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Barring injury, speed skater Jordan Stolz is not just likely to make the 2026 Olympics. He has a decent shot at three (3) gold medals.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - FEBRUARY 02: Jordan Stolz of the USA competes in the 500m Men 2nd Race ... More during the ISU World Cup Speed Skating on February 02, 2025 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere - International Skating Union/International Skating Union via Getty Images)
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Once In A Generation
In 2024, at the ripe old age of 20, Jordan Stolz won three gold medals in the 500 meter, 1000 meter and 1500 meter sprints at the World Singles Distance Speed Skating Championships in Calgary, Canada. If Stolz makes the podium in all three races again at the Milan Cortina Games next February, he can become the fifth American to win three individual medals at one Winter Olympics.
Only one American has won three golds at one Winter Olympics — fellow Wisconsin speed skater Eric Heiden. Some older readers will remember Heiden swept all five speed skating events at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Games (arguably the greatest feat in Winter Olympic history).
LAKE PLACID, NY - CIRCA 1980: Speed Skater Eric Heiden of the United States (center) waves to the ... More fans during a metal ceremony at the XIII Olympic Winter Games circa 1980 in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
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The Roots of Speed Skating
Long track speed skating has been an Olympic event since the first winter games in 1924. Women’s events were added in the 1960 games in Squaw Valley. But the beginnings of the sport go back hundreds of years.
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