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SCMP Sport

It seems like every five minutes Eileen Gu’s name is being mentioned in connection with something or other, whether that’s winning medals, social media posts, or endorsing a product – she is the face of this Winter Olympics.
Today was no different, the 18-year-old winning a third medal in Beijing, and a second of the golden variety, in this morning's half-pipe final. 
China began its chase for another medal in the pairs figure skating event, too, with Pyeongchang silver medallists Sui Wenjing and Han Cong smashing the world record with an incredible short programme routine on Friday evening.
The performance put them top going into Sunday's free skate, with Chinese duo Peng Cheng and Jin Yang also in the mix in fifth place.
Reporting by Josh Ball, Matt Eaton, Jess Ma, Mia Castagnone, Harvey Kong, Jack Lau and Nic Atkin


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Beijing Winter Olympics 2022

Winter Olympics: Chinese figure skating pair Sui Wenjing and Han Cong smash world record in short programme' Eileen Gu wins second gold – day 14, as it happened

China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong compete in the pair skating short programme at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Photo: AFP


Sport

China

Beijing Winter Games 2022

Explainers


China's Sui Wenjing and Han Cong take lead in pairs figure skating event with incredible short programme routine, after Peng Cheng and Jin Yang threw down the gauntlet
Eileen Gu wins her second gold medal of the Beijing Games, after stomping her authority on the women's half-pipe final



China's Sui Wenjing and Han Cong lead pairs figure skating event after incredible short programme routine, with Peng Cheng and Jin Yang in the mix. Earlier, Eileen Gu did not disappoint, winning half-pipe gold in style.


Eileen Gu

Live

Good morning and it’s another early start here on day 14 as the freestyle half-pipe finals begin with red hot favourite Eileen Gu seeking a third Winter Olympics medal.
After Thursday’s qualification round, Gu qualified with the highest score of 95.50, six points more than that of Canada’s Rachael Karker in second place.
Estonia’s Kelly Sildaru is another skier to watch out for – she won gold on her World Championship debut in 2019.
Each skier will have three chances to produce their best score to secure a spot on the podium.
With just two days left of competition, things will naturally begin to slow down, but there are still several key medals to watch, including men’s and women’s biathlon, curling and later tonight the men’s 1,000m speedskating.
We’re in the home stretch, folks. Enjoy the day.


Welcome to day 14

There were several big moments that shaped day 13 in Beijing, none more so than Kamila Valieva, the 15-year-old Russian figure skating star who tested positive for a banned drug.
Valieva failed to secure a medal in the women’s individual event, no doubt a relief for ice skating officials, but it was a tough moment to watch. The pressure on this teenage skater proved too much as she stumbled through her routine and watched on as teammate Anna Shcherbakova secured gold. Here’s how it unfolded.
Meanwhile the Canadian women’s hockey team beat the US to win gold in a sensational final. It was easily one of the bigger moments of the day, and well worth a revisit.
See all of yesterday’s coverage right here.



Day 13 recap

Today we witness five medal events in biathlon, freestyle skiing, speed skating, and the men’s bronze medal game in curling.
Besides medal matches, women’s bobsleigh will continue with the two-women race, while figure skating pairs start competition with the short program.
We will kick off today with Eileen Gu’s third and final medal quest. Gu is poised to be on the podium today. 
China’s pair skaters Sui Wenjing and Han Cong are promising stars in their event. They qualified with the highest score in short program in Pyeongchang, but only took home a silver in 2018.
We’ll find out if they’re able to go for gold on home turf this time.



Five medals up for grabs

Hanna Faulhaber lands 85.25 in first run
The US athlete, known for how high she manages to jump in routines, pulls off a 85.25 in her first run. This is the highest score among competitors so far. 
Coming up soon will be Team China’s Li Fanghui. Eileen Gu, Canada’s Rachael Parker and Estonian Kelly Sildaru will be coming up last in this run.
Halfway through the first run, our first Chinese athlete appears
Li Fanghui pulled off a sophisticated routine with a difficult 540 switch which invoked taking off and landing backwards, then a rightside 900 turn in the middle of the pipe with plenty of amplitude, finally ending with a rightside 700. She scored 81.75, placing her second currently.
Coming up now is defending champion Cassie Sharpe in Canada.



