Thursday, 19 January 2017 C Olympic-sport commentary, coverage and results Why can’t some Olympic sports figure out how to use a calendar? Lane One Headliners 1. Figure Skating: Previewing the U.S. National Championships in Kansas City 3 2. Athletics: World record try in Dubai plus honors for Maxie Parks 5 3. Alpine Skiing: Speed racers set for more action in Austria and Germany 6 Panorama Archery: Indoor World Cup continues + a new U.S. star? 7 Biathlon: Last races before the IBU World Championships this week 8 Bob & Skeleton: U.S. looking good (not great) halfway through the World Cup 8 Cycling: Tour Down Under starts, with an Australian leading! 9 Fencing: Giant tourneys in Paris (Foil) and Barcelona (Epee) 10 Freestyle Skiing: U.S. Nationals starts with Aerials in Lake Placid 11 Handball: Five teams unbeaten in group stage of men’s World Champs 11 Ice Hockey: NHL, IIHF and IOC not much closer to resolving anything 12 Nordic Skiing: U.S. names Cross Country World Champs team 13 Snowboard: Busy weekend sees the return of Chloe Kim to the Halfpipe 14 Table Tennis: First ITTF World Tour event commences in Hungary 15 Tennis: Australian Open continues in Melbourne 16 Agenda: Competition Calendar 17 About: About The Sports Examiner 19 For our 689-event 2017 international sports calendar, click here (PDF format). Nathan Chen: the new face of U.S. skating? Is her star rising or setting: jumper Sara Takanishi Is it so hard to use a calendar? It apparently is...
Transcript
Thursday, 19 January 2017 C Olympic-sport commentary, coverage and results
Why can’t some Olympic sportsfigure out how to use a calendar?
Lane One
Headliners
1. Figure Skating: Previewing the U.S. National Championships in Kansas City 32. Athletics: World record try in Dubai plus honors for Maxie Parks 53. Alpine Skiing: Speed racers set for more action in Austria and Germany 6
Panorama
Archery: Indoor World Cup continues + a new U.S. star? 7Biathlon: Last races before the IBU World Championships this week 8Bob & Skeleton: U.S. looking good (not great) halfway through the World Cup 8Cycling: Tour Down Under starts, with an Australian leading! 9Fencing: Giant tourneys in Paris (Foil) and Barcelona (Epee) 10Freestyle Skiing: U.S. Nationals starts with Aerials in Lake Placid 11Handball: Five teams unbeaten in group stage of men’s World Champs 11Ice Hockey: NHL, IIHF and IOC not much closer to resolving anything 12Nordic Skiing: U.S. names Cross Country World Champs team 13Snowboard: Busy weekend sees the return of Chloe Kim to the Halfpipe 14Table Tennis: First ITTF World Tour event commences in Hungary 15Tennis: Australian Open continues in Melbourne 16
Agenda: Competition Calendar 17About: About The Sports Examiner 19
For our 689-event 2017 international sports calendar, click here (PDF format).
Nathan Chen: the new face ofU.S. skating?
Is her star rising or setting:jumper Sara Takanishi
Is it so hard to use a calendar?It apparently is...
Why can’t some Olympic sportsfigure out how to use a calendar?
One of the endearing aspects of many team sports, at least as practicedin the United States, is the way each season proceeds to a climacticmoment in which the championship is decided.
In Major League Baseball, a 162-game regular season leads to fourrounds of playoffs. The National Football League has a 16-gameregular season spread over 17 weeks, followed by five weeks ofplayoffs, ending with the Super Bowl. The National BasketballAssociation and National Hockey League follow the same pattern.
It creates a continually-increasing level of excitement and interest,with more fans joining along the way as the ultimate championship
game or series draws closer and closer.
Why can’t some of the biggest Olympic sports figure this out?
In the next month, the Alpine Skiing World Championships will take place over two weeks in St.Moritz, Switzerland. A glorious culmination to the season? No.
Immediately following the Worlds is four more weeks of the World Cup.
The Nordic Skiing World Championships – Cross Country, Nordic Combined and Ski Jumping – willalso cover two weeks, in Lahti, Finland, in March. Then the World Cup resumes for two more weeks.
Athletics and Aquatics do the same. The IAAF World Championships in London, which promises tobe outstanding, sits in the middle of the Diamond League: 11 meets before and three afterwards.
Even the Olympic Games is plopped into the middle of the summer, with no relationship to theseasons of the sports it includes within it. But at least the Games have an excuse: it predatedessentially every one of the sports whose seasons have grown up around it.
