John Shuster swept, slid and shouted Team USA to a dramatic gold medal in men's curling, becoming one of the biggest winners of the entire 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang...
Olympic Snowboarding 2018: Medal Winners for All Events at Pyeongchang
Feb 24, 2018
Jamie Anderson, of the United States, jumps during the women's Big Air snowboard final at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
The United States dominated the snowboarding events at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Seven of the 30 medals handed out on the slopes in five different disciplines belonged to the Americans, who had three more medals than Canada's four.
The United States was the only team to win multiple golds in snowboarding, while athletes from six other countries experienced the thrill of Olympic victory.
Overall, 17 different nations earned a snowboarding medal, with two achieving the feat for the first time.
Out of all the individuals competing in snowboarding, Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic stood out the most, as she added a gold in the women's parallel giant slalom to the title she won in alpine skiing.
Each of the athletes who earned a podium finish in snowboarding became a household name, but Jamie Anderson stood out among the pack for winning two medals for the United States in Pyeongchang.
Anderson defended her Olympic gold in the women's slopestyle, a competition that was marred by falls due to poor conditions on the course.
The 27-year-old was one of two Americans to defend their golds from Sochi, with David Wise being the other in the men's ski halfpipe, per ESPN Stats and Info:
David Wise wins his second straight gold medal in ski halfpipe!
He and Jamie Anderson are the only two Americans to successfully defend their gold medals from Sochi. #USApic.twitter.com/ht1hBJLDoz
Ten days later, Anderson tied Shaun White and Kelly Clark as the most decorated American snowboarders of all time with her third Olympic medal, a silver in the women's big air.
With her second-place finish, Anderson became the first female snowboarder to win two medals at the Olympics.
Anderson tried to put her excitement from earning two medals into words after the competitions, per Rick Maese of the Washington Post.
"That’s crazy to me. It's all pretty surreal," Anderson said. "Just being able to be an Olympian is such a treat. But to come here and win medals is, wow, next level."
Team USASweeps Halfpipe, Slopestyle Events
Anderson was a part of an incredible start to the Olympics for the United States, as she was one of four athletes to contribute to sweeps in slopestyle and halfpipe.
Two 17-year-olds contributed to that medal haul, as Redmond Gerard won the men's slopestyle and Chloe Kim took first in the women's halfpipe.
Kim, who received extra attention for tweeting in between runs, accomplished a dream of hers by winning gold in the women's halfpipe, per Shawn Smith of NBCOlympics.com.
"I need to go home and process everything and I'll probably bawl my eyes out some more," Kim said. "But this has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl, so just to be here and to be able to do it when it mattered feels amazing."
The other two golds went to past champions in their respective events, as Anderson repeated in women's slopestyle and Shaun White won his third-career gold in the men's halfpipe.
By the time the first four snowboarding events concluded, the Americans broke their own record for most snowboarding golds at a single Olympics, which previously stood at three.
The final American medal count in the sport was seven, with Anderson and Kyle Mack taking silver in the women's and men's big air and Arielle Gold winning bronze in the women's halfpipe.
The seven medals were the most won in any sport by the United States, with freestyle skiing coming in second with four medals.
Ester Ledecka Wins Medals in Snowboarding and Skiing
When Ester Ledecka came to Pyeongchang, she was hoping to be competitive in the women's super-G in alpine skiing and contend for the medal positions in the women's parallel giant slalom in snowboarding.
Everything for the Czech athlete changed when she unexpectedly took gold in the super-G in a trip down the hill that was nothing short of shocking.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 24: Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic celebrates winning gold in the Ladies' Snowboard Parallel Giant Slalom Big Final on day fifteen of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Phoenix Snow Park on February
After her celebrity grew for a week, the 22-year-old advanced to the women's final in the parallel giant slalom against Germany's Selina Joerg.
Ledecka got out to a fast start in the parallel giant slalom final, and she never surrendered her advantage on the course.
