Canada must have been completely surprised and humiliated by the 5-3 beating they took in the preliminaries, because after a tentative start, they came on like gangbusters; taking control and shooting well.

After Canada hammered at US goalie Ryan Miller for a while, Johnathan Toews scored the 1^st goal for Canada. During this tournament, the first team to score has been the one to win, so it didn’t look good for the US. In the second period, Corey Perry broke free and caught the US defense looking, scoring another for Canada.

 The US finally got one in with 7 minutes left in the 2^nd. Ryan Kesler got the deflection past Canada’s goalie, Roberto Luongo.

 I was watching the game with a friend (he’s not a huge hockey fan) and at 3 minutes to go in the third period he commented it was pretty much over.  I replied that three minutes was a lot for hockey; anything can happen.  I made a good call on that one. The US bore down on Canada, ruthlessly pressing to gain an advantage. Then, with only 24 seconds to go Zach Parise got an opportunity and shot around Luongo to tie it up and put the game into sudden-death overtime.

 With the four-on-four instead of the full team it seemed like the play was slower again, each team carefully searching for an opening, curbing the previous aggression.  The fevered press by the USA that got the last goal was replaced with a focus on defense.  Canada attempted more shots, and closer in. The US attempts were further away and less frequent.

The incredible game ended when Canadian star Sidney Crosby slipped the puck through Miller’s legs scoring for the win. The Canadian crowd went wild, the celebration beginning.  Ryan Miller fell forward on the ice, hopes for gold crushed.

 Though I would have preferred to see Team USA bring home the gold, it was a great game; exciting to watch, interesting to talk about.  I’m glad I was able to catch this one.

 On an interesting side note; I found out today that Goeff Bodine of NASCAR fame got interested in bobsleigh in the 1990s and helped design the Night Train sled. What a cool bit of cross-sport cooperation!

 Defending champions Germany 1, piloted by Andre Lange, won silver, just .38 seconds behind. The giant Germans always made me laugh with their high-fives and bear-like huzzah just before they pushed to start. I had no idea what a testosterone-laden sport this is.

 Canada-1 finished third for the bronze.

Razzoli delivered, beating Kostelic by .16 seconds.  Tomba roared with delight and hugged Razzoli tightly. I wonder if Razzoli takes after Tomba in his social side?  There are still stories floating around about the wild nights he spent celebrating in Calgary.

Andre Myhrer of Sweden is bringing home the bronze, also a milepost for Sweden.  This is the first medal for the country in Alpine skiing in 22 years.

Bode Miller missed a gate in his first run, disqualifying him from the competition.  Ted Ligety also skied out, leaving the US with no contenders.

Midway through the 10^th end when the score was 6-3 Canada, the crowd spontaneously broke into their national anthem. It was a pretty stirring moment. Norway’s skip, Thomas Ulsrud, was behind Canada’s Kevin Martin; you could tell he was saying something nice about the crowd reaction. 

One thing I like about curling is everyone seems incredibly sportsmanlike.  No huge arguments, no ill will. A good sport, I think.

Earlier today, Switzerland beat Sweden 5-4 to earn bronze.

US women did not fare as well. Though they held a good pace for much of the race, Catherine Rainey-Norman fell further and further behind teammates Jennifer Rodriguez and Jilleanne Rookard in the competition for bronze. The two lead women actually crossed the finish line before team Poland, but Rainey-Norman was just too far back to get the win. Gold was claimed by the German team for the second year in a row, edging the Japanese by a scant 2 hundredths of a second.

That nasty fog and wet snow continued for the women trying to compete in the slalom. The fog cut visibility so much it was tough for us to see the skiers, let alone them the narrow poles they had to navigate. The comment was made that they were almost forced to ski by feel and memory alone. The wet snow and warmer weather made the course rough and very difficult to navigate.

Maria Reisch of Germany got her second gold of the games, handling the tough conditions with great control. It was bittersweet for the skier, as her sister was unable to finish the course and join her in victory. Marlies Schild of Austria finished second, Sarka Zahrobska of the Czech Republic, third.

US favorite Lindsey Vonn was unable to finish, but didn’t seem too upset since she’s still bringing home two medals this year.

Silver went to Austria, who came in 38.6 seconds behind. Bronze went to Russia who finished a close .2 seconds behind Austria. The US team finished a tepid 13^th.

