Czech speedskater Metodej Jilek wins the Olympic 10,000 gold at age 19 after a silver in the 5,000

MILAN (AP) — Czech speedskater Metodej Jilek spoke with a straight face and not a hint of irony as he explained how he managed to win an Olympic gold medal in the men's 10,000 meters at age 19 on Friday, adding to his silver in the 5,000 earlier at the Milan Cortina Games.

“I sacrificed a lot of things for this,” Jilek said, “basically throughout my whole life.”

Whole life, eh? Not a lot of calendar pages have turned for him so far, yet Jilek entrenched himself as the new, fresh face of the long distances in his sport. On Friday, bothered by a stuffy nose and a scratchy throat, he covered the 25 laps around the 400-meter track — the equivalent of 6.2 miles, a comfortable distance for a car ride, less so for a skate — in 12 minutes, 33.43 seconds to win the first Olympic long track title for a man from his country.

And when it was done, after he beat silver medalist Vladimir Semirunniy of Poland by more than 5 1/2 seconds, Jilek offered something that might not have been intended as a warning to the other competitors but sure sounded like one.

“I know that I can still improve," Jilek said. "I know that I can still up my training volume. I still have room for growth.”

At the other end of the age scale was the bronze medalist, 40-year-old Jorrit Bergsma of the Netherlands. The gold medalist in the 10,000 way back at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and the silver medalist four years later in Pyeongchang, he is the oldest man competing in speedskating in Milan.

“I’m super happy for him,” Jilek said. “He’s such a legend, such a legendary skater. Really happy I can share my first gold podium with him. It's an honor for me.”

Semirunniy, wearing a mirrored visor that reflected the ice, held the early lead. But Jilek moved more than a second ahead of that pace with seven laps remaining, his metronomic strides so consistent, and he nearly lapped the other man in his heat, 2018 Olympic champion Ted-Jan Bloemen of Canada.

When Jilek crossed the line, he threw both arms overhead. This result did not come as a surprise to him — nor the others on the ice Friday.

“Last season, we saw him coming, right? ... And this year, it has gone to another level,” said Bloemen, a 39-year-old father of two who said this was the final race of his athletic career. “It’s incredible how fast that has gone. ... To get there at such a young age is nothing but respect. He’s an amazing kid. He’s humble. He approaches it the right way.”

Jilek won the only World Cup 10,000 contested this season. After grabbing the lead in the next-to-last heat on Friday, he needed to see what would happen in the last pairing, which included the man who beat him last weekend in the Olympic 5,000, Sander Eitrem of Norway.

And while he briefly was speedier than Jilek in the early going, Eitrem eventually faded to seventh place, more than 13 seconds slower than the winning time. Davide Ghiotto, the Italian who set the 10,000 world record of 12:25.69 in January 2025 and claimed a bronze in the event at the 2022 Beijing Games, came in sixth Friday.

Hours before the start of the 12-entry race, Casey Dawson withdrew from the 10,000, leaving the event without its only American entrant. U.S. Speedskating said Dawson wanted to focus instead on the team pursuit, which holds quarterfinals on Sunday, and the individual 1,500 meters next Thursday. Dawson finished eighth in the 5,000 meters.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Metodej Jilek of Czechia catches his breath after competing in the men's 10,000 meters speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Gold medallist Metodej Jilek of Czechia, center, celebrates on the podium with Vladimir Semirunniy of Poland, left and silver medal, and Jorrit Bergsma of the Netherlands, right and bronze medal, after the men's 10,000 meters speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Netherlands' Jorrit Bergsma celebrates after winning bronze in the men's 10,000-meters speedskating final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Jorrit Bergsma of the Netherlands celebrates winning the bronze medal in the men's 10,000 meters speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Vladimir Semirunniy of Poland catches his breath after the men's 10,000 meters speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Czechia's Metodej Jilek lies on the pads after competing in the men's 10,000-meters speedskating final at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Metodej Jilek of Czechia celebrates winning the gold medal in the men's 10,000 meters speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco teachers reached a tentative agreement Friday with the school district to end their strike, the first such walkout in nearly 50 years.

San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su said schools will reopen to staff Friday and to students Wednesday after a four-day weekend for Presidents Day and Lunar New Year.

The strike by about 6,000 public schoolteachers started Monday and the district closed all 120 of its schools and said it would offer independent study to some of its 50,000 students.

The two-year tentative deal will give teachers the equivalent of a 5% raise over two years and, in a big win for the United Educators of San Francisco, the district will offer fully-funded healthcare for dependents starting on Jan. 1, 2027.

The union said San Francisco teachers receive some of the lowest contributions to their health care costs in the Bay Area, with some having to pay at least $1,200 a month for a family health care plan, pushing many to leave.

“This is truly monumental," Su said of the tentative agreement. “For the first time in our school district's history, we are providing full family health benefits.”

The agreement must be approved by both the San Francisco Board of Education and a majority vote by the teachers union.

Teachers joined picket lines four days ago after last-ditch negotiations failed to reach a new contract. Besides higher wages, more health benefits and more resources for students with special needs, they were also asking for more protections for immigrant students and policies around the use of artificial intelligence.

The union won more protections for immigrant students, including training for staff on how to address federal immigration enforcement, and agreement from the district against using artificial intelligence to replace teachers.

“By forcing SFUSD to invest in fully funded family healthcare, special education workloads, improved wages, sanctuary and housing protections for San Francisco families, we’ve made important progress towards the schools our students deserve,” Curiel said. “This contract is a strong foundation for us to continue to build the safe and stable learning environments our students deserve.”

UESF had asked for a 9% raise over two years, which would have cost an additional $92 million per year to the district. They say that money could come from reserve funds that could be directed back to classrooms and school sites.

SFUSD, which faces a $100 million deficit and is under state oversight because of a long-standing financial crisis, rejected the idea. Officials countered with a 6% wage increase paid over three years. Su said the money to cover family health plans would come from a special parcel tax.

A report by a neutral fact-finding panel released earlier this month recommended a compromise of a 6% salary increase over two years, largely siding with the district’s arguments that it is financially constrained.

The union and the district had been negotiating for nearly a year.

Teachers in other major California cities were also preparing to strike. Members of United Teachers Los Angeles voted overwhelmingly last month to authorize their leadership to call a strike if negotiations with the LA Unified School District fall apart.

On Friday, the San Diego Unified School District and San Diego Education Association announced they had reached an agreement on how to proceed with a new contract, averting a strike. Teachers had indicated they’re ready to walk off the job for the first time in 30 years over a stalemate with the school district about special education staffing and services.

Teachers, students and supporters rally in support of the ongoing teachers strike at the San Francisco Unified School District at Ocean Beach in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Camilla He, a teacher at Commodore Stockton Early Education School, leads chants in Chinese across the street from the Rose Pak Station as teachers, students and parents participate in the SFUSD Teachers Strike on its third day at Washington and Stockton in the Chinatown District, in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (Yalonda M. James/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Denise Deleon, a kindergarten teacher at Gordon J. Lau Elementary School, wears a button stating "Fair Contract Now" as she protests with fellow teachers, students and parents in the SFUSD Teachers Strike outside of Chinatown's Gordon J. Lau Elementary School, in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (Yalonda M. James/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Teachers, students and supporters rally in support of the ongoing teacher's strike at the San Francisco Unified School District at Ocean Beach, in San Francisco, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)