With her victory, Ledecka became the third Winter Olympian to win titles in different sports and the first to do so since 1932. She's also the first woman to achieve the incredible feat, per NBCOlympics.com's Nick Zaccardi:
Ester Ledecká wins snowboard parallel giant slalom gold one week after Alpine skiing super-g gold. Third athlete to win Winter Olympic titles in different sports, first since 1932 and the first woman.
Shaun White Sexual Harassment Accuser's Lawyer Responds to Calling Claims Gossip
Feb 14, 2018
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 14: Shaun White of United States is seen prior to receiving his Gold Medal from the Men's Halfpipe Snowboard at Medal Plaza on February 14, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Attorney Lawrance Bohm said Shaun White "minimized the problem of sexual harassment in this country" by referring to allegations as "gossip," per Brent Schrotenboer and Josh Peter of USA Today.
Bohm represents Lena Zawaideh, White's former bandmate who filed a lawsuit against the Team USA snowboarder in 2016. The two sides agreed to an undisclosed settlement.
Although Zawaideh considered the situation to be over, her lawyer suggests his recent words were too harmful to ignore.
"No woman wants to be called a 'gossip' or a liar by the harasser," Bohm said. "Minimizing sexual harassment maximizes the harm to Ms. Zawaideh. Hopefully, before our country declares someone 'the best of the U.S.,' there will be investigation and due diligence."
White, 31, won his third Olympic gold medal in the men's snowboarding halfpipe Tuesday (Wednesday in Pyeongchang, South Korea). However, he was dismissive when asked about the sexual harassment lawsuit following his win.
"I'm here to talk about the Olympics, not gossip and stuff," he said, per Jake Seiner of the Associated Press (via ABC News).
He later apologized for his comments on the Today Show:
“I’m truly sorry that I chose the word gossip. It was a poor choice of words to describe such a sensitive subject in the world today.” @shaunwhite on his remarks at news conference when asked about harassment case pic.twitter.com/5q9jyCL61m
Zawaideh was the drummer and only female member of the band, Bad Things, which featured White on guitar. He had initially contested the harassment lawsuit and was set to go to court last August before the case was dismissed with a settlement.
NBC Olympics Schedule 2018: Wednesday Night's TV, Live Stream Info
Feb 14, 2018
Shaun White, of the United States, celebrates winning the gold medal in the men's halfpipe finals at Phoenix Snow Park at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
The 2018 Olympics from Pyeongchang, South Korea have been filled with plenty of drama, with some golden moments for the U.S. as well as some surprising defeats.
Tuesday saw Team USA's Shaun White win a gold medal with a stunning final run in the men's snowboarding halfpipe competition, the 100th gold medal in American Winter Olympic history. Here's his run, per NBC Olympics:
Mens' hockey brought disappointment however, as the United States carried a 2-0 lead into the third period against Slovenia, only to relinquish the advantage and then lose in overtime.
Snowboarding has been especially good to the United States, bringing four gold medals, while overall medal leader Germany has cleaned up in biathlon, and the Netherlands (11 medals) have dominated as expected in speed skating.
It's not always easy to keep up with the action due to the time difference, but there is plenty to watch on NBC's evening coverage.
What action and drama will Wednesday bring? Here's a rundown of what to watch on TV in primetime. Live-streaming options include NBCOlympics.com and the NBC Sports App.
8:30-10:10 p.m. ET (Live) Figure skating (pairs' free skate)
10:10 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET (Live) Women's hockey: United States vs. Canada
12:30-2:40 a.m. ET Women's curling: United States vs. Great Britain
CNBC
5- 8 p.m. ET Women's curling: United States vs. Japan
10 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET (Live) Men's hockey: Finland vs. Germany
Fierce winds in South Korea have led to the cancellation of several days of alpine skiing, but that should change for Wednesday's primetime showing. According to NBCOlympics.com, USA's Mikaela Shiffrin will make her long-awaited debut in the women's giant slalom Wednesday night, as long as the weather cooperates.
