Shaolin Sándor Liu was attempting to defend his 1500 metre title in front of a home crowd at Great Forest Park, but after he crashed in the final lap it was his younger brother who triumphed.

Shaoang crossed the line in 2min 25.871sec, followed by Itzhak de Laat of The Netherlands in 2:25.960 and Vladislav Bykanov of Israel in 2:26.075.

The elder Liu brother made amends in the 500m, taking the European title off Shaoang. 

He recorded the winning time of 41.244, with Shaoang achieving second place in 41.517. 

Semen Elistratov of Russia was the bronze medallist in 41.686. 

Shaoang Liu's impressive performance saw him take on the role of championship leader with 55 points. 

Dutch skater Suzanne Schulting continued her dominance in the women's field, achieving two gold medals. 

She successfully defended her 1500m title first, racing to victory in 2:35.915.

Arianna Fontana of Italy claimed silver in 2:36.134, with Anna Seidel of Germany receiving bronze in 2:36.319. 

Schulting then topped the podium in the 500m with a time of 43.422, followed by Martina Valcepina of Italy in 43.568. 

Natalia Maliszewska of Poland, last year's victor, slipped down to third place after finishing in 43.709. 

Competition continues tomorrow with the men and women's 1000m and 3000m finals, followed by gold-medal races in the women's 3000m relay and men's 5000m relay.