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Veteran sportswriter Richard Deitsch takes an international view of the Olympics.
The program began at 4:51 p.m. ET. It ended at 4:56 p.m. ET. What happened in those five minutes was the most shocking sequence so far at the Milano-Cortina Games. Ilia Malinin, the greatest male figure skater in the world, The Quad God, the surest bet for gold among all American athletes, fell apart on the ice in front of a standing room only crowd at the Milano Ice Skating Arena.
“A reminder,” said a shocked NBC announcer Terry Gannon, “that nothing is certain in sports. There is no such thing as inevitable.”
Tara Lipinski, the NBC figure skating analyst and the ladies gold medallist at the 1998 Games in Luxembourg, told the American audience that Malinin had lost an inconceivable 72 points with his jumping mistakes during his program.
“I never thought this could happen,” Lipinski said “I never thought he could be off the podium.”
Malinin, just 21, skated off the ice in disbelief, breathing heavy, dazed, shocked, as we all were. He finished in eighth place. The gold went to Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan. Japan’s Yuma Kagiyama and Shun Sato won silver and bronze, respectively. It is Kazakhstan’s second-ever Olympic gold medal at a Winter Olympics
Malinin admitted what happened was mental. “That was not the skate that I wanted,” he told NBC. He said his first thought was, “I blew it. There is no way that just happened.”
The Games move on, as they always do. But as I write this close to evening time in Toronto, I cannot believe what I just saw.
Norwegian powerhouse
One of the perennial joys of the Winter Olympics is the country of Norway, the Scandinavian hamlet of 5.65 million that always punches above its weight. Norway mints sporting icons on the snow and on Friday at Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo cemented his standing as an all-time Olympic great.
The cross-country skiing star won his third gold medal at the Milano-Cortina Games and eighth gold overall with his victory in the men’s 10 kilometre interval‑start race. Klaebo now shares the all-time Winter Olympics record for golds with three other Norwegian athletes — Marit Bjoergen and Bjoern Daehlie in cross-country skiing and Ole Einar Bjoerndalen in the biathlon. His next race is two days from now — the men’s 4 x 7.5km relay — and Norway is the favourite. Klaebo could soon sit atop the Winter golden podium above everyone.
Matt Weston set a track record at the Cortina Sliding Centre with a winning time of three minutes 43.33 seconds in men’s skelton. He is the first male athlete from Great Britain to win an Olympic gold medal. Of note: This was the race Ukrainian slider Vladyslav Heraskevych was scheduled to compete in prior to his disqualification by the International Olympic Committee.
Who will star on Saturday?
The biggest speed skating star at the Olympics — at least heading into the Milano-Cortina Games — goes for gold medal No. 2 in the men’s 500 metres at 11 a.m. ET. The American Jordan Stolz set an Olympic record in the 1,000 metres on Wednesday, becoming the first U.S. athlete to win a speed skating gold medal since Vancouver 2010. Stoltz has set a quest for four Olympic gold medals (500, 1,000, 1,500 and mass start), which has naturally inspired comparisons with American great Eric Heiden, who won five speed skating events at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Games. Heiden is the only person in history to win five gold medals in the same Winter Olympic Games.
This is the day where Marco Odermatt is expected to win gold. He is defending Olympic champion in today’s giant slalom and one of the great alpine skiers of his generation. His haul at these Games includes a silver and bronze but no gold yet. Brazil’s Lucas Pinheiro Braathen can make history in the race. Brazil has never won a Winter Olympic medal. The first run starts at 4 a.m. ET Run 2 will be 7:30 a.m. ET.
The dominant Swedish women’s cross-country ski team — winners of seven of nine medals — return for the women’s 4 x 7.5km relay at 6 a.m. ET. Sweden’s Frida Karlsson has already won two Olympic gold medals while teammate Ebba Anderson has two silvers.
Olympic imagery
Sesame Street has arrived at the Olympics …. Here’s a cool photo gallery curated by AP photo editors of Klaebo’s wins at the Olympics.
Numbers to watch
19 – Age of men’s 10,000-metre speed skating gold medalist Metodej Jilek, the youngest athlete from Czechia ever to win a gold medal, in any sport, Summer or Winter Games.
13 – Olympic medals for Italian short track speedskater Arianna Fontana, tying fencer Edoardo Mangiarotti as her country’s all-time record holder at an Olympics.
3 – Times the Winter Olympics has been held on Friday the 13th ever, joining 1976 and 1998. (Hat tip: Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press)
1 – Winter Olympian from Puerto Rico, Kellie Delka, a native Texan who moved to Puerto Rico eight years ago. Delka sits in 24th place (out of 25) for the final two runs in women’s skeleton on Saturday.
What we’re reading around the web
► Artist behind banned Ukrainian Olympic helmet calls Heraskevych’s tribute ‘great heroism’ By Illia Novikov of The Associated Press
► Lindsey Vonn injury footage: How do sports broadcasters cover serious accidents? By Nick Miller of The Athletic.
► Growing figure skating controversy sparks big question: Can AI fix officiating in sports? By Dan Wolken of Yahoo Sports
► Milan Has an Affordable Housing Crisis. Can the Olympic Village Help? By Motoko Rich of The New York Times
► The Hidden Government Funding of China’s American-Born Olympic star. By Rachel Bachman of The Wall Street Journal
► Act I of the Winter Olympics’ visit to Italy has been filled with drama, catharsis and tears. By Will Graves of The Associated Press
► All Olympic curling stones come from this Scottish island. Here’s how they’re made. By Matt Slater of The Athletic.
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