What’s on tap today? Eight disciplines and competition in nine events with seven gold medals up for grabs. In today: Ice hockey, short track, and speed skating. Out today: Biathlon, figure skating, and freestyle skiing.
All times below are ET.
Alpine Skiing
Events: Four women in the 50-woman field for the Super-G are Americans. This single run event begins at 2 AM and it won’t take long before the first American is underway. Leanne Smith will be the second down the mountain. Laurenne Ross goes seventh, Julia Mancuso bids for a second medal in Sochi while starting 14th, and Stacey Cook goes 29th.
When:
*Women’s Super-G – 2 AM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The alpine skiing will be included in NBC’s evening coverage from 8-11:30 PM ET.
Friday was not great for the US. Both curling teams suffered crucial losses and the US picked up only one medal while struggling to compete for medals in most of the traditional events conducted.
Alpine Skiing
Events:
Men’s Super Combined – Downhill
*Men’s Super Combined – Slalom
The Americans hoped to get out to good starts in the downhill portion of the event. That wouldn’t exactly happen. Ted Ligety was the first to go and his time of 1:55.17 left him in 18th, 1.93 seconds off the lead. Andrew Weibrecht went next and his time of 1:55.33 was only 20th best, 2.09 seconds behind the leader. The best American was Bode Miller who finished 12th in the downhill in 1:54.67 but was still 1.43 seconds off pace. Finally Jared Goldberg finished 15th in 1:54.90 and was 1.66 seconds behind the lead.
In the slalom portion Weibrecht took a spill halfway down after straddling a pole and took a DNF. Ligety put up a 52.22 that wasn’t enough (8th fastest) and he finished 12th in 2:47.39, Goldberg couldn’t keep pace either and his 52.39 was only 10th best in the slalom and he finished 11th in 2:47.39, Miller failed to make his mark as well as his 51.93 was 6th best and he finished 7th in 2:46.60.
Results Summarized:
Andrew Weibrecht – In the downhill he was 20th in a time of 1:55.33, 2.09 seconds behind first. In the slalom he fell after straddling a pole and took a DNF.
Ted Ligety – Finished 12th overall with a time of 2:47.39. In the downhill he was 18th in a time of 1:55.17, 1.93 seconds behind first. In the slalom he was 8th with a time of 52.22.
Jared Goldberg – Finished 11th overall with a time of 2:47.29. In the downhill he was 15th in a time of 1:54.90, 1.66 seconds behind first. In the slalom he was 10th with a time of 52.39.
Bode Miller – Finished 6th overall with a time of 2:46.60. In the downhill he was 12th in a time of 1:54.67, 1.43 seconds behind first. In the slalom he was 7th with a time of 51.93.
Really tough day of racing, congrats to viletta, kostelic, and innerhoffer on their medals. It was hard fought.
What’s on tap today? Just eight disciplines and competition in 10 events with six gold medals up for grabs. In today: Alpine skiing and ski jumping. Out today: Ice hockey, luge, short track, and speed skating.
All times below are ET.
Alpine Skiing
Events: Alpine skiing returns with the men’s super combined on Friday. The 50-man field starts the downhill portion at 1 AM. Four Americans are in the field and they will take to the course in a tight grouping. Ted Ligety will start 22nd, Andrew Weibrecht 23rd, Bode Miller 24th, and Jared Goldberg 28th. The slalom begins at 6:30 AM and will start in the reverse-order of the times from the downhill portion.
When:
Men’s Super Combined – Downhill – 1 AM
*Men’s Super Combined – Slalom – 6:30 AM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The alpine skiing will be included in NBC’s evening coverage from 8-11:30 PM ET.
If you were waiting for the US to break out and make a move in the medal count then perhaps Thursday was your day… or perhaps a single event on Thursday was your event. The men’s ski slopestyle cross took the US from nine medals to 12 as the US swept the medals and headlined a good day for the US.
