Mikaela Shiffrin after coming in 4th place. Photo: Tim Clayton / Getty
The U.S. had double disappointment in the Winter Olympics Friday morning (local time in Pyeongchang):
- U.S. skiing star Mikaela Shiffrin, who won gold in giant slalom Thursday, came in fourth place in slalom Friday — an event she won four years ago and was favored to win again. Shiffrin would have been the first skier to win back-to-back golds in the event.
- Figure skater Nathan Chen was expected to be a contender for gold in the men's competition, despite the favored reining champion, Yuzuru Hanyu, who has been on a winning streak. But Chen fell during his first jump — a quadruple lutz — and stumbled a few other times during his short program. He's currently in 17th place and will skate again tonight.
Better news: The U.S. hockey team had their first victory, beating Slovakia 2-1.
Medal count: Germany is in first place with nine gold medals, and Norway and the Netherlands are tied for second with six. The U.S. remains in fourth place with five.
- Norway has the most medals overall with 19.
Coming up: Later tonight, U.S. Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn competes in the super-G, for which she received a bronze medal in 2010. Tomorrow morning, the U.S. men's ice hockey team will play the Olympic Athletes of Russia.