Nao Kodaira is to retire later this year, bringing to an end a career which included Japan's first-ever Winter Olympic speed skating gold medal won by a woman.

The 500 metres Olympic champion, Nao Kodaira of Japan, finished second in the event she is famous for, before returning to win the 1,000 metres at the International Skating Union World Cup in Calgary.

Overall titles will be at stake when the International Skating Union Speed Skating World Cup season concludes in Heerenveen in The Netherlands.

Nao Kodaira of Japan will be among the Japanese skaters hoping to impress at their home Speed Skating World Cup in Nagano this weekend.

Japan’s Nao Kodaira will aim to respond to the end of her International Skating Union (ISU) Speed Skating World Cup winning streak at the second event of the season in Poland.

Records will be on the cards when the International Skating Union's Speed Skating World Cup Final starts tomorrow, given that the 2018-2019 season finale takes place on the fastest ice of the world - the Utah Olympic Oval in Salt Lake City.

Japan's Nao Kodaira and Russia's Pavel Kulizhnikov claimed the women's and men's titles at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Sprint Speed Skating Championships in Heerenveen.

Defending champion Nao Kodaira of Japan leads the women's event at the International Skating Union (ISU) World Sprint Speed Skating Championships after day one in Heerenveen.

Japan's Nao Kodaira won the first women's 500 metres event at the International Skating Union (ISU) Speed Skating World Cup to close the gap with her nearest rival Vanessa Herzog of Austria in the overall standings. 

Jorien ter Mors of The Netherlands and Norway’s Håvard Holmefjord Lorentzen were crowned world sprint speed skating champions in Changchun.

Olympic 500 metres champions Nao Kodaira of Japan and Norway's Håvard Lorentzen hold the overall advantage in the women's and men's events respectively after the opening day of action at the World Sprint Speed Skating Championships in Changchun.

Nao Kodaira set a blistering Olympic record to win the women’s 500 meters speed skating title at Pyeongchang 2018 here today.

Canada’s Ted-Jan Bloemen and Japan’s Nao Kodaira broke world records as the International Skating Union Speed Skating World Cup in Salt Lake City concluded.

Russia’s Denis Yuskov broke the men’s 1500 metres world record on the second day of action at the International Skating Union Speed Skating World Cup in Salt Lake City.

Japan's Nao Kodaira added another World Cup 500 metres gold to her tally on the first day of the fourth International Skating Union Speed Skating World Cup in Salt Lake City.