There are few sports that were as disappointing for the US in Sochi as short track speed skating. This is a sport that Apollo Anton Ohno helped get Americans interested in but in Sochi each event brought new disappointment. The sport can be very fluky, the margins are razor thin and one bad break can cost a skater, but to see the US fail to grab even a single individual medal was shocking. They did grab one in the men’s 5000m relay to end the Olympics but that also helped show they have talented skaters and showed how odd it was that they didn’t medal in any other events.
Men’s 500m
The men’s 500m event didn’t go great for the US in fact two of their three competitors finished last in the heats and near the very bottom of the entire field. J.R. Celski was the exception as he advanced all the way to the semifinals where he finished fourth and was placed in the B final. This is an event the US has struggled to medal in with only two finishes in the previous five Olympics higher than Celski’s sixth.
Women’s 500m
For the US women the 500m went slightly worse than for the men. Two of the three were eliminated in the first round just like on the men’s side but Emily Scott could only advance as far as the quarterfinals. She finished 12th which was the second worst all-time for the US just ahead of 1998. The US has not medaled in the women’s 500m since 1994.
Men’s 1000m
The men’s 1000m was another event where the US failed to even get a semifinalist. Both Christopher Creveling and Eduardo Alvarez came up a spot short in the quarterfinal heats. It was the first time since 1992 the US didn’t have someone in the top nine and ended a streak of three straight Olympics with a medal (all by Apollo Anton Ohno).
Women’s 1000m
The closest the US women came to medaling was in the 1000m where Jessica Smith reached the final and finished just off of third. This is an event where the US has only medaled once (silver in Vancouver) so the fourth place finish doesn’t look bad at all historically.
Men’s 1500m
The closest the men came to grabbing a medal in the individual events was the 1500m where J.R. Celski finished fourth and missed out on the bronze. It’s worth noting that Celski’s disappointing Olympics did result in a fourth and a sixth in two individual events and a 13th in the other. The standards are high for the US due to past success and Celski’s talent, that’s why these results are disappointing. The fourth place finish in the 1500m makes it 50-50 so far on if the US medals in the men’s 1500m.
Women’s 1500m
Emily Scott took her turn nearly medaling for the US in the 1500m as she placed fifth. She wasn’t the only one who had success though as Jessica Smith reached the B final and this was the only event where the US had two finalists (including the B-finals). The US has never medaled in this event and this makes two straight top five finishes. It would seem that the women’s speed skating had a stronger Olympics than their male counterparts when compared to past results.
Men’s 5000m Relay
The only medal success the US found in Sochi came in an event they nearly were knocked out of. Falling in the semifinals the US finished fourth and appeared to be eliminated from medal contention. Instead it was ruled they were impeded and they were advanced to the final. In the final an early fall took out everyone but the US and Russia and the two teams dueled for the lead until Russia pulled away at the end a bit to grab gold. This is a strong event for the US and they’ve now medaled three straight Olympics. They’ve never won gold but as long as they don’t get taken out they seem a good bet to medal at the Olympics now.
Previous Olympic Recaps
Freestyle Skiing
Curling
Nordic Combined
Figure Skating
Ski Jumping
Skeleton
Luge
