OLYMPICS: Speed skating-Stolz hunts third gold as Nuis makes final Games bid in 1,500m

MILAN — American speed skating star Jordan Stolz is set to chase a third gold medal in Thursday’s men’s 1,500 meters at the Winter Olympics, while three-time champion Kjeld Nuis looks to cap off his illustrious career with one final medal in his Olympic farewell.

Stolz lived up to the high expectations placed on him, capturing the 1,000m title last Wednesday and following it up with victory in the 500m on Saturday — both in Olympic-record times. The 21-year-old is the only U.S. speed skater to claim gold at Milano Cortina so far and is the clear favorite for the 1,500m.

But the challenge from Nuis remains formidable. The 36-year-old Dutchman holds both the Olympic record and the world record in the 1,500m, with a best time of 1 minute, 40.17 seconds. He is also the defending champion, having won the event at Beijing 2022 and Pyeongchang 2018, where he also took gold in the 1,000m.

“He [Stolz] is obviously the one to beat,” Nuis said Wednesday. “He has to make a mistake for us to beat him, but I do not think he is going to make any mistakes. Everyone is fully focused. Nobody is going to slip at this point, and definitely not him.”

Nuis added, “I have a lot of respect for him. We all maybe hoped he would crack under the pressure of representing the United States at the Olympic Games. That has not always been a good match. But he… just lives up to all expectations. He is so calm. I don’t go out there hoping someone is going to have an off day. I want to skate my best race, and hopefully, it will be enough for a medal.”

The Dutch team has already secured nine medals in speed skating, including golds from Jutta Leerdam in the women’s 1,000m and Femke Kok in the women’s 500m.

Nuis, who finished sixth in the 1,000m last week, admitted that the pressure of the moment is beginning to sink in. “I arrived here saying to myself, ‘Just enjoy it, your last Olympic race, it does not matter what is going to happen.’ But now I am like, ‘I need to win a medal.’ So, I’m feeling a bit nervous. But I should be feeling that as well. I need it to perform.”

-Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Milan; Editing by Ken Ferris/Reuters