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February 8th – Sochi 2014 – Daily Review

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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 will compete for the US in the team event on Saturday.
Ashley Wagner was fourth for the US in the ladies’ singles portion of the team event on Saturday.

Photo Credit: nabechiko29 via Compfight cc

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 will take on Finland Saturday to open their Olympic campaign.
The USA women’s hockey team beat Finland 3-1 on Saturday to open their Olympic campaign.

Photo Credit: _becaro_ via Compfight cc

Results Summarized:

  • 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.
Biathlon, Cross-Country Skiing, Daily Previews, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing, Ice Hockey, Luge, Olympics, Ski Jumping, Snowboarding, Sochi 2014, Speed Skating

February 8th – Sochi 2014 – Daily Preview

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The Opening Ceremonies are over (even though you haven’t seen them yet) and the Olympics are ready to kick into full gear as the US will have competitors in nine different disciplines today. Things are about to get busy!

All times below are ET.

Biathlon

Events: Saturday is the men’s 10km 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 guy across the finish line due to the staggered start.

Four Americans are in the field. Lowell Bailey is the first to go for the US (9:43 AM), Tim Burke will start at 9:51:30 AM, Leif Nordgren starts at 10:06:30 AM, and Russell Currier is literally the last one to go, 87th overall, at 10:13:30 AM.

When:

  • Men’s 10km sprint – 9:30 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 biathlon will be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2:30-6 PM ET

Cross-Country Skiing

Events: Saturday is the women’s skiathlon! This is a race of 7.5km in the classic style, a switch of equipment, and then 7.5km 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 61: Elizabeth Stephen, Jessica Diggins, Sadie Bjornsen, and Holly Brooks.

When:

  • Women’s 15km Skiathlon (7.5km classic + 7.5 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 – 9:30 AM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2:30-6 PM ET

Figure Skating

Events: The team event continues on Saturday morning with the ice dance short dance and the ladies’ short program. After these two programs the top five nations will move on to the free programs while the bottom five are eliminated. The US currently sits in a tie for fifth place with Germany and France. The free programs will begin with the pairs’ free skate on Saturday before finishing on Sunday.

The US ice dancing couple of Meryl Davis and Charlie White will be the last couple to skate while Ashley Wagner will be the ladies competitor for the US and skate seventh. It’s unknown what order the pairs would go for their free skate and while it’s possible that Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir could be replaced (each team can swap out skaters in two events for the free programs) it seems unlikely that they would not compete if the US is still around.

Ashley Wagner will compete for the US in the team event on Saturday.
Ashley Wagner will compete for the US in the team event on Saturday.

Photo Credit: nabechiko29 via Compfight cc

When:

  • Ice dance short dance – 9:30 AM
  • Ladies’ short program – 11:10 AM
  • Pairs’ free skate – 1:05 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 figure skating will be shown LIVE on NBCSN from 9:30 AM – 2:30 PM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s evening Olympic coverage, 8-11:30 PM ET, and the late night coverage, 12-1 AM ET Sunday morning.

Freestyle Skiing

Events: The women’s moguls competition that started on Thursday will be wrapped up on Saturday. Ten athletes moved into the final on Thursday leaving 20 more to compete for the final ten spots on Saturday. We know that the field won’t be a full 20 though as American Olympian Heidi Kloser tore her ACL on Thursday in warm-ups and won’t compete. There are two other athletes that didn’t start on Thursday, not sure if they will be part of the field this time. Heather McPhie will be the first competitor down the slope and is the only American in the field. A top ten score will place her into the final later on Saturday.

We know already that two Americans will begin the final: Eliza Outtrim and Hannah Kearney. The final consists of three rounds that will knock the field down bit by bit. Each round consists of one run for each athlete and the top scores move on. The first round will get us down to the top 12, the second round gets us down to the top six, and the final round of six athletes will be for the medals.

When:

  • Women’s moguls qualification – round 2 – 9 AM
  • Women’s moguls final – round 1 – 1 PM
  • Women’s moguls final – round 2 – 1:35 PM
  • Women’s moguls final – round 3 – 2:10 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 freestyle skiing will be included in NBC’s evening Olympic coverage, 8-11:30 PM ET.

