MILAN (AP) — Jordan Stolz was going to try to win his second speedskating gold medal of the Milan Cortina Olympics on Saturday, competing in the 500 meters.
The 21-year-old from Wisconsin is coming off a victory in Wednesday’s 1,000, the first of his four individual events at the 2026 Winter Games. He is considered a contender for gold in all four. The men’s record for most speedskating titles at one Olympics is the five for Eric Heiden at Lake Placid in 1980 — who also was the last man to win the 500 and 1,000 at the same Games.
The last American to win Olympic gold in the men’s 500 was Casey FitzRandolph in 2002.
Racing in the 500 was scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. local time (11 a.m. ET), and Stolz was placed in the 13th of the 15 two-man heats. In a fascinating pairing, he was slated to skate head-to-head against reigning 500 world champion Jenning de Boo of the Netherlands, the man who was the runner-up in the 1,000. In that race, de Boo held the lead after 600 meters, before Stolz roared past him with a tremendous final lap.
After that race, Stolz was asked whether there should be more medals to come.
“I hope so. I feel like this gives you kind of a feel of what it’s going to be like. There’s a little bit less pressure now that I’ve got one gold medal,” Stolz said. “Because one gold medal is huge enough, right? It would be super nice to have two, three, right? But just having one means a lot.”
Asked that day how he intended to get ready for the 500, Stolz replied: “Just try and prepare mentally. This was a good prep, because you kind of know what to expect. I think I should be good.”
He and de Boo were the favorites in the shortest event in speedskating.
Stolz is a two-time world champion in the 500, as well as the 1,000 and the 1,500, which will be contested on Thursday. He’s also entered in the mass start on Feb. 21.
These are the American’s second Olympics. He finished 13th in the 500 and 14th in the 1,000 at the 2022 Beijing Games at age 17.
Also on Saturday’s speedskating schedule, before the 500, were the quarterfinals in women’s team pursuit. That event’s medals will be determined Tuesday.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
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