Winter Olympics 2018 highlights so far: Team USA's gold medal moments and more
Here's a recap of the highlights so far from a memorable 2018 Winter Olympics
So much has happened in such a short time at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Between the captivating Opening Ceremony, snowboarder Ester Ledecka winning gold on Mikaela Shiffrin's skis, and Nathan Chen putting together a fantastic redemption skate, it's hard to keep track of it all. On top of the highlights, of course, there are the lowlights. The weather has wreaked havoc on the schedule, especially the alpine skiing events, and Team USA hasn't done nearly as well as expected. Meanwhile, Norway is killing it in the medal count.
Still, we thought it would be a perfect time for a refresher on all the gold-medal moments from Team USA and all the other big moments you might have missed. Here's a recap of the Winter Games so far:
The Opening Ceremony
Whether it was Team USA's absolutely enormous delegation making its entrance or the two Koreas marching under a unified flag, the Opening Ceremony struck the perfect note as South Korea opened its first Olympics since 1988. And that's not even to mention Tonga's oiled-up, shirtless flag bearer.
SHUT IT DOWN TONGA#OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/rdRj5jcSn6
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) February 9, 2018
GettySport : RT GettySport: #TeamUSA knows how to make an entrance. #OpeningCeremony #PyeongChang2018 pic.twitter.com/ENxKRV7qha (via Twitter https://t.co/Eu3fOE8tqZ) pic.twitter.com/GnhbOIRnUU
— SA Sports Photos (@SASportsPhotos) February 10, 2018
This joint North/South Korea entrance is so powerful. This is what the Olympics can be. This is what it's about. #OpeningCeremony
— Mary Lane Haskell (@marylanehaskell) February 10, 2018
Teenager Red Gerard wins first Team USA gold
Red Gerard, a 17-year-old snowboarder weighing all of 120 pounds who grew up with a rail park in his backyard, made his mark on these Games early, taking gold in the men's slopestyle. He came out of nowhere on his final run to steal the gold, overtaking more heralded Canadians Max Parrot and Mark McMorris. Gerard's triple cork 1440 put him over the top on the final run. He became the youngest American to medal in a snowboarding event at the Olympics, and he got the U.S. off to a fantastic start in snowboarding, where it dominates.
ICYMI @RedmondGerard's gold medal-winning run....
— U.S. Olympic Team (@TeamUSA) February 11, 2018
WATCH NOW ▶️ https://t.co/WR8KbKpscQ https://t.co/gqGeC4Z53G
Jamie Anderson wins slopestyle gold again in ugly final
Jamie Anderson won Olympic gold again in the women's snowboard slopestyle, but it came on a less-than-stellar run in a final marred by whipping wind and ugly crashes. More than anything, Anderson just had to survive to win. The conditions were absolutely horrific for riders. Anderson was more than ready to compete, but many of her competitors were displeased with the decision by organizers not to postpone the final. Anderson scored an 83 for gold in a run in which she basically just tried to stay upright. Doing so proved to be enough, but there was some backlash for organizers forcing the event to go on.

Chloe Kim wins gold in a landslide
Chloe Kim put down a run that people are going to be able to tell their kids about in her first Olympic halfpipe final. Not only was the 17-year-old phenom really her only competition, since her first run would have won gold -- before she bested it -- but she managed to tweet between runs. It was an amazing performance, and the best coming-out party imaginable for the young star.
Chloe Kim has thrown down the HAMMER with her first run. #WinterOlympics https://t.co/D65Nuoyydu pic.twitter.com/r6UJ7df38X
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 13, 2018
GOLD for Chloe Kim! The 17-year-old has done it for Team USA in the women's snowboard halfpipe! #BestOfUS #WinterOlympics https://t.co/D65Nuoyydu pic.twitter.com/PtMvQ45SLh
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 13, 2018
Not only that, but fellow American Arielle Gold took bronze. Kim's run was beyond outrageous, and she showed that the hype surrounding her coming into these Games was warranted, if not somehow undersold.

Shaun White totally redeems himself
If Chloe Kim is the future of U.S. snowboarding, Shaun White is the present. White took gold in an absolute nailbiter over Japanese star Ayumu Hirano, who wasn't thrilled about the result. It was a coin flip. White, 31, did something he's never done in a live run: Linked back-to-back 1440s. It was similar to what Hirano had done, but White sustained more air, giving him the edge. This run came after White failed to make the podium in Sochi, an utter disappointment after winning gold in Turin and Vancouver.
The Gold Winning Run, on the last run of the night. Thank You Shaun White 🙌 #Olympics
— YourSports (@YourSports) February 14, 2018
pic.twitter.com/HOvTkyMqCr
It came down to the very last run, but that only made the gold medal sweeter. Just one thing, Shaun: Be careful with the American flag next time you win.

