Jorrit Bergsma Wins Olympic Gold in Mass Start at 40 | Milano Cortina 2026

MILAN, Italy – Jorrit Bergsma of the Netherlands defied age and expectations, capturing gold in the men’s mass start speed skating event at the February 21, 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. At 40 years old, Bergsma became the oldest Olympic speed skating champion in history, adding to a remarkable Games for athletes in their 40s.

Bergsma finished the race in 7:55.50, besting Denmark’s Viktor Hald Thorup and Italy’s Andrea Giovannini, who took silver and bronze respectively. The victory denied American Jordan Stolz a historic third gold medal in long-track speed skating at a single Olympics, a feat not accomplished by a male skater in 32 years.

“Everybody settled for third, honestly. Nobody wanted to get the gold,” Stolz remarked, reflecting on the tactical race. The 21-year-old from Wisconsin had already secured gold in the 500m and 1000m, adding a silver in the 1500m before Saturday’s competition.

Bergsma’s win marks the third individual gold medal at the Milano Cortina Games for an athlete in their 40s, joining US bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor and Austrian snowboarder Benjamin Karl. Prior to these Olympics, only Norwegian biathlete Ole Einar Bjørndalen, at age 40, had achieved an individual Winter Games gold medal at a similar age, back in 2014.

The Dutch skater, who previously claimed bronze in the 10,000m event eight days prior, navigated a strategic race, initially settling near the back of the pack. He steadily advanced, positioning himself alongside Thorup and controlling the pace for much of the 16-lap event. With five laps remaining, Bergsma and Thorup held a significant lead, nearly lapping the rest of the field. Bergsma then made his decisive move on the penultimate lap, establishing a lead he wouldn’t relinquish.

“That was crazy, mind-blowing,” Bergsma said after the race. “I was expecting a really hard final, but nobody wanted to do the first attack. I did it. I had a gap together with Viktor and that was it.”

“We had a gap in no time, and then I knew, ‘OK, I have a big, big chance right now’. I just wanted to keep the gap with the peloton and keep the speed in it a bit. I had to keep my cool and finish it.”

Stolz took an early lead but strategically dropped back into the pack after two laps, conserving energy and remaining within striking distance. He mounted a strong finish, producing one of the fastest closing bursts, but ultimately couldn’t overtake Giovannini, much to the delight of the Italian crowd.

“I thought maybe the other guys would pull, but they all decided to follow me,” Stolz explained. “If I pull back the two leading guys, I’ll have no chance of getting a medal. So even in the last four laps, I was still in front pulling them. I was close to getting a bronze, but there was no chance we would have caught the two guys up in front.”

Despite falling short of a complete sweep of his events, Stolz departs Italy with a highly successful medal haul. He entered the Olympics as a seven-time world champion and favorite across three distances, ultimately securing two gold medals and a silver.

“I would say it was pretty successful,” Stolz said, reflecting on his performance. “You’ll see things that could have gone better, but two golds and a silver, I have got to be pretty happy with that.”

Bergsma, who will be 44 at the next Winter Olympics, hasn’t ruled out competing in 2030. “Four years is going to be really tough, especially with the young guys coming up on the single distances,” he said. “I will see by year by year, but I am not done yet.”

In the women’s mass start, USA’s Mia Manganello, competing in her final Winter Games at age 36, secured a bronze medal. The gold went to Marijke Groenewoud of the Netherlands, with Ivanie Blondin of Canada taking silver, repeating her second-place finish from the previous Games.