Biathlon
Events:
Men’s individual 20 km
Thursday was the men’s 20 km individual event at 9 AM. The first American to start was Tim Burke. Burke got off to a good start as he was 17th after 8 km and a round of shooting. He took a big hit with two missed targets in round two and fell into the 40s. He recovered his position some before two more missed targets in the final round left him with a 44th place finish. Next up was Lowell Bailey. Bailey combined a strong skiing performance with just one missed target to consistently be in the top 20 at checkpoints and eventually move into the top ten and finish 8th, the best ever finish by a US man. Leif Nordgren was in the top 40 through 12 km but a disastrous third round of shooting where he missed all five targets left him well behind the pack and he finished 83rd. Finally Russell Currier missed two targets on each of the first two rounds of shooting as he plummeted to 85th out of 88. He roared back however and didn’t miss another target as he ended up in 50th place.
Results Summarized:
Leif Nordgren – Finished 83rd in 58:47.6, 9:15.9 behind the leader. Missed six targets.
Russell Currier – Finished 50th in 55:07.5, 5:35.8 behind the leader. Missed four targets.
Tim Burke – Finished 44th in 54:21.2, 4:49.5 behind the leader. Missed four targets.
Lowell Bailey – Finished 8th in 50:57.4, 1:25.7 behind the leader. Missed one target.
What’s on tap today? Ten disciplines and competition in 13 events with six gold medals up for grabs. In today: Biathlon, cross country-skiing, freestyle skiing, short track, and skeleton for the first time. Out today: Alpine skiing, nordic combined, and snowboarding.
All times below are ET.
Biathlon
Events: Thursday is the men’s 20 km individual event at 9 AM. The 89-man field will start in 30-second intervals with missed targets resulting in a crucial one minute penalty added to your time. Three Americans will compete: Tim Burke, starts 29th at 9:14:30, Lowell Bailey starts 58th at 9:29, Leif Nordgren starts 62nd at 9:31, and finally Russell Currier starts 79th at 9:39.
When:
Men’s individual 20 km – 9 AM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The biathlon will be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 3-5 PM ET.
The US did take home a couple more medals on Tuesday but it’s hard to call the day a total success when you consider all the chances missed by the US. There were still a lot of great performances and awesome results, but a lot of disappointment for the US as well.
Biathlon
Events:
Women’s 10 km pursuit
After disappointment in the sprint event on Sunday, American Susan Dunklee was hoping to rebound in a major way on Tuesday. That was all looking pretty good as she battled her way back from a 16th place start to fifth heading towards the final round of shooting. That’s where she missed three targets (four in the whole race) and the penalty laps that she had to take after that meant she finished 18th. It was another big disappointment for Dunklee.
Two other Americans were in the field but were not a major part of the race. Sara Studebaker was 44th at the start and fell to 51st after missing five targets. Annelies Cook started 53rd and slipped a spot to 54th after missing five targets as well.
Fantastic feeling on skis and 3 strong shooting stages tonight. Missed the last piece of the puzzle but I sure love being in the mix!
What’s on tap today? Nine disciplines and competition in 11 events with eight gold medals awarded. Figure skating returns for the individual events now that the team event is done.
All times below are ET.
Biathlon
Events: Tuesday is the women’s 10 km pursuit event at 10 AM. The 60-woman field will chase the leader over the course with four rounds of shooting. Each missed shot is a 150 meter penalty loop. The field is staggered by the amount they finished behind the leader in the sprint event on Sunday. Three Americans will compete: Susan Dunklee, who might have medaled if she didn’t miss a target in the sprint event, starts in 14th starting 42 seconds after the leader, Sara Studebaker is 44th and starts 1:53 behind the leader, and finally Annelies Cook starts 2:17 behind the leader in 53rd.
Lifelong role models and lovers of anything ski related… Enjoying a moment with my parents post race yesterday http://t.co/yu0ZmUBAvx
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The biathlon will be included in NBC’s latenight coverage from 12-1 AM ET Wednesday morning.
Second day of medals awarded and two more medals for the US, another gold and another bronze. Some disappointments as well though for the US today.
Alpine Skiing
Events:
Men’s downhill
In the men’s downhill event Bode Miller was the most likely medal contender while three other Americans were part of the field. Steven Nyman was the first down the slopes, both for the US and for the entire competition. Nyman nearly wiped out a couple of times but made some spectacular saves to keep his footing. He finished with a time of 2:09.15 to lead the way. That lead didn’t last long though and the second man down topped it and after five had gone he was out of medal contention.
