Jutta Leerdam’s Olympic suit sells for record €195,000, most goes to her youth club
The Olympic speed skating suit worn by Jutta Leerdam at the Milan Games was sold at auction Saturday for 195,000 euros, with the majority of the proceeds going to her former youth club, IJsvereniging Pijnacker. The sale was part of a larger auction organized by NOC*NSF and the MatchWornShirt platform, which featured 19 items from Dutch Olympians and raised a total of 275,345 euros.
“This amount is exceptional for a single item,” Tijmen Zonderwijk, co-founder of MatchWornShirt, told NOS. “Leerdam’s suit achieved the highest price ever on our platform. Even an item from Cristiano Ronaldo hadn’t come close.”
The auction saw a dramatic bidding battle in the final hour. “Up until an hour before closing, the highest bid on Leerdam’s signed suit was just under 10,000 euros,” NOC*NSF confirmed. Two bidders engaged in a last-minute contest, driving the price to just below 200,000 euros.
Comedian Arjen Lubach joked that Leerdam’s suit could be “wrung out to get rid of Jake Paul’s tears,” referencing a viral moment in which the American boxer was seen crying after Leerdam’s win.
Other items in the auction included Femke Kok's suit, the Olympic champion in the 500-meter event, which sold for 4,802 euros. The identity of the buyer of Leerdam’s suit remains unknown, though the auction website indicates it was a Dutch bidder.
IJsvereniging Pijnacker, where Leerdam started skating as a child, will receive most of the proceeds. “This revenue is hugely meaningful for our club,” board member Jacqueline van Winden told NOS. “We can now allow many more children to enjoy skating.” Chairman Johan van Dam added, “We feel a responsibility to carefully consider how to use this extraordinary amount.”
