There are just a few days left of the 2022 Winter Olympics — meaning a few last chances for medals. In the men’s freeski halfpipe, New Zealand’s Nico Porteous won gold and Americans David Wise and Alex Ferreira took silver and bronze, respectively, in a crash-filled competition held despite high winds on Saturday.
Mikaela Shiffrin’s last race — the mixed team slalom — was supposed to be held, but has been canceled for the night due to the conditions.
After the first two heats of the four-man bobsled, the two German teams lead, with two more heats Sunday morning before the medals are awarded. The Jamaican team sits in 28th place in its first appearance in 24 years.
Finally, at 1:50 a.m. ET, or 6:50 a.m. in the U.K., Britain will be going for its first medal of these Games. The Brits face Sweden in the men’s curling gold-medal match. We’ll have updates on the action here:
Team race postponed
Mikaela Shiffrin will have to wait for her final chance at a 2022 Olympic medal, after the mixed team parallel event was canceled on Saturday due to high wind. Olympic organizers have yet to announce if the event will be rescheduled for Sunday, the final day of the Olympics.
MEDIA ALERT 🚨
Today’s Mixed Team Parallel is canceled due to weather. FIS, IOC, BOCOG, and OBS will meet immediately to discuss the potential rescheduling of the event. More information forthcoming. #Beijing2022— U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team (@usskiteam) February 19, 2022
U.S. men win silver and bronze
In a tough men’s freeski halfpipe final that saw gusty winds, challenging conditions and few landed runs, New Zealand’s Nico Porteous put down an impressive run to win gold. The 2018 Olympic bronze medalist and 2021 world champion, Porteous, 20, won the contest with his first-run score of 93 before conditions deteriorated. In his third run, Porteous was caught in a wind gust, took a nasty fall and landed nearly upside down. He skied to the bottom of the pipe clutching his left shoulder.
“These conditions are abysmal right now,” NBC commentator Tom Wallisch, an X Games gold medalist in freeskiing, said after Porteous’ fall. On the next run, top qualifier Aaron Blunck of the U.S. got caught upside down on a trick and crashed toward the middle of the halfpipe. He remained there for several minutes before skiing to the bottom of the pipe. He finished seventh.
At the start of the contest, all eyes were on American David Wise, the two-time defending gold medalist in the event. In his first run, Wise landed a solid, if scaled-back run to take silver, while his teammate, Alex Ferreira, the 2018 Olympic silver medalist, took bronze.
🤜🤛
When @mrDavidWise and @alexferreiraski make back-to-back Olympic podiums in the ski halfpipe together. #WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/atbeNJlS1v
— Team USA (@TeamUSA) February 19, 2022
After the contest, NBC commentator Mike Tirico addressed the fact that halfpipe finals took place while the alpine event was postponed. “What we’re hearing is the wind conditions for tomorrow are just as bad in the forecast, so you run out of a window to hold the event,” he said. “The safety of the athletes was paramount there and perhaps a pause would have been called for.”
American Birk Irving finished in fifth place and three-time Olympian Gus Kenworthy, who represented the U.S. in Sochi and Pyeongchang, and Team Great Britain this time around, took the final halfpipe runs of his career. He announced before Beijing that he is retiring from competitive skiing.
In his second run, Kenworthy was caught in a massive wind gust and thrown off his line and he crashed hard onto his back on the deck. Remarkably, he landed a full third run to finish eighth and put a solid stamp on an incredible career. He spoke with NBC about the conditions after his final run.
“The wind is crazy,” he said. “They built this fence which is supposed to block the wind from going across the pipe, but what’s happening is, [the wind] is just spiraling in the pipe. It’s the biggest factor today. The top three runs are so impressive, but they’re not the runs those guys wanted to do. It shows a lot of resilience to land a run today and I’m happy they’re getting it done.” — Alyssa Roenigk
Event schedule (all times ET)
1:45 a.m.: Men’s curling gold-medal match — Britain vs. Sweden
6 a.m.: Pairs figure skating free skate
7 a.m.: Two-woman bobsled heats 3, 4
8:10 a.m.: Men’s hockey bronze-medal game — Sweden vs. Slovakia