Next up for the US was Travis Ganong. Ganong skied an aggressive race and despite some parts not perfect he just edged into first with a time of 2:06.64, 0.07 seconds better than anyone else at that point. Ganong was immediately bumped from the gold medal by the next skier but it took 11 men after him before he was bumped from the medals.
One of those 11 men was Bode Miller. Miller made mistakes in several parts of the course including catching way too much of the flag. It cost him as he was sixth after his run with a time of 2:06.75. The final American was Marco Sullivan who was the 25th man to go. Sullivan just wasn’t nearly fast enough and his time of 2:10.10 placed him 30th in the end. When it was all said and done Nyman was 25th, Miller eighth, and Ganong was in fifth, just 0.31 seconds behind bronze.
5th place in the Olympic Downhill today!!!! Fired up that was fun and oh so close to a medal!!!!!… http://t.co/ZgimekFdWO — Travis Ganong (@TravisGanong) February 9, 2014
Results Summarized:
Marco Sullivan – Finished in 30th with a time of 2:10.10
Steven Nyman – Finished in 27th with a time of 2:09.15
Bode Miller – Finished in 8th with a time of 2:06.75
Travis Ganong – Finished in 5th with a time of 2:06.64
Bode Miller finished 8th for the US in the men’s downhill on Sunday.
Here’s what’s on tap for today… how about eight different disciplines? How about the first alpine skiing event in Sochi? How about eight more gold medals on the line?
All times below are ET.
Alpine Skiing
Events: The men’s downhill event will take place on Sunday. The event features 50 competitors including four Americans. Everyone will get one and only run on the course. The fastest time wins. The first man off the top will actually be American Steven Nyman setting the mark to beat for everyone. Travis Ganong goes seventh, Bode Miller is 15th, and Marco Sullivan is the last American at 25th.
Bode Miller will compete for the US in the men’s downhill on Sunday.
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The alpine skiing will be included in NBC’s evening Olympic coverage, 7-11 PM ET.
Biathlon
Events: Sunday is the women’s 7.5 km sprint competition. Each athlete will start 30 seconds apart with each missed target during the shooting portions resulting in a 150m penalty loop. The fastest time is the winner, but that probably won’t be the first woman across the finish line due to the staggered start.
Four Americans are in the 84-woman field. Susan Dunklee is the first to go for the US at 9:35:30 AM, Annelies Cook will start at 9:58:30 AM, Hannah Dreissigacker starts at 10:01:30 AM, and Sara Studebaker goes at 10:07 AM.
First race is tomorrow- the 7.5 km sprint. I will be wearing number 11
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The biathlon will be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2-6 PM ET
Cross-Country Skiing
Events: Sunday is the men’s skiathlon. This is a race of 15 km in the classic style, a switch of equipment, and then 15 km in the freestyle. This is a mass start event so the first one across the finish line wins.
Four Americans are in the field of 68: Noah Hoffman, Kris Freeman, Brian Gregg, and Erik Bjornsen.
Below is some video featuring Brian Gregg and giving you an idea what it’d be like to stand near a cross-country skiing race going by. Pretty intense!
When:
Men’s 30 km Skiathlon (15 km classic + 15 km free) – 5 AM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: Cross-country skiing will be shown LIVE on NBCSN during their programming from 5:30 AM – 8:30 AM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2-6 PM ET
Figure Skating
Events: The team event wraps up on Sunday with three last rounds: men’s free skate (10 AM), ladies’ free skate (11:05 AM), and ice dance free dance (12:10 PM). The US is currently in third place with a score of 34. Silver and gold appear to be out of reach but hopefully the US can hold off Italy (31 points) and Japan (34 points) for the bronze.
There is no start list out for these events yet and it’s not officially known who will skate in them for the US. The US could change two of their three choices from the first round but there is no way that Meryl Davis and Charlie White don’t go in the ice dance. After a poor performance by Jeremy Abbott in the short program I expect Jason Brown to get the free skate nod, but it’s unknown if that will happen. Ashley Wagner was good on Saturday in the short program so I imagine she’ll be going again.
Ashley Wagner competed for the US in the team event on Saturday.
