This is how the 13th day of the Olympics works
What comes after the sensation day?
2/16/2022, 9:03 p.m
The German Olympic team celebrated a surprisingly successful Wednesday with the sensational gold medal for cross-country skiers and bronze in biathlon. On Thursday there is a great hope for a medal, which in the end can gild a long, bitter story.
Figure skating singles women: The Beijing Winter Olympics will forever be linked to the story of Kamila Valiyeva: First, the 15-year-old produced a major Olympic moment in the team competition because she was the first woman ever to do two quadruple jumps in an Olympic program. But only hours later, the sports world gets to know Valiyeva as the face of a complicated, unsavory suspected doping case. The fight for the start in singles is at the green table, their results are provisional until a post-Olympic main hearing. Therefore, there will be no medal ceremony should Valiewa be able to defend her lead from the short program in the freestyle. Either way: Valiewa is under enormous psychological pressure, which she defied with an impressive performance in the short program. At home she is celebrated by the media and politicians, and her sporting achievements wow international experts. The German champion Nicole Schott was 14th after the short program. The competition starts at 11 am (ARD and in the live ticker on ntv.de).
Ice Hockey: For women, the final of the Olympic ice hockey competition is a purely North American affair: from 5.10 a.m. the USA and Canada will meet. It’s not surprising: Since women’s ice hockey became Olympic in 1998, four-time Olympic champion Canada has never missed the final. Four years ago in Pyeongchang, however, the US women had won the final. The US team only missed the final in Turin in 2006. The Canadians easily won their semi-final against Switzerland 10:3 (5:1, 3:2, 2:0). The 2018 Olympic champions, the USA, later had a little more trouble in a 4-1 (0-0, 2-0, 2-1) win over Finland. The German team did not qualify for the Olympics.
speed skating: The Netherlands have collected 14 medals in Beijing so far, which is enough for sixth place in the medal table. Without the speed skaters and short trackers, however, it would look sad: Outside the ice rink, there was only Kimberley Bos’ bronze medal in skeleton. The Netherlands are a force in speed skating and want to do something for the medal haul again in the women’s 1000 meters: From 9.30 a.m. Jutta Leerdam is one of the favorites. German starters could not qualify for the wild lap hunt.
Nordic combination: Is there a golden happy ending for unlucky Eric Frenzel? The three-time Olympic champion had previously missed the Olympic Games in Beijing, mainly in quarantine – and under difficult conditions. “It was quite a shock when I arrived here. It wasn’t the hotel I expected. The wallpaper came off the walls easily. That was very sobering,” Frenzel described the first quarantine facility, which he then left again could. But now he can intervene again and go hunting for medals: Thanks to a timely free test, Frenzel is part of the combined team that starts in the team competition as one of the favorites. From 9 a.m. there will be a jump off the large hill, then at 12 p.m. it’s off to the cross-country ski run for 4×5 kilometers. In addition to Frenzel, national coach Hermann Weinbuch nominated Olympic champions Vinzenz Geiger, Manuel Faißt and Julian Schmid. Two-time Olympic champion from Pyeongchang, Johannes Rydzek, was not called up to the team.
Alpine skiing: Will the hapless superstar of skiing still get a turn for the better? Mikaela Shiffrin is one of the favorites in the alpine combination, in which she won Olympic silver in 2018 and gold in 2021. “The number one lesson a lot of people learn at the Olympics is that there’s no guarantee of anything,” said Shiffrin, the world’s most popular skier, who retired early as a gold contender in giant slalom and slalom. In the super-G and downhill speed disciplines, which she doesn’t really like, she finished 9th and 18th. “Every day I go to this track, I feel like I can get a solid run down. That gives me the chance to calm down a bit in my head,” says Shiffrin about the downhill slope on Xiaohaituo Mountain, which should decide whether she even has a chance of winning the combined slalom. From 7 a.m. the decision will be made in the slalom. German starters are not there.
Ski Freestyle: Daniela Maier has already been on the podium this season – to repeat that at the Olympics is a dream of the ski crosser. From 4.30 a.m. it is important for her and the second German starter Johanna Holzmann to get through the runs well. Dominator Sandra Näslund from Sweden is also the clear favorite in Beijing, she has won the last six World Cups. But the first test of the German freestyle team led to a positive conclusion. “The track isn’t easy, but it’s not dangerous either,” said sporting director Heli Herdt: “No one has to be afraid of hurting themselves.” At the same time, he doesn’t want to set expectations too high: “You can’t force the podium. If everyone has given their best and it’s in the top eight, then we’re satisfied too.”