Home crowd favorite and teen skiing sensation Eileen Gu has just won the gold in the women's freeski big air competition at Beijing's Shougang Industrial Park.
Day 4 of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics
By Aditi Sangal, Matias Grez, Patrick Sung, George Ramsay, Helen Regan and Adam Renton, CNN
Updated 8:30 p.m. ET, February 8, 2022
13 Posts
Sort by
BREAKING NEWS: China's home crowd favorite Eileen Gu wins gold in big air event
What is the quadruple axel?
Japanese skating sensation Yuzuru Hanyu has made it his goal to attempt the fabled quadruple axel during his Beijing Olympics appearance.
The jump has never been completed in competition before, let alone at the Olympics.
But what exactly is the jump everyone is talking about? The quadruple axel is a jump that involves four-and-a-half rotations in the air.
An axel is the most challenging of figure skating jumps "because it is the only jump in the sport in which skaters take off facing forward," according to the Olympics website.
"It’s also the easiest for fans to spot at home: If the skater is facing forward when he or she takes off for the jump, kicking their free leg into the air to spring into it, it’s an Axel."
Triple axels are seen in elite men's — and increasingly women's — programs.
Skating history already made: On Monday, ROC's Kamila Valieva became the first woman to land a quad at the Games.
The 15-year-old Valieva landed two quads in the team event. First was a quad Salchow, which involves four complete rotations in the air, and the second was a quad toeloop and she landed a triple Axel in the same routine.
Rivals Nathan Chen and Yuzuru Hanyu prepare for battle on the ice in Beijing
Favorites in the men's short program — American Nathan Chen and Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu — begin their Beijing 2022 skate campaigns today in the Capital Indoor Stadium.
Hanyu, 27, is hoping to make history in Beijing by attempting the quadruple axel — a jump that has never been done at the Olympics, or elsewhere.
The reigning two-time Olympic men's singles champion, who won successive golds at Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018, is also aiming for a third gold.
It's a feat not achieved in men's figure skating since the 1920s.
His main rival, Nathan Chen, 23, is the three-time world title holder — claiming victory in 2018, 2019 and 2021.
He left Pyeongchang 2018 disappointed following a fifth-place finish in the individual event. Since then, Chen embarked on a three-year international winning streak that ended with a third-place finish at Skate America in Las Vegas last October.
He arrives in Beijing as the favorite despite the presence of Hanyu.
Yet for Chen, to compete against his "idol" is nothing but a privilege.
"He's done so much for the sport, both with himself and then all the things that he's done outside of the rink — I think he's just really changed the sport for the better," Chen said.
"Just to be able to have opportunities to compete against him, to be on the same ice as him, is an honor in itself.
A UK TV network is sending an all-disabled line-up of hosts and pundits to the Beijing Paralympics
From CNN's Toyin Owoseje
UK broadcaster Channel 4 has announced that its coverage of the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games will be fronted by a team consisting entirely of disabled anchors and pundits.
In what it described as a "global first" for a world-class sporting event, the network's line-up will include former champions presenting on the ground in China when the games begin next month.
A daily highlights show will be helmed by Ade Adepitan, an award-winning host and wheelchair basketball player, Channel 4 said in a news release Monday.
Paralympic champion triathlete Lauren Steadman will host the breakfast show alongside quadriplegic former professional rugby player Ed Jackson.
Steadman took home a gold medal victory from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics and also won silver at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio.
The presenting line-up also includes recently retired Paralympic swimmer Ellie Robinson, who won gold at the 2016 Rio Games aged just 15. She will be joined by British racing car driver Billy Monger.
Former sit-skier Sean Rose has been recruited as a pundit, and Channel 4's overnight sports coverage will be led by Tokyo 2020 presenter Arthur Williams.
Read more:
Crowd warned not to throw flowers and toys onto the ice ahead of men's figure skating
From CNN's Nectar Gan in Beijing
Due to Covid restrictions, limited numbers of spectators are allowed into the Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing to watch the men's figure skating short program.
The stands may be less than half full, but an announcement inside the stadium today warned fans not to throw flowers and gifts onto the ice due to Covid-19 concerns.
It's common for fans to throw flowers and stuffed animals onto the ice after a skater completes their performance as a sign of appreciation.
Fans of Japanese skating sensation Yuzuru Hanyu have taken the tradition to another level — showering the rink with dozens of Winnie-the-Pooh toys after he skates.
It all started after their hero began carrying a tissue box in the shape of the much loved A.A. Milne character back in 2010. The 27-year-old now regularly carries the bear as a mascot.
It's not the first time Winnie the Pooh has brushed up against Chinese authorities. In 2017, the honey-loving teddy bear was banished from China's cyberspace after internet users compared him to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
It's 9:30 a.m. in Beijing. Here's what's coming up at the Winter Olympics on Tuesday
Day 4 of the Beijing Winter Olympics looks set to be action packed, with fierce rivals facing off on the ice and people's favorites gunning for gold.
There's also gold medals up for grabs in alpine skiing, biathlon, curling, freestyle skiing, luge, speed skating and snowboarding. Here are some key moments to look out for:
- China's "Snow princess" goes for gold: The Chinese darling of the Beijing Olympics, Eileen Gu has her first medal chance in the freestyle skiing big air finals. The 18-year-old ranked fifth in the qualifiers, and will face a stern challenge from Canada's Megan Oldham and France's Tess Ledeux.
