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Vancouver Sportsline: Your Olympic Sports Destination
The Games of the XXI Winter Olympiad have begun, and this is Olympia's Vancouver Sportsline.
Here, we cover the Olympic Winter Games from a more digested, sports-oriented standpoint. Get the latest results from
all the major events, check current standings in tournaments and competitions, and see the overall medal standings.
Oh, and for those of you who can't get enough hockey, you will find the current NHL standings here as well.
Check back often for the latest results, and enjoy the games!
Headlines
ALPINE
SKIING - Men's Super-G Recap
2/19/2010
Taking to the slopes again on Friday, Bode
Miller once again reminded the world that it has been a long time since Torino. Miller, a longtime American
star who failed to take a single medal in 2006, claimed his second medal of the games in the Super-G.
The Vancouver games continue to be a success
for Norweigan skier Aksel Lund Svindal. Svindal, who has had difficulty cracking the top five in
the FIS this season, should have no trouble doing so after Vancouver, where he claimed his second medal, and first gold,
on Friday.
Miller's incredible run was enough to net
him his second medal of the games, silver this time. While hopes were high for American Torino medalist Ted
Ligety to take home his first medal of the games, the other US medal performance was that of Andrew Weibrecht, who skiied
his way to bronze. Ligety ended in 19th place.
SPEED
SKATING - Ladies' 1000m Recap
2/18/2010
Heading into the ladies’
1000m Thursday night, Canada had yet to win gold in the Richmond Oval. But the
night belonged to the host nation, with Canadian star Christine Nesbitt taking her first gold of the games.
Following a fall in the
ladies’ 500m, Annette Gerritsen put in an excellent run, taking the lead from Nao Kodaira of Japan. Nesbitt followed, and put in a hard-fought run to land in first by two tenths of a second racing alongside
Monique Angermuller of Germany.
Last was Canadian Kristina
Groves, paired with Margot Boer of the Netherlands. Boer skated a strong race,
but was unable to breach the top three. In the end, Nesbitt took the gold, with Dutch skaters Gerritsen and Laurine
van Reissen taking silver and bronze, respectively.
FIGURE
SKATING- Men's Free Skate
2/18/2010
It all came down to Thursday
night. The United States sought to end its 22-year drought in men’s figure
skating, with American Evan Lysacek entering the free skate in second place, trailing defending gold medalist Yevgeni Plushenko
of Russia. Plushenko sought to become the first man to win back-to-back gold
since Dick Button. But the night belonged to the United States, as Evan Lysacek
skated to America’s first gold in men’s figure skating since 1988.
Lysacek skated near the end of the program, and put in
an exceptional performance, clean and clear, showing amazing confidence. Plushenko, however, seemed to be showing his
age. His peformance was...bizarre, and highly uncharacteristic, while his jumps were also uncharacteristic: shaky and
off-balance. Ultimately, it was Lysacek's spit-and-polish that earned the gold.
Johnny Wier of the United States also turned in a good
performance, but his mechanics were, as always, severely lacking, and insufficient to make him a medal contender. Plushenko's
performance, replete with a quad jump, was sufficient for silver. Japanese skater Daisuke Takahashi fell during his
peformance, but bouyed by his exceptional short program, managed to score high enough to snag bronze. His medal was
his nation's first in men's figure skating.
SHORT
TRACK - Men's 1000m Heats Recap
2/17/2010
Apolo Ohno was back on
the track Wednesday night, hoping to set himself on course for another medal in Vancouver in the men’s 1000m race.
American Travis Jayner
turned in an excellent performance in his first heat, taking the lead over Chinese skater, but ultimately losing the position.
Ohno skated next, taking
the top spot with two laps to go by executing an excellent pass of China’s Liang Wenghao.
Celski ran in the third
heat. In a heated race, Celski eked out a qualifying position, passing Peter
Geisle with seconds to go.
SPEED SKATING - Men's 1000m Recap
2/17/2010
Amidst a crowded field
Wednesday night, American Shani Davis was racing to defend his gold medal. Much
has changed in four years, but at least one thing has not: Shani Davis is the fastest 1000m skater in the world.
Hedrick skated first, paired
with 500m gold medalist Mo Tae-Bum. Though Hedrick put in an excellent time,
it was Mo who lit up the track, taking the top time over Hedrick by more than two tenths of a second. Next was Finn Mika Poutala, paired against [] of Korea. Poutala
edged out Lee, but neither got close to Mo or Hedrick.
