U.S. qualifies for men's team pursuit semifinals in Milan
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by Julia Yohe, NBC Olympics
The United States' trio of Casey Dawson, Emery Lehman, and Ethan Cepuran advanced to the men's team pursuit semifinals Sunday, finishing 2nd in their qualifying heat with a final time of 3 minutes, 39.37 seconds.
The event consisted of four quarterfinals featuring two teams each. The four fastest teams moved on to the next round.
The trio of Casey Dawson, Emery Lehman, and Ethan Cepuran have completely rewritten the team pursuit playbook over the last five seasons, skating to three world records, five straight World Cup season titles, Olympic bronze (2022) and world championship gold (2025). They entered the Olympics riding a six-race undefeated run on the international stage, skating their last three races before the Games over two seconds faster than the runner up.
In Sunday's race, Italy, with whom the Americans were paired, crossed the finish line 0.97 seconds ahead of the United States. The Italian squad of Davide Ghiotto, Andrew Giovannini, and Michele Malfatti won the world title in 2024.
China and the Netherlands filled out the final two qualifying spots.
The four countries will compete in the semifinals Tuesday, Feb. 17.
Speed skating competition will continue with the women's 500m, beginning at 11 a.m. E.T.
