Olympic Snowboarding Women's Halfpipe Schedule 2014: Live Stream Info for Day 5
Women's snowboard halfpipe highlights what is an action-packed Day 5 at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Unfortunately, most of the talk surrounding the halfpipe hasn't focused on the athletes and who will win, but rather the course itself. Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports reported on how poorly many snowboarders believed the halfpipe to be.
American Danny Davis said, "It's the Olympics. It should be flawless. What a lame showcase of snowboarding, and what a lame way to treat the athletes."
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With the men's halfpipe on Tuesday night, the course officials will have little time to turn around the course and iron out many of the problems that riders have pointed out.
Hopefully it doesn't take away from what should be a great spectacle on Wednesday, as the best female snowboarders in the world try to earn Olympic gold.
| Women's Halfpipe Qualification | 5 a.m. | None | NBC Olympics Live Extra |
| Women's Halfpipe Semifinals | 10 a.m. | None | NBC Olympics Live Extra |
| Women's Halfpipe Final | 12:30 p.m. | NBC (tape delayed at 8 p.m.) | NBC Olympics Live Extra |
Contenders to Watch
Torah Bright, Australia
If there's one rider who's going to upend the American supremacy, it's Torah Bright. She's the reigning Olympic champion in the halfpipe, picking up a gold at Vancouver in 2010.
Of course, luck hasn't been in Bright's favor so far in Sochi.
Her mother wanted Vladimir Putin to rebuild the snowboarding course; the International Olympic Committee said she couldn't honor Sarah Burke during her run; she also fell during a training run, leading to her brother going on the offensive about the course as well.
Wednesday is a chance for Bright to put all of those distractions in her rear-view mirror. At her best, the 27-year-old Australian star is one of the best in the world, who's more than capable of taking home gold.
Hannah Teter, USA
One of the standard-bearers for American snowboarding over the last few years has been Hannah Teter. The 27-year-old owns a gold medal from the 2006 Winter Olympics, a silver from the 2010 Winter Olympics and countless medals from the Winter X Games.
Although past victories are no guarantee of future success, you can't question whether Teter has what it takes to be on the podium in Sochi.
One monkey wrench in her plans could be the course itself. She wasn't afraid to make her opinions known during the men's halfpipe finals on Tuesday night:
Teter will have to make sure that she's not psyched out before her run even begins.
Arielle Gold, USA
Arielle Gold is one of the emerging stars of American snowboarding heading into Sochi. Only 17 years old, she's already made quite a name for herself.
Gold won bronze in the superpipe at the 2013 Winter X Games in addition to a gold medal at the 2013 World Championships in the halfpipe. Despite her age, there's no chance that Gold will be overwhelmed by the stage. She's more than capable of handling the pressure and expectations.
Part of that is down to the fact that she's happy to simply be in Sochi in the first place.
"It's not really something I ever expected to be doing," Gold said, per John Coon of MaxPreps. "I'm just excited to be going to Russia with such an amazing group of people. Hopefully, I should be able to ride well there."
Imagine if Gold comes out on top Wednesday. The headlines will write themselves.
Kelly Clark, USA
All signs point to Kelly Clark picking up Olympic gold medal No. 2 on Wednesday. Even at 30 years old, she remains the best female snowboarder in the in the world when it comes to the halfpipe.
With a gold at the 2014 Winter X Games, Clark became the most decorated female athlete in X Games history, racking up an unprecedented 12 medals. No other competitor is riding that kind of momentum, and no other competitor can beat Clark when she's on her best day.
Since this is likely Clark's last go-round at the Winter Olympics, the American star will want to exit on top, and there's a great chance she'll make that happen.
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