Olympic Speedskating Schedule 2018: TV, Live-Stream Info for Monday
In one of the showpiece events in the long-track speedskating at the Olympic Games, the final of the men's 500 metres will be the main focus on Monday at the Gangneung Oval in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Having already excelled in the long-track at these Games, the Netherlands athletes are expected to dominate again in this event, with Ronald Mulder, Kai Verbij and Jan Smeekens the favourites to battle for gold.
In addition, the team pursuit will also get underway in the women's competition, with the quarter-finals scheduled before the men's 500 metres final.
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Here's the schedule for Monday's speedskating, all the information needed on where to stream the races and a look at what to expect in what may be one of the most dramatic events at this year's Games.
Monday Schedule (ET)
6 a.m. Women's team pursuit 6 laps quarter-finals
6:53 a.m. Men's 500 metre speedskating
The action can be streamed via the NBC Sports app (U.S.) and via Eurosport Player (U.K.)
Mulder Favourite for 500m Title
After seeing his twin brother Michel win gold at Sochi four years ago, Mulder, who won bronze, will be determined to go a couple better in the sprint event on Monday.
While the 31-year-old would have been pleased with third at the time, with his brother not in Pyeongchang to defend his title, there's a huge chance for the European champion to win on the Olympic stage for the first time.
Ahead of his race, Mulder offered an insight into what his primary thoughts are when he takes to the ice for a big event and commented on what he feels is an open field.
"Pure sport is about being the fastest and that's what speedskating is," he said, per the Olympics website. "... In the sprints I reckon 20 people could win the gold. It's going to be really tight, really exciting. One-hundredth of a second can change a lot."
As we can see here, after a poor first run in Sochi four years ago, Mulder produced a stunning 500 metres to force himself into medal contention:
He'll be hoping for a more consistent set of performances this time around, especially with Smeekens set to provide stiff competition.
The silver medallist from Sochi will be desperate for gold, too, as he thought he'd clinched the title four years ago, only for the official times to put him just one hundredth of a second behind his compatriot.
The 2017 world single distance champion over 500 metres may also be inspired after he carried his country's flag at the opening ceremony for these Games. It appeared to mean a lot to the 31-year-old:
Another Dutchman with a strong chance is Verbij, who was the winner of the world sprint championships in Calgary last year. Meanwhile, Kjeld Nuis, who has already won gold in Pyeongchang in the 1,500 metres, is clearly in great form, too.
His display caught the attention of Jamaican sprinting icon Usain Bolt in earlier in the tournament:
The man most likely to prevent the Netherlands from winning all three medals is Norway's Havard Holmefjord Lorentzen, who was second to Verbij in Calgary a year ago. Meanwhile, Canada will have Laurent Dubreuil and Alex Boisvert-Lacroix as outside bets for glory.
The winner is likely to come from the Dutch competitors, though, as they continue to turn in big performances when the clutch moments arrive in the long-track event.
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