In men’s speed skating, the US three-man team surprised everyone by handily beating the much-favored team from the Netherlands. Made up of veteran Chad Hedrick and two 19-yr-old newcomers, Brian Hansen and Jonathan Kuck, the USA team looked liked they’d be defeated as predicted in the early laps.  But communication problems between the Dutch team cost them the lead; the US barreling down the ice with the Dutch scrambling to regain the lead. The US managed to hang on, winning by .4 seconds and advancing to the finals.

The final four in the women’s short track were Katherine Reutter of the US, Wang Meng and Zhou Yang of China, and Park Seung-Hi of South Korea. There were no false starts and no big crashes, but after being passed, something happened to Yang and she dropped back far behind the other 3 skaters.  It didn’t look like anything big; perhaps she just lost her stride and couldn’t get her momentum back. Wang Meng, the bright star of short track this Olympics, held a strong lead the entire race, barely bothered by those behind her. She finished gold, making her the 1^st woman to win 6 medals in short track and China the 1^st country to sweep all the women’s short track events. A jubilant Reutter got her skate over the line second for silver, and Park Seung-Hi got bronze.

The 45 laps of the men’s short track team relay looks like a well-choreographed dance during the exchanges. They don’t actually pass a baton, just touch, then the old skater shoves the new skater forward to try and gain ground. Each skater must only skate 1 lap, so you can plan a strategy around who’s stronger and make exchanges accordingly

The skaters began in a tight pack, but Canada pulled ahead midway through and maintained a steady lead to end, the hometown crowd wildly cheering.

The US team consisted of JR Celski, Travis Jayner, Jordan Malone, and Apolo Ohno. At first, they did not look strong and stayed mainly in the fourth position, but a mighty final effort from Apolo Ohno got the team bronze, just behind Korea.  The win gave Ohno his 8^th Olympic medal; maybe it made up a little for his disqualification earlier today.

 It looked like second place would go to a shocked Ohno, but after close examination, he was disqualified and denied the silver. It looked to me like Ohno barely touched him, but you never know, he may be a great actor.  After watching short track this year, it looks like they all try to slide in as much contact as they can without the judges seeing. 

Si-Bak was awarded ssilver and Tremblay bronze even though neither really finished.  I guess that’s just how it goes in the wild world of short track.

 The level of play was amazing; I didn’t think rocks were capable of sliding that way.  It was one difficult shot after another.  Double take-outs, stealing points, the whole gamut of plays occurred over and over.  By the 6^th end the score was 4-2 and it looked like Sweden might be able to take it away. Canada came back with some skillful strategy tilting the scales so that it was 5-4 by the beginning of the 8^th. The 8^th was scoreless, and Sweden tried to keep the 9^th the same, so they could try and score with the final rock, but they missed a key slide and Canada took advantage for 1 more.  The crowd was so excited in the 10^th I don’t know if any of the players could hear each other call across the ice for directions.

 Just when it looked like Canada had it closed out, they made a bad shot, setting Sweden up to take 2.  The Swedes pulled it off and the match went into an extra end. It all came down to the final slide by Canadian skip Cheryl Bernard.  Sweden had 2 rocks in the house, on fairly close to the button.  Bernard managed to knock one rock and it just kissed the other, pushing it into the button. Sweden had it won.

 One of the interesting things about curling, the players are “regular” people. Canadian skip Cheryl Bernard is a stay-at-home mom.  I’ve heard the commentators refer to players on various teams as bartenders, part-timers at hardware stores, just regular folks who play this game for the love of it. Unlike, say, a cross country skier, conditioning isn’t that big a part of the game, so you can have a job.  Plus, let’s face it, how many huge curling endorsement deals have you heard of? These folks have to work to put food on the table.

 I have to wonder, what happened to Finland?  This wasn’t supposed to be the rout it ended up.

 The USA is now assured at least silver as they head to the final against the winner of this evening’s match-up between Canada and Slovakia.

Tina Maze of Slovenia finished a close second for silver. Elizabeth Gorgl of Austria, who had the fastest time on the 1^st run, won bronze.

American Julia Mancuzo, the defending champ, had a bad run yesterday, finishing 18^th.  She had the 3^rd fastest run today, but she would have had to fly down the mountain in order to make up for her poor 1^st run, so she came in 10^th.

I wonder what the results would have been without that fog? It’s a roll of the dice when there’s bad weather, you never know who will be up and how it will affect them. Sometimes it doesn’t seem “fair” but that is the risk you run with an outdoor sport.