Next up, Canadian Denny
Morrison was paired with Mark Tuitert. Tuitert won the pairing, though again
neither could catch the leaders. Last came Shani Davis, paired with Korean Mun
Joon. This pairing was no contest…nor was the competition, all told. Davis’s run was an awesome display of athletic power, smoking Mun and easily
defending his Torino gold. Mo of Korea managed to claim silver, Hedrick took
bronze.
SNOWBOARDNG - Men's Halfpipe Recap
2/17/2010
As always, in the halfpipe
competition all eyes were on American Shaun White. Possibly the greatest innovator
in the sport, White faced stiff competition, not only from other Americans, but from Finnish and Japanese snowboard leaders. White, however, once again lived up to the hype, and brought home another halfpipe
gold.
The first man out, American
Louie Vito, landed an impressive front-side double cork, but took a slip on his second jump, setting up an uphill battle in
a competition that promised to be unforgiving. Next up was White, who turned
in a solid performance, though clearly saving his best tricks for later. White’s
score, a 45.8, was more than enough for a commanding lead heading into the finals.
On his second run, Vito
landed the switch double cork he’d botched earlier, taking a score of 41.8, landing him in the finals. White then took his second run, using it as something of a warm-up, taking a slight spill though his finals
position was assured.
In the finals, Scotty Lago
was the first American out. He had an excellent run, topped by a 1080 double
cork into a switch and a backside 900, for a score of 42.8.
Greg Bretz ran next, performing
a double cork but wiping out during a 1080 maneuver, unable to complete the rotation.
Markus Malin of Finland ran next, and wiped out on his second double cork maneuver.
Lago turned in an excellent
final program, setting the bar high for Kokubo, who wiped out on a modified double cork.
Next up was Peetu Piiroinen of Finland, who turned in a strong competition, with an uncharacteristic big double cork,
for a score of 40.8, placing him on the podium for the moment.
Next up was Shaun White,
who again ran conservatively, but that alone made for an impressive run, sporting a remarkably high double cork-switch combination,
finishing with a backside 900. With a score of 46.8, White was left in an almost
unbeatable position.
ALPINE
SKIING - Ladies' Downhill Recap
2/17/2010
After much delay, Wednesday
at last saw sunny skies…and the much-anticipated Vancouver debut of America’s Lindsey Vonn
First out for the Americans
was Stacy Cook. Cook had a decent run, and took an early lead by three tenths. Next up was Elizabeth Goergl of Austria, who took the lead by more than a second. However, Torino gold medalist Julia Mancuso quickly bumped off Goergl, putting in
a very aggressive run and taking the lead by nearly a second.
Then…there was Vonn. Taking a fast start, Vonn attacked the course, showcasing her strength and skill,
and after a spectacular final jump claimed first place by more than half a second.
Course conditions, rough
and fast, led to many crashes over the course of the competition. Anja Paerson
of Sweden was one of the most notables, taking a serious crash on the final jump after a hesitant run. Heading into the jump, Paerson showed signs of instability, but was unable to steady herself in time. The impact snapped her left ski before launching her forward.
Maria Riesch of Germany
was the final serious contender. Riesch turned in an unstable run, showing an
inability to control her course which forced her to ski too far behind pace to contend for a medal. Following a hesitant, but safe run, she fell into eighth place.
Ultimately, the US went one and two: Vonn with gold, Mancuso silver, and Austrian Goergl with bronze.
FIGURE
SKATING - Men's Short Program Recap
2/16/2010
One of the most anticipated
men’s figure skating competitions kicked off with a bang Tuesday night in Vancouver.
The short program didn’t disappoint, and set a clear tone for the coming free skate on Wednesday.
Skating first, defending
gold medalist Yevgeni Plushenko of Russia set the pace, throwing up the first quad-jump of the games. However, his choreography was characteristically stiff, leaving the door open for those who followed.
American Johnny Wier turned
in an excellent performance, with fluid, imaginative choreography and solid jumps. However,
the story of the night was Evan Lysacek, whose combination of crisp choreography and excellent jumping ability landed him
in second to Plushenko. While both Wier and Lysacek were expected to contend,
Japanese skater Daisuke Takahashi landed in third for the short program, after an inspired performance with excellent choreography.
