Olympics-Speed skating-Rijpma-de Jong says pressure paid off with gold at fourth Games attempt

By Pearl Josephine Nazare

MILAN, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Antoinette Rijpma-de Jong said she put immense pressure on herself to produce the Olympic performance that had eluded her for more than a decade, but at 30 - and skating in her fourth Games - the hard work finally paid off.

The Dutch speed skater won the women's 1,500 metres at Milano Cortina on Friday in one minute 54.09 seconds, a breakthrough moment after years climbing podiums but never reaching the top step.

"All focus was on today; I really put the pressure on myself. Everything has been worth it," said Rijpma-de Jong, who won a silver medal in the team pursuit earlier in the Games.

"I was a little bit disappointed with the silver in the team pursuit and knew I still had one chance left," she said.

Rijpma-de Jong has been on a long Olympic journey. In Beijing four years ago she took bronze in this event behind Dutch great Ireen Wust and Japan's Miho Takagi as well as bronze in the 1,500m, and at Pyeongchang in 2018 she won a team pursuit silver and a 3,000m bronze.

"I've had many ups and downs but I always fought during every single race. Eventually, fighting leads towards a gold medal," she said.

"Every single race I've skated at the Olympics, I wasn't super happy about. I never skated the perfect race - the race you want to skate at the moment it matters most.

"I had Olympic bronze and silver medals, but the gold was missing. I've always kept fighting, and now (today) it was enough.

"I've always had a dream, as a little girl, to be an Olympic champion. To reach it at 30, after four Games, I finally pulled it off."

Asked whether Tuesday's race was finally that perfect performance, Rijpma-de Jong said: "During the race it didn't quite feel like that. But afterward, maybe it was."