- Top skaters face off: The race for gold in men’s figure skating stretches well beyond two headline skaters. While all eyes are set to be on reigning and two-time Olympic gold medalist Yuzuru Hanyu and American Nathan Chen —who has won the last three world titles — a strong field of skaters is set to factor into the podium conversation. The men hit the ice Tuesday in the first of four individual events and Hanyu, 27, will attempt the quadruple axel — a jump that has never been done at the Olympics, or elsewhere. US figure skater Vincent Zhou will not compete on Tuesday after testing positive for Covid-19.
- Fierce rivalry to ignite on the ice: The United States and Canada will attempt to extend their respective undefeated streaks when they meet in the women's ice hockey preliminary round. The countries have faced each other in the last three Olympic gold-medal games. It's both teams’ final matchup in the preliminaries before the seeds are determined for the quarterfinals, which begin Thursday.
- US snowboarding star seeks golden repeat: Defending Olympic women’s half-pipe champion Chloe Kim, 21, competes in the qualifying round today. One of the stand-out stars of the last Winter Olympics, Kim has been in stunning form since returning last January after interrupting her career when she broke her right ankle and also attended Princeton University.
- Snowboarding legend bows out: Team USA's Shaun White says Beijing 2022 will be his final Games after a storied snowboarding career. It's the 35-year-old’s fourth Olympics. When White hits the halfpipe qualifiers on Tuesday he will become the oldest male halfpipe rider from any nation in the history of the Games. He also has the chance to become the sport's oldest Olympic champion. Even if he doesn’t win gold, taking home any medal will make White the most decorated men’s snowboarder ever.
Here's the medal rankings as Day 4 kicks off
As Day 4 of the Beijing Games begins, here's a look at the medal standings, according to the official tally.
- Sweden tops the medal board with three golds.
- The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) is second with two golds, three silvers and two bronzes. ROC has the won most medals so far with seven in total.
- The Netherlands is ranked third with two golds, two silvers and one bronze.
- And hosts China are in fourth with two golds and two silvers.
Historic firsts and Olympic upsets. Here's a recap of Day 3
Day 3 of the 2022 Beijing Winter Games was filled with history-making Olympic action, Covid controversy and shock upsets.
Here are some of the highlights:
- Gold rush: Hosts China took gold and silver in the men's 1,000m short track speed skating, Swedish skier Sara Hector won gold in the women's giant slalom and Slovenia clinched the mixed team ski jumping gold. Canada’s Max Parrot, a cancer survivor, claimed victory in the men’s snowboard slopestyle event, and Germany's Denise Herrmann won women's 15km biathlon gold.
- Historic firsts: ROC figure skater Kamila Valieva, 15, made history when she became the first woman to land a quad at the Winter Games. She helped her team claim gold in the figure skating team event. Dutch speed skater Ireen Wüst became the first athlete — man or woman — to win an individual gold medal in five separate Olympics. The 35-year-old, who won her first Olympic gold in 2006, was victorious in the women's 1,500m speed skating on Monday.
- US-born Chinese athletes under scrutiny: After falling Sunday, California-born Chinese figure skater Zhu Yi fell again twice and finished last on Monday. The 19-year-old has come under heavy criticism on Chinese social media, with many questioning why she was chosen to represent China over an athlete born in the country. Meanwhile, freestyle skier Eileen Gu — who was also born in California but is competing for China — has charmed the Chinese public, who have nicknamed her "Snow princess."
- Icon crashes out: US skier Mikaela Shiffrin crashed out of the grand slalom, saying, "I won't ever get over this." The three-time Olympic medalist got a Did Not Finish on her first run after failing to complete the course, ending any hopes of a medal in the event.
- Covid-19 delays: The pandemic continues to make news at the Games, with new cases reported daily, including a Team USA figure skater. Covid concerns also caused an hour-long delay at Monday's women’s ice hockey match between the ROC and Canada, as the teams waited for their test results. Eventually, they played the majority of the game wearing face masks.
- Peng Shuai: Olympic officials met with the Chinese tennis star over dinner on Saturday, following through on a promise to hold a meeting with the former Olympian, who has been at the center of international concern after she alleged she had been pressured into sex by a retired top Chinese Communist Party official — an explosive allegation she has since appeared to retract.
US figure skater Vincent Zhou will not compete on Tuesday after testing positive for Covid-19
From CNN's Wayne Sterling
Team USA figure skater, Vincent Zhou, will not compete in Tuesday's men’s single skating short program competition after revealing he tested positive for Covid-19.
"It seems pretty unreal that of all the people, it would happen to myself," Zhou said in a video posted on Instagram on Monday.
Zhou said he has been doing "everything in my power" to avoid Covid during the pandemic.
"I've taken all the precautions I can. I've isolated myself so much that the loneliness I felt in the last month or two has been crushing at times." He added that this has been painful, but "I do recognize that this absolutely does not define me as an athlete, as a person."
Zhou won the silver medal in Monday's figure skating team event.