Where there was triumph,
there was also disappointment. Swiss skater Stephan Lambiel, a Torino veteran,
slipped during his performance. While American Jeremy Abbott didn’t fall
outright, he missed a jump, and minimized two, losing enough points to place him well out of qualification for the free skate. Italian Samuel Contesti fell twice during his performance, removing him from medal
contention.
The night ended with Plushenko of Russia in first, followed closely by Lysacek and Takahashi, setting up a three-way
showdown for gold Thursday night.
SNOWBOARD - Ladies'
Snowboardcross Recap
2/16/2010
In ladies’
snowboardcross tonight, the story was supposed to be one of redemption: American Lindsey Jacobellis, whose celebratory jump
in Torino cost her the gold, was racing for the medal she missed in 2006. But
the real story was that of the home nation, Canada, and their second gold on home soil, claimed by Maille Ricker.
Jacobellis again
shocked the world, this time by sliding out of the course during the small final run, missing the finals altogether. Ricker, on the other hand, dominated the competition, winning the final run by a wide
margin.
Her gold marks only
the second gold Canada has won on home soil, the first being that of freestyle skier Alexandre Bilodeau, who took the men’s
moguls on Sunday. In the snowboardcross final, French snowboarder Deborah Anthonoiz
took silver, and Olivia Nobs of Switzerland took bronze. Jacobellis finished
in fifth place, behind Helene Olafsen, who fell on the final run.
Ice Hockey
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| Ice Hockey - Vancouver 2010 |
Ice Hockey - Men's Tournament
2/22/2010
Group A
Group B
Group C
Ice Hockey - Women's Tournament
2/16/2010
Group A
Group B
Ice Skating
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| Speed Skating - Vancouver 2010 |
Ladies' Speed Skating 1500m (2/21/2010)
Men's Speed Skating 1500m (2/20/2010)
Men's Speed Skating 1000m (2/17/2010)
Ladies' Speed Skating 1000m (2/18/2010)
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| Short Track Speed Skating - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's 1000m
2/20/2010
Ladies' 1500m
2/20/2010
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| Figure Skating - Vancouver 2010 |
Ice Dancing (Final)
Free Dance - 2/22/2010
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G Tessa Virtue
Scott Moir
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S Meryl Davis
Charlie White
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B Oksana Domnina
Maxim Shabalin
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4 Tanith Belbin
Benjamin Agosto
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5 Federica Faiella
Massimo Scali
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6 Isabelle Delobel
Olivier Schoenfelder
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7 Nathalie Pechalat
Fabian Bourzat
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9 Jana Khokhlova
Sergei Novitski
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10 Alexandra Zaretsky
Roman Zaretsky
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Men's Figure Skating
2/18/2010
Pairs Figure Skating
2/15/2010
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B Aliona Savchenko
Robin Szolkowy
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4 Yuko Kavaguti
Alexander Smirnov
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6 Jessica Dube
Bryce Davison
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7 Maria Mukhortova
Maxim Trankov
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8 Tatiana Volosozhar
Stanislav Morozov
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9 Annabelle Langlois
Cody Hay
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10 Amanda Evora
Mark Ladwig
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Vancouver 2010
Sportsline
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Alpine Skiing
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| Alpine Skiing - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Super Combined (2/21/2010)
Men's Super-G (2/19/2010)
Men's Downhill (2/15/2010)
Ladies' Super Combined (2/18/2010)
Ladies' Downhill
(2/17/2010)
Snowboard
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| Snowboard Halfpipe - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Halfpipe (2/17/2010)
Ladies' Halfpipe (2/18/2010)
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| Snowboardcross - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Snowboardcross (2/15/2010)
Ladies' Snowboardcross (2/16/2010)
Freestyle Skiing
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| Freestyle Moguls - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Moguls (2/14/2010)
Ladies' Moguls (2/13/2010)
Cross Country Skiing
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| Cross Country - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Individual Sprint Classic (2/17/2010)
Ladies' Individual Sprint Classic (2/17/2010)
Ski Jumping
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| Ski Jumping - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Normal Hill (2/13/2010)
Sliding
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| Skeleton - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Skeleton (2/19/2010)
Women's Skeleton (2/19/2010)
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| Luge - Vancouver 2010 |
Men's Double Luge (2/17/2010)
Women's Single Luge (2/16/2010)
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