Olympic Preview: Men's 5000m

The Dutch woman continued the Netherlands speed skating dominance in the first speed skating event of the 2018 Games, sweeping the 3000m, but will the Dutch men be able to do the same?

How to watch 

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Sunday, Feb. 10 at 2 a.m. ET

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Contenders

Sven Kramer, Netherlands: The 5000m is Sven Kramer's to lose. Kramer has absolutely dominated the event. In addition to back-to-back golds in 2010 and 2014, Kramer has won the event at the last four world championships.

Kramer’s biggest rival in the 3000m has been teammate Jorrit Bergsma, who failed to earn a spot in the event at Dutch Trials. 

Ted-Jan Bloemen, Canada: Bloemen moved to Canada from the Netherlands after failing to qualify for Sochi and his career has taken off since. In the last two years, Bloeman has broken the world records in the 5000m and 10,000. In 2016, he won two medals at the world championships.

Patrick Beckert, Germany: Beckert enters the Olympics coming off a sold World Cup season. The German won two 5000m medals in the tournament in 2016/17. Beckert is heading to his third Games and will have possibly his best shot at hardware this year.

Bob de Vries, Netherlands: De Vries shockingly defeated Kramer at Trials. De Vries is making his Olympic debut in PyeongChang at 33-years old. Is the De Vries a late-bloomer or was his performance at Trials an isolated incident? Only time will tell. 

The American:

Emery Lehman: Lehman initially qualified to the team as a pursuit specialist, but once quotas were reallocated in late January, earned a spot in the 5000m as well. Lehman won the 5000m at the U.S. Trials. Lehman made his Olympic debut in Sochi, where he competed in the 5000m 10,000m. In Sochi, he finished 16 in the 5000m.