Ice Hockey

Events: The women’s ice hockey competition will kick off on Saturday with the US taking on Finland in Group A. Remember that all four teams in group A will move into the knockout round, but the top two get byes to the semifinals while teams three and four have to play quarterfinal matches. The US will be looking to open up the Olympics with a win and get an early leg up on one of those byes.

The USA women's hockey team will take on Finland Saturday to open their Olympic campaign.
The USA women’s hockey team will take on Finland Saturday to open their Olympic campaign.

Photo Credit: _becaro_ via Compfight cc

When:

  • Women’s preliminary round – Group A – USA vs. Finland – 3 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 game will be LIVE on NBCSN at 3 AM ET.

Luge

Events: The men’s singles event starts on Saturday with the first two runs out of four. Three Americans are in the field of 39. Christopher Mazdzer will be the fourth competitor to drop in, Tucker West goes 25th, and Aidan Kelly is 27th off the line. The second run will be started in the order of the times from the first run with the fastest competitor going last.

When: 

  • Men’s singles run 1 – 9:30 AM
  • Men’s singles run 2 – 11:40 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 luge will be included in NBC’s late night coverage, 12-1 AM ET Sunday morning.

Ski Jumping

Events: The men’s normal hill event begins on Saturday with the qualification round. 51 competitors will be competing for 40 spots in the main event. Ten other competitors are already qualified from their past results and will automatically be in the main event. The US has four competitors in the field. Nicholas Alexander will be the first competitor to go, Anders Johnson is going 13th, Peter Frenette goes 19th, and Nicholas Fairall goes 20th.

When:

  • Men’s individual normal hill – qualification round – 11:30 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 ski jumping will be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2:30 – 6 PM ET.

Snowboarding

Events: Thursday is the end of the men’s slopestyle competition. First will be a semifinal round that will qualify four more athletes into the final that already has eight competitors. These four spots will be contested among 21 competitors including three Americans: Chas Guldemond (21st and last to go), Sage Kotsenburg (14th to go), and Ryan Stassel (12th to go). The start order is based off of the results from the qualification and will be the same for both runs. In the semifinals each competitor gets two runs and their best score counts. The top four scores move into the final.

If any Americans do get into the final they will be part of a 12-man field that will each take two runs. The top scoring run is all that counts and each athlete gets two runs to get their best score. The run order will start with the four from the semifinal in the reverse order they finished followed by the eight already into the field in the reverse order of their scores from Thursday. The second runs will be done using the reverse order of the scores from the first run. The top scoring athlete on the first run will get the chance to see what everyone else has done before his second run.

When: 

  • Men’s slopestyle semifinal – 12:30 AM
  • Men’s slopestyle final – 3:45 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, 8-11:30 PM ET.

Speed Skating

Events: Speed Skating gets underway Saturday with the men’s 5000m event. This event has athletes going two at a time with the times ranked for our final standings. Three Americans are in the 26-man field. Patrick Meek will be in the first pair while Emery Lehman is in the seventh pair. Finally Jonathan Kuck will be in the 10th pair.

When: 

  • Men’s 5000m – 6:30 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: Speed skating will be shown LIVE on NBCSN during their programming from 5:30 AM – 9:30 AM ET. It will also be included in NBC’s daytime coverage from 2:30-6 PM ET

Daily Olympic Reviews, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing, Olympics, Snowboarding, Sochi 2014

February 6th – Sochi 2014 – Daily Review

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The first day of competition for the US had some bright spots and several not so bright spots. Three of the four events that began were new to the Olympics so let’s dive right in!

Freestyle Skiing

The only event to begin on Thursday was the women’s moguls event. 30 athletes made up the field for the first qualifying round where each athlete got one run and the top ten scores moved into the final. The other twenty will compete for the last ten spots in the final in a second round of qualifying on Saturday.

One of the worst parts of Thursday for the US was the warm-up crash of 21-year-old and first-time Olympian Heidi Kloser. Kloser injured her right knee and had to be taken to the hospital. Knee injuries are no surprise when you watch moguls, but to have one of the Americans go down injured so quickly on day one was really sad to see.

