Newsman: The search for gold continues at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The most dominant performances of the Games to date for Team USA have been in women’s hockey. A highly anticipated showdown with Canada has finally arrived with both teams sporting 3-0 records in the opening round.
The men’s individual figure skating competition begins, but one of the American medal contenders won’t be on the ice. After helping the U.S. win silver in the team event on Monday, Vincent Zhou tested positive for coronavirus and is out of the men’s competition. Five-time national champion Nathan Chen will be the USA’s best hope for a medal.
Chinese-American Eileen Gu thrilled the crowd in her adopted home country with a stellar final run to win the gold medal in the women’s Big Air freestyle skiing competition. The San Francisco resident is competing for China, where her mother grew up.
Meanwhile athletes are speaking out about the conditions they faced or observed in quarantine hotels in China used by athletes who test positive while at the 2022 Winter Olympics. They described “inedible meals,” little or no access to training equipment and a confusing and at times seemingly illogical COVID-19 testing regime.
Short track speed skater Natalia Maliszewska of Poland tested positive for coronavirus on Jan. 30, when she was ruled out of Saturday’s qualifying race for the 500 meters, her strongest event. But Maliszewska was unexpectedly released from isolation on the eve of the race, only to test positive a few hours before it started and was immediately ushered back into quarantine. The next day – Sunday, the day after the qualifying event – she was released after again testing negative.
“My heart can’t take it,” Maliszewska wrote in an Instagram post.
Russian biathlete Valeria Vasnetsova used Instagram to complain about the food she received in her quarantine facility. On Feb. 3 she posted an image of what she claimed was “breakfast, lunch and dinner for five days already.” The photo consisted of some plain pasta, charred meat, an orange-looking sauce and no apparent vegetables.
Eileen Gu wins gold
Eileen Gu, the 18-year old freestyle skiier who grew up in San Francisco but competes for China, won the gold medal Tuesday in the inaugural Olympic Big Air event with a spectacular trick on her third and final attempt.
With her place on the podium secured, Gu went for a trick she had never successfully landed in either competition or practice — a left double 1620 that requires 4 1/2 rotations in the air — and absolutely nailed it as the Chinese fans at Big Air Shougang screamed.
Gu could hardly contain her emotions, dropping to her knees and putting her hands behind her head., her score of 94.50 was posted on the video board, confirming that she had moved into first place.
Gu, who is also a fashion model associated with roughly two dozen ad campaigns in China surrounding these Olympics, came into the Games with big expecdtations and a chance to medal in three events. She more than delivered in her first performance.
U.S. skier Nina O’Brien
Nina O’Brien has a compound fracture of her left tibia and fibula and will be taken back to the United States for further treatment.
O’Brien had initial surgery at a hospital in Yanqing, near the Alpine ski venue, after a gruesome crash Monday afternoon in the second run of the giant slalom.
“I had surgery last night to stabilize my tibia, which unfortunately was an open fracture through my leg,” O’Brien said in an Instagram post Tuesday. “I’ll get the rest fixed at home, but for now I’m in great hands. I want to say thank you to everyone who’s taken care of me, especially those who rushed to me in the finish and my doctors and nurses in Yanqing.”
O’Brien crashed just short of the finish line. Skiing at top speed, she lost her balance at the second-to-last gate. Her legs flew wide, and she tumbled past the last gate and into the finish line.
“Well, I gave everything I had, and maybe too much,” O’Brien said in her Instagram post. “I keep replaying it in my head, wishing I’d skied those last few gates differently. But here we are.”
O’Brien had been the top U.S. woman in the giant slalom after Shiffrin skied out, finishing sixth in the first run. She was also supposed to compete in Wednesday’s slalom event, and will be replaced by fellow American A.J. Hurt.
speedskater Casey Dawson
A fiasco with COVID-19 testing left American speedskater Casey Dawson unable to compete in the 5,000 meter event at the Winter Olympics — and stuck stateside — but he was determined to participate in his first Olympic Games no matter what and no matter how late he arrived.
Dawson had been set to compete in his first Olympics before testing positive for COVID almost four weeks ago. He thought he would be able to clear two negative tests in time to travel, and he did do that. But he learned he would need four and to get them from a different lab, something that delayed his travel until Sunday.
Dawson embarked on a trek that would take him from Salt Lake City to Atlanta to Paris and then finally to Beijing, all in less than two days. Having already missed the 5,000 meters, Dawson is racing to get here in time for the 1,500 later Tuesday here in China.
Dawson logged his journey on Instagram, and he arrived in Beijing around 7 a.m. One problem – his bags didn’t.
Dawson told NBC’s Gadi Schwartz that he had all he needed to race in his carry on, except for his blades.
Dawson made it to the village by 10 a.m. local time, but his luggage had not yet made it to him.
“My blades are actually in my suit case, and kind of need those to skate,” he said.
Dawson is still awaiting the results of his COVID test upon arrival at the airport. Once cleared, he’ll have a matter of hours to get ready for the 1,500.
Yuzuru Hanyu
Yuzuru Hanyu of Japan is the two-time defending champion in Olympic men’s figure skating, winning gold medals in Sochi (2014) and Pyeongchang (2018).
Hanyu suffered a sprained ligament in his right ankle from a fall in practice on Nov. 9, and did not compete in any of the Grand Prix figure skating events this fall. But he shouldn’t be counted out.
He’ll compete against American Nathan Chen and others in the men’s figure skating short program on Tuesday. Hanyu is scheduled to skate at 12:19 p.m. in Beijing (11:19 p.m. ET, Monday).
Nathan Chen
It’s a big day for Nathan Chen. The presumptive gold-medal favorite will take the ice in Beijing on Tuesday (Monday in the U.S.) for the first half of the individual competition. He’ll be performing his short program, set to “La Boheme” by Charles Aznavour, just after midnight on the East Coast.
Chen, 22, had a near-flawless performance with this same program a few days ago, setting a new season-best en route to a victory in the team competition. But this event, the short program, is also the one that doomed him in 2018.
Chen’s primary competition will come from Japanese skaters Yuzuru Hanyu and Shoma Uno, who finished first and second respectively in Pyeongchang. Hanyu is a two-time defending gold medalist. He’s struggled with injuries this season and was a dramatic late arrival to the practice rink on Monday.
Vincent Zhou out of men’s figure skating competition
U.S. figure skater Vincent Zhou said in an Instagram post on Monday he has to withdraw from the individual event after testing positive for COVID-19.
In a five-minute video, an emotional Zhou said he tested positive as part of a routine COVID screening and then got additional testing. He said it was “pretty unreal that of all the people, it would happen to myself,”
Zhou was expected to compete in the individual competition, starting with the men’s short program. He will not be replaced in the men’s individual event.
