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14 Established 1961 Sports Thursday, February 22, 2018 Zagitova, 15, smashes skate record as Vonn gets bronze Ridzik recovers from crash in ski cross final to take bronze PYEONGCHANG: Record-breaking Alina Zagitova, Goggia and Ragnhild Mowinckel of Norway. 15, stole the show in figure skating yesterday as But the 2010 winner was delighted to reach the America’s Lindsey Vonn wound up her Olympic podium-the oldest female alpine skier to do so-after downhill career by becoming the oldest female alpine a series of injuries threatened to wreck her career ski medallist in Games history. and ruled her out of Sochi 2014. “If you think what’s Zagitova was breathtaking in the Russian-dominat- happened over the last eight years and what I’ve been ed short programme, breaking the world record set through to get here, I gave it all and to come away just minutes earlier by her team-mate, 18-year-old with a medal is a dream come true,” said Vonn. Evgenia Medvedeva. It put “You’ve got to put things the Russians top of the into perspective. Of course, standings ahead of Friday’s I would have loved a gold free skate, where Zagitova medal but, honestly, this is will attempt to become the amazing and I’m so proud.” youngest women’s singles You’ve got figure skating champion SKI CROSS CHAOS since Tara Lipinski in 1998. to put things In other action yester- They also look set to win day, Russian skier Sergey the first gold of the Games into perspective Ridzik recovered from a for the Olympic Athletes crash in the ski cross final to from Russia, who are com- take bronze, behind peting as neutrals after Canada’s Bredy Leman and Russia’s national team was Marc Bischofberger of banned over a major doping scandal. “We are friends, Switzerland. Ridzik went down early in the race but we are young girls, we can talk about anything with he got up, clambered to the top of a slope and GANGNEUNG: Russia’s Alina Zagitova competes in the women’s single skating short program of the fig- each other,” said Medvedeva, 18, who like Zagitova is restarted his run, coming in behind the front two as ure skating event during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Ice Arena in making her Olympic debut. Canada’s Kevin Drury failed to finish. Gangneung yesterday. — AFP “But on the ice, we must fight, I feel like it’s a little The competition, where four skiers race each other war, when you skate you are alone,” added the dou- down a twisting track featuring a number of jumps, a sickening wipe-out. Later on Wednesday, the Jamaican men’s team of “Cool Runnings” fame, ble world champion. America’s Vonn, 33, was aiming was marred by a series of heavy falls. France’s women’s bobsleigh will feature trailblazing Nigeria, Jamaica’s women will also race, following a turbulent for a second downhill title in her final Olympics, but it Terence Tchiknavorian broke his leg and Canadian who are the first athletes from their country to com- build-up in which they lost their coach just days was not to be as she finished third behind Italy’s Sofia racer Chris Del Bosco was also taken to hospital after pete at a Winter Olympics. Thirty years after the ahead of competition. — AFP Britain, Switzerland Cursed? Elise to battle for last Christie, ‘Britain’s playoff spot unluckiest GANGNEUNG: Britain were forced into a tie-breaker with Switzerland in a bid to secure a semi-final spot in the Olympian’ Olympic men’s curling competition after being crushed 10-4 by the United States in eight ends yesterday. The PYEONGCHANG: In her last six Olympic races, rout gave the American foursome third spot in the final short-track speed skater Elise Christie has rankings behind Sweden (7-2) and Canada (6-3) while the crashed out or been disqualified six times-no US, Britain and Switzerland all wrapped up preliminary wonder she’s been dubbed “cursed” and round play on 5-4. The United States secured third place “Britain’s unluckiest Olympian”. with a better head-to-head record leaving Kyle Smith’s Christie is a world-record holder and triple British foursome to battle Peter De Cruz’s Swiss today for world champion who came to the Pyeongchang the last of the coveted playoff spots. Winter Games as one of Britain’s few real