Things got better though as Eliza Outtrim and Heather McPhie were the first two competitors to take to the slope. Outtrim put up a great 21.51 score that led the field for quite a while before she ended up finishing fourth and easily moving into the final. McPhie put up a good score as well but her 19.92 didn’t stay in the top ten for too long and she ended up 14th. The good news is that makes her fourth best of those who will have to try to qualify again on Saturday and perhaps this will be some good extra practice. She should make the final.

The final American to go was the favorite, Hannah Kearney. Kearney delivered another knockout run and easily qualified for the final on Saturday with a first place score of 23.05.

Results Summarized:

  • Heidi Kloser – Injured right knee in warm-up crash and did not start event.
  • Eliza Outtrim – Fourth best run with a 21.51. Into final beginning at 1 PM ET on Saturday.
  • Heather McPhie – 14th best run with a 19.92. Will have to try to qualify for the final in qualifying round two at 9 AM ET on Saturday.
  • Hannah Kearney – Top run with a score of 23.05. Into final beginning at 1 PM ET on Saturday.

Figure Skating

Thursday was the debut of the new team event and featured both the men’s and pairs’ short programs. The men started things off and the US picked Jeremy Abbott as their participant. Abbott struggled in his program as he fell and received just a 65.65 to place seventh and grab only four points for the US. In the pairs’ program Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir put together a cleaner program but still only scored a 64.25 to grab fifth place and six points. It’s worth noting that the pairs’ event is the weakest for the US so this was a good result and let the US catch both Germany and France to reach a three-way tie for fifth place. That’s important since only the top five get to continue after the short programs.

Jeremy Abbott will skate for the US in the team figure skating event on Thursday.
Jeremy Abbott was a disappointing seventh for the US in the men’s short program portion of the first ever team figure skating event at the Olympics.

Photo Credit: nabechiko29 via Compfight cc

Results Summarized:

  • Jeremy Abbott – Only the seventh best in men’s short program with a score of 65.65
  • Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir – Fifth place in the pair’s short program with a 64.25.
  • US Team – Currently in a tie for fifth place with Germany and France. The next two competitions are the ice dance short dance (9:30 AM ET Saturday) and the ladies’ short program (11:10 AM ET Saturday). After these two rounds the bottom five countries are cut before the top five will have the pairs’ free skate at 1:05 PM ET on Saturday.

Snowboarding

Another event debuted on Thursday, the men’s and women’s slopestyle competitions. Before the men’s event had even begun Shaun White had pulled out leaving just three Americans in the field. Chas Guldemond was in the first heat where he put up an 86.00 on his first run to place second. Unfortunately he got topped by three guys on their second runs and he couldn’t improve so his score left him in fifth place, just missing out on an automatic berth into the final. Guldemond will be in the semifinal which begins at 12:30 AM ET Saturday morning.

Heat two featured Sage Kotsenburg and Ryan Stassel. This heat saw some top scores in the first run and Kotsenburg’s 86.50 left him fifth while Stassel scored 81.00 and was still sixth. Neither athlete could improve on the second run and they slid to eighth and ninth in the heat so both will be in the semifinal on Saturday morning at 12:30 AM ET.

On the women’s side all four Americans were in heat two. Ty Walker was first up but decided not to try to make the final today due to some injuries she’s suffered this week. Instead she just came down the course not attempting jumps in order to qualify for the semifinal on Sunday morning at 1:30 AM ET. She’s hoping she’ll be feeling better by then and can make a run at a berth in the final.

Jamie Anderson was healthy on the other hand and her first run of 93.50 was the best of the first runs. She was so far ahead of most of the field that she elected to skip her second run and go with that score. She was plenty safe in the end as she ended up second and fifth place was all the way back at 77.75, no danger at all. Anderson will be in Sunday’s final at 4:15 AM ET.

That left Karly Shorr and Jessika Jenson who were the last two on each set of runs. Run one left Shorr with a 45 and Jenson with a 34 knowing they’d have to land a better run to advance straight to the final. Shorr’s second run needed to beat 77.75 and she did that easily by posting a 84.75 and moving into fourth. Jenson was the only one left who could bump her from advancing straight to the final but Jenson scored only a 58.50 and finished seventh. Shorr moved straight into the final at 4:15 AM ET on Sunday while Jenson will have to try and qualify for it out of the semifinal at 1:30 AM ET on Sunday.

