Norway’s Sander Eitrem took gold, while the Czech Republic’s Metodej Jílek finished second.
The all-round competition consists of four races—500 metres, 5,000 metres, 1,500 metres and 10,000 metres—with results combined to determine the overall standings.
Semirunniy finished with 146.243 points, setting a new Polish record and improving on the previous mark of 150.672 set in 2015 by Konrad Niedźwiedzki, now the sports director of the Polish Speed Skating Association.
The bronze medal capped a strong season for Semirunniy, who last month won silver for Poland in the men’s 10,000 metres at the Winter Olympic Games in Italy.
Born in Russia, Semirunniy has represented Poland since last year.
"It was a good season for me. I now have medals from all the most important competitions in the world and in Europe, except the World Cup, which is actually a lower-ranked event," Semirunniy said.
“My coach and I sometimes laugh about it, but I hope to make up for that next season,” he added.
Rafał Tataruch, head of the Polish Speed Skating Association, said the achievements of Semirunniy and other Polish skaters could help boost the sport’s popularity in the country.
"Over the past two-and-a-half years, he has done tremendous work for Polish speed skating and for himself,” Tataruch said.
Semirunniy was born in Yekaterinburg in Russia’s Ural Mountains and competed for Russia as a junior. He won bronze at the 2022 world junior championships in Innsbruck.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many Russian and Belarusian athletes were barred from international competition. Seeking to continue his career, Semirunniy moved to Poland in 2023 and publicly condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine.
He received Polish citizenship from President Karol Nawrocki in August 2025.
Competing for Poland, he won silver in the 10,000m and bronze in the 5,000m at last year's world championships in Hamar, Norway.
In January, he also won the 5,000m and finished second in the 1,500m at the European championships in Tomaszów Mazowiecki, central Poland.
In early December, in Heerenveen, he set a Polish record in the 10,000m with a time of 12:28.05. The world record of 12:25.69 is held by Italy’s Davide Ghiotto.
(gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, polskieradio24.pl, polsatnews.pl