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Winter Olympics recap: Jessie Diggins wins Team USA's final medal, Finland wins men's hockey gold
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Just like that, all 109 medal events at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics have been handed out.
On the final day of competition Sunday, cross-country skier Jessie Diggins claimed her second medal of these Games, a silver in the women’s 30-kilometer mass start.
(Looking for a recap of Saturday’s action? We have you covered.)
Diggins, who also won a bronze earlier these Games in the women’s sprint, gave Team USA its 25th overall medal in Beijing.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. Alpine ski team came agonizingly close to a medal of its own, making it through two rounds of the mixed team competition before losing to Germany in the semifinals and Norway in the bronze-medal race.
It marked yet another disappointment for two-time Olympic gold medalist Mikaela Shiffrin, who came to Beijing with the possibility of winning six medals and ended up going home with none.
In the final event of this year’s Games, Finland denied Russia’s chance to repeat as gold medalists in men’s hockey, beating the ROC 2-1 for its first Olympic championship.
The Beijing Olympics will wrap up with the closing ceremony at 7 a.m. ET Sunday (rebroadcast Sunday night on NBC).
TV SCHEDULE: What and how to watch Saturday night and early Sunday in Beijing
BEIJING TEXT ALERTS:Get behind-the-scenes access to the Winter Olympics
FOLLOW THE CHASE FOR GOLD:Sign up for the Olympic newsletter and never miss a moment
USA MEDAL COUNT:Full list of every medal won by Team USA at Beijing Games
WHO LEADS THE MEDAL COUNT? How each country performed at the Winter Games
Fans cheer Kamila Valieva as she arrives back in Russia
Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva was greeted by cheering fans when she arrived at the Moscow airport.
She’s returning home to a country where public figures and news outlets have mounted a vigorous defense of their 15-year-old phenom since her fourth-place finish at the Winter Games on Thursday night – while also firing back at the International Olympic Committee and its president, Thomas Bach.
“Valieva off the podium – a tragedy for which the IOC should be ashamed,” reads the translation of one Russian headline from Sport-Express, a daily newspaper in Russia.
“Don’t let evil adults cripple you,” the same outlet wrote to Valieva in a separate article, also translated from Russian. “Turn on the instinct of self-preservation.”
The reaction in Russia to Valieva’s performance has, by and large, been overwhelmingly sympathetic and staunchly defensive.
Valieva has long received public support in Russia, despite news that she tested positive for a banned heart medication that can increase endurance and blood flow. Valieva’s defense argued that the substance, trimetazidine, must have accidentally gotten into her system through a product her grandfather takes.
The state-run Russian Public Opinion Research Center said that in a survey of Russian citizens, 62% believed the investigation into her case was “biased,” while 57% believe “that our athletes do not use illegal drugs or do it less often than others.”
Part of the ire has been directed at Western reporters covering the story, and the IOC.
— Tom Schad
Contributing: Associated Press
Jessie Diggins: ‘ I thought I was going to die at the finish line’
BEIJING – Jessie Diggins fought to the finish and collapsed from exhaustion, physically spent after claiming Team USA’s final Olympic medal of the Beijing Games, a silver in the women’s 30-kilometer race Sunday.
The podium seemed out of reach just 30 hours earlier, when Diggins said she was sick from food poisoning “which is why I thought I was going to die at the finish line.
“I don’t know how I made it to the finish. It was amazing,” she said.
Competing in the longest distance for women at the Olympics, Diggins revealed that her legs were cramping late in the race that took her 1 hour, 26 minutes and 37 seconds to complete. The 30-year-old from Afton, Minnesota, finished 1 minute, 43 seconds behind Therese Johaug of Norway, who claimed her third gold in Beijing.
“Every last drop of energy went into that race, that’s for sure,” Diggins said. “The last two laps my legs were cramping so I just kept trying to drink as much as I could. We had amazing cheering out there, and I was like ‘I just can’t give up. I have to put everything I have into the snow today and finish with nothing left. Maybe I can hold on to a medal, maybe not, but I have to try.’ “
Diggins’ silver was the 25th Olympic medal for the U.S. team in Beijing, topping the 23 the Americans won four years ago in Pyeongchang.
This is the third career medal for Diggins, who cemented her status as the most successful American skier in her sport in Olympic history, now with gold-silver-bronze to her name. She is the first non-European skier to win an Olympic medal in the women’s 30K.
