Kyle Fitzgerald

PyeongChang late night roundup

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The final gold medalist of these 2018 Winter Olympic Games was a familiar one, and so too is the country which she represents.

Norway’s Marit Bjoergen dominated the field in a sport that she has stood at the top of for years, winning the women’s 30km mass start in just over 80 minutes – almost two minutes ahead of the silver medalist. Bjoergen is the most decorated Winter Olympian of all time with 15 medals.

Another expected gold medalist, OAR, also did the job today. But in much more dramatic fashion. The Olympic Athletes from Russia looked down and out late in the third period of regulation against Germany, but were able to capture the gold in stunning fashion.


Hockey: OAR win gold in overtime 

With just a minute left in regulation, it looked as if Germany were going to claim the most stunning win of the century. Trailing 2-3 and down a player in the power play, Nikita Gusev flicked the puck into the German net to force overtime.

OAR def. GER 4-3 (OT): Highlights

Halfway into overtime, it was OAR’s turn to go up a man on a power play. Kirill Kaprizov was the man who scored the winning goal and secured the gold medal.

OAR vs. GER full recap available here 

Cross-Country: Bjoergen wins 15th overall Winter Olympics medal 

37 year-old Marit Bjoergen dominated the women’s 30km mass start field to win her 15th overall Winter Olympics medal. The Norwegian was on her own for nearly the entire race.

Austria’s Teresa Stadlober was in a commanding position to win the silver medal until the 20th kilometer, where she strayed onto the wrong section of the course. Whether it was a lapse in combination or a mix of mental and psychological exhaustion, the Austrian’s race took a dive from there, finishing in ninth place.

Krista Parmakoski of Finland led the chase to win the silver, whilst Sweden’s Stina Nilsson outsprinted Ingvild Oestberg to win the bronze.

Jessie Diggins, who will be the flag bearer for the U.S. in the Closing Ceremony, finished in seventh place. This was likely Diggins’ final Olympic race.

Women’s 30km mass start full recap available here 

PyeongChang late night roundup

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It was a terrific ending for the Olympic curling tournament. The U.S. men’s team defied all odds by upsetting Sweden in the final 10-7. Buoyed by John Shuster’s double take out in the eighth end, the United States all but assured gold at 10-5 up.

On the night that the United States won its ninth gold medal during these Olympic Games, Finland won its first. Cross-country skier Livo Niskanen outpaced the rest of the 50 man field in the 17th kilometer. OAR skier Alexander Bolushnov gave him a fight in the final kilometers, but he too was eventually left behind.


Curling: USA wins first-ever curling gold 

The USA men’s curling team’s improbable Olympic run has concluded in glory. John Shuster’s squad looked like they were in control from the very onset of the match, forcing Sweden to make errors. The highlight of the match: Shuster’s final stone in the eighth end to put the USA well out of reach with a 10-5 lead.

The United States started competition 2-4 and looked well out of contention to make the playoffs, but an incredible run of three wins saw them get into the playoffs on the final day.

Recap: USA men’s curling wins Olympic gold 

The USA weren’t the only surprise medal winners today. Japan won the country’s first-ever Olympic medal after defeating Great Britain.

It all came down to two steals from Japan in the final two ends, with Briton skip Eve Muirhead missing her final stone to give the victory to Japan.

Men’s Tournamenet

USA def. SWE 10-7

Women’s Tournament

JPN def. GBR 5-3

Cross-Country: Niskanen wins men’s 50km 

Finnish skier Livo Niskanen’s pace was too much for nearly the entire field on Friday night. The Finn broke from the pack, along with Alexey Poltoranen, in the 17th kilometer and continued to stay out front. After Poltoranen ran out of gas, it was OAR athlete Alexander Bolushnov who erased a 30 second gap to challenge the Finn.

It wasn’t until the last kilometre that a seemingly-fatigued Niskanen made his final move to brush of Bolushnov to cross the finish line.

It was a very disappointing day for the Norwegians, who’ve dominated the sport this year. Not one Norwegian landed on the podium, including gold medal favorite Martin Sundsby.

Full men’s 50km recap available here 

Speed Skating: Takagi, Lee win inaugural mass start 

Making its Olympic debut, the speed skating mass start proved to be an erratic event as several skaters collided and crashed out of the competition.

The final race is simple: first three skaters to cross the finish line win the medals.

Estonia’s Saskia Alusalu made the initial burst of energy in the race, but was caught up to in the final three laps. The women’s champion was decided by a final sprint, when Japan’s Nana Takagi beat world champion Kim Bo-Reum and Irene Schouten.

Women’s mass start recap available here 

Lee Song-Hoon won the men’s tournament, ensuring that the speed skating program would not have as sour an ending as the short track. Unlike the women’s race, the men’s skaters stuck together as a train for most of the race until the final three laps.

In the end, Lee came in with too much speed to be overtaken by any of the chasing competitors.

Men’s mass start recap available here 

PyeongChang late night roundup

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Curling: Switzerland win bronze

It’s an historic loss for Canada, who just completely slid off the tail end in the latter stages of this tournament. For the first time since curling was reestablished in 1998, no Canadian team has reached the podium.

Switzerland defeated Canada 7-5, after they knocked out two of Canada’s stones in the final end to ensure that Canada could not make up that two point gap.

Men’s Tournament

SUI def. CAN 7-5

Hockey: OAR advance to gold medal match

Czech Republic looked liked the only team that could slow the Athletes from Russia down as they head into the first intermission at 0-0.

It was Nikita Gusev who put OAR up front eight minutes into the second period, assisted by Pavel Datsyuk, before Vladislav Gavrikov doubled their lead a minute later.

OAR now await to play the winner of Canada and Germany in the final.

Men’s Tournament

OAR def. CZE 3-0

Speed Skating: Mantia just misses out on medal 

The American men had another rough day in speed skating, failing to medal in the 1000m.

Joey Mantia briefly held the top spot with a time of 1:08.64, but then the next two races saw Kim Tae-yun and Havard Lorentzen pass him. Mantia continued to hold onto that bronze medal spot until the inevitable happened: a Dutch skater won gold.

This time it was Kjeld Nuis who won the gold, setting a time of 1:07.96.

Shani Davis, who set the world record for the 1000m back in 2009, came in seventh. Mitchell Whitmore finished in 10th.

Full speed skating recap available here 

Biathlon: Sweden win gold in men’s relay

Sweden shot the best on a very windy evening in PyeongChang and were rewarded for it, winning the men’s 4×7.5km relay. Sebastien Samuelsson put Sweden in the lead alongside Norway in the final leg. Fredrik Lindstroem and Emile Svendsen were tasked with anchoring their teams, but it was Lindstroem who shot the best, taking a near one minute lead in the final few kilometers of the race to secure the gold for Sweden.

Full biathlon recap available here