While the delays have given the athletes a couple of extra days to adjust and get acclimated in Pyeongchang, Shiffrin's coach Mike Day noted the rescheduling of events can make it hard to focus on what's coming next, per Howard Fendrich of the Associated Press (h/t Chicago Tribune):
"It's been a difficult few days ... (with) the excitement of getting ready to race and the disappointment of not getting to race. The more challenging piece, truthfully, has been flip-flopping events every day. If we stayed with one event, the focus can remain singular. Having gone back and forth now, between GS and slalom, and back to GS again, the preparation has been a little challenging. But I feel like we're in a good place."
Women's hockey features a blockbuster matchup between the United States and Canada. Both teams are 2-0 in Group A. Canada has a goal differential of plus-eight, while the U.S. is right behind it at plus-seven. American fans will be hoping the United States can make up for the men's hockey loss Tuesday night, although a dominant Canada team that won gold at the 2014 Winter Games will make that a difficult task.
The daredevil in all of us will get a bit of a thrill watching men's skeleton. Great Britain's high-tech suits are creating a bit of a stir as some wonder if they are giving the athletes an unfair advantage. Many will be watching to see if the UK's Dom Parsons can use his suit and skills to top South Korea's Yun Sung-bin, the top-ranked men's skeleton athlete, per the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation.
The men's cross event will offer up more opportunities for the United States to continue their dominance of the sport, while the pairs' free skate program will feature dazzling, elegant performances as the world continues its every-four-years romance with figure skating.
Shaun White Hints at Competing at 2020 Tokyo Olympics in Skateboarding
Feb 14, 2018
Shaun White, of the United States, celebrates his gold winning run during the men's halfpipe finals at Phoenix Snow Park at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
One day after capturing his third career Olympic gold medal in the halfpipe, Shaun White is teasing a potential appearance at the 2020 Games in Tokyo as a skateboarder.
"It would mean the world to me to compete in skating," White said, per Rick Maese of the Washington Post. "It’d be great."
Even though White's greatest fame has come on a snowboard, he's been a prominent figure in the skateboarding world. The Flying Tomato has won five X Games medals as a skateboarder, including golds in 2007 and 2011.
The International Olympic Committeevotedin August 2016 to include skateboarding as an Olympic sport for the first time ever.
White won gold at the 2018 Winter Olympics in the men's halfpipe with a score of 97.75 on his final run, pushing him just past Japan's Ayumu Hirano at 95.25. The 31-year-old holds the record for most Olympic gold medals by a snowboarder, previously winning in the halfpipe in 2006 and 2010.
For the second straight night, Shaun White dropped into the halfpipe needing a clutch run to climb the standings. For the second straight night, he delivered. This time, it earned him a gold medal...
Shaun White Calls Sexual Harassment Lawsuit 'Gossip' After Gold-Medal Win
Feb 14, 2018
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 14: Gold medalist Shaun White of the United States poses during the medal ceremony for the Snowboard Men's Halfpipe Final on day five of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics at Medal Plaza on February 14, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
American snowboarder Shaun White referred to sexual harassment allegations made in a 2016 lawsuit as "gossip" Wednesday after winning a gold medal in the men's halfpipe at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Jake Seiner of the Associated Press noted White was asked whether the lawsuit could "tarnish his reputation," and follow-up questions about the subject were turned down by U.S. Snowboarding executive Nick Alexakos.
"I'm here to talk about the Olympics, not gossip and stuff," he said. "I don't think so."
White later apologized for those comments in an interview on the Today show:
“I’m truly sorry that I chose the word gossip. It was a poor choice of words to describe such a sensitive subject in the world today.” @shaunwhite on his remarks at news conference when asked about harassment case pic.twitter.com/5q9jyCL61m
TMZ Sportsprovided details of the suit filed by Lena Zawaideh, a former drummer alongside White in a band, Bad Things, before she was fired in 2014. Zawaideh said White sent her sexually explicit and graphic images and forced her to watch "videos sexualizing human fecal matter."
