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.
China’s first appearance in the Winter Olympics was at Lake Placid in 1980, where its 24 athletes won zero medals. Thirty-five years later, Beijing won a bid to host the 2022 winter games. China’s goal? To turn millions into ski enthusiasts by then.
The big picture: China has won 546 total medals in the Summer Olympics, but just 54 in the winter games. The Chinese are determined to impress when the world comes to Beijing in four years time, and to create a ski culture that will last far beyond the games.
