Speed skating star Leerdam wins gold as fiance Paul weeps

As Jutta Leerdam secured her Olympic gold medal, the tears flowed. The only person crying nearly as much was her fiance in the crowd.

Boxer-influencer Jake Paul and Leerdam have been engaged since last year.

And he was in the second row of the stands in the temporary speed skating arena at Rho Fiera exhibition centre in north Milan to watch the 27-year-old win the women’s 1,000m gold.

Leerdam, pipped into silver at Beijing 2022, claimed the gold in a new Olympic record time.

It provides a perfect ending to a frenetic few months for Leerdam, who had to rely on a discretionary place at Milan-Cortina 2026 having crashed in qualifying.

Afterwards Leerdam paid tribute to Paul and her family, who she said had provided support that she had struggled to reciprocate.

“I’ve been supportive, but I’ve not been able to go to his [Paul’s] past fights because of skating. It would be nice to be there more,” she said. “He has supported me a lot more and has come to many of my races, so I’m very grateful.

“Also, my family – I’m just so grateful for the support system around me. It’s amazing.”

Jake Paul and social media aside, Leerdam is a star in her own right.

She is now a speed skating Olympic champion, adding to two world titles and three European championships in the 1,000m, as well as her Beijing silver.

Leerdam has a dedicated following with more than five million followers on Instagram and millions more across other platforms.

She generally chooses to avoid traditional media and opts to speak from her own channels, bypassing attention and criticism from the Dutch press who closely cover the Olympic sport where they historically dominate.

Her profile expanded far beyond the speed skating oval in 2023 when she began a relationship with Paul, whose celebrity journey has taken him from YouTube personality to professional boxer. He was beaten by former heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua last year.

The couple maintain a long-distance relationship, with Paul in the USA and Leerdam training in the Netherlands.

He watched the race surrounded by the camera crew which documents virtually his entire life.

But Monday in Milan was about Leerdam, who said the weight of expectation pushed her to deliver a “surreal” triumph.

She led a Dutch one-two ahead of Femke Kok, securing the country’s first medals of these Games.

“This was really something that I was still missing,” Leerdam said. “So, it feels very complete. It feels surreal.”

Jake Paul and Jutta Leerdam drop baby hint after Winter Olympics gold triumph

Speed skating star Jutta Leerdam captured Olympic gold this week in the 1,000m event with a record time, and her fiancé Jake Paul was there to witness every emotional second from the stands.

But it was a video the couple recorded before her race that has fans buzzing about what might come next for the pair.

Paul shared the touching clip, showing himself and Leerdam speaking directly to the children they hope to have someday. The message, filmed just before Leerdam‘s race, shows Paul holding flowers he had bought for his soon-to-be wife.

“Hey little kids, here’s your parents. You guys are not even born yet but we are making a video for you. Your mom is about to go for gold. I just bought her flowers. Your mom is really cute. We love you, even though you’re not born yet,” Paul said in the video.

Leerdam waved at the camera before adding her own thoughts. “We look very young right now. We try our best,” she said.

The gold medal carried extra significance given how close Leerdam came to missing the Games entirely. She crashed during qualifying trials just over a month before the competition, putting her participation in serious doubt.

Watching her overcome that setback and claim the top prize left Paul visibly emotional inside the arena.

This is not the first time Paul has spoken publicly about his desire to become a father. The social media personality turned boxer has been open about wanting to start a family with the Dutch athlete.

Boxing career takes backseat to family plans

Last December, Paul appeared in an interview with his brother Logan Paul that revealed just how serious he is about parenthood.

The conversation took place just days after his devastating boxing loss to Anthony Joshua in Miami, where Paul suffered a broken jaw in two places. Despite the brutal defeat and visible facial swelling, his thoughts quickly shifted to family.

“I’m going to take some time off [from boxing] and go and support Jutta at the Olympics and then she’s going to move to Puerto Rico [where Paul lives],” he told Logan.

“Honestly, I’ll be honest with you, I have such baby fever. I want kids so bad.”