Big start in half-pipe

Zhang Kexin went straight for it - impressing commentators by going for a tricky 1080 turn on her first hit on the pipe. The rest of the routine remained sophisticated with a rightside 540 turn spinning into a leftside 700 to finish.
She scored 78.75, currently ranking just behind teammate Li Fanghui with a fourth place.



Team China third and fourth after first run

Eileen Gu is up! China’s golden girl is ready for her first run.


Here we go

And it’s big.
Eileen Gu comes out with a statement first run, landing a scoring 93.25 to secure first place. 
She is remarkably calm and poised.
The medal favourite started with back-to-back 900s, and also threw two Alley Oops in her run.
China’s golden girl delivers. 



Gu throws down the gauntlet

Chinese netizens are gearing up for Gu's third victory at the Games, as millions posted about the finals on Weibo during the first runs.
"Gu is powerful and cute - who wouldn't be a fan?" one supporter posted. 
Gu is expected to again dominate all of Weibo’s top trending topics with unparalleled excitement from her fans, as she had throughout the Games.



Powerful and cute

It’s not just Weibo that’s discussing the Olympic sensation. Despite not having a Twitter account, Gu is also a source of much discussion on the social network.
“Gu makes its look so easy! I really can’t see anyone else winning this but her,” a user from England tweeted.
“Gu basically just won the halfpipe gold medal on her warmup run,” said another.
First run for Eileen Gu and its already her Gold to lose😳 #Olympics
  — Benjamin Wong (@Garoo97) February 18, 2022


Twitter talks, too

After the second run. Go has raced ahead. 
Canada’s Amy Fraser scored an underwhelming 35.75, like China’s Zhang Kexin who dropped drastically from the last run to 25.75.
Teammate Li Fanghui, however, topped her last score by a few points, with an impressive 86.50.
Heading into the final run, the gold is Gu’s to lose. Defending champion Cassie Sharpe lags behind on 90, with no other athlete reaching the 90s range.



Gu looks untouchable

As the third run starts, here’s a short recap of current rankings:
Eileen Gu ranks first with 95.25 points, followed by Cassie Sharpe at 90 and Rachael Karker at 85.25.
Gu’s teammate Li Fanghui ranks fifth at 86.50, behind Estonia’s Kelly Sildaru who landed an 87.
Zhang Kexin is ranked seventh.



A quick recap

Competition has been briefly halted after China's Zhang Kexin falls in freeski half-pipe final. 
The crowd is silent as medics tend to the 19-year-old athlete.
Thankfully Zhang gets back on her feet and manages to ski to the end of the pipe.
A relief for everyone on the ground.



A bad fall for China’s Zhang Kexin

Mission accomplished. 
Before her third run, China’s Eileen Gu has secured the gold.
It will be a victory lap.


Second gold medal for Gu

Eileen Gu has done it again - the half-pipe gold is firmly in her pocket, without much risk of losing it throughout the runs. 
The Chinese athlete becomes the first freeskier to win three medals at a single Olympic Games, adding to big air gold and slopestyle silver with halfpipe gold.
Gu’s final run was mostly for fun, as her second gold was guaranteed by her peerless 95.5 in her second run
True to her style, Gu’s scores never dipped below 90. Going up last in every run, her scores only rose higher - from a 93.25 in her first run to 95.5 in her final run. 
Perhaps this has been a race against herself on the half-pipe all along.
Halfpipe is seen as Gu’s strongest event. She won gold in this category and slopestyle in her X-Games debut last year.
Gu is in triumphant tears, beaming after her victory.



