The Women’s 500 metres in short track speed skating at the 2018 Winter Olympics took place from 10 to 13 February 2018 at the Gangneung Ice Arena in Gangneung, South Korea.

Summary The defending champion from 2014, Li Jianrou, had retired, but the 2014 silver medalist Arianna Fontana competed and eventually won the event. Elise Christie and Choi Min-jeong, who set two Olympic records each in heats and quarterfinals, were considered heavy favorites. They both qualified to the final, but Christie crashed out and finished fourth, and Choi was disqualified for interference after initially finishing second. Fontana became the Olympic champion, with Yara van Kerkhof, who was advanced to the final, winning the silver, and Kim Boutin bronze. Fontana's gold medal was the first gold medal in women's short track speed skating won by a European athlete since 1988 (when Monique Velzeboer and the Italian relay team took gold).

Records Prior to this competition, the existing world and Olympic records were as follows.

Three Olympic records were set during the competition.

Date Round Athlete Country Time Record Ref 10 February Heat 8 Choi Min-jeong 42.870 OR 13 February Quarterfinal 2 Elise Christie 42.703 OR Semifinal 1 Choi Min-jeong 42.422 OR

Results Heats Q – qualified for Quarterfinals PEN – penalty

Rank Heat Name Country Time Notes 1 1 Kim Boutin 43.634 Q 2 1 Natalia Maliszewska 43.725 Q 3 1 Lana Gehring 43.825 4 1 Lucia Peretti 43.994 1 2 Arianna Fontana 43.214 Q 2 2 Andrea Keszler 43.274 Q 3 2 Kathryn Thomson 4 2 Suzanne Schulting 1 3 Sofia Prosvirnova 43.376 Q 2 3 Yara van Kerkhof 43.430 Q 3 3 Bianca Walter 43.541 4 3 Sumire Kikuchi 44.838 1 4 Elise Christie 42.872 Q 2 4 Qu Chunyu 42.971 Q 3 4 Shim Suk-hee 43.048 4 4 Veronique Pierron 43.148 1 5 Fan Kexin 43.350 Q 2 5 Maame Biney 43.665 Q 3 5 Kim A-lang 43.724 4 5 Anastassiya Krestova 43.821 1 6 Martina Valcepina 43.698 Q 2 6 Han Yutong 43.719 Q 3 6 Tifany Huot-Marchand 44.659 6 Jamie Macdonald PEN 1 7 Marianne St-Gelais 43.437 Q 2 7 Anna Seidel 43.742 Q 3 7 Lara van Ruijven 43.771 4 7 Magdalena Warakomska 44.311 1 8 Choi Min-jeong 42.870 Q, OR 2 8 Petra Jászapáti 55.670 Q 3 8 Emina Malagich 56.830 8 Charlotte Gilmartin PEN

Quarterfinals Q – qualified for Semifinals PEN – penalty

Rank Heat Name Country Time Notes 1 1 Arianna Fontana 43.128 Q 2 1 Yara van Kerkhof 43.197 Q 3 1 Natalia Maliszewska 43.384 1 Marianne St-Gelais PEN 1 2 Elise Christie 42.703 Q, OR 2 2 Kim Boutin 42.789 Q 3 2 Andrea Keszler 43.053 4 2 Anna Seidel 44.325 1 3 Sofia Prosvirnova 43.466 Q 2 3 Fan Kexin 43.485 Q 3 3 Han Yutong 43.627 4 3 Maame Biney 44.772 1 4 Qu Chunyu 42.954 Q 2 4 Choi Min-jeong 42.996 Q 3 4 Martina Valcepina 43.023 4 4 Petra Jászapáti 43.043

Semifinals QA – qualified for Final A QB – qualified for Final B ADV – advanced PEN – penalty

Rank Semifinal Name Country Time Notes 1 1 Choi Min-jeong 42.422 QA, OR 2 1 Arianna Fontana 42.635 QA 3 1 Sofia Prosvirnova 43.219 QB 1 Fan Kexin PEN 1 2 Yara van Kerkhof 43.182 QA 2 2 Elise Christie 43.184 QA 3 2 Kim Boutin 43.234 ADV 2 Qu Chunyu PEN

Final Final B was scratched as Sofia Prosvirnova (5th place overall) was the only athlete who qualified for it.

Rank Name Country Time Notes Arianna Fontana 42.569 Yara van Kerkhof 43.256 Kim Boutin 43.881 4 Elise Christie Choi Min-jeong PEN

References