Kramer storms to Oly 5,000m hat-trick

Bloemen, Pedersen complete podium Laffont gives France first gold of ‘Games’

GANGNEUNG, South Korea, Feb 11, (AP): As always, when his rivals suddenly felt that pain in their legs, that burning in their lungs, Sven Kramer kept his mighty, unmatched stride going. “I never saw that wall,” he said. Kramer won the 5,000 meters at the Pyeongchang Olympics on Sunday for his third straight gold medal over the distance, becoming the first man to achieve that streak.

The only thing that really burned inside the Dutch speedskater was ambition, untamed at 31.

And even when the gold was surely his, Kramer still shot that skate across the line to ensure he got the Olympic record, too.

“It never gets old. The Games never get old,” he said. It was his fourth career gold medal and eighth overall spread over a dozen years, putting him among the greats of the Winter Games.

Yet there’s little time for celebration, with at least two more golds to chase. And one he previously let slip away in a blunder for the ages — the 10,000.

At the Vancouver Olympics, with gold beckoning, Kramer inexplicably made a wrong lane change late in a race he was comfortably leading.

“It’s not a secret that it’s really important to me. I’ve won a lot at the Olympics, but I’ve lost a lot as well.”

On Sunday, Kramer also gave the Netherlands its second gold medal in as many races at the Olympic oval. This time, though, it was no sweep like in the women’s 3,000.

Kramer’s two other teammates finished outside the top six. The Dutch know though they can almost always count on Kramer.

For the other medals, Dutch-born Canadian Ted-Jan Bloemen fought back with a desperate drive to the line to kick his skate just in front of Sverre Lunde Pedersen and beat the Norwegian by .0002 seconds for silver.

“I was lucky to have such a great pair, to have such a great fight at the end of the race,” Bloemen said. “The last corner I could barely stand on my legs.”

While others were counting in thousandths of seconds, Kramer was aiming higher, beating his rivals by 1.85 seconds. Skating last as the favorite, he knew what time he needed to chase for gold.

“Of course, it makes a difference if you know the times beforehand, but you still have to do it,” Kramer said.

He used his typical late kick to make the difference, taking the lead twothirds of the way through the race and letting his massive stride do the rest to finish in 6 minutes, 9.76 seconds, beating the Olympic record he set four years ago in Sochi by exactly one second.

It has happened so often in his career. When others suddenly lose their stride through fatigue, he knows Kramer time has come.

“Their legs were blowing up a bit at the end,” Kramer said. “I thought, it’s going to be tough, but it’s the time to skate.”

Once across the line, he held up three fingers. The orange-clad fans in the stands went wild. The triple in the 5,000 is special, though.

“It sounds great, of course. I’d be lying if I said it does nothing to me,” Kramer said. “Secretly, I’m proud.”

So for now, he will keep the celebrations muted.

“I still have to do the 10 and the team pursuit and the mass start, so I’m not going to the Holland Heineken House,” Kramer said, referring to the place where Dutch speedskating gold medals are always wildly celebrated.

Was it his last Olympic 5,000 race? “Ooh, no idea. In normal circumstances, yes. I am starting to get old. You never know.” Gold medallist Sven Kramer of The Netherlands celebrates after the men’s 5,000 meters race at the Gangneung Oval at the 2018 Winter Olympics in

Gangneung, South Korea, on Feb 11. (AP)

France’s Perrine Laffont competes in the women’s moguls final event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Phoenix Park in

Pyeongchang on Feb 11. (AFP)

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea, Feb 11, (AP): The practice round came four years ago in Sochi for Perrine Laffont, when she was old enough to make the Olympics, but too young to know any better.

As a 15-year-old, she finished 14th. No medal for that, though the lessons learned there certainly helped her take a mighty step this time — to the top of the podium, in fact.

Laffont gave France its first gold medal of the Pyeongchang Games, skiing through the bumps and the steadily falling snow to take the women’s moguls title Sunday night.

It was the country’s first women’s gold medal in the 26-year history of the event.

“In Sochi, it was for getting the experience of the Olympics, and today was pretty different,” Laffont said. “I was here to get a medal.”

Justine Dufour-Lapointe of Canada was, too. The defending champion took second this time, but in some ways, this was sweeter. It came in the midst of a rough year, during which her skiing suffered after she learned her mother, Johane, had cancer (she is now in remission).

“I feel so different than I was in Sochi,” Dufour-Lapointe said. “I was completely a kid then, not knowing what was going on around me.”

Yulia Galysheva, competing with a broken hand suffered last month at a contest in Utah, won bronze to give Kazakhstan