“I just tried to ski smart and then I wanted to ski a gutsy race, so when Therese went, I tried to go with her and I couldn’t stay,” Diggins said. “So then I thought I would just put my head down and ski my own race.
“That might have been the best race of my entire life, I’m not going to lie.”
— Roxanna Scott
Contributing: Associated Press
Eileen Gu meets with US, Chinese officials during Beijing Games
ZHANGJIAKOU, China – Eileen Gu doesn’t just talk about being both Chinese and American. The three-time Olympic medalist credits support for both countries for helping her be successful during the Beijing Games.
Before qualifying for the halfpipe, Gu had lunch with Sophie Goldschmidt, CEO of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, and Ni Huizhong, director general of China’s Winter Sports Administration.
“We were all eating together and they were saying collaboration, we want to collaborate more in the future. Eileen is a bridge for us,” Gu said. “We’re going to be able to do this together and we’re going to train together and do all this stuff in the future. In that sense, I feel like they have both supported me so much.”
The 18-year-old was part of the U.S. program before she decided in 2019 to compete for China, where her mother, Yan, is from. Gu was born and raised in San Francisco, though she spends time each year in China and is fluent in Mandarin.
“It was just sort of a thank you,” Goldschmidt said. “They were basically very keen to thank U.S. Ski & Snowboard for how we’ve supported Eileen. Both Eileen and her mother and the Chinese snow sports … federation are very appreciative that we’ve continued to embrace her, allow her to train as appropriate with our team.”
Goldschmidt said they did not get into specifics of future arrangements, though Gu has trained with the U.S. team in the past and competed in U.S. Ski & Snowboard events. She said the federation is open to doing so in the future, especially if U.S. athletes can benefit from training with Gu.
Gu became the star of these Games after winning gold in both halfpipe and big air to go with the silver she won in slopestyle.
“I have stayed in touch with all of them,” Gu said. “When I’m at the top, I’m high fiving the U.S. team coaches. I’m high fiving my own coaches. And I just want everybody to do the best they can.”
— Rachel Axon
Finland wins men’s hockey gold, final event in Beijing
BEIJING — “Finn-ally!”
For the first time ever, Finland is on top of the men’s Olympic hockey world.
The Finns defeated Russia 2-1 on Sunday, the final day of the Beijing Games, to claim the gold and deny Russia a second straight gold in men’s hockey.
Hannes Bjorninen’s goal 31 seconds into the third period proved to be the game-winner – and also provided a bit of redemption.
At 26, Bjorninen was the team’s youngest player on an experienced Finnish roster that included former NHL players such as Sami Vatanen, Leo Komarov and Valtteri Filppula. Bjorninen’s high stick sent him to the penalty box seven minutes into the game, and his team went down 1-0 18 seconds later.
With the one-skater advantage, Russia forward Mikhail Grigorenko – who also spent time in the NHL – sauntered down to the right circle and put one past Finland goaltender Harri Sateri.
Finland peppered Russia goaltender Ivan Fedotov with 15 first-period shots, but the 25-year-old remained unfazed and kept the Finns off the board.
That was, until Ville Pokka scored off a shot from the right boards that Fedotov never saw because of Saku Maenalanen’s screen in front of the net. The goal tied the game 3:28 into the second and the score remained knotted at 1 through the period.
Russia won the 2018 gold over Germany in Pyeongchang, a tournament that also did not include NHL players. The 2022 Olympics expected to include NHL players before the league pulled out in January due to COVID-19-related disruptions to the schedule.
Finland had medaled six times in the Olympics with two silvers (1988 Calgary, 2006 Turin) and four bronzes (1994 Lillehammer, 1998 Nagano, 2010 Vancouver, 2014 Sochi).
— Chris Bumbaca
Finland ties up men’s hockey gold medal match against ROC
BEIJING — Ville Pokka scored off a shot from the right boards that Russian goaltender Ivan Fedotov never saw because of Saku Maenalanen’s screen in front of the net. The goal tied the game to 3:28 into the second and the score remained knotted at 1 after the second period.
If no one can break through in the third period, a 3-on-3, 10-minute sudden-death overtime will follow.
— Chris Bumbaca
Jessie Diggins earns her second cross-country skiing medal in Beijing
BEIJING – Jessie Diggins fought to the finish, claiming Team USA’s final Olympic medal of the Beijing Games, a silver in the women’s 30-kilometer event Sunday.
