The Canadian Ice Skating pair of Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who skated to gold at the Vancouver 2010 and took silver at Sochi 2014, scored a record 206.07 points at Pyeonchang 2018 to claim gold. The pair skated to El Tango de Roxanne and Come What May with emotive resonance, technical precision and smoldering intensity to edge the French pair of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron by 0.79 points. Papadakis and Cizeron, who skated to Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, settled for silver in spite of breaking their own world-record in ice dance. he brother-sister duo of Alex and Maia Shibutani from USA claimed the bronze after an excellent display of technique to Coldplay’s Paradise.
Cassie Sharpe of Canada won gold in Freestyle Skiing Halfpipe pipping ahead of French veteran Marie Martinod who took silver and Brita Sigourney of USA who took the bronze medal. Sharpe is the reigning World No 1. She performed a marvellous big truck driver, a trick being performed by only a handful of female freestyle skiers, to claim the gold. Martinod, competing in her last Olympics, added to her Sochi 2014 silver with another silver this time.
Germans swept the medals in Men’s Individual Large Hill and Individual 10km Nordic Combined with reigning world champion Johannes Rydzek winning the gold. This is Germany’s first ever victory in the event. Fabian Riessle and Eric Frenzel won the silver and the bronze respectively.
France won the Biathlon Mixed Relay gold with a time of 1.08:34.3 led by Martin Fourcade. This is Fourcade’s third gold this year and the fifth Olympic medal of his career. He is now France’s most successful Olympian of all time and only the second French athlete to win three golds at a single Olympic Winter Games, after Jean-Claude Killy at Grenoble 1968. Along with Fourcade, the French quartet included Marie Dorin Habert, Anais Bescond and Simon Desthieux. Defending champions Norway comprising of Marte Olsbu, Tiril Eckhoff, Johannes Thingnes Boe, Emil Hegle Svendsen came second with 20.9 seconds behind the French team. Lisa Vittozzi, Dorothea Wierer, Lukas Hofer, Dominik Windisch of Italy won the bronze.
Republic of Korea retained the 3,000m Women’s Speed Skating Relay event finishing the final lap in lighting speed. Korea’s team of Minjeong, Shim Sukhee, Kim Yejin and Kim Alang did not make the best of starts but the crowd support was always behind them. They secured a combined time of 4.07.361. China finished second but were later disqualified, allowing Italy to take silver with a time of 4.15.901. Canada were also disqualified, giving the bronze to Netherlands.
