2022 Beijing Winter Games odds: Best bets and picks for alpine skiing and speed skating from Olympics expert

Sweden's Nils van der Poel aims for his second gold medal of the Games when he takes to the ice for the men's 10,000-meter speed skating final on Friday at the National Speed Skating Oval in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Van der Poel took the gold earlier this week in the 5,000-meter race, setting an Olympic record and giving Sweden its first Olympic medal in speed skating since 1988.

Van der Poel is the -800 favorite in the men's 10,000-meter speed skating race at Caesars Sportsbook, while Jorrit Bergsma and Patrick Roest, both of the Netherlands, are listed at +750 and +1100, respectively. The event begins at 3 a.m. ET.

Before locking in any Beijing Olympics 2022 picks or predictions, you need to see what SportsLine's Olympics expert, Mike Tierney, has to say. (Head over to SportsLine's 2022 Olympics page for more analysis and updates.)

A national sportswriter whose work appears in The New York Times and Los Angeles Times, Tierney has covered nine Olympic Games in person. For Rio in 2016, Tierney profited big-time. He told readers to bet Over on Team USA's gold medal count (41.5) and Over on Team USA's overall medal count (102.5). The result? 46 golds, 121 medals and two easy cashes.

For the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Tierney hit two of his three predictions: Germany (+200) to win the most gold medals and the United States winning Under 10.5 gold medals (+110). And at last year's Tokyo Games, he correctly predicted the United States would go Over 111.5 total medals (-110).

Now, Tierney has analyzed Thursday and Friday's action and identified three best bets. We can tell you that he is picking Roest to upset van der Poel in the men's 10,000-meter speed skating final. "Too much can go wrong in a race exceeding six miles for one skater to carry such minuscule odds," Tierney says.

Tierney also has picks in alpine skiing and women's short track speed skating. One of these picks is a long shot that Tierney says "will carry incentive and experience" into their event. You ABSOLUTELY need to see what he has to say before locking in your picks. 

Who wins gold in men's speed skating, alpine skiing and women's short track speed skating? And what long shot is worth a flyer? Join SportsLine right now to find out whom you should back, all from the expert who has crushed his Olympic picks!

Tierney's picks and analysis: 

Speed skating, men's 10,000 meters (3 a.m. ET Friday)
Patrick Roest, Netherlands (+1100)

Coming off his gold in the 5,000 meters, Nils van der Poel of Sweden is a massive favorite at -800. Too much can go wrong in a race exceeding six miles for one skater to carry such minuscule odds. Roest broke the Olympic 5,000 record, only to see it snapped later by van der Poel. The Swede had to rally with a lightning-fast final two laps after appearing to be hopelessly beaten. He deserves favoritism, but not to this degree. 

Odds: Caesars

Alpine skiing, women's Super-G (10 p.m. ET Thursday)
Elena Curtoni, Italy (+1100)

In the wake of her nightmares during the previous two women's disciplines, Team USA star Mikaela Shiffrin's chances have dwindled as her odds have soared. Let's go with the other contestant at +1100 - Curtoni, who is fifth on the odds board even though she ranks second in the Super-G World Cup standings. As Shiffrin knows all too well, troubled trips on the course can trip up any leading contender. 

Odds: FanDuel

Short track speed skating, women's 1,000 meters (6 a.m. ET Friday)
Choi Min-jeong, South Korea (+450)

Choi set an Olympic record in a heat, which stood for all but a few minutes. The favorite, Suzanne Schulting of the Netherlands (+110), lowered it further in her heat. Still, Choi will carry incentive and experience through the rest of the competition. Her nation's speed contingent nearly withdrew from the Beijing Games after complaints about penalties assessed to two other skaters. And Choi earned two gold medals for her host nation in 2018. 

Odds: Caesars

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