China earns historic men's team pursuit bronze in speed skating at Milano Cortina 2026

China made history in speed skating after earning bronze in the men's team pursuit competition at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics on Tuesday.

The Chinese squad defeated the Netherlands in Final B to clinch their place on the podium. Liu Hanbin, Wu Yu and Li Wenhao edged their Dutch rivals by 0.09 seconds, finishing in a time of 3:41.38.

"We are first and foremost a united team, with a shared goal – to bring honor to our country. So we gave everything we had to achieve it," Li said.

Liu, who had earlier delivered a breakthrough achievement by finishing 17th in the men's 5,000 meters, revealed that he could barely hold himself together on the podium. After China advanced to the semifinals in the team pursuit on Sunday, he expected a special performance from the squad to celebrate the Chinese New Year.

"Today we won by 0.09 seconds, and winning by such a tiny margin is incredibly exciting. It makes the victory even more thrilling and worth celebrating. I'm very pleased with our performance," Liu noted.

"To achieve this result today is a huge encouragement for the entire Chinese speed skating team," added 1,000 meter bronze medalist Ning Zhongyan, who skated in the semifinals and served as the alternate for the final. "This medal has great value for us. We had never been on the podium before, and at times it was even difficult just to qualify."

Italy captured gold as Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini and Michele Malfatti clocked 3:39.20 in Final A, edging out the USA.

In the women's team pursuit, Canada defended its title by defeating the Netherlands, while Japan beat the USA to snatch bronze.