Results Summarized:

  • Chas Guldemond – Fifth best in his heat with an 86.00. Will have to qualify out of semifinal on Saturday at 12:30 AM ET.
  • Sage Kotsenburg – Eighth best in his heat with an 86.50. Will have to qualify out of semifinal on Saturday at 12:30 AM ET.
  • Ryan Stassel – Ninth best in his heat with an 81.00. Will have to qualify out of semifinal on Saturday at 12:30 AM ET.
  • Ty Walker – Dealing with injuries scored a 1.00 by skipping tricks. That allows her to try again in semifinals though. Will have to qualify out of semifinal on Sunday at 1:30 AM ET.
  • Jamie Anderson – After scoring a 93.50 on her first run she skipped her second and finished second in her heat to advance to the final on Sunday at 4:15 AM ET.
  • Karly Shorr – Scored a 84.75 on her second run to jump into fourth. She held on for the last spot from the heat into the final on Sunday (4:15 AM ET).
  • Jessika Jenson – Second run score of 58.50 was only good enough for seventh in her heat. Will have to qualify out of semifinal on Sunday at 1:30 AM ET.
Daily Previews, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing, Olympics, Snowboarding, Sochi 2014

February 6th – Sochi 2014 – Daily Preview

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It’s the first day of Olympic competition in Sochi (yes I know the opening ceremonies aren’t until Friday evening in Sochi… things start early) and four events in three sports (Snowboarding, Freestyle Skiing, and Figure Skating) will get underway.

All times below are ET.

Freestyle Skiing

Events: Thursday is the start of the women’s moguls competition. It will begin at 9 AM with a qualification round and a 30 athlete field that includes four Americans. Each athlete gets one run and the top ten move into the first round of the final (1 PM Saturday). The other twenty will move into a second qualification round at 9 AM on Saturday morning where they will compete for the final ten spots in the final. Americans Heidi Kloser, Eliza Outtrim, and Heather McPhie will actually be the first three to ski on Thursday while Hannah Kearney will go 20th.

When:

  • Women’s moguls qualification round 1 – 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 freestyle skiing will be included in NBC’s first night of Olympic coverage on Thursday, 8-11 PM ET/PT.

Figure Skating

Events: The debut of the team event begins Thursday morning at 10:30 AM when the men’s short program will be contested. The American team will use Jeremy Abbott and he’ll be 5th up in the short program. The pairs short program will be at 12:10 PM and involves Americans Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir. They will be the sixth pair to skate.

 

Jeremy Abbott will skate for the US in the team figure skating event on Thursday.
Jeremy Abbott will skate for the US in the team figure skating event on Thursday.

nabechiko29 via Compfight cc

The competitors will be ranked 1-10 based on their scores in each event with ten points going to the best, nine to second, and so on. The team with the highest point total at the end will win. After the short programs end on Saturday the bottom five teams will be cut from the competition. The next three rounds will be on Saturday beginning at 9:30 AM.

When:

  • Men’s short program – 10:30 AM
  • Pairs short program – 12:10 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 figure skating will be included in NBC’s first night of Olympic coverage on Thursday, 8-11 PM ET/PT.

Snowboarding

Events: Thursday is the start of the men’s and women’s slopestyle competitions. On the men’s side starting at 1 AM there will be two heats and 29 competitors. Each athlete gets two runs and only their top score counts. The top four athletes move directly into the final (Saturday 3:45 PM) while the rest move into the semifinals (Saturday 12:30 AM) for a second chance at four more spots in the final. Heat one will feature American Chas Guldemond as the tenth competitor while heat two features Sage Kotsenburg seventh and Ryan Stassel 14th.

On the women’s side, starting at 5 AM, the same format is used but there are only 23 competitors. All four of the US athletes are in the second heat (7 AM start time?) with Ty Walker first up, Jamie Anderson sixth, Karly Shorr tenth and Jessika Jenson going eleventh and last. They will hope to reach Sunday’s 4:15 AM final without needing to qualifying out of the semifinal held at 1:30 AM on Sunday first.

