Dutch pair Ireen Wust and Margot Boer won silver and bronze respectively as the Netherlands continued their success on the ice.
Zhang, 25, crossed the line in one minute 14.02 seconds, giving her a wining margin of 0.67 seconds.
For Wust it was her fifth Winter Olympic medal and a second at Sochi.
Marko Djurica/REUTERS
With skaters falling all around her, Li Jianrou (right) makes a sharp turn in the women’s 500 meter race.