With a fierce wind on the last day of the Games, Diggins finished 1:26.37 behind Therese Johaug of Norway, who claimed her fifth career Olympic medal, and third gold in Beijing. American Rosie Brennan finished sixth.
It was the 25th Olympic medal for the U.S. team in Beijing.
This is the third career medal for Diggins, who cemented her status as the most successful American skier in her sport in Olympic history, now with gold-silver-bronze to her name.
— Roxanna Scott
Russia leads Finland 1-0 in men’s hockey gold medal game
BEIJING — Compared to the college-heavy roster of Americans in the men’s hockey tournament, Finland went with a more experienced roster in Beijing. Hannes Bjorninen, 26, is their youngest player. His high stick sent him to the sin bin seven minutes into the gold-medal game against Russia, and his team went down 18 seconds later.
With the one-skater advantage, Russia forward Mikhail Grigorenko sauntered down to the right circle and put one past Finland goaltender Harri Sateri to make it 1-0.
Finland peppered Russian goaltender Ivan Fedotov with 15 first-period shots, but the 25-year-old remained unfazed and kept the Finns off the board.
Russia is looking to repeat as Olympic champions after winning the 2018 gold over Germany in PyeongChang, a tournament that also did not include NHL players.
— Chris Bumbaca
Mikaela Shiffrin leaves Beijing without a medal
BEIJING — Mikaela Shiffrin will leave the Beijing Olympics empty-handed.
Shiffrin and the Americans lost to Norway in the bronze-medal race of the Alpine team event Sunday. Each country won two races in the final, but Norway won based on the better overall time.
It was yet another unfulfilling ending for the two-time Olympic champion, who had wanted to do the team event so badly she changed her departure from Beijing after high winds pushed the race back a day.
Shiffrin has three medals from her first two Olympic appearances, two golds and a silver, and was expected to contend for several more here. But she only finished two of her individual events, recording Did Not Finishes in the giant slalom, slalom and Alpine combined, her best events.
She finished ninth in the super-G and was 18th in the downhill.
— Nancy Armour
Along with bitter cold temperatures, high winds delay Alpine skiing finale
ZHANGJIAKOU, China – It was so windy, and cold, and hard to see, it was dangerous for action sports stars.
The weather in the mountain zones of the Beijing Winter Olympics had teeth Saturday.
For perspective, the Hebei Zhangjiakou Shangyi Wind Farm is up here at the same venue as the freestyle skiing sports, and according to China Daily, it is the richest solar and wind energy resource in north China.
On Saturday, maybe that number was more impressive.
It varied, but competition temperatures hovered around minus-9 Fahrenheit, but with the wind it felt like minus-25. Wind gusts varied from 17-30 mph, according to the weather app from Chongli.
At Yanqing, the start of the Alpine mixed team event was delayed twice in hopes the winds would die down. Organizers later announced they would try again Sunday morning, despite the forecast calling for more high winds.
— Lori Nickel
Elana Meyers Taylor ‘felt like I was going to cry’ after clinching bronze
BEIJING – Moments before the final run Saturday night, another Olympic medal well within her grasp, Elana Meyers Taylor took a moment to process that it might well be her last time in a bobsled.
“I felt like I was going to cry actually,” she said. “If this is the end, I really just want to enjoy it. If it is the last time I’m in the sled, and if it is my last Olympics run, I wanted to go out the way I wanted to.”
When Meyers Taylor and brakeman Sylvia Hoffman reached the bottom of the track at Yanqing Sliding Center, having put down a flawless run that guaranteed a medal, her reaction said it all. Meyers Taylor threw her fist in the air and hopped out of the sled, gave Hoffman a huge hug and celebrated in front of her supporters with Team USA.
If this was the 37-year old’s final Olympics, it was one she couldn’t have been prouder of.
“It’s been a really long Olympics, a really long season, a long four years,” she said. “Part of it was just relief to come down and cross the line and have another medal. It was also just being excited. We put in a lot of work for this.”
— Dan Wolken
US figure skating team’s bid for medal ceremony rejected
BEIJING — The nine U.S. figure skaters who won silver medals in the team event at the 2022 Winter Olympics felt so strongly about receiving those medals before the end of the Games that they took the matter to court.
But they did not succeed.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced late Saturday night that it rejected the appeal the Americans filed earlier in the day, which would have forced the International Olympic Committee to hold a public medal ceremony for the team event before Sunday night’s closing ceremony.
