The Incident
The video, which appears to be from a practice session, shows Leerdam taking a violent fall on the ice. She crashes hard into the sideboards, and the impact is so severe that her skating suit rips open exposing significantly more than she intended.
The worst part? She has no idea. Bent over, gathering herself after the fall, she remains completely unaware that her pants are no longer doing their job.
The Internet Reacts
As the clip spread across social media, fans responded with exactly the kind of commentary you’d expect:“I didn’t know they allowed crack in the Olympics, but hey, I’m not complaining. 👀,” one fan posted.
“Who else just watched this more than once?” another asked rhetorically, presumably.“The most beautiful athlete in the world,” a third declared.
“I have no idea why, but they have this chick plastered all over my X account right today🤭don’t worry I don’t mind….at all⛈️✌🏻🤣⛈️,” someone else added.
The Context
Leerdam entered these Olympics with expectations as high as the Italian Alps. The 27-year-old won silver in Beijing in 2022 and arrived in Cortina with three World Cup victories in the 1000 meters this season.
But her presence here hasn’t been without controversy. She drew criticism for flying to the Games via private jet a move some labeled “diva-like behavior.” Her relationship with Jake Paul.
The Redemption
On Monday, Leerdam delivered exactly what she came for: gold. She won the 1000-meter speed skating final in an Olympic-record time of 1:12.31, eclipsing the mark set by her Dutch teammate Femke Kok just moments earlier.
The Takeaway
Jutta Leerdam is now an Olympic gold medalist. She’s also, for better or worse, the subject of a video that will live forever on the internet.
The fall was embarrassing. The rip was unfortunate. The gold medal, though that’s forever.And as for the fans who watched that clip more than once? They’re not apologizing either.
