Sports
Czech teenager Jilek outclasses strong field to take 10,000m gold
Feb 8, 2026; Milan, Italy; Metodej Jilek of Czechia skates in the men’s speed skating 5000m during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Speed Skating Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images MILAN — Czech teenager Metodej Jilek produced the race of his life to beat a powerful field and seize gold in the 10,000 meters on Friday, delivering the Czech Republic its first speed skating title of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
Jilek was joined on the podium by Poland’s Vladimir Semirunniy, who claimed silver, while Dutchman Jorrit Bergsma took bronze.
Nineteen-year-old Jilek, who won bronze in the 10,000m at the 2025 ISU World Speed Skating Single Distances Championships, clocked 12 minutes 33.43 seconds to finish 5.65 seconds clear of Semirunniy, underlining his emergence as one of the sport’s most exciting prospects.
“I feel incredible,” Jilek said. “This gold medal represents all the training I’ve been doing for years — everything I’ve been working towards. It’s amazing.
“I knew even before I came to the Olympics that I could do really well in the 10,000m, that I could win it. It was just a matter of doing the lap times.
“I’ve done thousands of these lap times throughout the summer so I knew what it feels like, what I have to do. It was just about dialing it in.”
His victory made him the Czech Republic’s second Olympic champion of these Games, following Zuzana Maderova’s triumph in the women’s parallel giant slalom on Sunday.
It also marked the nation’s second speed skating medal in Milan Cortina, after Jilek claimed silver in the 5,000m on Sunday.
Competing in his first Olympics, Jilek faced a stacked field that included newly crowned 5,000m Olympic champion Sander Eitrem, France’s Timothy Loubineaud, Semirunniy and 10,000m world record holder Davide Ghiotto of Italy — all considered strong contenders after standout World Cup campaigns.
“Honestly, I wasn’t even that nervous before the race,” Jilek added.
“The only thing I was a bit nervous about is that I woke up a bit sick — I didn’t feel that good. I didn’t know how my body would react.
“Other than that, I knew I could do it. I was pretty confident.”
Drawn in the penultimate pair of the six-pair program, Jilek started in the inner lane alongside 2018 Pyeongchang 10,000 champion Ted-Jan Bloemen of Canada and quickly settled into a smooth, controlled rhythm.
He never looked in doubt and ultimately lapped Bloemen, who is two decades his senior.
Jilek had been forced to settle for silver behind Eitrem in the 5,000m, but there was no repeat of that heartbreak on Friday.
Russian-born long-distance specialist Semirunniy was congratulated by Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
“‘Poland welcomed me like its own child,’ said Vladimir Semirunniy recently, who won a silver Olympic medal for his new homeland today. A beautiful story. Bravo Wladek!” Tusk posted on social media platform X.
TIMELESS BERGSMA
Bergsma — the 10,000m champion at Sochi 2014, silver medalist at Pyeongchang 2018 and 5,000m bronze medalist in Sochi — turned back the clock with a performance full of his trademark composure and metronomic pacing.
The arena, awash in orange as Dutch fans filled the stands once again, roared the 40-year-old on with every lap as he battled alongside Ghiotto in the fourth pair.
Meanwhile, Loubineaud stayed patient as Eitrem set the early pace in the final pair, conserving energy before mounting a late surge. The Frenchman’s strong finish earned him fourth place once again, while Eitrem faded and ultimately slipped to seventh.
Italy’s Riccardo Lorello, the Milan-born skater who grew up minutes from the venue, missed the podium but impressed once more. The 23-year-old Olympic debutant posted the eighth-fastest time, backing up the bronze he claimed in the 5,000m.
Starting from the inner lane in the first pair, Lorello was greeted by a warm reception as Italian flags waved across the arena. Paired with Denmark’s Viktor Hald Thorup — a late replacement after American Casey Dawson withdrew — Lorello pulled clear early and skated alone for most of the race.
Thorup was unable to keep pace and later recorded a DNF due to cramping.
–Reuters, special to Field Level Media
Sports
SMU on right side of bubble as road test against Syracuse looms
Feb 7, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; SMU MUstangs guard B.J. Davis-Ray (9) drives on Pittsburgh Panthers Damarco Minor (7) during the second half at Petersen Events Center. The Panthers lost 86-67. Mandatory Credit: Philip G. Pavely-Imagn Images SMU takes its varied offensive attack on the road as it looks to build its resume for the postseason when it plays against host Syracuse on Saturday afternoon in an Atlantic Coast Conference game.
It’s the first time the teams will square off in Syracuse after SMU defeated the Orange twice last season — once at home and again on a neutral floor in the ACC tournament — in the only other contests between the programs.
The Mustangs (17-7, 6-5 ACC) head to central New York after an 89-81 home win over Notre Dame on Tuesday. Boopie Miller and Jaron Pierre Jr. traded off bell-cow duties in the game, with Pierre scoring 18 of his team-leading 22 points in the second half after Miller racked up 18 of his 20 before halftime.
