Kim Gil-li hit the finish line first with the kind of timing that turns a tight short-track final into a signature moment, exploding out of the last turns to claim the women’s 1500m Olympic title at the Milano Ice Skating Arena on Friday in Milan.
The 21-year-old’s winning move carried extra weight inside the South Korean team: her decisive late pass denied teammate Choi Min-jeong a chance at a third straight Olympic crown in the event, pushing the two-time champion into silver as the crowd rose with the race’s momentum.
Behind the Korean one-two, Corinne Stoddard kept her composure through the final scramble to earn bronze, delivering a rare breakthrough for the United States in women’s short-track competition and celebrating at the line as if she’d willed it into being.
For Kim, the gold capped a rapidly growing medal collection at her first Olympics. She arrived in the final with confidence already banked—part of South Korea’s gold-winning relay squad earlier in the week and fresh off a bronze in the 1000m—then backed it up when the biggest points were on the table.
Choi, emotional afterward, reflected on the changing of the guard even as she added another Olympic medal to her résumé, acknowledging the possibility that Milano Cortina could be her last Games.
Italy’s Arianna Fontana, skating in front of home fans with history within reach, couldn’t climb onto the podium this time, finishing fifth after a difficult day that included a fall earlier in the program and lingering pain that limited her in the final.
But the night belonged to Kim: calm under pressure, ruthless in the closing lap, and unstoppable once she saw daylight—racing through the line to turn a bib number and a final-lap opening into Olympic gold.
