Hello managers,
It’s Dad back again with a quick update to the
trackers before the Olympics. Dad never fails to follow through on a promise, even
if it takes him a few weeks (erg, maybe even months) to get the job done.
Injury Tracker
Wataru Morishige –
A
huge fall in the first 500m at World Cup 5 really shook this guy up. He went to
the start line for the second 500m to earn his World Cup points, but wasn’t fit
to race. The word from Europe is that he took a beating on that fall so we’ll
see if this affects his ability to race well in the coming weeks.
Violette Braun –
She
announced she might miss the Olympics due to potentially needing surgery, but
it seems she’s dodged that bullet and is back in action on the international circuit.
We’re glad she seems to be ok and look forward to seeing her race in Milan.
Erin Jackson –
She
tweaked something (possibly a hamstring) during the fall World Cups and was
nursing it for a few weeks will still half racing. She’s shredded a couple
races since, particularly 1000m races, but has also been super spotty in the
500m. She got dusted by a weak field at World Cup 5 and then put up an embarrassingly
slow time at the opening test races in Milan just a day ago. Though she’s still
competing, it’s hard to tell if she’s in full health.
The Canadian Men’s Long-Distance program
–
After years and years of dominance on the world stage, it seems that the men’s
long-distance program is entering a new (and worse) era. Long gone are the days
of three of our men finishing in the top five at World Championships. Ted-Jan
Bloemen will be the lone male long-distance skater at the Games representing
Canada, yet he is hardly a Canadian and doesn’t even train with the program. Doctors
have officially diagnosed our men’s long-distance program as
incredibly
underwhelming
and
hardly the envy of the world.
Time to start the
rebuild!
Liu Hanbin
–
After a terrible crash in his 10,000m race at World Cup 3, he’s been absent
from the international scene. He’s likely out for the season and all of us over
here on the blog wish him the speediest of recoveries.
Tim Prins’s Feelings –
He
came within a hundredth of a second of achieving his Olympic dream, but Kjeld
Nuis ultimately prevailed over this young Dutch skater. He’ll surely be back
with a vengeance in four years, but for now he’s got a very serious case of
sad
and moody.
Connor Howe –
This
total stud is officially not going to the 2026 Olympics. It’s heartbreaking, cause
he’s not just a talented skater but also a super nice guy. A back injury has
limited his ability to rip and so his season has ended far too early.
Philip Due Schmidt –
He’s
been on this tracker before, back when he nearly died three years ago. We’re
glad he’s made a recovery and has been able to get back into skating form, but
he’s found his way back onto the injury tracker due to a serious bout of
disagreeing
with the ISU’s rules
. This is a relatively minor diagnosis but still has
the potential to be career ending if he lets it get the best of him.
Kimi Goetz and Patrick Roest
– A year ago, I don’t think I could have imagined a scenario where neither Kimi
Goetz nor Patrick Roest were at the Olympics, yet here we are. I guess it turns
out the recovery time for some surgeries and brain infections are longer than
most of us had originally assumed. It’s a shame that two of the strongest
multi-distance skaters of the 2020s won’t be able to compete for glory in Milan
this month.
Laurent Dubreuil –
He
didn’t race his races at World Cup 4 in the fall. He didn’t race his races at
World Cup 5 in January. He hasn’t raced an international 1000m in a hot minute
after a couple of real tough ones back in November. Is it time to start being
worried about Larry’s health?
Peder Kongshaug –
He
didn’t race World Cup 5, which is a bit odd since the other members of team
Norway showed up in top form and shredded some national records, track records,
and a world record. Maybe this is all part of his personalized taper, or maybe
there is something going on under the surface. He’s been a far cry from his
2024-2025 form, so it wouldn’t shock me if there was something going on here.
Free Agent Tracker
With only two big events left this season, now is the
time to get serious about picking up free agents. World Cup points no longer
matter and the classification points have already been paid out, so feel free
to drop you steady World Cup points earners for someone with some more popoffability.
