Sochi Winter Olympics 2014: Day 2 Storylines to Follow
The Winter Olympic games are off and running. A dramatic Opening Ceremony Friday gave way to an interesting first full day of competition on Saturday.
To the shock of no one, Norway jumped out to an early lead in the medal count. But there were plenty of surprises, including unheralded 20-year-old American Sage Kotsenburg grabbing the first gold medal in the history of men's snowboard slopestyle and French favorite Martin Fourcade failing to reach the podium in men's biathlon sprint (I know, it floored me, too).
Heading into Sunday, things are really rolling. We shall begin to see in short order whether the host, the venues, the events and the athletes are equal to the Games' $50 billion price tag—the highest in Olympic Games history. And I'll put it this way: now that it's more in the hands of the athletes, I'm feeling better about its chances.
Here are the top storylines worth keeping your eye on for Day 2.
Ice Dancing Rivalry of Doom
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What: Team ice dance free dance
Live air time: 12:10 p.m. ET
Let the feud be renewed, ladies and gentlemen. Hunker down, strap in and hang on. Because there's going to be blood. Ice dancing blood.
The reigning Olympic champions, the dynamic Canadian duo of Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, are the immovable object. The reigning Olympic silver medalists, Americans Meryl Davis and Charlie White, are the irresistible force, who've done nothing more than blaze a path of pure terror from Vancouver to Sochi, with only one goal—white-eyed, furious vengeance—on their minds.
(And it appears there might be more to this rivalry than what happens on the ice. More on that in a second.)
To add more fuel to this towering bonfire, they both train under the same tutor, Marina Zoueva. But in a gruesome twist, only one team may truly win their beloved teacher's affection*.
Something has to give, I tell you. And you should be there to witness it. The dancing begins live at 12:10 p.m. ET on Sunday, when they meet as part of the ice dancing portion of the new team competition.
*I'm sure she loves them both equally in real life.
Jamie Anderson Goes for Team USA Slopestyle Sweep
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What: Women's snowboard slopestyle
Live air time: 4:15 a.m. ET
Shaun White ducked out of the men's slopestyle, for reasons of health or safety or brand or whatever.
No matter. Kotsenburg, the relative unknown, filled those shoes quite nicely, thank you very much, becoming the first gold medalist in Olympic snowboard slopestyle history and for Team USA in the Sochi Games.
Sunday, the scene shifts to the ladies and Jamie Anderson, who will hit the challenging slopestyle course in hopes of making it two-for-two for the Americans.
It won't be easy, of course. In the qualifying round, she came in second to Austrian Anna Gasser. Australian Torah Bright is hard on their heels.
Either way, this event is high-flying fun, and it's a great addition to the Olympics. Don't listen to what Bob Costas says. Just get off his lawn and he'll go back inside.
Team Figure Skating Medal Round Unfolds Amid Controversy
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What: Team men free skate, team ladies free skate, team ice dance free dance
Live air times: 10 a.m. ET, 11:05 a.m. ET, 12:10 p.m. ET
Another Winter Olympics, another figure skating judge controversy.
French media outlet L'Equipe (per a translated report from The Washington Post) is reporting that U.S. and Russian judges are conspiring to help one another in the pairs and dance portions of the team competition, at the expense of ice dance faves Moir and Virtue.
Told you this was a nasty rivalry.
It has cast a pall over team figure skating, an interesting new addition to the Games that was drawing plenty of attention.
Either way, the event's inaugural medals will be distributed Sunday, following the men's singles, ladies' singles and ice dance team long programs.
The Americans stumbled out of the gate, with Jeremy Abbott and others failing to stake the team to an early lead. But they have rallied, and are right in the thick of the medal hunt along with Russia, Canada and China. Heading into Sunday, Russia leads the way with 47 points. Canada is in second position with 41, and Team USA is in third with 34. All of these countries have a real chance to medal tomorrow. Italy and Japan also have a good chance to sneak onto the podium with 31 and 30 points, respectively.
