Olympics - Milano-Cortina 2026 - Day 14/February 17

 

A day light on medal competitions, which was great for me since I did not have the opportunity to watch as much as I ordinarily would.  Lots of curling and men's playoff hockey, as 8 teams vied for the right to play the top 4 seeds in the quarterfinals.  So, let's get to the action that did occur.

Men's curling really hurt itself with 2 losses on the day, falling to China and Italy to identical scores of 8-5.  The women fared much better soundly defeating Denmark 10-3.  The men's medal round chances faded, but the women are firmly in medal contention.

In the most dominating performance of the day, German sleds swept the podium in the 2-man bobsled, with the sled piloted by American Opening Ceremony Flag-Bearer Frank del Duca finishing only .44 seconds out of the bronze in 4th.  Johannes Lochner won gold to go with his two silvers from Beijing.  Georg Fleschheiser also won gold as Lochner's brakeman.  They wer closely followed by legend Francesco Friedrich, who added a silver to go with his 2 golds in the 2-man (Pyeongchang in 2018 and Beijing in 2022) and his 2 golds in the 4-man in those same Olympics.

In the Men's Biathlon Relay, the French team of Fabien Claude, Emilien Jacquelin, Quentin Fillon Maillet and Eric Perrot won gold over Norway (silver) and Sweden (bronze).  For Claude, the gold can be paired with the silver he won in Beijing in the same event.  This is Jacquelin's second medal of these games (bronze in men's pursuit), to bring his total to 4 (two silvers in Beijing).  Fillon Maillet won his third gold of Milano-Cortina, and his 5th gold and 8th medal overall.  In his first games, Eric Perrot anchored this gold, which was his second in these games (and third overall).

Although Norway finished second in the Biathlon relay, they did win two golds on the day.  The first in the Nordic Combined, which combines the large hill Ski Jumping with a 10km Cross-Country Race.  Jens Luraas Oftebro won gold, with Austria's Johannes Lemparter earning silver, and Ilkka Herola from Finland receiving bronze.

Norway's other gold came via the Men's Big Air final in Freestyle Skiing.  Torand Frist won yet another gold for Norway, as American Mac Forehand came in second for silver, followed closely by Matej Svancer from Austria (bronze).

The United States picked up another silver in the Men's Speed Skating Team Pursuit, finishing just behind Italy in the A Finals.  On the women's side, Canada was victorious over the Netherlands.

And one of the marquee events of every Winter Olympics - the women's figure skating, the short program was held and Japan is sitting in first, second and fourth places behind performances by Ami Nakai, Kaori Sakamato and Mone Chiba respectively.  Only American Alyssa Liu is currently preventing a Japanese sweep as she sits in third heading into the Free Skate.

Athlete of the Day - Johannes Lochner, Germany, Bobsled

His gold after 2 silvers in Beijing behind Francesco Friedrich feels like the ultimate passing of the torch.

U.S. Athlete of the Day - Mac Forehand, Freestyle Skiing

Silver medal, the best of the day for the United States!

Upset of the Day - Francesco Friedrich, Germany, Bobsled

Not that a silver medal is disappointing, and not that Lohner isn't a worthy champion, but again, this feels like the ultimate passing of the torch in one of Germany's national sports.

Team of the Day - France, Biathlon, Men's Relay

Fabien Claude, Emilia Jacquiline, Quintin Fillon Maillet, and Eric Perrot have been bringing it all Olympics.  Men's Relay gold just seems fitting.

U.S. Team of the Day - Speedskating, Men's Team Pursuit

Earned an impressive silver medal behind host Italy.  Ethan Cepuran, Casey Days and Emery Lehman deserve their roses today.

Olympic Term of the Day:  Pursuit - In speedskating, it is a long-track race where three skaters skate together as one unit, aiming to record the fastest time over a set distance while staying tightly grouped to maximize drafting and efficiency.  The team is timed when the third skater crosses the finish line, and all three must stay together to achieve a top time.

Olympic Events Watched:   Bobsled, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing

USA Closing Ceremony Flag-Bearer Possibilities (listed alphabetically):  Evan Bates, Madison Chock, Kendall Coyne, Jessie Diggins, Korey Dobkin, Ashley Farquharson, Breezy Johnson, Jaelin Kauf, Hilary Knight, Elizabeth Lemley, Austin Matthews, Elana Meyers Taylor, Ben Ogden, Jordan Stolz, Cory Thiesse,