CAS said in a news release that the hearing took place from 7 to 9:30 p.m. in Beijing, by video conference. It announced the decision of its panel of arbitrators but little else. A full report on the decision is expected within the coming week.
— Tom Schad
USA up to 24 medals as competition enters its final day
Thanks to a silver and bronze from freeskiers David Wise and Alex Ferriera, along with a silver from bobsledders Elana Meyers Taylor and Sylvia Hoffman, the United States boosted its medal total in Beijing to 24 with one day of competition remaining.
Team USA is tied with Germany for fourth in the overall medal count, behind Canada (25), the Russian Olympic Committee (31) and Norway (35).
The Norwegians also lead in gold medals with 15. Germany is second with 11, China is third with nine and the USA is tied for fourth with eight golds.
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Travel
Razzies royally torch 'Diana' musical and 'Space Jam 2,' show love to Oscar favorite Will Smith
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In its proclamation of the worst films of 2021, the Razzies lambasted a critically reviled Princess Diana musical and LeBron James’ “Space Jam” sequel, but spread love instead of hate for Will Smith.
The Golden Raspberry Awards, annually announced the day before the Academy Awards, bestowed five dishonors on Netflix’s “Diana: The Musical,” a filmed production of the recent Broadway show that closed after 33 performances. “Diana” beat out “Infinite,” “Karen,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy” and “The Woman in the Window” for worst picture, plus picked up worst screenplay and worst actress for star Jeanna de Waal.
“New Legacy,” the live-action/animated hybrid basketball comedy featuring James hooping it up with Bugs Bunny and Co., earned three Razzie awards. James was named worst actor and also was saddled with worst screen couple – which went to James and “Any Warner Cartoon Character (or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On” – while the movie snagged worst sequel.
How to watch the 2022 Oscars:Everything you should know about Sunday’s Academy Awards
“House of Gucci” star Jared Leto lost his Screen Actors Guild race for best supporting actor but nabbed the Razzie for worst. And Bruce Willis does so many VOD movies now that he received his own special category (worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie) that, to no one’s surprise, he won – for “Cosmic Sin.”
Smith, who’s expected to win the best actor Oscar Sunday for “King Richard,” received this year’s Razzie Redeemer Award for previous Razzie honorees who’ve come back with quality efforts. Recent winners include Ben Affleck, Sylvester Stallone, Melissa McCarthy and Eddie Murphy.
The full list of this year’s Razzie “winners”:
Worst picture: “Diana: The Musical”
Worst actor: LeBron James, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst actress: Jeanna de Waal, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actress: Judy Kaye, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actor: Jared Leto, “House of Gucci”
Worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie: Bruce Willis, “Cosmic Sin”
Worst screen couple: LeBron James and Any Warner Cartoon Character
(or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst remake, rip-off or sequel: “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst director: Christopher Ashley, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst screenplay: “Diana: The Musical”
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Business
As more marijuana dispensaries get targeted by robbers, SAFE Banking Act lingers in Congress
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A bill that could allow electronic transactions at weed dispensaries nationwide is again make its way through Congress but the SAFE Banking Act might not be the cure-all that supporters envision.
In over a decade of operating cannabis shops in Washington, Shea Hynes never once worried about his stores getting robbed at gun point – until recently: In a span of three weeks, his stores were robbed three different times at gun point.
Reports of armed robberies at cannabis dispensaries like Hynes’ have nearly doubled in the first quarter of this year compared with all of last year, according to data maintained by the Craft Cannabis Coalition. The group, which represents more than 50 stores in Washington, has recorded more than 65 armed robberies so far this year, compared with 35 in 2021 and 29 in 2020.
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CHICAGO — In a ridiculous coincidence, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks wrote NCAA Tournament history on National Peacock Day with a thrilling upset of Purdue.
The mid-major became the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach the Elite Eight, outdoing previous No. 15 seeds Oral Roberts (2021) and Florida Gulf Coast (2013). Exactly 0.8% of people picked the Peacocks to get this far, with the school from Jersey City, New Jersey, defying all odds. Is Saint Peter’s the best Cinderella of all time?
Meanwhile, the ACC is sitting pretty with three teams – Duke and now North Carolina and Miami (Fla.) – in the Elite Eight on the same day the Big Ten saw its last team go down.
