Speed ​​skater Francesca Lollobrigida wins Italy

Italy won its first gold medal of the Milan Cortina Games on Saturday, and emerged from a major speedskating upset that saw the dominant Netherlands off the women’s 3,000 meters podium for the first time since 2010.

Francesca Lollobrigida set a new Olympic record, on her 35th birthday, of 3 minutes, 54.28 seconds, shaving more than two and a half seconds off the mark set by Dutch legend Irene Schouten four years earlier in Beijing. He was also two seconds ahead of runner-up Ragne Wiklund of Norway. Canadian Valerie Maltais finished third.

Dutch skater Joy Beune, current world champion in the 3,000 meters, finished the podium in fourth place. It was the first time since the 2010 Vancouver Games that the Netherlands had not won a medal in this distance.

Lollobrigida is from Frascati, a mountain town outside Rome, and known for its white wine, and her great-aunt was the late Gina Lollobrigida, a star actress of the 1950s and 1960s.

These were the fourth Olympic Games for Francesca Lollobrigida and her first gold. She collected two medals in Beijing four years ago: a silver in the 3,000 and a bronze in the mass start.

A last minute addition to Saturday’s race was American figure skater Greta Myerswho was added to the lineup after the retirement of Czech skater Martina Sablikova. The 21-year-old American did not initially qualify for the event, but secured the first reserve spot after her performances on the 2025-26 World Cup circuit. He finished in 20th place.