Sports

Winter Olympics 2022: Jacobellis and Baumgartner win gold, U.S. mens hockey beats Canada and more – ESPN

On Saturday at the 2022 Winter Olympics, snowboardcross legend Lindsey Jacobellis won another gold — this time in the new event of mixed snowboardcross with teammate Nick Baumgartner. Jacobellis, at 36 was already the oldest American woman to win Olympic gold when she won it three days ago, while Baumgartner, 40, becomes the first snowboarder to win an Olympic medal in his 40s.

In men’s hockey, the U.S. bested Canada in the preliminary round — the first time Team USA has beaten the neighbors to the north since the Vancouver Olympic Games in 2010.

We have updates from the action here:

Soaking up his last Olympics

Shaun White’s Olympic career is over. He finished fourth in the halfpipe, his last Olympic event, on Friday, after announcing earlier in the Games that these would be his final Olympics.

Before leaving Beijing, he’s taking in a few events. The three-time gold medalist has been spotted at men’s ice hockey and ice skating.

White’s next stop might not be in Beijing. He told The Associated Press that he plans to leave for Los Angeles to attend Super Bowl LVI.

Dazzling dancers

There’s been a lot of noise in figure skating the past few days over Russian Kamila Valieva’s doping case, but the ice dancers came out to dazzle in the rhythm dance.

France’s Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron, the 2018 silver medalists, took the lead as expected, followed by reigning world champions Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov from Russia.

Team USA’s two medal contender teams, Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue as well as Madison Chock and Evan Bates, are in third and fourth place, respectively. Chock, who slipped during her and Bates’ routine, said she was “a bit disappointed” after seeing their score, but told NBC: “It’s not over yet.”

But the Valieva case did hang over the ice, especially when Russia’s Diana Davis and Gleb Smolkin performed. While Davis skated, the cameras panned to her mom, Eteri Tutberidze. Tutberidze, who coaches Valieva as well as Russia’s two other women’s skaters, has come under scrutiny in the past few days.

And last but certainly not least, check out the Elton John-inspired outfits of Canada’s Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier. — Elaine Teng

The oldest team in the race wins it all

Three days after winning her first Olympic gold, American Lindsey Jacobellis became the first woman snowboarder to win two gold medals in the same Games when she and teammate Nick Baumgartner, 40, won the debut of mixed team snowboardcross. And since she’s 72 hours older than she was on Wednesday, Jacobellis, 36, eclipsed her previous record as the oldest American woman to win Olympic gold.

Talk about a redemption tour for Jacobellis and Baumgartner, the two oldest snowboarders competing in Beijing and the oldest pair racing Saturday at Genting Snow Park. With his gold, Baumgartner became the first snowboarder to win an Olympic medal in his 40s. It’s also safe to say he is the only snowboard medalist with a 17-year-old son nearly the same age as some of his competitors.

Baumgartner’s win comes in his fourth Olympics and two days after he finished in 10th place after being eliminated in the quarterfinal round of the men’s race. In his post-run TV interview, Baumgartner broke down in tears, saying he felt he had let his supporters down by failing to medal once again. At the time, he didn’t know he would race the mixed team event with Jacobellis. He says coaches informed him on Friday that he would have one more chance at a medal.

As heavy snow blanketed the course throughout the morning, Baumgartner and Jacobellis were calculated and precise, their experience their greatest asset on a course that changed between each heat.

In the final, Baumgartner made an incredible pass over a jump toward the middle of the course to take the lead and give Jacobellis a slight edge heading into her race. “Woah!” he yelled as he crossed the line. “Yeah! Let’s get this!”

Jacobellis was once again brilliant in her final. But as much fun as it was to watch her race, it was equally entertaining to watch Baumgartner narrate Jacobellis’ race. When she crossed the finish line in a tight crouch, her signature blonde braid flying behind her, Baumgartner screamed and ran to his teammate.

“Oh my god, that was beautiful,” he said, and then hugged Jacobellis. “Another gold medal for you.”

Few other people in the world understand what the past 16 years has been like for each of them.

“The greatest in the world walks away with two gold medals now,” two-time gold medalist Seth Wescott said on the broadcast. ” And Baum gets his gold.”

Jacobellis’ three medals (two gold, one silver) in snowboarding tie Shaun White, Jamie Anderson and six others for the most snowboarding medals by any Olympian. — Alyssa Roenigk

U.S. beats an old foe in men’s hockey

Team USA defeated Canada 4-2 in their Beijing Olympic men’s ice hockey preliminary-round showdown, outskating their archrivals and preying on Canadian mistakes.

Captain Andy Miele had a goal and an assist while goalie Strauss Mann made 35 saves for the U.S. (2-0-0), which took over first place in Group A ahead of Canada (1-1-0).

“Having a win like that will give us confidence going forward. We feel really good about that effort,” forward Brian O’Neill said.

It was statement win for the Americans. While Canada brought a veteran-laden team to Beijing — its captain Eric Staal is a 17-year NHL veteran — the U.S. roster comprises primarily NCAA players. Read more, from Greg Wyshynski, here.

With friends like these, retirement doesn’t sound half bad

Shaun White’s final Olympic run was Friday — and Tony Hawk, Lindsey Vonn and Kelly Clark were there for him virtually with messages of support as he retires:

It is snowing … at the Winter Olympics!

While that might not sound like breaking news, in a region that experiences little snowfall and has seen only a light dusting so far this season, it is. The skiers and snowboarders competing in Yanqing and Zhangjiakou, the two locations hosting mountain events in China, are the first to compete on mountains covered with 100% artificial snow. But Monday morning at Genting Snow Park, heavy snowfall blanketed the course during the Olympic debut of mixed team snowboardcross.

And while snow is great for the region, it’s an unwelcome nuisance during a race. Snow slows down the course and makes the surface uneven. In snowy conditions, team wax techs become indispensable on-snow pit crews, adjusting the bases of their riders’ snowboards to match the challenging, changing conditions.

Between heats on Monday, workers could be seen using shovels and blowers to clear the loose snow from the course, while others strapped into snowboards and side-slipped the course much like they do in-between runs at halfpipe contests. Despite the snow, the show must go on. — Alyssa Roenigk

This just doesn’t look real

But, it is. In fact, these are pictures from more than 80 years ago. Ski jumping in Illinois was brought over to the U.S. by Norwegian immigrants who settled there. The first event was held at Soldier Field in 1936 — and crushed ice was used for the jumping and landing areas. Two more events were held in 1937 and 1938, and they got so popular that the entire field was packed with fans, sometimes up to 60,000:

In 2022, there are three ski jumpers representing Illinois at the Olympics in Beijing: Kevin Bickner, Casey Larson and Patrick Gasienica. — Aishwarya Kumar

Snowboard judging under scrutiny

Did Canadian slopestyler Max Parrot grab his knee or his board during his Olympic gold-medal run?

That question is blowing up in snowboard circles, and it’s made more intriguing because the rider who finished second landed the toughest trick of the contest. More on the controversy.

Jason Brown becomes No. 1 fan

USA’s Jason Brown mesmerized the world with his exquisite free skate a few days ago, finishing sixth. His job as a competitor might be over, but he’s just getting started as Team USA’s cheerleader:

Brown, 27, will be at several events in Beijing, cheering on his teammates. — Aishwarya Kumar

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