Here is a list of potential ideas to add to your roster:
Mia Manganello –
She
clinched the Mass Start World Cup Title at the last World Cup of the season and
has been a threat week in and week out. Mia has proven she belongs in that top
tier of mass start skaters, taking down skaters like Francesca Lollobrigida and
Ivanie Blondin on a regular basis this season. She’s got her eyes on the mass
start event in Milan and is without a doubt one of the favourites for the podium.
With how well she’s been racing, it’s hard to imagine her finishing outside the
top five. She only free in one pool.
Sandrine Tas –
This
is definitely a career season for the Belgian long-distance skater. She
finished the season ranked 6
th
in the LD classification and qualified
for the Olympics in three distances. My buddies over on the
Life on the Road
podcast think she’s a legitimate contender in the women’s 5000m at the
Olympics. I’m not quite there yet, but the fact she’s being talked about in the
field is testament to how good her season has been. She only free in a single
pool.
Stijn van de Bunt –
After
an incredible performance at Dutch Olympic Trials, this young up-and-coming
skater has officially arrived on the international scene. He’ll be racing four
distances at the Olympics, three of which are worth points in our league. He’s
already been scooped up by three managers, so grab him quick if you want him.
Lee Na-Hyun –
Though
she didn’t race World Cup 5, this very talented but still young sprinter is set
up well to earn her teams a fuckton of points at the Olympics and World
Sprints. If you don’t have her, sucks to suck. She’s no longer available as a
free agent and will now be removed from the tracker.
Chung Jae-Won –
Managers
are still showing a lack of interest in this speedy Korean mass start sprinter
despite the fact that he’s starting to find his stride. Korea is known for clutch
Olympic performances, so we can expect this defending Olympic medalist to be in
the fight for a repeat performance from four years ago. He’s still available in
three pools.
Ayano Sato
–
You know it’s a tragic fall from the top when a skater this good officially
becomes a free agent. After disappointing one of her managers for the last
time, she’s finally been relegated to free agent status in one pool.
Marcel Bosker –
He’s
had an ok season so far, but he did manage to make the Olympic team and should
be a very strong candidate for World Allrounds so we can expect him to earn
some solid points before the end of the season. He’s only free in one pool.
Lian Ziwen –
The
Chinese can be hard to bet on as they are pretty inconsistent, but Lian is
definitely a bit of a sleeper. He should be on the Olympic team in two
distances, but his real value might come at World Sprints where his
two-distance combo should pay off handsomely. He’s still free in four pools and
I don’t expect him to go quick.
Elizaveta Golubeva –
She
has a strong history of clutch performances at World Championships in the past,
but that was always under the Russian program. As a newly anointed Kazakh, she seems
to still be trying to get back to her old level. If she manages to find her
stride, she could be one of the best available skaters by a mile. She’s still available
in three pools.
Bjorn Magnussen –
This
beefy Norwegian sprinter and proud member of the sub-34 club has been putting
together a pretty solid season. He’s almost cracked the top 40 in the skater
rankings, which would make him roughly equal to a 5
th
round pick. He’s
still free in three pools (but obviously not Ryan’s pool since he seems to have
pretty much every damn sprinter on his roster).
Cha Min-Kyu –
If
there was ever such thing as a guaranteed Olympic medal in the 500m, this would
be it. Shockingly, he’s still free in four pools. Don’t miss out on this
completely slept-on allstar.
Marten Liiv –
Adam
dropped this guy, but he didn’t stay a free agent for long. This isn’t
surprising since Liiv is a very talented skater. He’s no longer a free agent
and will be taken off the tracker.
Bart Hoolwerf
– I previously said he probably doesn’t deserve to be a free agent, but even
Dad can be wrong with his predictions. After a pretty lackluster fall World Cup
season, the Dutch federation favoured Jorrit Bergsma over their mass start sprinter
as their main nominee for the Olympics, effectively ending this crybaby’s season.
Boohoo.
Finally, don’t forget that racing resumes this Saturday
in Milan with the motherfucking Olympics. The wait is finally over! This means
that
any roster changes need to be submitted by 11:59 PM Mountain Time on Friday,
February 6
th
.
Don’t forget to get your roster changes in on time
since this event is worth 4x points. Happy Olympics watching!
Cheers,
Dad