TEENAGER JILEK CLAIMS OLYMPIC 10,000M SPEED SKATING GOLD

MILAN, Feb 14 (Bernama-dpa) -- At the Winter Olympics, teenager Metodej Jilek became the first male Czech speed skater to win a gold medal with a remarkable performance in the 10,000 metres on Friday, while Dutchman Jorrit Bergsma, more than twice his age, also secured a place on the podium, reported German Press Agency(dpa).

Jilek, 19, finished the 10,000 metres in 12 minutes 33.43 seconds to claim gold, following his silver in the 5,000 metres. After his victory was confirmed, he posed proudly with living Czech legend Martina Sablikova, the country’s only other Olympic gold medallist.

Jilek finished third in last year’s World Championship race and set a junior world record over the distance in December, marking his first of three overall World Cup victories and establishing himself on the international stage.

Vladimir Semirunniy, a Russia-born athlete who left the country after criticising the Ukraine war and now competes for Poland, had originally set the pace but ended up in the silver medal position, 5.65 seconds behind.

Bergsma, 40, added a bronze to his illustrious career – completing a full Olympic medal set with gold in 2014 and silver in 2018 – finishing 7.05 seconds behind Jilek.

Semirunniy was the first of the three to race, followed by Bergsma, with Jilek competing in the second-to-last pair, fully aware of the time he needed to beat.

Norwegian 5,000m champion Sander Eitrem attempted to challenge Jilek’s time in the final pair but began to fade at the halfway point, ultimately finishing seventh.

World champion and world record holder Davide Ghiotto suffered another disappointment in front of an Italian home crowd when he had to settle for sixth, after also missing the 5,000m medals in fourth place.

--BERNAMA-dpa