Team USA women's hockey falls to Canada again
Talk about a group of death. The thought of getting stuck playing Canada and the United States in women's hockey in the round-robin is an utter nightmare. In a hard-fought, scrappy game, Canada was able to edge out the USA 2-1 in what would become a gold medal exhibition game (as was expected). Canada won the gold medal game at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, although it was outshot 45-23. Will Team USA finally get the gold in the rematch?
Mikaela Shiffrin takes gold in giant slalom
Mikaela Shiffrin's Olympics haven't gone as expected, but weather hasn't completely hindered her. Shiffrin, who came into these Winter Games initially looking for five gold medals, has had to pull out of two events. But she will leave with at least one to her name. She took gold in the giant slalom with an incredible second run that gave her a lead that would prove to be insurmountable. At 22, Shiffrin is already building the reputation of a legendary skier, and it's well-earned to this point.
GOLDEN GIRL Mikaela Shiffrin takes gold in giant slalom! #BestOfUS #WinterOlympics https://t.co/KX4CHncv2t pic.twitter.com/zHJudPT4i0
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 15, 2018
Nathan Chen turns in stellar free skate after poor start
After flopping in his first two performances, in the team competition and short program, Nathan Chen looked like his Olympics were going to be a wash. However, it didn't stay that way for long. At the free skate, Chen turned in an absolutely outstanding program, bouncing back from his 82.27 short program with a record score of 215.08. It wasn't enough to get him on the podium, but it was validation for the 18-year-old skater. Chen attempted six quads, landing five of them, becoming the first man to do so. The message was clear: He'll be back in Beijing. And he'll be ready.
"Nathan Chen is still the quad king!"
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 17, 2018
This is history. @nathanwchen with SIX quads in his men's free skate program. #WinterOlympics #BestOfUS https://t.co/Ldd0aubwzt pic.twitter.com/LrM7LDjArn

Czech snowboarder wins gold in super-G on Shiffrin's skis
This is, without a doubt, the craziest thing to happen in these Games so far. Ester Ledecka, a Czech SNOWBOARDER, took gold by 0.01 seconds after NBC had already declared Anna Veith the race winner and cut away from the race. The most insane part? She did it on Mikaela Shiffrin's skis. Shiffrin, of course, took the super-G off. Ledecka's reaction in the finish corral is pure gold.
You'd be shocked, too. 😱
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 17, 2018
Ester Ledecka, a world champion SNOWBOARDER, shocks the field to win a surprise-gold by 0.01 in alpine skiing women's super-G! #WinterOlympics https://t.co/YtEpNzDMDu pic.twitter.com/EeoHuALcKX
Nick Goepper takes silver while Gus Kenworthy struggles
Gus Kenworthy didn't have a "bad" day on Saturday, mostly because no day in which Britney Spears tweets you is a bad day. However, it wasn't his best. Kenworthy, battling through a broken thumb and large hematoma o his hip, wasn't able to land anything clean in his slopestyle runs, ultimately finishing far off the podium after getting silver in Sochi. It wasn't all bad for the American men. Nick Goepper took second, keeping the silver medal in U.S. hands with a final run of 93.60 after failing to get over 70 in his first two. Oystein Braaten netted Norway the gold, scoring a 95 on his first run.
rexcharlesblog RT NBCSports "RT NBCOlympics: .TeamUSA's NickGoepper takes the #silver in the men's freeski slopestyle and becomes the first U.S. male to win two medals in freestyle skiing in #WinterOlympics history! https://t.co/PwhLh9UQO9 pic.twitter.com/LW9JaCTuUm"
— Rexcharlesblog News (@ifeanyi09152385) February 18, 2018
Looking forward, Shiffrin will be trying to take another gold medal on the combined, while USA women's hockey is seeking gold over Canada. The second week of these Olympics is going to be jam-packed, and the best still may be yet to come.
To see what events are remaining and when you can watch them, click here. The full medal count is just below.
|
Country
|
|
|
|
TOTAL
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
14 | 14 | 11 | 39 |
|
|
14 | 10 | 7 | 31 |
|
|
11 | 8 | 10 | 29 |
|
|
9 | 8 | 6 | 23 |
|
|
8 | 6 | 6 | 20 |
|
|
7 | 6 | 1 | 14 |
|
|
5 | 8 | 4 | 17 |
|
|
5 | 6 | 4 | 15 |
|
|
5 | 4 | 6 | 15 |
|
|
5 | 3 | 6 | 14 |
|
|
4 | 5 | 4 | 13 |
|
|
3 | 2 | 5 | 10 |
|
|
2 | 6 | 9 | 17 |
|
|
2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
|
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
|
|
1 | 6 | 2 | 9 |
|
|
1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
|
|
1 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
|
|
1 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
|
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
|
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
|
|
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
|
|
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
|
|
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
