Gu makes Olympic history with half-pipe win

 Weibo is, as expected, celebrating Eileen Gu as the star skier takes home her third medal and second gold.
“Gu is the modern version of Hua Mulan,” wrote one user, referring to the folk heroine.
“There’s no cliffhanger, she wins consistently,” said another.
Millions of posts are being made in real-time.



Weibo explodes as Gu takes second gold

Eileen Gu stepped on the podium with a triumphant grin, raising the celebratory Bing Dwen Dwen doll in the air as she waved to the audience.



A moment for Gu

After cruising to victory in the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe final, Eileen Gu told the media she was proud to be representing her sport.
“I'm so honoured to be here and to be able to inspire young girls to follow their passion,” she told reporters.
“This experience will change my life. I feel immensely proud to be standing here. The second I landed the last 16 in big air I knew my life was never going to be the same. Even then I would have never imagined that I'd walk away with another silver and another gold."
Gu has become a popular face of the Beijing Games.
She won her third medal of the Winter Olympics in relative ease as she nailed back-to-back 900s with advanced mid-air grabs.
“It was really windy, I was struggling through practice.”
Gu secured gold before her third and final run, and admitted she chose to enjoy the moment, rather than try something new.
“I’ve never taken a victory lap in my life before. I finally deserve it.”
Indeed she has.



Gu hopes to inspire others to follow their passion

IOC president Thomas Bach has voiced his concern over comments made after Russian skater Kamila Valieva’s performance in the Beijing Olympics final, when she fell several times and seemed overwhelmed by the doping scandal that has engulfed her.
Valieva faces a possible ban, but her head coach has come under fire over harsh criticism to Valieva’s routine.
“Why did you let it go? Why did you stop fighting?” cameras caught Eteri Tutberidze - the notoriously strict coach who will be investigated over Valieva's failed drug test - telling the 15-year-old after she fell twice and dropped out of medal contention.
Bach said he was disturbed by the intense pressure on the young skaters, particularly Valieva, and criticised her coaches without naming Tutberidze.
“When I afterwards saw how she was received by her closest entourage, with such, what appeared to be a tremendous coldness, it was chilling to see this,” he said at a news conference Friday.
“Rather than giving her comfort, rather than to try to help her, you could feel this chilling atmosphere, this distance.” Associated Press



IOC president ‘disturbed’ by Russian coach

Plans are in motion to build a world class ice skating rink in Tai Po, although there is no fixed timeline for construction or completion.
Olympic short-track speed skater Sidney Chu couldn't believe the news.
“I was like damn,” the 22-year-old said after hearing the news from National Olympic Committee president Timothy Fok Tsun-ting on Wednesday.
Chu has been calling for the city’s leaders to build decent Olympic infrastructure for more than 10 years.
See the full story right here.



Top-class ice rink coming to Hong Kong

Su Yiming turns 18 today and fans are celebrating his birthday with him.
Posts about Su have attracted more than 100 million views on Weibo, with many amazed that a talent so young is already a two-time Olympic winner.
“To me there’s nothing better than this Olympics, I’ve truly achieved all the goals I’ve had,” Su told state-outlet Xinhua News Agency yesterday, while thanking fans for their support.
“I’m so proud to be Chinese... I’m thrilled to be able to do what I’m capable of and win glory for my motherland.”
Su’s Japanese coach Yasuhiro Sato is showing birthday love on Instagram, calling Su a superstar.
“It is a honour to ride towards the future together. You are the one who can change the world.”
  
  
 
  
 
 


 


  
View this post on Instagram

 
  
  
 
 
 

  
 
 

  
 
 
 


  
 
 

A post shared by Yasuhiro Sato (@yas_sato)




Su Yiming turns 18

Early in the third period in the Finland–Slovakia ice hockey game, and there has been no additional scoring to speak of.
Finland hold the only goal of the game, thanks to Sakari Manninen in the first period.
A very tight semi-final game continues.



