Every afternoon, Olympic enthusiast Drew Berner tracks the talking points from the the day’s competitions. Here’s our recap of day seven at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games.
Jeff Carter Hat Trick Leads Canada Over Austria
If you were fretting over the Canadian men’s hockey team’s 3-1 win over Norway yesterday, you need to chill out—Canada beat a superior Austrian team 6-0 Friday on the strength of a natural hat trick by B-lister Jeff Carter and two more goals by Canadian defensemen. Roberto Luongo didn’t have to work hard for the shutout, but he was as good as he needed to be, turning aside 23 shots. Corey Perry was awarded a penalty shot in the second period, but fired his shot right into the glove of Austrian keeper Bernhard Starkbaum. Canada faces its first true test against Finland, bronze medal-winners at the 2010 Games, on Sunday at noon Eastern.
Patrick Chan Settles for Silver
The ice must have been extra slippery during Friday’s men’s free skate, as some of the world’s best figure skaters struggled to stay on their feet. Patrick Chan and Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu were about four points apart after Thursday’s short program, a not-insurmountable deficit for Chan, but Hanyu edged out Chan even after falling and stumbing throughout his free skate. Chan should have been able to close the gap but had too many slip-ups of his own. Kazakhstan’s Denis Ten won his country’s first medal in Sochi after jumping from ninth to third between the short program and free skate.
Russia Allegedly Cheating in Luge Now
Allegations of Russian corruption are usually confined to figure skating, but now the coach of Canada’s luge team is claiming its disappointing fourth-place finish in luge relay was due to Russia tampering with the track. After Canada finished fourth by just a tenth of a second, Coach Wolfgang Staudinger pointed out that the Canadian team seemed to lose speed on its way down the track, suggesting that someone had raised the temperature of the ice surface to slow it down. Staudinger claims Russia manipulated the rankings so its team could race earlier, while Canada raced second-last out of 12 teams. For what its worth, Canada’s competitors admitted they hadn’t raced as well as they could have, but it’s much more fun to think the Russians, threatened by little ol’ Canada, tried to tip the scales just a little bit.
Mellissa Hollingsworth Retires Headfirst from Skeleton
The star of Canada’s women’s skeleton finished well off the podium, but her blistering final run—second-best behind gold medalist Elizabeth Yarnold of Great Britain—was a display of speed that will give Canadians something to remember. Hollingsworth won a bronze medal back at the 2006 Games in Torino, and was poised to win silver in Vancouver before taking some huge risks that didn’t pan out and landing in fifth. Her final bow in Sochi opens the door for teammate Sarah Reid, who finished seventh and looks to have a bright career ahead.
‘Ugly Americans’ Strike Again in Sochi
We’ve already heard their displeasure with figure skating judges, the downhill ski course, the snowboard halfpipe, but now American skeleton competitor and fourth-place finisher Katie Uhlaender celebrated her finish by dumping on her Russian rival. In a post-race interview with the BBC, Uhlaender offered this analysis of bronze medalist Elena Nikitina’s effort: “No offence, but her run was horrible…She got lucky.” We won’t hold our breath while we wait for Uhlaender’s critique of her own performance.
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