2014 Olympic Speedskating: Preview and Prediction for 5,000-Meter Medal Round

Speedskating in Sochi gets off to a huge start on Saturday with the men's 5,000 meters.

The 5,000-meter race is the second-longest distance that the men compete in. The skaters race in pairs, alternating inner and outer lanes each lap so that they skate equal distances. There are no qualification rounds—one race determines who gets the gold, silver and bronze.

In an event that has been a staple at the Games for 90 years, the Dutch, led by Vancouver gold-medalist Sven Kramer, will be trying to once again prove their dominance over the rest of the world in this distance.

Here are the key things you need to know to get ready for the race:

Schedule 

February 8, 6:30 a.m. ET

TV/Live Stream Info

Live on NBC Sports Network and www.NBCOlympics.com.

Dutchmen Kramer, Jorrit Bergsma and Jan Blokhuijsen all qualified for the 5,000 meters in their local trials and are all medal contenders in Sochi.

For Team USA, Jonathan Kuck was the winner of the 5,000 meters in the U.S. Olympic Trials, and he will be leading the team in this event, although he's not expected to make the medal stand.

Meanwhile, Russia's best hope Ivan Skobrev has qualified. Skobrev won the bronze medal in this distance in Vancouver and will be under a lot of pressure from his hometown crowd to make it back to the podium. Lee Seung-hoon, the South Korean superstar and silver medalist from 2010, is back as well.

Can Sven Kramer come back from the Vancouver mishap?

Kramer, a Dutch speedskater and six-time European champion, was trying to win three golds in the 2010 Games. Things were looking good after he won the 5,000-meter race and was leading the 10,000 meters halfway through, but then his coach made a grave mistake and signaled that Kramer should switch lanes when he wasn't supposed to.

The mistake led to Kramer's disqualification and an on-ice outburst that became one of the biggest stories of Vancouver. 

Winning gold in the 5,000 meters to kick things off in Sochi would go a long way toward erasing that bad memory from Vancouver.

Will the Dutch skaters sweep the medals?

The speedskating team from the Netherlands is incredibly deep this year, and Infostrada sports has predicted that Dutchmen Kramer, Bergsma and Blokhuijsen will go one-two-three on the podium in Sochi. The most likely man to break up the trip is Vancouver silver medalist Lee from South Korea.

Will there be any surprises? 

This a pretty top-heavy event with world-class talent coming from Lee and the Dutch team. But among others, Russia's Skobrev, who won a bronze medal in Vancouver in this distance, and America's Kuck, who is currently sixth in the World Cup standings, will be trying to push for a medal.

Can they cause a titanic upset in the first speedskating event of the Games?

Bergsma is a Dutch speedskater making his Olympic debut who is hoping to step out of Kramer's shadow.

The 28-year-old, who is engaged to American speedskater and medal favorite Heather Richardson, was No. 1 in the world during the 2012-13 season in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters, and if Kramer falters, he certainly has a shot at upstaging his countryman.

The silver and bronze medalists from 2010 are dangerous too, as South Korea's Lee and Russia's Skobrev attempt to skate their way back to the Olympic podium.

Kramer is already a legendary speedskater, but he'll be looking to build on that legacy in Sochi.

The six-time European champion's desire to drown out the disappointment from Vancouver and maintain his dominance as the top Dutch speedskater should give him the motivation to defend his gold medal from Vancouver and get his 2014 Games off to a winning start.

Gold: Sven Kramer, Netherlands

Silver: Jorrit Bergsma, Netherlands

Bronze: Lee Seung-hoon, South Korea

I don't see any huge surprises coming in this event. I think that Lee is skating well enough to keep this from being a Dutch sweep, but Kramer will defend his crown and Bergsma will win his first Olympic medal.