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The figure skating will be shown LIVE on NBCSN from 10 AM – 1 PM ET. It was also be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2-6 PM ET and NBC’s evening Olympic coverage, 7-11 PM ET.
Luge
Events: The men’s singles event wraps up on Sunday. Three Americans are in the field of 39 but all seem to be out of medal contention. The start order is the same order as the standings. Christopher Mazdzer is 13th and will go 13th. Tucker West goes 23rd and Aidan Kelly goes 26th. I would imagine that run four will have the quickest athletes so far going last, but I’ve been surprised in other events so who knows…
Thanks to my family, and friends and luge family for coming out to support me!!! You guys were the loudest cheering crowd there! #TeamUSA
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website or on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The luge will be shown LIVE on NBCSN in their coverage from 8:30-10 AM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s late night coverage, 11:30 PM-12:30 AM ET.
Ski Jumping
Events: The men’s normal hill event wraps up on Sunday with the first round and the final round. In the first round 50 competitors will be competing for 40 spots in the final event. The US has three competitors in the field. Nicholas Alexander will be the first competitor to go, Anders Johnson is going 5th, and Peter Frenette goes 10th. If any make it through to the final that’s where they will take one more jump. The final standings are determined by the total of the two jumps.
Qualified for the small hill comp tomorrow! Now to try and pull the miracle on ice pt. 2
Men’s individual normal hill – First round – 12:30 PM
Men’s individual normal hill – Final round – 1:35 PM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website and on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The ski jumping will be shown LIVE on NBCSN as part of their coverage from 1-2 PM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s evening coverage from 7-11 PM ET.
Snowboarding
Events: After grabbing a gold in the inaugural men’s slopestyle on Saturday the US hopes to do the same in the women’s event on Sunday. Two Americans (Jamie Anderson and Karly Shorr) are already into the final while two others are looking to get into it from the semifinal. In the semifinal 15 competitors are vying for the final four spots in the final. Each athlete will take two runs with the best run counting. Top four scores go to the final. Ty Walker is scheduled to be the first to compete while Jessika Jenson is scheduled to go ninth. In the final each athlete gets two runs with the best score again counting.
Below is Anderson’s silver medal winning run at the X Games a couple weeks ago.
When:
Women’s slopestyle semifinal – 1:30 AM
Women’s slopestyle final – 4:15 AM
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website or on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: The snowboarding will be included in NBC’s evening Olympic coverage, 7-11 PM ET.
Speed Skating
Events: The women’s 5000m event is on Sunday. This event has athletes going two at a time with the times ranked for the final standings. Two Americans are in the 28-woman field. Anna Ringsred will be in the second pair while Jilleanne Rookard is in the tenth pair.
End of a great day in Sochi. Time for some rest. Going to try, somehow, to get some sleep before tomorrow. #BigRaceDay#Olympics
Live Streaming: A live stream will be available on the NBC Olympics website or on the NBC Sports Live Extra app. You will probably have to authenticate a cable subscription to watch the live streams of the Olympics.
TV Coverage: Speed skating will be shown LIVE on NBCSN during their programming from 5:30 AM – 8:30 AM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2-6 PM ET
The first day after the Opening Ceremonies saw the US grab their first medals, a bronze and a gold, and saw the start of the women’s ice hockey tournament. Certainly a lot of bright spots on Saturday for the US.
Biathlon
Events:
Men’s 10 km sprint
The men’s 10 km sprint competition was held on Saturday with four Americans in the 87-man field. The competitions involves three 3.33 km laps with two shooting rounds (one standing, one prone) in between the laps. For each missed target the athlete had to ski an extra 100m penalty loop. The final standings in this event are used to set the field for the men’s 12.5 km pursuit event on Monday with each athlete starting behind the leader delayed by as much as they were behind in today’s event.
Tim Burke was the top American in the event and only missed one target in shooting. Burke turned in a time of 25:23.3 to finish 19th, 49.8 seconds behind the leader. The second American across the line was Lowell Bailey who finished 35th, missed two targets, and turned in a time of 26:04.1, 1:30.6 behind the leader. Leif Nordgren was the next across the line in 45th. Nordgren missed none of his targets but his time of 26:17.4 was 1:43.9 behind the top. The final American was Russell Currier. Currier missed four targets on his first round of shooting (tied for the most of any athlete in a round) and finished in 26:58.5. That placed him 61st and since only the top 60 move into the pursuit event he will not be a part of that. He missed a spot in the final by around three seconds.