Zawaideh added the San Diego native tried to kiss her during a party in 2010 and forced her to wear "sexually provocative outfits" while with the band.
"Many years ago, I exchanged texts with a friend who is now using them to craft a bogus lawsuit," White said in a 2016statement. "There is absolutely no coincidence to the timing of her claims, and we will defend this vigorously in court."
White, 31, captured his third Olympic gold medal Wednesday. He previously won the halfpipe competition at the 2006 Torino Games and the 2010 Vancouver Games.
Guts and Grace Under Pressure Propel Shaun White to One More Moment of Glory
Feb 14, 2018
Shaun White, of the United States, celebrates after the men's halfpipe finals at Phoenix Snow Park at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
You wonder what the teenage Flying Tomato would have thought of the 31-year-old Shaun White that he has become. The red-haired mophead look has been replaced by the gelled-up salon cut. The fearless anti-establishment snowboarder is the establishment now.
And Wednesday morning in Pyeongchang, White had one last run to try to come from behind and win another Olympic gold medal in the halfpipe. Carrying the mental scars of Olympic failure from four years ago, he needed to drop in and produce the best run of his life—even better than those of today's kids who have raised the level of daring in the sport he made famous.
Turin 2006
That's what made his gold medal win so incredible Tuesday night United States time. White did it. He won the gold, draped himself in the United States flag and walked off in tears.
"You know, honestly, I just felt it inside: I had it," he told NBC when he was done. "I knew I had to put it down. You know, it's so hard to describe. It's the feeling like I knew I had it, but I had to still do it. I'm just working my way through the run, trick after trick, and it's going well, better and better. And I'm riding away, and I can't tell you how amazing it felt."
Sometimes we overthink things in sports. Is Shaun White past his time? Is he really representing the mellow vibe of his sport? Is he on a redemption tour after his disappointing fourth-place finish in the 2014 Sochi Olympics?
Well, whatever.
Because his final run Tuesday wasn't about any of that. Those are narratives that are sold to try to make sports interesting. You did not have to create anything to make this interesting. There was nothing in the storylines that was going to enhance this moment.
What White did on his final run was one of those moments in which an athlete combines his skill and hard work and incredible guts—and yes, probably, his past and his successes and his flaws—and rolls it up into one to be more than even he had ever been.
He was perfect. If there were flaws—his score was 97.75, not 100—it would take a better eye to see them. It was one of those moments that made you nervous just to watch...that made you shake, hold your breath...made your legs go weak.
White had laid down a great first run, scoring 94.25, and you had to guess everyone would be chasing him all night. Snowboarders get three tries to post their best score. Japan's Ayumu Hirano wasted little time. The 19-year-old, who had recently become the first snowboarder to do back-to-back 1440s (four times around in the air), took over the lead with a second run that scored 95.25.
That put the pressure back on White. He made his second attempt, and it didn't go right, presumably because he was trying too hard to catch Hirano. And then, the third time around, everyone went before White. He was last to go and still had one more try. One man, one mountain.
He was all alone out there. He had to be. He had to have closed off everything. He wasn't going to be able to do just one 1440 but instead had to do back-to-back 1440s to match Hirano. So he did the first one. And then he did the second one.
And this is the point when it was tough to breathe. Probably for him, too.
The greatest thing we learned about White is that he isn't just a cultural icon. He works his butt off.
He didn't have to come back after his failure in Sochi. He had already won two Olympic gold medals and theoretically had all the money, fame and love he would need.
So there was something counterintuitive about White and the laid-back aura around his sport. He took his failure as a reality check and took care of his body, which he needed to do at his age. He took his craft seriously. We saw him grow up through the years.
And that turns off some people in his own sport who think he doesn't buy into the mentality that they bring to the mainstream. But really, too bad for them. White has found a way to mesh mellow with guts and grace.