When: 

  • Men’s slopestyle qualification – 1 AM
  • Women’s slopestyle qualification – 5 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 first night of Olympic coverage on Thursday, 8-11 PM ET/PT.

Figure Skating, Olympic Previews, Olympics, Sochi 2014

Figure Skating Preview

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The US has won multiple medals in figure skating at every Olympics except for one since 1994. The last time they won more than three though was in 1960. With a new event this year can the US win their most medals in 54 years?

The reigning Olympic men’s gold medalist is an American, but he’s not here this time. The US has been great in the ladies’ event, but they were held without a medal in Vancouver. Ice dancing has become a strong point for the US in recent years, but can the US medal for the third straight Olympics after not medaling in seven straight? If the US can medal in those three events (and that’s a big if of course) then a medal in the team event would give the US four. Certainly a possibility for the US in Sochi…

Figure Skating’s Olympic History

Figure Skating has been a part of the Olympics games longer than the Winter Olympics have existed! The first figure skating competitions were held at the 1908 Summer Olympics and again in the 1920 Summer Olympics. When the first Winter Olympics were held in 1924 men’s singles, ladies’ singles, and pairs events were a part of it and have remained ever since. Ice dancing became an Olympic event in 1976 and the program had remained unchanged since then until the new mixed team event will debut this year.

The US tops the medal chart by quite a bit with 46 medals. Their closest competitor is Russia who has 22 medals. Of course that doesn’t count the medals won by the old Soviet Union (24)  which shows you just how intense the rivalry between the US and Russia/the Soviet Union has been. 92 of the 240 total medals have been won between them. The US has 14 gold medals to the 12 by Russia. With Russia its been pretty make or break… 12 of their 22 medals are gold while the US has been pretty even with 14 golds, 16 silvers, and 16 bronzes.

How the Figure Skating Competitions Work

In mens, ladies, and pairs figure skating the short program is 2 minute and 50 seconds and the free skating is four minutes for ladies and 4 and a half minutes for men and pairs. In the short program there is a list of required elements that must be performed and if you go over the time limit you are penalized. In the free skating you are not, as you might think from the name, free to do whatever elements you want. There is more freedom, but they still restrict the types of elements they want in a program. You are to finish within 10 seconds of the limit either way in free skating.

These programs are scored using the ISU Judging System and to try and explain that in depth would take ages. Just know that there is no “perfect score” in figure skating anymore… this is not going for a perfect 6. Scores will be based on what elements are completed and how well they are executed. Sum the scores from the two parts (short and free) and you have your final scores. In these events the free skating competition will be limited to only the top performers from the short program. In Vancouver this was the Top 24.

Ice dancing uses the same scoring system but doesn’t involve throws and jumps. Think of it as… dancing… on ice. It involves a short dance, which is 1/2 a required pattern and 1/2 your own routine, and a free dance which is more up to the skaters (with the obvious required elements).

This will be the first time the team event is contested at the Olympics. It will involve one man, one woman, one pair, and one ice dancing couple competing in both the short and free routines. Add up the scores from everyone and you’ll have the team score.

US Team

The US Team is composed of two men and three women who will compete individually. There are also two couples who will be competing in the pairs event and three who will be competing in the ice dancing event. Four people on the team are back from Vancouver.

Links are to twitter accounts for the athletes.

US Figure Skating

Men:
Jeremy Abbott*
Jason Brown

Ladies:
Polina Edmunds
Gracie Gold
Ashley Wagner

Pairs:
Nathan Bartholomay & Felicia Zhang
Marissa Castelli & Simon Shnapir

Ice Dancing:
Evan Bates* & Madison Chock
Meryl Davis* & Charlie White*
Alex Shibutani & Maia Shibutani
* – Was on team in Vancouver

A Sochi 2014 Figure Skating list on twitter including all of these athletes

US Team’s Olympic History

Jeremy Abbott competed for the US in the men’s singles event in Vancouver. Abbott fell behind in the short program when he finished 15th but was better in the free program when he finished 9th and was able to pull his total score up enough to finish 9th overall, well behind 8th.

