Every afternoon, Olympic enthusiast Drew Berner tracks the talking points from the the day’s competitions. Here’s our recap of day three at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games.
Charles Hamelin Wins Canada’s Second Gold
Canada’s medal haul got a little heavier Monday as short track speed skating hero Charles Hamelin powered his way to a gold medal. Hamelin is the short-track skater to beat in these games, having won two golds in Vancouver—a result he called “disappointing”—and has a good chance to medal in all four events in which he competes. He skates again Thursday in the 1,000m heats and men’s 5,000m relay.
Bilodeau Dominates in Historic Mogul Run
No skier has ever won back-to-back Olympic gold in moguls, but no other skier in history was named Alex Bilodeau. The Montreal resident took the gold medal by a mile, saving the most impressive run of the competition for the final round and scoring a spectacular 26.31, more than a point and a half ahead of fellow countryman and silver medalist Mikael Kingsbury. Russian Alexandr Smyshlyaev edged out another Canadian, Marc-Antoine Gagnon, for the bronze medal. Watch your back, Sidney Crosby, there’s a new Canadian hero in town.
US Snowboarder Complains About ‘Garbage’ Halfpipe
American athletes sure haven’t been shy about sharing their complaints during these Games—Bode Miller suggested the downhill skiing course was unsafe before finishing eighth; Ashley Wagner called her figure skating score “B-S”—so it’s not surprising American snowboarder Danny Davis is letting everyone know he doesn’t like the condition of the halfpipe. A Yahoo report quoted other boarders calling it “garbage” and “unsalvageable,” while Davis said it was “a lame way to treat the athletes.” Do we sense another Cold War coming on?
NHL Players Starting to Land in Sochi
We can stop holding our breath—the NHLers have landed! Busloads of Canadian hockey players started arriving in Sochi late Monday afternoon and hit the ice for a practice at 8 p.m. local time. The team’s first skate revealed some interesting line combinations—NHL teammates were paired together, banking on chemistry to balance out jet lag. While there’s a strong chance the NHL won’t allow its players to compete again in 2018, Team Canada general manager Steve Yzerman defended the inclusion of NHL players in the Olympics, noting it’s prime opportunity for the league to promote itself internationally.
Sochi Can’t Remember What Season It’s Supposed to Be
Are we sure these are the Winter Olympics? ‘Cause it sure looks a lot like summer in Sochi right now. The temperature peaked at 16 degrees Celsius Monday—people were spotted wearing T-shirts and eating ice cream near the Olympic venues—and could get even warmer throughout the week. Please, stay cool, Russia.
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