Olympic officials have broken their silence after champion Jutta Leerdam sparked a frenzy at the end of her 1000m speed skating competition.
The 27-year-old Dutch star not only broke the Olympic record at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. She also broke the internet when she unzipped her suit to reveal her Nike undergarment.
Highlights
- Officials from the 2026 Winter Olympics broke their silence after champion Jutta Leerdam went viral for her celebratory moment.
- The Dutch champion unzipped her suit when she finished the 1000m competition in Olympic record-breaking speed.
- Leerdam shared a post this week about people judging her for her entire career.
“Bet it won’t be a million-dollar punishment,” one commented online.
Olympic officials broke their silence after champion Jutta Leerdam sparked a frenzy at the 2026 Winter Olympics
Image credits: Henk Jan Dijks/Marcel ter Bals/Getty Images
After winning gold in the 1,000m speed skating competition on February 9, Jutta Leerdam tearfully unzipped her suit to reveal her Nike undergarment.
Experts estimated that the split-second moment could make her richer by around $1 million.
Many were surprised that Leerdam, who announced she was a Nike Athlete a few months ago, promoted the sports brand’s undergarment while wearing a FILA skating suit.
“When you’re this fast, you don’t ask for permission,” Nike wrote in a post celebrating Leerdam’s victory earlier this month.
The Dutch star tearfully unzipped her suit to reveal her Nike undergarment after she broke the Olympic record
Image credits: Henk Jan Dijks/Marcel ter Bals/Getty Images
Some speculated whether Leerdam would face penalising action for flaunting a Nike product at the Olympics.
But an IOC official confirmed that she wouldn’t be punished for her unzipping moment.
IOC TMS Managing Director Anne-Sophie Voumard said the speed skater’s actions were “normal practice,” given how tight skating suits can be.
“I'm not an expert in speed skating, but I understand this (unzipping the uniform after a race) is normal practice for speed skaters when they finish their race because the suit is very tight. It is normal practice and not a case of ambush (marketing),” Voumard said.
Ambush marketing occurs when a brand tries to associate itself with a major event, like the Olympics, the World Cup, or other globally recognised platforms, without being an official sponsor.
IOC TMS Managing Director Anne-Sophie Voumard spoke about whether Leerdam would be penalized for her actions
Previously, experts estimated that Leerdam might make a seven-figure amount from her spotlight-stealing moment.
“With Nike, I suspect you’re looking at a figure of over a million,” advertising expert Frederique de Laat, founder of female athlete marketing agency Branthlete, told AD.
Moreover, Leerdam has 6.2 million Instagram followers and could also earn around one cent per follower if she agrees to share sponsored posts.
Image credits: Joosep Martinson/Getty Images
That could mean she earns up to $73,500 per sponsored Instagram post promoting Nike, according to Meindert Schut, editor-in-chief of Dutch business magazine Quote.
Leerdam seemed ecstatic while speaking about being a Nike Athlete around two months ago. She said it felt like a “blessing” to be part of the “NIKE family.”
“I’m a @nike athlete!!” she wrote on Instagram. “I still can’t quite believe it yet. The little girl in me is smiling so big, and the woman I’ve become is so proud.”
Leerdam spoke about being a Nike Athlete about two months before her Olympic gold-winning moment
The speed skater said it was always her “dream” to become a Nike athlete, and she “never settled for less.”
“For NIKE to come on my path and want to work together is an honour beyond words,” she continued. “The fact that they believe in what I stand for on and off the ice is the biggest compliment of all.”
Days after finishing the 1000m competition in Olympic record-breaking time, Leerdam took part in the women’s 500m competition on February 15.
She came in second, right behind her Dutch teammate, Femke Kok, and took home a silver medal.
The speed skater took a silver medal as well by the end of the 2026 Winter Olympics
On Thursday, February 19, Leerdam shared an emotional post from her Olympic victory-clinching moment, alongside a photo with mascara rolling down her eyelids.
She said the photo was a moment that proves “you don’t have to become less of yourself to achieve something great.”
“Your looks don’t define you as a person or as an athlete. [And if you work hard and stay determined, it will all come together,” she wrote in the caption.
“It’s so ironic because my winged eyeliner and make-up are something I’ve been judged for during my whole career, when all it ever did was give me confidence and make me feel feminine and powerful,” she added.
This week, the champion shared a post about people constantly judging her, especially for her appearance
The champion admitted she has dealt with “pressure” and “judgment” over the years. But she “never felt the need to prove anything.”
“I did this for me, my younger self, my family, and for all women who don’t want to be put in a box and just want to be their authentic selves,” she said.
“A reminder that you can be soft and strong, disciplined and feminine, all at once,” she added. “Never let anyone dim your light.”
Image credits: Henk Jan Dijks/Marcel ter Bals/Getty Images
Leerdam’s fiancé and boxer-influencer, Jake Paul, commented “iconic” on her post.
He was in the crowd at the Olympics, cheering her on and celebrating her win.
“From now on, call me Jutta Leerdam’s fiancé,” he wrote on Instagram, sharing a video with Leerdam wearing her shiny Olympic medals around her neck.
“That was a side bet on the app. I’m sure Jake planned it and bet accordingly,” one commented online