 There was a feeling of deja vu when you saw Jaret “Speedy” Peterson at the top of the hill preparing for his final run in men’s aerials.  4 years ago he was in position for the bronze when he attempted his signature jump the hurricane.  But that time, he blew the landing and didn’t get on the podium.  The tried the hurricane during practice today, falling at the landing. It would have been easy to take the advice of others and not attempt the difficult jump.  But this year, he needed the difficulty to get the points needed to finish high. He made the jump, triumphantly sticking the landing.

 Liu Zonyang won bronze.  The 18-yr-old from China had very compact form during his jump, but wheelied a little on the landing. He’s so young, I’m sure we’ll see him in 4 years.

Canada took control in the first period; Marie-Philip Poulin scored both goals.  Perhaps it was nerves on the part of the US that allowed those two goals since the second and third periods were scoreless.  Canada still dominated the game; even during power plays the US just couldn’t push through their defense. Canadian goalie Shannon Szabados was amazing, blocking 28 shots.  But it shows just how evenly matched the teams are that US goalie Jessie Vetter made 27 saves.

Let me tell you, this was a knock-down drag-out battle between the two teams. Their skills are good, they played hard and fast, and the aggression on both sides was high. They went as far as they could without legal checking.  I saw one US player literally sit on a Canadian player then push her to the ice before she got off and resumed playing.  All this, of course, done behind the single ref’s back.  There was pushing, tripping, high-sticking, bad mouthing and everything else that usually goes with a heated rivalry.  Of course, unlike the men’s teams these players have been back-and-forth for years.  They will not be going back to their respective NHL teams, patting each other on the back and becoming buddies again. Some of the women may have been teammates in college, but as soon as they committed their loyalty to their country’s team, all bets were off. 

The handshake at the end of the game had the jubilant Canadians with helmets off and huge smiles.  Many of the US players kept their helmets on, perhaps to hide the tears until they could compose themselves.  Usually, a silver at the Olympics is a huge triumph, but during the medal ceremony Finland seemed much happier with their bronze (won in overtime against Sweden) than the US with their second place medal.

All I can say is I’m looking forward to the next Winter Olympics. I hope there are more countries with the wherewithall to nurture  their talented young women and promote the sport to higher levels.  I’d like to see more games like this one.

 Canada’s Ashleigh McIvor came out on top with her strategy of “start out in front, then stay out of the way.” Hedda Berntsen of Norway came in second and Marion Josserand of France finished third.

Though new to the Olympics, McIvor feel skicross has been around forever.  “It’s racing your friends from the top of the mountain to the bottom.”

Seung-Hoon Lee of Korea commented that he felt awful for Kramer, and that the gold he was awarded really wasn’t his. He set a new Olympic record of 12:58.55, but who knows what Kramer would have come in at. Ivan Skobrev of Russia got silver, Bob De Jong of the Netherlands got an unexpected bronze.

The day went to Carlo Janka of Switzerland.  The “Ice Man,” as the even-keeled skier is known in his home country, coolly navigated the course for mistake-free gold in 2:37.83. Silver and bronze were both won by Norwegians. Kjetil Jansrud’s combined time of 2:38.22 earned him the second spot on the podium. Aksel Lund Svindal enhanced his Alpine stud status, adding bronze to his collection (gold in Super G, silver in Downhill) with a combined time just .61 seconds behind Janka

Thanks, Mom

P&G is has offered all Team USA pre-loaded gift cards to help them defray the cost of travel and accommodations so that the mom behind each and every Team USA athlete can share their child’s Olympic Winter Games experience. T he company is the first to provide this level of support to all the moms of Team USA.  The “P&G Thanks, Mom” campaign celebrates that special person in the lives of Team USA athletes who supports their child selflessly to help them succeed.  Whether it was driving to early morning practices, cheering them on in competition, doing mountains of laundry, and everything in between, every Team USA member has someone who supported the day-to-day activities that brought them to their Olympic moment.  For some that may be their mom; for others, it may be their dad, an aunt, a grandparent or another special supporter.

