United States

3 to Watch: Palo Alto's Zhou Makes History, While Chen, Shiffrin and Jacobellis Fall Short

LIVE primetime coverage of men's figure skating short program and more kicks off at 5 p.m. PT

Making the Bay Area Proud! A solid performance from Palo Alto's Vincent Zhou, who made history in the men's short program, made up for an otherwise disappointing day for Team USA. 

winter-anthony-39
Chicago Police Department

Here are some of Thursday key Olympic moments: 

UPDATED: Chen Stumbles Again But Advances to Final, Palo Alto's Vincent Makes History with Quad Lutz 

After a shaky debut, Nathan Chen stumbles again in Pyeongchang, falling three times to finish 17th in the men’s short program. 

Leading up to the Games, Chen said he’s worked to improve every aspect of his performance, adding "more passion in my skating and more of a connection to the music.” But can he find momentum after two sub-par starts?

Chen, a pre-games favorite, missed on all his jumps, plummeting to 17th place with a tentative and passionless showing.

Chen’s teammates will advance, finishing above the 18-year-old. Veteran Adam Rippon, 28, lived up to his flair for the dramatic programs, performing to techno song "Let Me Think About It" by Ida Corr vs. Fedde Le Grand, earning him seventh.

Seventeen-year-old teammate Vincent Zhou of Palo Alto, Calif. finished the short program in 12th, but not befoe landing the first clean quad Lutz ever in Olympic competition. Zhou set a personal best score advancing him to the free skate final tomorrow. 

Chen, Rippon and Zhou will go for gold Saturday morning (Friday night in the U.S.).

> READ: Full story here 
> MORE: Complete Men's Short Program Figure Skating Results
> VIDEO: See Vincent Zhou Land First Ever Quad Lutz in Olympic History
> INTERVIEW: 'Ambitious' Zhou on Making History
> STORY: Pride for Asian American Skaters as They Take to Olympic Ice
> VIDEO: Zhou Finds Inspiration From Fellow Young Athletes
> PHOTOS: Get to Know Your Northern California Athletes
> GALLERY: Vincent Zhou's Childhood Photos
> PHOTOS: Model Olympian: Vincent Zhou
> VIDEO: Zhou Gets Help From Legendary Gold Medalist

UPDATED: Heavy Favorite Shiffrin Struggles in Slalom, Finishes Fourth

1509305207-CrimeSceneTapeLights-(1).JPG?crop=faces,top&fit=crop&q=35&auto=enhance&w=300&h=300&fm=jpg
Jeffrey Swinger/ USA Today Sports
Sep 25, 2017; Park City, UT, USA; Team USA alpine skiing athlete Mikaela Shiffrin during the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team media summit at the Grand Summit Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

Mikaela Shiffrin, the heavy favorite to win the women's slalom and claim her second gold medal in as many days, missed the podium and finished in fourth place in Pyeongchang on Friday. 

Shiffrin’s fourth-place finish is an astonishing upset, as the slalom is her specialty: Last year, she became the first woman to win three consecutive slalom world titles in 78 years and she won gold in Sochi.

Frida Hansdotter of Sweden took gold, Wendy Holdener of Switzerland took silver and Katharina Gallhuber of Austria won bronze.

The 22-year-old American vomited before her first run, saying her nausea was "kind of sudden" and "almost felt like a virus.” Although she used the break between runs to rest up (literally—she is known for her love of napping) second run wasn’t enough to get on the podium.

The day before, Shiffrin took gold in the giant slalom.

> READ: Full story here
> MORE: America's Disappoingting Night: Falls, Fourth-Place Finishes
> VIDEO: Shiffrin Takes Fourth in Her Favorite Event
> INTERVIEW: Shiffrin Talks About Vomiting Before Slalom Race
> MORE: Shiffrin Wins Giant Slalom for Second Career Olympic Gold

UPDATED: Redemption Denied: Lindsey Jacobellis Fails to Medal in Snowboard Cross

[[474108583, L]]

Lindsey Jacobellis, the most decorated women’s snowboard cross athlete ever, will finish her fourth Olympics just like the first three: without a gold medal.

Jacobellis, a five-time world champion, reached the finals of the event, then held onto a lead for the first two-thirds of the race. But she faded late, and finished in fourth place.

Italian Michela Moioli, France's Julia Pereira De Sousa Mabileau and the Czech Republic's Eva Samkova finished in the top three.

For Jacobellis, it's just the latest moment in a disappointing Olympic career. It began 12 years ago, in Torino, when she seemed to have the gold medal wrapped up, with a huge lead down the race’s final stretch. But she tried a flashy move off a jump and fell, and settled for silver.

Since then, the Olympics have been her kryptonite. She crashed in early rounds in both 2008 and 2012, and failed to reach the final.

And now, one more disappointment: A solid run, but a finish just off the medal stand.

> READ: Full story here
> VIDEO: Disappointing Day for Team USA
> VIDEO: Italy's Moioli Passes Jacobellis, Wins SBX Gold
> MORE: Complete Snowboard Cross Results

[[473872593. C]]

Contact Us