Finland hold the lead

Finland will get a shot at ice hockey gold after beating Slovakia in a tight 2-0 game.
They suffocated Slovakia over the course of the game, shutting down any opportunity to score.
Slovakia will still have a shot at bronze, but it is Finland who will advance. 
The second men’s semi-final between ROC and Sweden goes down later tonight.



Finland get a shot at ice hockey gold

There has been a lot of discussion surrounding Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva and the controversial decision by the IOC to allow her to compete, despite failing a test in December for trimetazidine, a drug used to treat angina but which is banned for athletes by Wada.
But what exactly is trimetazidine and how does it boost an athlete's performance?
SCMP’s Chan Kin-wa takes a deeper look at the drug and the physical effects it can have.
See the full story here.



How trimetazidine works

Olympic chief Thomas Bach has called for investigation into Russian teenage skater Kamila Valieva's team, including notoriously strict coach Eteri Tutberidze, after "chilling" post-skate exchange was captured on camera.
The saga has opened a debate on the suitability of the Olympic environment for minors, but the IOC president said it had limited means of action.
More to the story here. 



Bach calls for investigation into Valieva’s team

The final for the men’s ski cross big is complete, with Switzerland sweeping the gold and silver on the podium. Ryan Regez takes gold with teammate Alex Fiva winning silver.
Sergey Ridzik takes bronze for ROC.



Switzerland claim ski cross gold and silver

Canada has taken the bronze medal for men’s curling after a tight match against Team USA, with a final score of 8-5.
The Canadians were originally behind, but they pulled it together and stole the lead from the Americans from the eighth round.



Canada snag curling bronze

The men’s 1,000m speed skating competition has begun.
Michalski Piotr from Poland has so far recorded the fastest time at 1:08.56.
We’ll soon find out if it will be enough to beat world champions Kai Verbij from the Netherlands or Pyeongchang silver medalist Haavard Holmefjord Lorentzen from Norway.
China’s Lian Ziwen earlier recorded a time of 1:09.93 and is in fifth position.



Speed skaters hit the ice

Meanwhile, the men’s 15km mass start biathlon is under way, and there are medals up for grabs.
China will be represented by 27-year-old Cheng Fangming from the northeastern Chinese city of Liaoning. Cheng is a former Youth Olympics gold medallist and has held stints in the army. 



Men’s biathlon mass begins

We’re on to the final competitors in the men’s 1,000m speedskating final.
Currently Thomas Krol from the Netherlands is in the lead with a time of 1:07.92.
Haazard Lorentzen from Norway is in second with 1:08.48, and Piotr Michalski from Poland is third with 1:08.56.
China’s Ning Zhongyan is up next.



Krol leads in 1,000m final

It’s a tight race as we approach the end of the men’s 15km mass start for the biathlon.
Norwegians Johannes Thingnes Boe and Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen, Swede Martin Ponsiluloma, and Frenchman Quentin Fillon Maillet are all in the mix.



Tight finish in biathlon

And it just isn’t enough from China’s Ning, who records a time of 1:08.60.
He finishes 0.68 seconds off the current leader, Thomas Krol of the Netherlands.
The crowd cheers as Ning skates off the rink.



Not enough from Ning

That’s a wrap for the men’s 1,000m speedskating final. The Netherlands’ Thomas Krol holds on for gold.
Canada’s Laurent Dubreuil skates in the last pair and finishes with a time of 1:08.32 to take silver, and Norway’s Haavard Lorentzen secures bronze.
China’s Ning Zhongyan finishes in fifth, with Lian Ziwen 19th.



Gold for Krol

Norway’s Johannes Thingnes Boe wins gold in the men’s mass start for biathlon, while Swede Martin Ponsiluloma takes silver.
Norwegian Vetle Sjaastad Christiansen goes home with bronze, with China’s Cheng Fangming finishing last in 30th place.



