2022 Winter Olympics: Medal Favorites for Figure Skating, Skiing and Top Events

Nathan Chen has won the gold medal at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships six years in a row after his victory in 2022. He's also won gold at each of the past three World Figure Skating Championships. However, he has never topped the Olympic podium.

That could change in February, though, when the 22-year-old will be one of the top contenders to win the men's figure skating gold medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. The opening ceremony for the Games is set for Feb. 4, while some sports will begin two days earlier.

If Chen is going to capture his first Olympic gold, he'll need to perform better than Yuzuru Hanyu, a 27-year-old from Japan who has won the men's gold at each of the past two Winter Olympics in 2014 and 2018. These two men will likely be the top challengers in China.

Here's a look at more of the early favorites to win gold medals in several notable sports at the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Figure Skating

Mark Zaleski/Associated Press

Chen and Hanyu are the clear favorites to contend for the men's figure skating gold. And while the latter has performed better at past Olympics, the former has dominated the sport in recent years.

At the least, Chen should win his first Olympic individual medal, as he's previously only won a team bronze in 2018.

In women's figure skating, the Russian Olympic Committee should have several top contenders for the gold medal. At the 2021 World Figure Skating Championships, three Russian women took home the medals: Anna Shcherbakova (gold), Elizaveta Tuktamysheva (silver) and Alexandra Trusova (bronze).

Trusova finished second at the Russian Figure Skating Championships in December, when Kamila Valieva won the gold medal by a record margin. So Valieva could be among the top names to watch in Beijing, where she'll look to win her first Olympic medal.

There's guaranteed to be a new gold medalist in the pairs competition as Germany's Aljona Savchenko and Bruno Massot, who finished first in 2018, won't be participating this year. Russia's Anastasia Mishina and Aleksandr Galliamov won the gold at last year's World Figure Skating Championships and could be the pair to watch.

Skiing

Pier Marco Tacca/Associated Press

Mikaela Shiffrin has won a gold medal at each of the past two Winter Games, and she is heading to Beijing with a lot of momentum.

On Tuesday, the 26-year-old American won the last women's World Cup slalom prior to the Games, which is an event she has excelled at in recent years. It was her record-breaking 47th career slalom victory.

Shiffrin won the gold in slalom in 2014 and in giant slalom in 2018, and she could win multiple golds in women's skiing events in 2022.

Slovakia's Petra Vlhova is another name to watch in women's slalom, as the 26-year-old appears to be in a good position to win her first Olympic medal.

In the men's alpine skiing, Switzerland's Marco Odermatt enters among the favorites for numerous events. The 24-year-old is currently in first place in the standings for the 2021–22 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, and he should win his first Olympic medal next month in Beijing.

Alexander Bolshunov of the Russian Olympic Committee (men's) and Therese Johaug of Norway (women's) should be among the top cross-country skiers at the 2022 Winter Olympics. 

Bolshunov won three silvers and a bronze at the 2018 Games, while Johaug captured four golds at the 2021 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships.

Ice Hockey

Pavel Golovkin/Associated Press

The NHL won't be sending players to the 2022 Winter Olympics, as the league will be using that time to make up games that were postponed due to COVID-19 issues. So that's going to have an impact on which countries will be the favorites to win the medals in men's ice hockey in Beijing.

The United States and Canada will be hit hard by the absence of NHL players, which could leave the Russian Olympic Committee as the clear favorites to win the gold medal. The Russians captured the gold in 2018, and their roster will be filled with talented players from the KHL.

There were no NHL players at the 2018 Winter Olympics, either, and Germany ended up winning the silver medal after losing in overtime in the gold-medal game. The Germans could be a contender again this year, as could Finland, which beat Russia to win the 2021 Channel One Cup in December.

As for women's ice hockey, Canada will be looking to reclaim the gold medal after losing to the United States and settling for the silver in 2018. The Canadians had won the gold at each of the previous four Winter Olympics (2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014).

Since women's ice hockey was added to the Olympics, Canada and the U.S. are the only countries that have won the gold. Don't be surprised if they are battling it out for the top prize again this year.