– Now there are a lot of emotions. One second I’m grinning and the next I’m ecstatic. There are a lot of emotions now, says Sander Eitrem to NRK after the race.
Eitrem is then asked what went through his mind when he realized that this turned out to be gold.
The Norwegian stops, sobs a little and dries himself with the Norwegian flag.
– I don’t know what to say. You cannot achieve anything greater, says Eitrem, choking back tears.
After setting an Olympic record in the 5000 meters in the penultimate pair with a time of 6.03.95, it became clear towards the end of the tenth and last that the gold was his.
– Been under a lot of pressure
Two weeks ago, he set a new world record for precisely 5,000 meters in Inzell, Germany. Then the Olympic expectations really came.
– After Inzell, I must say that there has been a lot of pressure. And I have put a lot of pressure on myself too – that I can deliver.
During the interview, girlfriend and ice skater Aurora Løvås stands by his side.
GIRLFRIENDS: Aurora Løvås and Sander Eitrem.
Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB
She followed the drama from the stands.
– I have been quite at a loss for words. It is unsettlingly moving to be a part of it here today, says Løvås.
– He has been quite a guy to be with in recent weeks. First a world record, then we have had to land after that. So I think you have been incredibly calm until today. And then you have to gear up when there is Olympic gold to fight for. So I think it’s been perfectly fine, me, she says with a glance at her boyfriend.
First page Koss
– Look at Eitrem. He understands it, he understands it now, commented Hans Solbakken when a crying Eitrem realized that the Olympic gold was his.
– It’s completely raw, then. I’m running out of words here. It is so deserved. He has worked for so many years, said former skater Sverre Lunde Pedersen.
On the sidelines, together with the king, stood teammate Peder Kongshaug and shouted at the top of his voice when he saw Eitrem go in for the Olympic record.
When the gold was secured, Kongshaug held his head and cheered wildly for Eitrem.
No Norwegian has won Olympic gold in the 5000 meters on ice skates since Johann Olav Koss did it in the Viking Ship in Hamar in 1994.
Paired with Czech Methodej Jilek, Eitrem left towards the end. It would prove to be the decisive move, because the Czech ended up taking the silver medal, 2.53 seconds behind the Norwegian.
Italian Riccardo Lorello took the bronze, with 5.27 seconds less time than Eitrem.
Takes off in Nord-Odal
Sander Eitrem is from Skreia, but plays for Nord-Odal IL.
Around 70 had gathered there to follow Eitrem.
In place in Nord-Odal was father-in-law Tom Ole Løvås.
– I am at a loss for words. It is indescribable. We were hoping for gold. I almost didn’t dare say it, but we were hoping for it, says Løvås and continues:
– And he delivers. Now we are at a loss for words.
Father-in-law Løvås says that such gold is huge for a small village like Nord-Odal. It is the skating group’s first individual Olympic gold.
FATHER-IN-LAW: Tom Ole Løvås is the father of Sander Eitrem’s girlfriend Aurora Løvås. She is also in the games.
Photo: Henrik Einangshaug / NRK
Untidy start
One should not overlook the fact that Norwegian skating supporters had their coffee down their throats when the start of Eitrem’s race went off.
The 23-year-old opened with several untidy thrusts, and kept stumbling.
– Oh, oh, oh, what is happening to Sander? Are there nerves, exclaims NRK’s commentator Hans Solbakken.
– Fortunately it was at the start, because he had no speed. It was disgusting, continues expert Even Wetten.
Sander Eitrem had a bad start in the 5000 meters in the Olympics.
Strong Norwegian races
In addition to Eitrem, two other Norwegians started.
Peder Kongshaug has 1500 meters as his favorite distance, but still delivered a result that shows emerging Olympic form.
In par three he entered with a time of 6.11.31.
It lasted for sixth place.
– It is tough to walk 5,000 meters for a 1,500-meter runner. I am very proud, says Kongshaug after the race and follows up:
– I was excited about my form beforehand, but this has to be the best 5,000 meters I have ever walked.
THUMBS UP: Only pair partner Riccardo Lorello had a better time than Peder Kongshaug, they finished as third pair.
Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB
Olympic debutant Sigurd Henriksen went in the second pair.
For him, it was a slightly more difficult journey on the ice in Milan.
– A perfectly ok race, nothing bad, but I’m not giving up either. I am quite satisfied, Henriksen summed up.
The Bergen native finished in 6.18.24 and was number 14.
Also present in the skating rink was US Vice President JD Vance:
Grep gave a historic world record
15 days before Eitrem’s Olympic opening, he set a crazy world record.
With a time of 5:58.52, he became the world’s first skater to go the distance under six minutes.
He then beat the previous record of French Timothy Loubineaud from November 2025, which was 6:00.23.
No one had ever run a 5,000 meters in under six minutes. Now Sander Eitrem has written himself into skating history in gold.
– It’s absolutely incredible! Now he is a legend, because he will always be remembered for being the first under six minutes, Olympic gold winner from 1994 Johann Olav Koss told NRK.
He is the previous Norwegian who held the world record for the distance with a time of 6.34.96 from 1994 to 1997.
The record run in Inzell just over two weeks ago came after a change in technique from the Nord-Odal runner.
It was the first competition in which he went with both hands behind his back in the turns – a move both he and other Norwegian skating stars have been skeptical of before.
Before Christmas, he started carrying out every training session with his hands behind his back.
Published
08.02.2026, at 17.38
Updated
08.02.2026, at 18.57