These times will be used when the pursuit event begins on Monday at 10 AM ET.
Results Summarized:
Tim Burke – Missed one target, 19th best time of 25:23.3. Starts pursuit (Monday at 10 AM ET) 50 seconds behind leader.
Lowell Bailey – Missed two targets, 35th best time of 26:04.1. Starts pursuit (Monday at 10 AM ET) 1:31 behind leader.
Leif Nordgren – Missed no targets, 45th best time of 26:17.4. Starts pursuit (Monday at 10 AM ET) 1:44 behind leader.
Russell Currier – Missed four targets, 61st best time of 26:58.5. Did not make pursuit event as he was not in the top 60.
Cross-Country Skiing
Events:
Women’s 15 km skiathlon (7.5 km classic + 7.5 km free)
The women’s 15 km skiathlon is a mass start race where the athletes ski 7.5 km in the classic style then switch equipment and ski 7.5 km in the free style. Four Americans were in the field of 61.
In the classic portion of the event the top American was Sadie Bjornsen who was 22nd in 19:56.8. Jessica Diggins followed her up closely in 27th with a time of 20:01.7. Just after her was Liz Stephen who was 31st in a time of 20:14.7 while the final American was Holly Brooks in 38th with a time of 20:22.3.
Not a lot of time is gained or lost “in the pits”. Stephen was the fastest American and second fastest overall in 32.7 seconds. The slowest American was Brooks who took 37.1 seconds for 42nd best. Less than 13 seconds separated all 61 athletes.
In the free style portion both Stephen and Diggins heated up for USA. Stephen posted the seventh fastest time at 19:22.2 and finished 12th overall in 40:09.6. Diggins was just behind her in the free style with an eight place time of 19:29.5 but her overall time was quicker at 40:05.5 and she placed eight overall. Bjornsen posted the 36th best time at 20:37 finishing in 31st overall in 41:09.7 while Brooks had the 50th best time at 21:34.6 and ended up 47th overall in 42:34.
Results Summarized:
Jessica Diggins – 27th in classic style (20:01.7), 8th in free style (19:29.5). Total time of 40:05.5 as she finished in 8th.
Liz Stephen – 31st in classic style (20:14.7), 7th in free style (19:22.2). Total time of 40:09.6 as she finished in 12th.
Sadie Bjornsen – 22nd in classic style (19:56.8), 36th in free style (20:37). Total time of 41:09.7 as she finished in 31st.
Holly Brooks – 38th in classic style (20:22.3), 50th in free style (21:34.6). Total time of 42:34 as she finished in 47th.
Figure Skating
Events:
Team event – Ice dance short dance
Team event – Ladies’ short program
Team event – Pairs’ free skate
The US entered Saturday’s events in a tie for fifth place knowing they needed to make sure they had good results to ensure they’d be in the top five after the short programs when the bottom five countries were cut. Things started off great when Meryl Davis and Charlie White had the top score for the US in the ice dance short dance. Their 75.98 gave the US ten points and made it quite clear the US would be in the top five.
Ashley Wagner went to the top after her short program score of 63.10 but each of the last three competitors topped her as she finished fourth. Still the seven points she secured left the US in third heading into the second half of the event. After the bottom five countries were cut the free program pairs event was held. Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir put up a good score of 117.94 for the US but still ended up fourth. That leaves the US in third with 31 points with three rounds left. The ten point deficit to second place Canada is basically impossible to make up (if the USA finished 1st and Canada 5th in the three remaining events the US would be two ahead of them) and the Russian lead of 13 on the US is literally impossible to overcome. The US has a three point lead on Italy and a four point lead on Japan. It’s a good position for the US but they will still have to fight for the bronze.
Ashley Wagner was fourth for the US in the ladies’ singles portion of the team event on Saturday.
On Sunday the final three rounds will be held with the men’s free program at 10 AM ET, the ladies’ free program at 11:05 AM ET, and the ice dance free dance at 12:10 PM ET.