Biathlon gold for Boe

The pairs figure skating has kicked off with the short programme segment.
China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong are back for another attempt at gold. The duo qualified with the highest score in the short programme at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, but they were beaten in the free skating segment by pairs from Canada and Germany, the latter of which set a record.
Sui and Han settled for the silver and were only a fraction behind – will they redeem themselves in Beijing?
They are up against some strong competition from Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov of the ROC. The pair are the 2021 world champions.
Another ROC duo, Aleksandra Boikova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii, who won bronze at the world championships, are also eyeing gold.
Only the top 16 pairs will qualify for the free skating segment on Saturday.


Han, Sui kick off gold bid

Georgian skaters Karina Safina and Luka Berulava kickstart the pairs skating short programme with a score of 66.11. 
Just a reminder here – the top 16 pairs will qualify to the free skating segment of the event.



Georgia kickstarts pairs short programme

The last Alpine skiing race of the Games has been rescheduled for an hour earlier than planned because of strong wind in the forecast.
The mixed team parallel event is now set to start at 10am on Saturday local time, instead of 11am. The wind is supposed to top 20mph (30kph).
The team event involves men and women from each participating country and is the last chance for American Mikaela Shiffrin to pick up a 2022 Winter Games medal.


Last Alpine event moved earlier because of wind

As we head into the second group of skaters in the pair skating short programme, you might be wondering what the difference is between the ice dance and pair skating disciplines in figure skating. 
Both events may look similar on first glance, but they are very different on closer inspection.
One of the biggest differences between the two is the lack of jumping in ice dancing, with no jumps outside of single jumps being allowed in the discipline.
Certain moves that are staples in pair skating like throw jumps or overhead lifts are also prohibited in ice dancing.
Another difference is the distance between the skaters, with ice dancing demanding that skaters be no more than two arms’ lengths apart.
This should hopefully clear up some confusion if you are watching the pair skating event for the first time.


A quick explainer

Figure skating’s governing body will vote later this year on a proposal to raise the minimum age at which figure skaters can take part in senior competitions, it said in an email to AFP on Friday.
The sport has been under intense scrutiny at the Beijing Olympics after 15-year-old Russian prodigy Kamila Valieva was allowed to compete despite failing a drugs test before the Games, with her youth cited as a factor in the decision.


Valieva prompts figure skating vote

The Kremlin has hit back at comments from Olympic chief Thomas Bach, in which he said he was “disturbed” watching Russian teen skater Kamila Valieva crumble under pressure and hit out at the 15-year-old’s coach for her “chilling” reaction.
“Thomas Bach is a very authoritative person in the sports world. Of course we respect his opinion but we do not necessarily agree with him,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.
“He doesn’t like the harshness of our coaches but everybody knows that the harshness of a coach in high-level sport is key for their athletes to achieve victories.
“And we are seeing that the athletes are achieving victories. So let’s be proud of our winners, congratulate our medallists. Valieva was fourth but in high-level sport, the strongest wins.” Reuters


Valieva coach’s harshness won medals: Kremlin

As Austria’s Severin Kiefer and Miriam Ziegler finish their routine with a score of 51.96, several countries have qualified for the free skate segment of the event.
The pairs from the United States, Japan and Georgia have already advanced.



Pairs from US, Japan and Georgia through

Italy’s Nicole Della Monica and Matteo Guarise finish with a score of 63.58.
They are currently in fourth place.
There are 10 competitors left to go and the top 16 from today will qualify to the free dance programme on Saturday.



Ten pairs left to go

Elana Meyers Taylor has been picked to be a flagbearer again. And this time, she’ll be able to take the job.
The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced the four-time Olympian bobsledder will carry the American flag into Sunday night’s closing ceremony of the Beijing Games.
The announcement was synched to Meyers Taylor’s first run in the women’s bobsled event. As soon as she crossed the line in the first heat, the USOPC revealed that she was the flag bearer pick.
Meyers Taylor was chosen to be one of the flag bearers for the US at the opening ceremony on February 4 but could not take part because she was in isolation following a positive Covid-19 test. That spot went to speedskater Brittany Bowe instead, who led the US delegation alongside curler John Shuster. Associated Press



Meyers Taylor to carry US flag

China’s Peng Cheng and Jin Yan are set to go soon int he latest group of skaters in the pairs short programme.
They out practising on the ice, and received great cheers from the Beijing crowd.