In Vancouver we saw Evan Bates compete in the ice dancing competition, but with a different partner in Emily Samuelson. Their compulsory dance (the event has changed some) routine left them in 14th and out of medal contention. They did improve on that in the original dance portion with an 11th place finish. Then there was a 3rd part, a free dance, where they also finished 11th. They ended up in 11th for their final standings.

Meryl Davis & Charlie White are back for their 2nd straight Olympics and will look to improve on Vancouver, though there isn’t much room for that! They started things off with a 3rd in the compulsory dance and despite finishing 2nd in both the original dance and free dance portions they couldn’t get any higher than 2nd overall.

Schedule

All Times ET, * indicates medals awarded

Thursday, February 6th
10:30 AM – Team Men’s Short Program
12:10 PM – Team Pairs’ Short Program

Saturday, February 8th
9:30 AM – Team Ice Dance Short Dance
11:10 AM – Team Ladies’ Short Program
1:05 PM – Team Pairs’ Free Skating

Sunday, February 9th
10 AM – Team Men’s Free Skating
11:05 AM – Team Ladies’ Free Skating
*12:10 PM – Team Ice Dance Free Dance

Tuesday, February 11th
10 AM – Pairs’ Short Program

Wednesday, February 12th
*10:45 AM – Pairs’ Free Skating

Thursday, February 13th
10 AM – Men’s Short Program

Friday, February 14th
*10 AM – Men’s Free Skating

Sunday, February 16th
10 AM – Ice Dance Short Dance

Monday, February 17th
*10 AM – Ice Dance Free Dance

Wednesday, February 19th
10 AM – Ladies’ Short Program

Thursday, February 20th
*10 AM – Ladies’ Free Skating

Saturday, February 22nd
11:30 AM – Gala Exhibition

US Team’s Recent World Championship History

The World Figure Skating Championship is held every year with the most recent in March 2013 in London, England.

Two of the ladies’ singles team competed in the World Championship. Ashley Wagner was 5th after the short program while Gracie Gold was in 9th. Wagner was 6th in the free program but still finished 5th overall while Gold was 5th in the free program and ended up 6th overall.

In the pairs’ event one of the US Olympic couples, Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir, competed and finished 13th in the short program and 12th in the free program to end up 13th overall.

Ice dancing is the most interesting to look at as all three US Olympic couples, Evan Bates & Madison Chock, Meryl Davis & Charlie White, and Alex Shibutani & Maia Shibutani, took part. The Shibutanis came in 8th in the short dance and 9th in the free dance to place 8th overall. Chock and Bates finished 7th in the short dance and 6th in the free dance but ended up 7th overall. Finally, Davis and White were the top couple in both the short dance and free dance to take home the gold medal. Davis and White were the only Americans to medal at the World Championship.

US Olympic History

The US as a country has won the men’s singles competition seven times, but only once since 1988. That was just four years ago when Evan Lysacek ended a Russian run that had reached four Olympics in a row. The US only has one bronze and one silver in addition to Lysacek’s gold since 1988. 

The US has had seven gold medals as well on the ladies’ side, but their success has been more recent with 3 of the 5 gold medal winners from 1992-2002 coming from the US. The last two Olympics have not been kind for the US though as Sasha Cohen’s silver in Torino is the only medal for the US. In Vancouver the US was held without a medal on the ladies’ side for the first time since 1964; though Mirai Nagasu came close, finishing in 4th.

The US has never won the pairs competition and all three of their silver medals were won by 1984. The last US pair to medal, Jill Watson and Peter Oppegard, won bronze in 1988. In Vancouver the top scoring US team of Amanda Evora/Mark Ladwig finished in 10th.

For many years ice dancing was perhaps the hardest figure skating event for the US to medal in. After grabbing a bronze in the debut of the event in 1976 the US did not win another medal until 2006. Now the US has won 2 straight silver medals and is looking to grab that elusive gold in Sochi. Meryl Davis and Charlie White are back for their 2nd straight Olympics after grabbing the silver in Vancouver.

The new team event has no Olympic history so far.