Fairfield native Kristen Santos-Griswold competed in her second Winter Olympic Games on Thursday, racing in the women's 500-meter short track speedskating quarterfinals, semifinals and B finals at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy.
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Santos-Griswold began the third quarterfinal heat in the second starting position and finished first with a time of 42.174, after passing Michelle Velzeboer of the Netherlands on fifth and final lap. Her quarterfinal time was the fifth best among the 20 competitors.
The top two finishers in each of the four heats qualified for the semifinals, along with the fastest two third-place athletes.
Santos-Griswold began the first semifinal heat in the third starting position and finished fourth with a time of 45.364. She bumped skates with Velzeboer on the first lap, stumbled and fell behind.
Only the top five finishers between the two semifinal heats qualified for the A Final, leaving Santos-Griswold to compete in the B Final.
In the B Final, she placed fourth with a time of 1:08.444.
Santos-Griswold, who has been skating at the Wonderland of Ice in Bridgeport, Conn. since she was 4 years old, competed in the 2022 Olympics in 1,500-meter speedskating. Since that time, she had found much success on the international stage.
In 2023, she won a gold medal, two silvers and a bronze at the Four Continents Championships. In 2024, she won three gold medals and a silver back at Four Continents. She also won a gold, two silvers and a bronze at the World Short Track Championships.
During the 2024-2025 season, she won her first Crystal Globe (given to the overall best skater in short track) and became the third American to finish a short track season ranked No. 1 overall.
Santos-Griswold's family was in attendance for her races.
This article originally published at See how Fairfield native Kristen Santos-Griswold fared in Olympic women's short track speedskating.