Results Summarized:
Meryl Davis and Charlie White – Top ice dance short dance score with a 75.98.
Ashley Wagner – Fourth best ladies’ short program with a score of 63.10
Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir – Fourth place in the pair’s free program with a 117.94.
US Team – Currently in third place with a three point lead on fourth (Italy) and four point lead on fifth (Japan). No real chance of moving up to silver. Three rounds on Sunday: men’s free program at 10 AM ET, ladies’ free program at 11:05 AM ET, and ice dance free dance at 12:10 PM ET.
Freestyle Skiing
Events:
Women’s moguls qualification – Round 2
Women’s moguls final – Round 1
Women’s moguls final – Round 2
Women’s moguls final – Round 3
The moguls event continued on Saturday beginning with a second round of qualification. 16 competitors were left competing for ten more spots in the final. Heather McPhie was the only US competitor and her score of 18.85 placed her sixth and got her safely into the final.
In the first round of the final the 20 finalists would be narrowed down to 12 after only one run each. That knocked out McPhie who finished 13th with a 20.05, just .07 behind 12th, when she was bumped down by the final competitor, fellow American Hannah Kearney. Kearney ended up seventh in the round with a 20.95. The top American in the round was Eliza Outtrim who finished second with a score of 21.81.
In the second round of the final the 12 finalists were narrowed down to six after a single run. Kearney made this one a no-doubter as her score of 21.93 was the top in the field. Outtrim had to sweat it out a bit more as her 21.53 placed fifth but both move on to the final.
In the final Outtrim had a rough run and finished with only a 19.37. That left her in sixth place. Kearney was the last to go and needed to top a 22.44 to win the gold. She could only muster a 21.49 and ended up with the bronze.
Results Summarized:
Heather McPhie – Sixth in qualifying round two with a 18.85 to reach final. Eliminated in final round one after her 20.05 left her 13th.
Eliza Outtrim – Scored a 21.81 in final round one to place second and move into final round two. Scored a 21.53 in final round two to place fifth and move into final round three. Scored a 19.37 in final round three and finished sixth.
Hannah Kearney – Scored a 20.95 in final round one to place seventh and move into final round two. Scored a 21.93 in final round two to place first and move into final round three. Scored a 21.49 in final round three to win the bronze medal.
Ice Hockey
Events:
Women’s preliminary round – Group A – USA vs. Finland
The US got the game off to a great start as just 53 seconds in they got an even strength goal from Hilary Knight. They doubled the lead 7:42 into the second period with an even strength goal from Kelli Stack assisted by Knight and Megan Bozek. The US took advantage of a power play to score their third goal with 4:01 left in the second period. This one came from Alex Carpenter with an assist to Anne Schleper. Susana Tapani scored for Finland with 4:38 left in the game to make it 3-1 and that was the final. Jessie Vetter got the start in goal and saved 14 of 15 shots.
The USA women’s hockey team beat Finland 3-1 on Saturday to open their Olympic campaign.
US Team – They are tied with Canada in Group A with three points each but the US has a GD of just two while Canada has a GD of five. Likely won’t matter though as this group is likely to be determined when the US faces Canada in the final group stage match. The US will face Switzerland next on Monday at 5 AM ET.
Luge
Events:
Men’s singles run 1 – 9:30 AM
Men’s singles run 2 – 11:40 AM
The US has three athletes in the 39-man field for the men’s singles luge event. This event is four runs with the total time determining the winner. The first two runs were held on Saturday. In run one the top US competitor was Christopher Mazdzer who finished 10th in a time of 52.744, 0.574 seconds behind the leader. Tucker West came in 21st with a time of 53.142 and Aidan Kelly was 26th with a time of 53.275.
Mazdzer was again tops for the US in the second run with a 52.643 that was 12th fastest and left him in 13th with a time of 1:45.387, 1.238 seconds behind the leader. West was 23rd in the run with a 52.966 and is now 23rd overall with a total time of 1:46.108. Kelly was 26th in the run with a 53.192 and is 36th overall with a time of 1:46.467. All three will be back in action when the third run starts at 9:30 AM ET Sunday and in run four at 11:30 AM ET.