A look at three key takeaways from Friday:
Saint Peter’s writes NCAA history
Coach Shaheen Holloway has this team playing inspired basketball, and now the Peacocks (22-11) are just one win from the Final Four. The best Cinderellas of the last two decades to reach Final Fours – George Mason in 2006, VCU in 2011, Loyola-Chicago (2018) all were double-digit seeded mid-majors. But none was as highly seeded as this Saint Peter’s team that’s now beaten No. 2 seed Kentucky, No. 7 Murray State and No. 3 Purdue.
WINNERS, LOSERS:Poised Saint Peter’s keeps the dream alive; bye-bye, Big Ten; hello, ACC
OPINION:Saint Peter’s embodies wackiness and uncertainty of this NCAA Tournament
ANALYSIS:Purdue’s loss leaves Big Ten shut out of Elite Eight. We could see this coming.
MORE:Legendary Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson: Coach K’s farewell tour ends Saturday
OPINION:Houston is leaving Phi Slama Jama in the 1980s for good
While other bracket-busting NCAA Tournament darlings of yesteryear have had flair (FGCU’s “Dunk City”) or a lovable fan (Loyola’s Sister Jean), this team from the MAAC is doing it with defense, namely with nine steals. In spite of being undersized against the Boilermakers, the Peacocks used aggressiveness and hustle to outduel their seemingly superior opponent behind 6-8 freshman Clarence Rubert and 6-7 junior Hassan Drame. Daryl Banks III (14 points) is the go-to scorer for Saint Peter’s, but Mr. Clutch has been guard Doug Edert (10 points) off the bench. One stat to note: a 19-for-21 clip from the free-throw line. What’s been most impressive is the Peacocks’ ability to stay hungry and poised under pressure, winning close games in all three NCAA Tournament matchups.
Blue-bloods show title potential
Duke and Villanova advanced on Thursday, and fellow blue-bloods Kansas and North Carolina will now join them in the Elite Eight. And yes, if both the Blue Devils and Tar Heels win Sunday, we could see them meet in the Final Four.
Ever since North Carolina embarrassed Duke in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Heels have been red-hot – knocking out No. 1 Baylor in the previous game in overtime. That continued against a UCLA team that reached the Final Four last year and seemed destined to get back. Caleb Love was brilliant again, finishing with 30 points off six three-pointers. Armando Bacot’s tip-in with 22 seconds left sealed the win in another impressive outing for coach Hubert Davis’ resilient team.
The last remaining No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament, Kansas stayed alive, escaping Providence by five points. It’s coach Bill Self’s ninth trip to the Elite Eight with Kansas and 11th of his career, as the Jayhawks (31-6) are one win from the Final Four. They’ve now won eight in a row and are looking like a title contender after entering the NCAA Tourney having won the Big 12 tournament.
The secret weapon for Kansas has been guard Remy Martin. For the third consecutive tournament game, Kansas got a jolt off the bench from the fiery Martin (23 points), the Arizona State transfer who has erupted in these NCAAs after playing a reserve role throughout 2021-22.
ACC > Big Ten
Despite garnering nine NCAA Tournament bids on Selection Sunday – the most of any conference – the Big Ten is out following Purdue’s stunning exit vs. Saint Peter’s. The league tanked in the first two rounds, with No. 5 Iowa – the conference tourney champ – getting upset by Richmond in the first round. No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 4 Illinois, No. 7 Michigan State and No. 7 Ohio State all lost in the second round. And now, with Michigan’s loss to Villanova, the overall underachievement is on full display. That’s a 9-9 finish in the tournament.
No Big Ten team has cut down the nets since 2000 (the Spartans), and it’s a depressing outlook for the league that posted the second-best NET score in 2021-22 and showcased several teams with Final Four potential.
The ACC, which finished with the sixth-worst NET score as a league, has Duke, North Carolina and Miami all in the Elite Eight. That’s after the Tar Heels, Hurricanes and Notre Dame were all bubble teams in early March. The NCAA Tournament is about matchups and pathways. No matter how well the Big Ten did in the regular season, much like the Pac-12’s surprising finish last year, the ACC is well-positioned with three teams still alive and two of them title contenders.
Follow college basketball reporter Scott Gleeson on Twitter @ScottMGleeson.
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Winter Olympics recap: Jessie Diggins wins Team USA's final medal, Finland wins men's hockey gold
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