Olympic speedskating: Men’s 10,000m final results and highlights

Here are the results of the men’s 10,000-meter gold medal race at the Winter Olympics on Thursday, Feb. 15.

In the early hours of Thursday, Feb. 15 — 6 a.m. ET; 8 p.m. Korea Time — the best long-distance men’s speedskaters took to the rink in Pyeongchang to compete for the gold medal in the 10,000-meter event.

A major story going into the race was whether Dutch legend Sven Kramer would, at long last, win the 10,000-meter. He was reigning world champion, but facing the defending gold medalist (his compatriot, Jorrit Bergsma) and the current world record holder, Ted-Jan Bloemen.

Kramer and Bergsma are the only two athletes from the Netherlands representing the country in this sport, making a Dutch sweep impossible. Not that they couldn’t have qualified three — rather, the ISU only allows each country to enter two skaters.

According to NBC, Kramer’s quest for gold in the 10,000-meter is one of the reasons he has not yet retired. Unfortunately, the 31-year-old may need to push himself another four years for that goal. He was bested by both the defending gold medalist and the world record holder. In fact, Kramer came in sixth, a full 21.25 seconds off the podium.

MEDAL RESULT | Men's 10,000m Speedskating

Ted-Jan Bloemen

Jorrit Bergsma

Nicola Tumolero

While the 10,000-meter gold medal eluded Kramer once again, he did earn gold in the men’s 5000-meter on Sunday, Feb. 11. He will also participate in the mass start and the team pursuit, where he will skate with Bergsma.

Bloemen, too, will be in the team pursuit, as the Dutch-born Canadian skates for his adopted North American country.

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