Laura Dahlmeier chasing Olympic history in PyeongChang

By Associated PressFeb 14, 2018, 3:30 PM EST

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PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) — Laura Dahlmeier’s pursuit of history will have to wait a day.

The 24-year-old biathlete is on the verge of becoming the first female German since the country’s unification in 1990 to win three gold medals at a single Olympics, winter or summer.

NBCOlympics.com: Women’s individual biathlon postponed because of wind

Dahlmeier has already won the first two biathlon events, the sprint and the pursuit. However, the 15-kilometer individual race has been rescheduled for Thursday because of high winds that have plagued the Pyeongchang Olympics.

BAM OIDA! ðŸ’¥ðŸ˜‰ Second race, second gold medal - I am speechless! âœŒ #bettertobefAst #iwerdnarrisch #freudensprung #LightThatFire #WirfuerD #sohappy #koitwars #lieblingsrennen

A post shared by Laura_Dahlmeier (@laura_dahlmeier) on Feb 12, 2018 at 4:54am PST

The event will now take place prior to the men’s individual race.

It’s early yet, but there are already rumblings in Pyeongchang about Dahlmeier challenging American speedskater Eric Heiden’s record of five gold medals in a single Winter Olympics. Dahlmeier won five events at the world championships last year, so it’s certainly possible.

With a win Tuesday she will become only the fourth biathlete to win three gold medals at a single Winter Games, joining Germany’s Michael Gries, Norway’s Ole Einar Bjoerndalen and Belarus’ Darya Domracheva.

Read the rest of the story here and catch up on the rest of the biathlon action

Coco Gauff into French Open quarterfinals, where Iga Swiatek may await

By OlympicTalkJun 5, 2023, 11:52 AM EDT

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Coco Gauff swept into the French Open quarterfinals, where she could play Iga Swiatek in a rematch of last year’s final.

Gauff, the sixth seed, beat 100th-ranked Slovakian Anna Karolina Schmiedlova 7-5, 6-2 in the fourth round. She next plays Swiatek or 66th-ranked Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko, who meet later Monday.

Gauff earned a 37th consecutive win over a player ranked outside the top 50, dating to February 2022. She hasn’t faced a player in the world top 60 in four matches at Roland Garros, but the degree of difficulty is likely to ratchet up in Wednesday’s quarterfinals.

Swiatek won all 12 sets she’s played against Gauff, who at 19 is the only teenager in the top 49 in the world.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Women | Men | Broadcast Schedule

Also Monday, No. 7 seed Ons Jabeur of Tunisia dispatched 36th-ranked American Bernarda Pera 6-3, 6-1, breaking all eight of Pera’s service games.

Jabeur, runner-up at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open last year, has now reached the quarterfinals of all four majors.

Jabeur next faces 14th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia, who won 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-5 over Spaniard Sara Sorribes Tormo, who played on a protected ranking of 68. Haddad Maia became the second Brazilian woman to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal in the Open Era (since 1968) after Maria Bueno, who won seven majors from 1959-1966.

Pera, a 28 year-old born in Croatia, was the oldest U.S. singles player to make the fourth round of a major for the first time since Jill Craybas at 2005 Wimbledon. Her defeat left Gauff as the lone American singles player remaining out of the 35 entered in the main draws.

The last American to win a major singles title was Sofia Kenin at the 2020 Australian Open. The 11-major drought matches the longest in history (since 1877) for American men and women combined.

In the men’s draw, 2022 French Open runner-up Casper Ruud reached the quarterfinals by beating 35th-ranked Chilean Nicolas Jarry 7-6 (3), 7-5, 7-5.

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U.S. earns first three-peat in Para hockey world championship history

By OlympicTalkJun 5, 2023, 8:49 AM EDT

International Paralympic Committee

The U.S. trounced rival Canada 6-1 to become the first nation to three-peat in world Para hockey championship history.

Tournament MVP Declan Farmer scored twice, and Josh Misiewicz, David Eustace, Jack Wallace and Kevin McKee added goals. Jen Lee made eight saves in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, on Sunday.

Farmer, who had nine goals in five games for the tournament, also scored twice in Paralympic final wins over Canada in 2018 and 2022 and the last world championship final against Canada in 2021. Farmer, 25, already owns the career national team record of more than 250 points.

The U.S. beat Canada in a third consecutive world final dating to 2019, but this was the most lopsided gold-medal game in championship history. The U.S. also won the last four Paralympic titles dating to 2010.

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