Peng and Jin up soon

Canada’s Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro finish their routine with a score of 62.51.
The pair had some issues on the ice as both skaters fell while executing one of their jumps.
This is the penultimate group of skaters to take the ice.



Spill for Canada

American pair Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy Leduc finish their routine with a score of 74.13.
Leduc is the first non-binary athlete to compete in the Winter Games. 
China’s Peng Cheng and Jin Yang are now taking the ice.



History on the ice

A superb routine from Peng Cheng and Jin Yang, which puts them right in the medal mix.
They looked like they really had fun skating it. Huge cheers from the crowd and smiles all around.
Performance of the evening so far. 



Brilliant from Peng, Jin

And 76.10 is the score for Peng and Jin.
They go straight into the lead in the pairs short programme.
Five pairs to go here.


China’s Peng, Jin lead

We are now seeing the final group of skaters on the ice.
Among them are China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, who drew a roar of applause from the home crowd as they were introduced to the audience.


Final group up

Russia’s Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov masterfully finish their shortprogramme routine with a score of 82.76.
They are the reigning world and European champions for pair skating, and now lead the event here.
Next up, we will see China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong, who are silver medalists from the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.



Russians take lead

That was another level from Sui Wenjing and Han Cong.
The score is 84.41, a comfortable new record. They slaughter their personal best.
A new world record for the Chinese pair, who shoot to the top of the leader board.
Still two pairs to go, but that will take some beating.



World record for China’s Sui, Han

Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov look like they may immediately break the new pairs short programme world record set by China’s Sui Wenjing and Han Cong.
But they are narrowly short, scoring 84.25 (which would’ve broken the old record).
Still, it puts them comfortably into second place here.



Tarasova, Morozov push Sui, Han

In the final pair, Russia’s Aleksandra Bolkova and Dmitrii Kozlovskii show promise but endure some costly slips.
Set to Swan Lake the pair deliver a performance that scores 78.59. This puts them fourth overall. 
Sui Wenjing and Han Cong keep top spot on the leader board, going into Sunday’s free skate segment.
China’s Peng and Jin are in the mix too, settling for fifth place having briefly taken the lead earlier.  



Sui, Han keep hold of top spot

Germany’s Kim Kalicki and Lisa Buckwitz finish their second run in the two-women bobsleigh event atop the leader board.
China’s Ying Qing and Du Jiani sit in seventh place. The other Chinese pair of Huai Mingming and Wang Xuan are two places higher in fifth.
They will all go again in heat 3 and 4 on Saturday night.



Bobsleigh update

That does it for our coverage of day 14 at the Winter Olympics.
Just two more days to go, and it promises to be a fitting finale this weekend.
Check out all the latest news in our dedicated Beijing 2022 microsite, otherwise see you tomorrow morning in our day 15 live blog.


Winter Olympics: Chinese figure skating pair Sui Wenjing and Han Cong smash world record in short programme' Eileen Gu wins second gold – day 14, as it happened

China's Sui Wenjing and Han Cong take lead in pairs figure skating event with incredible short programme routine, after Peng Cheng and Jin Yang threw down the gauntlet Eileen Gu wins her second gold medal of the Beijing Games, after stomping her authority on the women's half-pipe final

China's Sui Wenjing and Han Cong take lead in pairs figure skating event with incredible short programme routine, after Peng Cheng and Jin Yang threw down the gauntlet

Eileen Gu wins her second gold medal of the Beijing Games, after stomping her authority on the women's half-pipe final