Results Summarized:
Christopher Mazdzer – Mazdzer was 10th in run one (52.744) and 12th in run two (52.643). He’s now 13th overall at 1:45.387 and will start 13th in run three at 9:30 AM ET on Sunday.
Tucker West – West was 21st in run one (53.142) and 23rd in run two (52.966). He’s now 23rd overall at 1:46.108 and will start 23rd in run three at 9:30 AM ET on Sunday.
Aidan Kelly – Kelly was 26th in run one (53.275) and 26th in run two (53.192). He’s now 26th overall at 1:46.467 and will start 26th in run three at 9:30 AM ET on Sunday.
Ski Jumping
Events:
Men’s individual normal hill – qualification round – 11:30 AM
The individual normal hill event has a 50 man first round. Ten of these spots go to the top competitors based on previous results while the next 40 were awarded in the qualification round today. Four Americans were among the 51 competing for the 40 spots today. Anders Johnson was the top American with a 26th place score of 107.9.
Peter Frenette snuck into the top 40 with a 35th place finish on a score of 105.3 while Nick Alexander grabbed the last spot as his 100.7 was good enough for 40th. The only American not to move on was Nick Fairall who finished 50th with a score of 77.3 The other three are into Sunday’s first round at 12:30 PM ET. If they are in the top 40 after the first round they will jump again in the final round at 1:35 PM ET. The two jumps are combined for a total score to determine the winner.
Results Summarized:
Anders Johnson – Finished 26th with a score of 107.9 to qualify for Sunday’s first round at 12:30 PM ET. He will jump fifth in the round.
Peter Frenette – Finished 35th with a score of 105.3 to qualify for Sunday’s first round at 12:30 PM ET. He will jump tenth in the round.
Nick Alexander – Finished 40th with a score of 100.7 to qualify for Sunday’s first round at 12:30 PM ET. He will jump first in the round.
Nick Fairall – Finished 50th with a score of 77.3 and failed to qualify for Sunday’s first round.
Snowboarding
Events:
Men’s slopestyle semifinal – 12:30 AM
Men’s slopestyle final – 3:45 AM
The men’s slopestyle semifinal began on Saturday with 20 athletes looking to vie for just four spots including three Americans desperate to reach the final. On run one Sage Kotsenburg went big time with an 89 that left him in second after the run. Ryan Stassel also scored in the top four with an 83.25 that left him fourth. Only Chas Guldemond didn’t have a great result as his 13.25 score left him last.
Run two saw Kotsenburg edge his score even higher with a 90.50, though he was still second overall. Stassel couldn’t improve his score after an 81.75 and eventually slipped from the top four to sixth and missed out on the final. Guldemond was last to go and knew beating a 84.75 would get him into the final. He couldn’t do it though as a 79.75 left him in seventh. Only one American would move on into the final.
In the final Kotsenburg put up a huge 93.50 on his first run. He watched as no one matched it on that run. He tried to top it himself but came up short with an 83.25. And he watched as everyone tried to beat it again. No one could match that run and amazingly Sage Kotsenburg finished eighth in his qualifying heat, advanced from the semifinal on Saturday morning, and won a gold medal for the US.
Results Summarized:
Chas Guldemond – 79.75 score in the semifinals left him seventh and not in the final.
Ryan Stassel – 83.25 score in the semifinals left him sixth and not in the final.
Sage Kotsenburg – 90.50 on run two in the semifinals was the second best and qualified him for the final. In the final hit a 93.50 on the first run and no could ever match it as he won gold.
Speed Skating
Events:
Men’s 5000m – 6:30 AM
Three Americans were part of the 26-man field for the 5000m event. Each athlete gets one chance, best time wins. Patrick Meek was part of the first pairing but his time of 6:32.94 was only top after that pair and he finished 20th. Emery Lehman competed in the seventh pairing and put up a time of 6:29.94 and finished 16th. The final American, Jonathan Kuck, was in the tenth pairing and his time of 6:31.53 left him 19th.
Results Summarized:
Emery Lehman – Finished 16th with a time of 6:29.94.
Jonathan Kuck – Finished 19th with a time of 6:31.53.
Patrick Meek – Finished 20th with a time of 6:32.94.
