On Saturday, Feb. 10, at 6 a.m. ET, the Olympic Speedskating competition kicks off at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Speedskating—also known as long-track skating—is similar to track and field’s running events, but these athletes are flying across the ice at speeds as fast as 36 miles per hour. Skaters whiz around their 400-meter laned oval again and again and again. The shortest race—taking place Sunday, Feb. 18 for women and Monday, Feb. 19 for men—is 500 meters. Only men will compete in the longest race: 10,000 meters, on Thursday, Feb. 15. That’s 25 laps! Hopefully no one gets dizzy.
During this year’s Speedskating competition, all eyes will be on Chicago native Shani Davis. At the 2006 Games in Turin, Italy, he became the first black athlete to take home an individual gold medal in a Winter Olympics event: the men’s 1000m. Over a decade later, he’s hitting the Olympic ice for his fifth time.
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Though Davis has won a total of four Olympic medals, he recently lost one significant contest: a coin toss to determine who would be the U.S. flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony on Friday. Athletes representing each event typically vote on the country’s flag bearer, but this year, they reached a tie between Davis and luger Erin Hamlin. Their solution was to flip a coin, and Hamlin won out. The silver lining? Davis has many more opportunities to win big at the 2018 Games.
Here’s the schedule of Speedskating events and how you can tune in.
For the entire Olympic Winter Games schedule, click here.
Full Schedule
Saturday, Feb. 10
Women: 3000 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Sunday, Feb. 11
Men: 5000 meters — 2 a.m. ET
Monday, Feb. 12
Women: 1500 meters — 7:30 a.m. ET
Tuesday, Feb. 13
Men: 1500 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Wednesday, Feb. 14
Women: 1000 meters — 5 a.m. ET
Thursday, Feb. 15
Men: 10,000 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Friday, Feb. 16
Women: 5000 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Sunday, Feb. 18
Men: Team Pursuit qualifications — 6 a.m. ET
Women: 500 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Monday, Feb. 19
Women: Team Pursuit qualifications — 6 a.m. ET
Men: 500 meters — 6 a.m. ET
Wednesday, Feb. 21
Men: Team Pursuit finals — 6 a.m. ET
Women: Team Pursuit qualifications — 6 a.m. ET
Friday, Feb. 23
Men: 1000 meters — 5 a.m. ET
Saturday, Feb. 24
Men: Mass Start — 6 a.m. ET
Women: Mass Start — 6 a.m. ET
How to Watch on TV
The Olympic Games will all be broadcast on NBC, NBCSN, and across NBC Universal networks. For full detailed TV listings, check out NBCOlympics.com.
Here’s a full schedule of Olympic events.
How to Live Stream
All events will be livestreamed on NBCOlympics.com.
