Winter Olympics closing ceremony LIVE: Team GB women win first gold medal in curling as Beijing Games end
Follow latest updates from Beijing Winter Olympics 2022 as Team GB chase their first medal of the Games
Great Britain’s women, led by Eve Muirhead, went one better than the men in their gold medal match against Japan at the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
The men’s team fell short yesterday when Sweden claimed gold to deny Bruce Mouat and his team. Swedish skip Niklas Edin proved too good and repeated their victory over Great Britain in a 2014 semi-final. Muirhead overcame almost impossible odds to steer her women’s curling team into the Olympic final where she completed an incredible journey to finally fulfil an ambition that appeared beyond her after a decade at the top of her sport. Team coach Murdoch put her chances of salvaging victory at “less than 10 per cent” after shipping four shots in a disastrous opening end to defending Olympic champions Sweden, but they clawed back to clinch a thrilling 12-11 victory in an extra end.
In the final, Muirhead guided Great Britain to their first and only gold of the Games, beating Japan 10-3 to claim the joint-biggest margin of victory in a final since the sport was reintroduced in ‘98. With all events now closed and the medals handed out, it only remains for the closing ceremony to take place and the baton to be passed on to Italy.
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Finland strike first
Ice hockey semi-final between Finland and Slovakia has begun with the two teams fighting for a spot in the gold-medal final.
Finland, led by captain Valtteri Filppula, were the first to hit the puck in the net, leading the game by 1-0.
ROC will play Sweden in the other semi-final.
Fund Olympic dreams of small nations, says Irish skier
Thomas Maloney Westgaard of Ireland who secured 14th place in 15 km classic race at the Beijing Olympics feels that International Olympic Committee and International Ski Federation should support smaller nations so that they can perform better in the Games.
“I haven’t won an Olympic gold but the 14th place, it nearly feels like a medal for me,” Westgaard told Reuters as he prepared for the iconic 50km race that will bring the men’s cross-country programme at the Games to an end on Saturday.
“You feel we (Ireland) get more respect on the skiing circuit, so it was a fantastic moment, coming in representing a smaller nation.” Like many Winter Olympic athletes, Westgaard has to fight for the resources to dedicate himself to his sport.
“It is really hard regarding funding and that kind of stuff, especially when they compare us with the bigger nations. So that ours was the sixth best nation in the 15k, behind nations that are taking Olympic medals in cross-country skiing during these Olympics, this is fantastic,” he said.
With Ireland having only a handful of snow days per year and winter sports not being a priority, he believes resources should come from the International Olympic Committee and International Ski Federation (FIS) as a carrot for smaller countries.
“It’s always the first thing you always ask for, more support, and I think there is potential there to take care of smaller nations better,” he said.
IOC president Bach hits out at entourage after Valieva's meltdow
International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said it had been “chilling” to witness Russian teenage skater Kamila Valieva crumble under pressure at the Beijing Olympics in the wake of a doping scandal, hitting out at the 15-year-old’s entourage on Friday.
Valieva, who had been leading the women’s figure skating event after the short programme, cracked in her free skate on Thursday night, and stumbled down to fourth place as her compatriot Anna Shcherbakova skated to gold.
“I must say I was very, very disturbed yesterday when I watched the competition on TV,” Bach told a news conference.
“How high the pressure on her must have been.”
“To see her struggling on the ice, to see her, how she tries to compose herself again, how then she tries to finish her programme and you could see in every movement, in the body language, you could feel that this is immense, immense mental stress and maybe she would have preferred to just leave the ice and try to leave this story behind her,” said Bach.
Valieva left the ice hiding tears behind her hands and sobbed in the ‘kiss and cry’ area as her coach, Eteri Tutberidze, confronted her.
“Why did you let it go? Explain it to me, why? Why did you stop fighting completely? Somewhere after the axel you let it go,” Tutberidze said.
“When I afterwards saw how she was received by her close entourage... it was chilling to see this,” said Bach.
Johaug to call time on Olympic career after Sunday's 30km
Norway’s Therese Johaug has said that she will sign off her Olympic career with the women’s 30 km freestyle event that closes the Beijing Games on Sunday.
A relay winner at her first Olympics in 2010, the 33-year-old finally achieved her dream of winning an individual gold, picking up two in Beijing in the skiathlon and the 10 km classic races.
“Sunday will be my last Olympic race,” she told reporters before hinting that her career may be coming to a close.
“It (my decision) won’t happen until after the season, I’ll have to go a few rounds with myself, it could take a long time,” she added. Johaug missed the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang due to a doping suspension, and Sunday represents the last chance to add to her collection of Olympic medals, which also includes a silver and a bronze from Sochi.
“I think it will be a very tough 30k. If it has not been important previously to allocate (energy) correctly on these trails, then it will definitely be important on Sunday,” Johaug said.
Second gold for Eileen Gu!
Even before she went down the slopes for her final run, it was clear that Gu would be winning her second gold and third medal of the Games as none of the other eleven competitors had been able to outdo the 95.25 that she earned with her second run.
Defending champion Cassie Sharpe took silver for Canada and her teammate Rachael Karker earned bronze, while Team GB’s Zoe Atkin dropped out of the running for the podium, securing the ninth spot in the halfpipe finals.
Ei-leaning towards gold
Home favourite Eileen Gu posted the highest score in her first two runs of the women’s ski halfpipe final as she bids to become the first action-sports athlete to capture three medals at the same Winter Games.
Turning in a solid 93.25 and improving it to 95.25, Gu assured she is ahead of the pack.
Meanwhile, two Canadians- Cassie Sharpe and Rachael Karker are provisionally placed at the second and third spot, with the best score of 90 and 87.75.
Good morning, and welcome to The Independent’s rolling coverage of day 14 of the Winter Olympics in Beijing for Friday 18 February.
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