Family Home
P&G has welcomed U.S. Olympic athletes and their families in Vancouver, Canada, at the P&G Family Home, which provides Team USA with a place to come together in an inviting and comfortable environment for the duration of the Olympic Winter Games.  Recognizing the importance that families play in the lives of athletes, the P&G Family Home provides family members with a place to come together, watch the Olympic Winter Games, meet other Team USA families, and spend time with loved ones before and after competition.  More than 300 athletes and coaches are on the 2010 U.S. Olympic Team, and each one has the opportunity to take advantage of the P&G Family Home at no cost.

I think both programs are pretty cool, it’s always sad when the person who did the most for a young athlete can’t be there to celebrate with them.

P&G You’ll Never Walk Alone

Potter has been playing hockey for fun since she was very young, and has been on an organized team since 8^th grade.  She is one of the pioneers of women’s Olympic hockey, having played on all three previous Olympic teams.

Given that the USA and Canada have both powered through their opponents, I asked which other countries had the potential to catch up with them in the future.  She replied that she felt Finland and Sweden have both the ability and the skill to become as successful as the US, but their conditioning is the big issue for them.  Since the US team has had a big influx of money and the ability to train for the past 3 years, they have been “given a big boost.”  She feels both Finland and Sweden come on strong at first; it will just be a matter of more consistent training programs so they can last the full game in good form. She’s also encouraged by the World U18 Championships and thinks this will bring more attention to teams in other countries, and encourage more young women and girls to start playing at an earlier age.

Of course, I asked the question of the day.  We know that Canada has been able to get the best of the US on more than one occasion, so what does Potter think the US needs to do to achieve gold?  She feels that the US team needs to concentrate on playing their kind of game, that they are a “blue-collar, working, grinding team” with “great chemistry.”  She emphasized they should just “keep it simple” and play their best.

In one of my previous posts, I asked the readers how they felt about the no checking rule in women’s hockey, so I thought I’d see what Potter thinks.  It didn’t seem to be much of an issue for her.  She explained that there’s still a lot of body contact (as anyone who watches the game can confirm) they just don’t do a full slam against the boards. She “doesn’t take it personally” and does not think that it implies that women can’t take a body check.  It’s “just a different game” that allows them to focus on different skills.

When I asked if we’d see her in the next Olympics, she said she really wants to focus on the game she’s playing now and not look that far in the future.  She said you never know where life can take you, so she takes things as they come.  Potter is a mother of two and said the needs of her family will make some of the decisions. (My husband says the question was such a faux pas, and you never ask that of an athlete, but I had only five minutes to prepare!)

 Many thanks to Jenny Potter for taking the time out to talk with me.

Go USA

The win was so strong the last Austrian jumper, Gregor Schlierenzauer, went for showboat broke and landed at an incredible 146.5 meters.  A little shaky, but the points taken from the landing made no difference whatsoever.

US silver medallists Meryl Davis and Charlie White had a well-choreographed routine with some exciting lifts. White came off the ice completely out of breath from the effort, both looked very pleased with their performance.  I don’t think they could have improved on what they did.

Oksana Domnina and Maksim Shabalin of Russia just edged bronze over US team Tanith Belbin and Ben Agosto.  The  Russian team had some very interesting straps on their costumes which they used them for some cool looking holds.  The comment was made that there will probably be a rule put into force for next time making such devices illegal.  I don’t think it was a cheat, per se, but no one else could do the same things because they hadn’t thought of the trick.

 This is the first time a North American couple has won gold in ice dancing.

 I’m curious about what you think.  There’s no checking in women’s hockey. Do they think the girls can’t handle it? Is it an effort get moms to let their girls play and still be “ladylike?” Do you think women’s hockey suffers without the ability to body check?

 Magdalena Neuner of Germany won the women’s 12.5km mass start, giving her a second gold medal.  She already had gold for the 10km pursuit and silver in 7.5km biathlon.  Though shaky shooting in prone position put her at 17^th at one point, she pushed ahead and finished in 35 minutes, 19.6 seconds. Olga Zaitseva of Russia took silver 5.5 seconds later, and Simone Hauswald, also from Germany, placed bronze. No US biathletes qualified for the mass start which is limited to 30 competitors.

 All I got to see was celebrating and the commentators going on about how great the game was for the US.  A 5-3 victory that is being called the ”biggest Olympic hockey upset since the Miracle on Ice” is a shame to miss. I sure wish I could have seen the great job done by goalie Ryan Miller (Canada outshot the US 45-23. that’s 42 saves.) Would have been nice to see Brian Rafalski score twice.  

Thanks for twisting the knife, NBC.