“That’s how it’s got to be every game,” Miller said. “If I’m off, Jaron got to pick it up. And if he’s off, I’ve got to pick it up. So that’s how it’s going to be for the rest of the season. We’ve just got to keep bringing guys along so we can keep winning.”
Corey Washington added 14 points and Samet Yigitoglu racked up 11 points and 10 rebounds in the victory for SMU, which has captured back-to-back games and is back on track for an at-large spot in the NCAA Tournament.
The Mustangs are a No. 9 seed in ESPN’s latest bracketology update posted on Friday.
Syracuse (14-11, 5-7) beat Cal 107-100 at home in double overtime in its most recent outing, getting 27 points from Nate Kingz and 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds from William Kyle III before he was forced from the game with leg cramps in the second extra period.
J.J. Starling scored 21 points and collected a season-high four steals for the Orange, who snapped a two-game losing streak and produced their second victory in a stretch of eight games. Donnie Freeman (16 points), Naithan George (14) and Sadiq White Jr. (10) all also scored in double figures.
“One thing you can’t question is this team’s fight,” Syracuse coach Adrian Autry said. “This team fights every game. They don’t give up. And you know, that’s what we’re gonna keep doing until we can’t fight anymore.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Feds allege Guardians P Emmanuel Clase fixed pitch in playoff game
Jul 18, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Athletics at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images Federal prosecutors allege in an indictment unsealed Friday that former Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase rigged a pitch in a playoff game and used coded language to try to conceal his efforts to help gamblers win prop bets.
The indictment details the belief of prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York that Clase rigged more pitches during his years with the Guardians than initially thought.
They now suspect Clase, a three-time All-Star and 2024 AL Cy Young Award finalist, fixed 15 pitches between the 2023 and 2025 seasons, including in the ninth inning of the Guardians’ 2024 American League Division Series opener against the Detroit Tigers, and intended to rig pitches on three additional occasions but did not get into the game.
The documents unsealed Friday allege Clase and collaborators used words like “chicken” and “rooster” in text exchanges to mask his intention to deliberately throw certain pitches for balls.
The Athletic cited an example from May 18, 2025, when Clase, 27, received a text directing him to “Throw a rock at the first rooster in today’s fight.”
Prosecutors say gamblers netted at least $450,000 from the wagering scheme and kicked back some winnings to Clase and teammate Luis Ortiz, who face charges of wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery.
They accuse Ortiz, 27, of fixing two pitches.
MLB placed both pitchers on the restricted list and administrative leave last July ahead of their arrests in November.
Clase and Ortiz pleaded not guilty to all charges, and their trial in New York is scheduled to start May 4.
Along with requesting a later start date, counsel for Ortiz has asked the federal judge overseeing the proceedings to sever his case and allow him to be tried separately from Clase.
Clase owns a career 1.88 ERA with 182 saves in 366 games. Cleveland acquired him in a trade with the Texas Rangers in 2019.
Ortiz has a career 16-22 record and 4.05 ERA in 75 games (50 starts) with the Pittsburgh Pirates (2022-24) and Guardians (2025).
–Field Level Media
Sports
PGA Tour’s revamped schedule likely to bring more events to big cities
PGA Tour logo sign is shown at the PGA Tour Grill Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024 at Jacksonville International Airport in Jacksonville, Fla. A senior official said part of the PGA Tour’s plan to revamp its schedule is to bring tournaments to more major U.S. markets that don’t currently have one.
Lee Smith, the executive director of The Players Championship, met with reporters Thursday at a media preview day for the PGA Tour’s flagship event often billed “the fifth major.”
According to Front Office Sports, Smith described a three-step plan for remaking the PGA Tour schedule into a leaner and more streamlined product: playing in the largest U.S. cities, “starting the season big” while avoiding the football postseason and “owning the summer.”
“I think you’ll see a lot more of that that will come out, especially over the next month or two as that group continues to meet and they continue to focus on what that future model of the PGA Tour looks like,” Smith said.
The tour used to play annual events in the New York, Chicago, Washington and Boston areas, but each fell by the wayside over the years, and in some cases LIV Golf filled the void. Those four cities, plus Philadelphia, make up half of the top 10 media markets in the country and do not have a regular PGA Tour stop.
Meanwhile, the tour’s two January events in Hawaii have long been rumored to be on the chopping block as the sport considers starting its season after the Super Bowl. The WM Phoenix Open is traditionally played the weekend of the Super Bowl every year, which has become part of the popular event’s identity.
The Players Championship will be played March 12-15 at TPC Sawgrass and could be a moment for new PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp to unveil schedule changes.
–Field Level Media
SMU on right side of bubble as road test against Syracuse looms
Feds allege Guardians P Emmanuel Clase fixed pitch in playoff game
