November turned out to be a month of highs and lows for Jutta Leerdam. While she started the new season with a bang in Thialf in November, she followed it up with a mixed trip to Asia, where visits to Japan and China produced contrasting results. Her boyfriend, Jake Paul, also had an event sandwiched in between when he took on Mike Tyson, and the Dutch speedster made a glamorous splash there. But it seems she is back on the drawing board, with a promise to do better next.

Leerdam, still reeling with the effects of traveling to Arlington and then going to ISU World Cup events in Nagano, could only produce a seventh and thirteenth position in the 500m sprint. But the 25-year-old Dutch speed skater also showcased her class and swift and gusty movements as he bagged a silver in the 1000m. The splendid redemption again came in Beijing, where Leerdam churned out another silver, this time in the 500m sprint.

This string of strong performances gave the Westland native a much-needed boost. She expressed her emotions in an Instagram story, where she admitted her shortcomings and lack of power. The message on her Instagram Story read, “Time to go home [white heart emoji]. Asia World Cup trip. It was better than expected & Mostly great races, besides 2 races where I couldn’t show my power. Still struggling to have my body right some racedays. Just frustrating, but we keep working on it.”

The Olympic medalist also remained hopeful of turning around a corner next. She continued, “Already so happy I have great days where I can finally show my power again this season! Time for some off ice training and see you all end of December in Thialf!”

Notably, Thialf will host the European Speed Skating Championship from January 10 to 12, and Leerdam might have her eyes set on it. But she is currently struggling with a couple of issues, which she openly talked about during her Asia World Cup events trip.

Jutta Leerdam: pulling the plug on struggles

Leerdam revealed that she had some struggles with her ankles during the initial events in Nagano. While she worked on it, she was far removed from overcoming those. “I noticed during the warm-up that I can collapse with my ankle again. That makes a difference of almost a second, I think,” she said, as reported by NU.nl.

The better results in Beijing worked wonders, as they suggested Leerdam finally getting back to her former self. But even after bagging a silver, which she lost to Japan’s Yukino Yoshida, she revealed she was only 75 or 80% and had much work left to do.

She declared, “I think I’m at 75 or 80 percent. The speed is still lacking.” Now she has a couple of weeks to work on her speed and power, and it remains to be seen whether she can improve on these results.

What do you make of these comments by Jutta Leerdam? Do you think she will make a stronger comeback? Let us know in the comments below.