"My family just says I like to show off," he said. "They're like: 'You do this every time. You wait till the last run.' And I'm like: 'It's what I do. I'm sorry. I need the pressure.'"
Shaun White made the Flying Tomato proud.
Greg Couch covers the Olympics for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @gregcouch.
Shaun White on Winning 3rd Olympic Halfpipe Gold Medal: 'It's All Worth It Now'
Feb 13, 2018
Shaun White, of the United States, celebrates his gold medal after the men's halfpipe finals at Phoenix Snow Park at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Shaun White earned his third career gold medal with an outstanding performance in the men's halfpipe at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
"Honestly, I've been through so much to get to this point," White said. "People talking about my age, talking about this injury I had in New Zealand I'm still recovering from. But it's all worth it now."
The 31-year-old had won the gold medal in this event in 2006 and 2010 but ended up off the medal stand with a fourth-place finish in the 2014 Games.
This year seemed to be his toughest competition yet, not only with his age and injuries being a problem but the field has only gotten stronger.
After White took first place in the first run, Japan's Ayumu Hirano moved into the top spot through the second run. The American wiped out in the second run, putting all the pressure on the last run of the competition.
He stepped up with his best performance yet, nailing two 1440s during his run for the win:
While he had won twice before, the veteran seemed as excited as ever with the latest victory. His work to return to the top of the sport paid off as he becomes one of the best ever to compete in the sport.
Olympic 2018 Medal Count: Final Medal Tally for Each Country on Tuesday
Feb 13, 2018
Gold medal winner Shaun White, of the United States, celebrates after the men's halfpipe finals at Phoenix Snow Park at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
The United States is still looking up at Norway, the Netherlands, Canada and Germany in the medal tracker for the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, but a legend of the Games captured a historic victory for the Red, White and Blue.
According to NBC Olympics, the gold medal Shaun White won in the men's snowboarding halfpipe was the 100th gold medal in Winter Olympics history for the United States.
It was still just one, though, as Norway continued to pace the field in the race for the most medals in the 2018 Games as the Wednesday events (based on local Pyeongchang time) started:
The United States missed an opportunity to add to its early medal count when the women's slalom was postponed because of weather conditions, per Tim Layden of Sports Illustrated.
Mikaela Shiffrin, who already had her 2018 Olympics debut postponed when the women's giant slalom was rescheduled, is the defending gold medalist in slalom. If she prevails again in the slalom in Pyeongchang, she will become the first woman to win back-to-back Olympic golds in the event, per Seth Rubinroit of NBC Olympics.
That meant attention stateside turned to White, who lived up to elevated expectations and took home the third gold medal in his impressive Olympic career while also putting his fourth-place finish in the 2014 Games in the rearview mirror.
The American had his back against the wall, though, as Japan's Ayumu Hirano was sitting in gold-medal position through two of the three runs thanks to the 95.25 he tallied on his second trip through the halfpipe. White rose to the occasion and finished with a massive 97.75 on the final run of the competition, thrilling the spectators with his big air and trademark style:
SPOLIER ALERT: congrats to @shaunwhite on a most legendary performance. I know how much it meant to you and how hard you worked for that last run. We are all incredibly proud. 磊磊磊
White continued the United States' dominance in the snowboarding events after Jamie Anderson (women's slopestyle), Red Gerard (men's slopestyle) and Chloe Kim (women's halfpipe) all won gold as well.
Even with the snowboarding performances, Norway is still well clear of the Americans in the medal tracker thanks in large part to the cross-country skiing events.
Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo (gold in men's sprint classic) and Maiken Caspersen Falla (silver women's sprint classic) added to a cross-country medal haul that already included all three in the men's 15-kilometer plus 15-kilometer skiathlon (Simen Hegstad Krueger won gold, Martin Johnsrud Sundby won silver and Hans Christer Holund won bronze).
There are still plenty of medals to hand out, but the rest of the world is chasing Norway in the early going.
