Sweden beat Britain to win men’s curling gold
IMAGE: Sweden’s Christoffer Sundgren, Vice Oskar Eriksson, Rasmus Wranaa and Daniel Magnusson react after winning the curling men’s gold medal game against Britain at National Aquatics Center in Beijing. Photograph: Eloisa Lopez/Reuters
Sweden clinched their first men’s Olympic curling gold medal after skip Niklas Edin led them to a 5-4 extra-end victory over Britain in a controlled but tensely-fought contest at the National Aquatics Centre on Saturday.
Edin read the ice to near-perfection in a close, tactical battle, forcing Britain to draw for one in the 10th end before he delivered the knockout blow in the extra end without playing his final stone.
The door was open for Britain’s Bruce Mouat to potentially lie two and seal the win but he could not dislodge the red Swedish rock in the button despite frantic efforts from his sweepers.
There was a literal silver lining for Britain, however, as their second-placed finish brought the nation’s first medal at the Beijing Olympics.
Edin’s Sweden surprisingly finished runners-up to the United States four years ago in Pyeongchang, while they also won bronze at the Sochi Games in 2014.
On Friday, Canada beat the U.S. 8-5 to win bronze and ensure the country avoided a podium shutout at the Olympics, after their mixed doubles and women’s teams missed the playoffs.
Cross-country skiing – Red-hot Bolshunov braves cold to take gold
IMAGE: Alexander Bolshunov of the Russian Olympic Committee celebrates winning gold in the Cross-Country Skiing men’s 50km mass start free event at National Cross-Country Centre in Zhangjiakou. Photograph: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Alexander Bolshunov brushed off fears of frostbite to take gold for the Russian Olympic Committee in the men’s 50km freestyle race on Saturday, saying the harder the conditions, the easier it was for him and his team.
The race was put back by an hour and cut to 30km due to bitterly cold temperatures and biting winds at the National Cross-Country Centre but the changes did not bother Bolshunov, who would have preferred to go the full distance.
“I wouldn’t exactly feel good with this kind of weather, but I did say that the more challenging it is, the easier it is for us (the Russian team),” he told reporters.
“When I found out that the race would be shortened, I was a bit upset, I was getting ready for 50km but then I understand with the gusty wind like that and freezing temperatures, the outcome wouldn’t have been as good, possibly.
“Then as we started skiing we eventually got warmer, picked up the pace but, all in all, I can say in retrospect we could have done all 50 kilometres.”
Conditions improved as the afternoon wore on, making for a brilliant spectacle as the Russians battled it out with their Norwegian rivals as Simen Hegstad Krueger took the bronze medal.
“In the morning the weather was harder, the wind was stronger and the temperature was colder. When we started the race, the weather got a bit better,” said Bolshunov, who set a record of five cross-country medals at a single Winter Olympics.
Silver medallist Ivan Yakimushkin said the distance did not matter and that there was only going to be one winner in the final men’s race of the Games.
“Alex wanted to go the full distance and he would have won anyway, but on a longer distance he would have been much more uncomfortable and he would have to wait for us and get cold,” he said.
Speed skating – Swings wins mass start, brings first Belgian Winter gold in 74 years
IMAGE: Participants in action in the men’s mass start semi-finals at the National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing on Saturday. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters
Belgian Bart Swings beat rivals in a blistering skate rounding the final corner of the men’s mass start at the Beijing Olympics on Saturday to win his country’s first Winter Games gold medal in 74 years.
The silver medallist from Pyeongchang initially hung back before the race turned into a blistering sprint to the finish line.
Still in second place, Swings skated for his life as he rounded the final corner to overtake bronze medallist Lee Seung Hoon and thrust his legs out at the finish line in desperate hopes to be the first to cross it.
He immediately looked up to see the results, and threw his hands up in delight when he saw that he had clinched the first Belgian Winter Games gold since 1948 when Micheline Lannoy and Pierre Baugniet won in the pairs figure skating competition.
“It’s historical and it’s unbelievable,” the 31-year-old said after his race.
“I always want to raise the bar and the next thing after silver is gold. I know it was ambitious and it’s a dream to work towards. I knew today everything could happen so I was just going to go as hard as possible and eventually I achieved it,” the three-times Olympian added.
In a sport that has been long dominated by the Netherlands, Swings was also the first Belgian-born speed skater to stand on the podium at the Winter Games when he won silver in Pyeongchang in the same event.
“I had a lot of pressure for myself because I had a goal and I wanted to achieve it,” Swings said.
“But I also know at the mass (start) everything can happen so I was super nervous the last days last week, because once you have that medal you know how bad you want it again,” he added.
In the final frenzy of the race, Chung Jae Won of South Korea took a separate, inner line to come in second and claim the silver.
Chung’s compatriot Lee looked set for gold as he rounded the last corner, but lost steam in the last stretch as he was overtaken by Swings and landed bronze instead.
Dutchwoman Schouten wins gold in women’s mass start
Dutchwoman Irene Schouten swept around the National Speed Skating Oval on Saturday to win gold in the women’s mass start and continue the Dutch dominance of the event at the Beijing Olympics.
In a dramatic showdown between Schouten and Canadian Ivanie Blondin, Schouten broke away from the pack as the bell sounded signifying the last lap, before Blondin took an inner line to overtake her with half a lap to go.
Blondin still had the lead when they rounded the last corner, but Schouten skated with everything she had left to overtake Blondin in the last few metres before the finish line.
The mass start title marks the third Beijing gold for the 29-year-old.
Ivanie Blondin of Canada claimed silver and Francesca Lollobrigida of Italy took bronze.
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