hopes The British foursome had looked prepared to battle for gold. But the 27-year-old’s Olympics ended leading 3-2 after four ends but then let the contest get in tears once more after she was disqualified away giving up three in the fifth and allowing the US to from the 1,000m on Tuesday, her third failure in steal four in the eighth with Smith waving the white Pyeongchang. flag. “Just disappointing, to be honest,” said Smith. “We GANGNEUNG: Britain’s Kyle Smith throws the stone during the curling men’s round robin session between Christie’s ill-fated campaign comes four years weren’t our sharpest today, didn’t create enough Britain and the US during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Curling Centre after she was disqualified from all three of her chances when we had the last stone. in Gangneung yesterday. — AFP races at Sochi 2014. “We’ve still got a chance of making the Olympic The Scot’s travails have been followed closely semi-finals, so it’s exactly the same situation as today. in Britain-and met mostly with sympathy. The Win and we’re in. “I don’t really see it as pressure, to be Sun, the best-selling tabloid newspaper, branded honest, these chances are what we all play for, so we’ll MEDALS TABLE her “cursed”. In her native Scotland, The Herald be ready. “It’s a great chance to showcase our sport called her “Britain’s unluckiest Olympian”. As and show how we can play in those situations. We’ll be Christie’s Pyeongchang Games came to a dismal coming for the Swiss.” Japan (4-5) missed their chance PYEONGCHANG, South Korea: Medals table after the 12th day of competition at the Pyeongchang Winter end, penalised for a rule infraction, she left the to get into the tie-break mix when they were humbled Olympics yesterday (gold, silver, bronze, total): rink in tears. 10-4 by South Korea while Canada closed out with an She also departed the arena in tears on 8-3 win over last place Denmark (2-7). One semi-final Norway 13 11 9 33 Belarus 1 1 0 2 Saturday-in pain and on a stretcher-after being is set with North American neighbours Canada and the Germany 12 7 5 24 Great Britain 1 0 3 4 wiped out in a collision with a Chinese rival in United States facing off for a spot in the gold medal Canada 9 5 7 21 Poland 1 0 1 2 the 1,500m. Christie also crashed out in the final match while Sweden will take on the winner of Netherlands 6 6 4 16 Ukraine 1 0 0 1 of the 500m, in which she is the world-record United States 6 4 6 16 China 0 5 2 7 holder. At Sochi 2014, she was disqualified from Switzerland and Britain. “This is what you dream about as a teenager when France 5 4 5 14 Olympic Athlete the 500m, 1,000m and 1,500m. Christie also Sweden 4 4 0 8 from Russia 0 4 9 13 you are out practising and throwing rocks,” U.S. vice- competed at Vancouver 2010, where her best South Korea 4 3 2 9 Australia 0 2 1 3 skip Tyler George said. “If you want to play anybody at result was 11th in the 500m. Austria 4 2 4 10 Slovenia 0 1 0 1 the Olympics with medals on the line - it’s Canada. “To However, it hasn’t deterred Christie, who said Japan 3 5 3 11 Finland 0 0 4 4 actually get to a game like that - man! It’s amazing! she will make another tilt at an Olympic medal at Italy 3 2 4 9 Spain 0 0 2 2 Beijing 2022. “In terms of me as a person, I “But we’ve played these guys plenty of times. This is Switzerland 2 5 1 8 Kazakhstan 0 0 1 1 didn’t see this as, ‘This is the Olympics and that’s not a situation that we’re going to be uncomfortable in. Czech Republic 1 2 3 6 Latvia 0 0 1 1 why it happened’,” she said. “They are going to come at us with everything they’ve Slovakia 1 2 0 3 Liechtenstein 0 0 1 1 “I guess with Sochi that’s how I had seen it, got - but man - it’s going to be fun.” — Reuters like I wasn’t supposed to be an Olympic medal- list, it wasn’t in me. “I don’t see that now, I just see it as three races that went rubbish in the last four years.” Japan set Olympic GOLD OR BUST? Short track is a notorious for its crashes and record to claim gold penalties. In the women’s 1,000m heats on Tuesday, six skaters were disqualified. GANGNEUNG: Japan dethroned defending champions And in the women’s 3,000m relay A final, only the Netherlands to claim gold in the women’s Olympic two of the four teams finished the race.