005–06	HEERENVEEN 500m 1000m 1500m	ASSEN 6th 500m 6th 1000m 5th 500m 4th 1000m 4th overall					TURIN 16th 500m 1000m 5th 1500m team pursuit	27th 500m 8th 1000m 8th 1500m team pursuit
2006–07	ASSEN 500m 7th 1000m 4th 1500m	GRONINGEN 5th 500m 1000m 500m 1000m overall	HEERENVEEN 500m 12th 5000m 1500m 8th 10000m overall	HEERENVEEN 500m 10th 5000m 1500m 10th 10000m 5th overall	HAMAR 6th 500m 1000m 13th 500m 4th 1000m 6th overall	SALT LAKE CITY 14th 500m 4th 1000m 1500m team pursuit		27th 100m 13th 500m 1000m 1500m team pursuit
2007–08	HEERENVEEN 500m 1000m 1500m	HEERENVEEN 15th 500m 1000m 500m 4th 1000m 5th overall				NAGANO team pursuit		41st 100m 27th 500m 9th 1000m 4th 1500m team pursuit
2008–09	HEERENVEEN 15th 500m 1000m 4th 1500m	GRONINGEN 5th 500m 1000m 6th 500m 1000m overall	HEERENVEEN 500m 14th 5000m 1500m 8th 10000m 5th overall		MOSCOW DNF 500m DNS 1000m DNS 500m DNS 1000m NC overall			25th 1000m 10th 1500m 7th team pursuit
2009–10	HEERENVEEN 11th 500m 9th 1000m 5th 1500m							26th 1500m team pursuit
2013–14	HEERENVEEN 15th 1500m

source: ^{[8] [9] [10] [11]}

DNS = Did not start

DNF = Did not finish

DQ = Disqualified

NC = No classification

World Cup

Season	500 meter
1996–1997	36th	30th	18th(b)	17th(b)	24th(b)	12th(b)	17th(b)	23rd(b)	1st(b)	13th	2nd(b)	14th
1997–1998	9th	4th	9th	13th		–	–
1998–1999	24th	7th	–	–	5th		–	16th	13th
1999–2000	16th	9th	14th	6th	4th	4th	4th	4th	9th
2000–2001	15th	14th	15th	7th	6th	4th	7th	10th	19th	–
2001–2002	14th	6th	10th	–	–	13th	5th	14th	19th
2002–2003	10th	7th	4th	5th	–				6th
2003–2004	5th		14th	8th	8th	12th	–	–	12th	12th	12th	10th
2004–2005	16th	14th	7th	8th		8th	10th	10th	15th	9th
2005–2006	58th	17th	–	–	7th(b)	17th(b)	–	–	1st(b)	6th	–	–
2006–2007	27th	DQ	7th	13th*	11th*	9th*	14th	16th	14th	4th	8th	16th	–
2007–2008	13th	18th	18th	19th	3rd(b)*	–	17th	18th	–	–	–	–	–	–
2008–2009
2009–2010

Season	1000 meter
1996–1997	26th	19th	18th(b)	9th(b)	7th(b)	19th(b)	14th(b)	18th(b)	1st(b)
1997–1998	4th	6th	7th	10th	4th	–	–
1998–1999	5th	7th	–	–	4th	5th	5th	4th	4th
1999–2000	11th	5th	4th		14th	7th	6th		9th
2000–2001	10th	13th	5th	9th		5th			11th	14th
2001–2002	5th		19th			6th	20th
2002–2003		4th					6th
2003–2004
2004–2005		15th	4th
2005–2006	5th		–	–	5th	–	–	9th		–
2006–2007		4th								7th
2007–2008	5th	9th	11th		DQ	5th	7th	–	–	11th
2008–2009	8th	4th	5th	4th	–	–	–	DNF	–	–
2009–2010

Season	1500 meter
1996–1997
1997–1998
1998–1999	–	1st(b)	–	7th	–
1999–2000
2000–2001	5th		19th	5th	20th
2001–2002		5th	–			4th
2002–2003		4th	–			–
2003–2004			4th	4th
2004–2005			9th
2005–2006	8th		7th	11th
2006–2007
2007–2008		4th		8th	6th	10th	10th
2008–2009		5th	4th	–	–	–
2009–2010	18th	1st(b)	–	–	DQ

Season	Team pursuit
1996–1997
1997–1998
1998–1999
1999–2000
2000–2001
2001–2002
2002–2003
2003–2004
2004–2005
2005–2006		–	–
2006–2007		–	–
2007–2008	–			–
2008–2009	DNF	–	–
2009–2010	–	–	4th

Source:^[12]

(b) = Division B

DNF = Did not finish

DQ = Disqualified

* = 100m (first 100 meters of the World Cup 500 meter)

– = Did not participate

Medals won

Championship	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Dutch Single Distances	11	11	9
Dutch Sprint Single Events	12	5	13
Dutch Sprint	3	2	3
Dutch Allround Single Events	3	0	1
Dutch Allround Classification	0	0	1
World Allround Single Events	2	0	0
World Allround Classification	0	0	0
Olympic Games	0	0	2
World Single Distances	6	2	3
World Sprint Single Events	5	3	5
World Sprint Classification	2	0	2
World Cup	27	32	20
World Cup Classification	7	4	2
Total	77	60	61

Total number of medals: 198

Personal life

Wennemars is married to TV-presenter Renate van der Zalm, with whom he has two sons: Joep and Niels.^[13]