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Bode Miller Defies Age
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What: Men's Downhill
Live air time: 2 a.m. ET
The men's downhill has a party crasher in Sochi. His name is Bode Miller.
Miller's life as a professional skier was all but left for dead after microfracture knee surgery cost him all of his 2012 season. But he's back and faster than ever. He is a man reborn, and he's going after his sixth Olympic medal and a storybook ending to a roller-coaster career.
The event's presumed favorite, Norwegian Aksel Lund Svindal, has to be irked that the 36-year-old Miller is waddling in on his cane to steal all the limelight. If he's not careful, Miller might steal the gold medal, too.
“He’s been the best skier on this mountain,” Svindal said about Miller, via The Washington Post's Barry Svrluga. “So now he looks like the favorite.”
Anything can happen on the breakneck downhill course. But doesn't that give the edge to chaos and underdogs? And does that not, in turn, swing the pendulum for Miller?
German Men Lugers Try to Finish One-Two, Again
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What: Men's singles luge medal runs
Live air time: 11:30 a.m. ET
Felix Loch and David Moller finished gold-silver in 2010. In 2014, they'll try to do it again.
The German mens' lugers are about as dominant as any of the Winter Olympics power nations. Well, unless you count Norway and cross-country skiiing, but that really should go without saying.
Loch and Moller would be a good name for a TV show. It has a nice ring to it. They could catch bad guys in a series of various luge chases. Just film it in a city with a lot of hills.
Women's Hockey Underdogs Hit the Ice
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What: Sweden vs. Japan, Russia vs. Germany
Live air times: 3 a.m. ET, 8 a.m. ET
Russia, Sweden and Germany may not be set to challenge Team USA or Canada for gold. But they could very well take the medal stand, and they'll be in action Sunday morning.
Under the event's new format, these are the teams competing in Group B, while the Americans, Canadians, Finns and Swiss duke it out in Group A. Talk about a group of death.
The top two teams from Group B will advance to the quarterfinals to face the bottom two teams from Group A (the top two Group A teams automatically advance to the semis). So unlike in years past, viewers will definitely see a couple of these underdogs competing in the next round.
Norway out to Continue Cross-Country Dominance
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What: Women's biathlon 7.5 km sprint, Men's Skiathlon
Live air time: 9:30 a.m. ET, 5:00 a.m. ET
Let me be clear at the outset: There is no party like a cross-country skiing party. Because a cross-country skiing party, well, it does not stop.
And don't kid yourself: This is Norway's party. Whether it's cross-country skiiing by itself or combined with rifle shooting as biathlon, the Norwegians are all about that action, boss.
Sunday, on the women's side, Tora Berger is predicted to take the biathlon sprint gold. She would be Norway's second biathlon gold medalist of these young games, behind Ole Einar Bjoerndalen, who at age 40 won the men's sprint and is, quite simply and without hyperbole, the Michael Jordan of the biathlon.
In addition, countrywoman Marit Bjoergen took the woman's skiathlon gold Saturday. See what I'm saying here?
In the men's skiathlon, which covers a total of 30 km, Russian Alexander Legkov might be all that stands in the way of yet another gold medal for Norway. This time, Martin Johnsrud Sundby is the man who could bring it home.
Seriously...Is Something Bad Going to Happen?
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You can't wish this portion of the narrative away. You can't sweep it beneath one of these gleaming competitive superstructures. And it's clear the problems go beyond a few inconvenienced reporters.
Even as the games get underway in earnest, the bad headlines keep on rolling out, and each one tops the last. A Turkish flight crew acted quickly to neutralize an apparent highjacking targeted for Sochi. Russia Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak admitted they are spying on showering visitors. The deputy freaking prime minister!
Oh, and all those dogs that were being killed off because they were strays—or, as another Russian official put it, "biological trash"? Yeah, turns out many of them were pets that families abandoned when their homes were demolished to make way for Olympic construction.
Not exactly the side of Russia Vladimir Putin and company were hoping to spotlight.
In the infancy of these Games, it's hard not to imagine that something bad—security, humanitarian or otherwise—is inevitable. How would other nations and viewers react?
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