With the expansion of broadcasting to online viewers, isn’t this the time for sports to maximize theirseasons and appeal to a wider audience as their annual schedules head toward a championship? Givenits leadership position, a “Calendar Congress” would be a gift the IOC would be thanked for, forever.
U.S. Figure Skating National Championships:Kansas City, Missouri (USA) ~ 19-22 January
| There are perhaps more questions than answers forAmerica’s top figure skaters heading into the 2016 nationalchampionships in Kansas City this weekend. While thestatus of the top American women is in flux, there’s plentyof talent to go around in the other three divisions.
The schedule (times shown are Eastern; local time isCentral):
C 19 Jan.: Thursday Pairs Short Program 5:30 p.m. Eastern NBCSNWomen’s Short Program 9:05 p.m. NBCSN (9:30 p.m.
C 20 Jan.: Friday Dance Short Program 6:00 p.m. NBCSNMen’s Short Program 8:30 p.m. Universal HD
C 22 Jan.: Sunday Men’s Free Skate 2:00 p.m. NBC (4 p.m.)Smuckers Spectacular 8:00 p.m. NBC on 28 Jan.
The figure skating world has been quiet since the ISU Grand Prix Final in Marseille (FRA) in thesecond week of December, so who knows how a month or more off has affected the U.S. skaters sincethe fall. Here’s a preview of who to look for this weekend:
C Men
The formchart: Gold Silver Bronze
2014: Jeremy Abbott Jason Brown Max Aaron2015: Jason Brown Adam Rippon Joshua Farris2016: Adam Rippon Max Aaron Nathan Chen
Defending national champion Adam Rippon is out with an injury, but the new star is 17-year-oldNathan Chen, who won the silver medal – and was first in the free skate – in the ISU Figure SkatingGrand Prix Final in Marseille in December. Jason Brown (22) and Max Aaron (24) were both
1.Figure Skating:
Lots of questions as U.S. Nationals open in Kansas City
invited to two Grand Prix events and finished 10th and 11th in the overall standings, with Brownscoring a silver medal (but now recovering from a right leg injury) and Aaron no higher than fourth ineither of his events. Timothy Dolensky (24), Ross Miner (25) and Grant Hochstein (26) alsomade one Grand Prix appearance each, but appear to be challenging only for bronze. A new face? Howabout 16-year-old Tomoki Hiwatashi, the U.S. Junior champ last year and the 2016 World Juniorbronze medalist?
Confusion reigns among fans of women’s figure skating in the U.S. Will this week’s Ashley Wagner(25) be the one who won at Skate America, or who fell to sixth at the Cup of China? Gracie Gold (21)admitted to not being in top shape during the Grand Prix season, but expected to be ready now.Polina Edmunds is out injured, so the third spot on the U.S. team for the Worlds is up for grabs.Veterans like Mirai Nagasu (23) and Courtney Hicks (21, third at the Rostelecom Cup inMoscow!) have the experience, as does Karen Chen (17), third in the 2015 Nationals, but whodropped to eighth last year. However, the next-gen breakthrough might be 20-year-old Mariah Bell,who won a silver medal behind only Wagner at Skate America, and won the Free Skate.
The U.S. did not advance a pair to the six-entry Grand Prix Final, with Haven Denney andBrandon Frazier ranked highest at eighth, winning a silver medal at Skate America. They were thebest American entry, ahead of Tarah Kayne and Danny O’Shea (13th overall, best placing offourth) and Marissa Castelli and Mervin Tran (18th overall, best placing of fifth). Tran has anespecially compelling story, having competed for Japan and won a Worlds bronze with NatumiTakahashi in 2012, then competed for Canada with Natasha Purich in 2013-14 and then with Castellibeginning in June 2014. Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim will not compete as Alexacontinues to recover from a September stomach surgery.
C Dance
The formchart: Gold Silver Bronze
2014: Meryl Davis/Charlie White Madison Chock/Evan Bates Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani2015: Madison Chock/Evan Bates Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani Mad. Hubbell./Zach. Donohue2016: Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani Madison Chock/Evan Bates Mad. Hubbell/Zach. Donohue
Dance is the best event for the U.S., qualifying half the field for the Grand Prix Final and finishing 3-5-6. The brother-and-sister Shibutanis earned their first Grand Prix Final medal and won both oftheir Grand Prix events as the leading U.S. dancers. On performance, there’s very little to separateMadison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue from Madison Chock and Evan Bates. Hubbel &Donohue were fifth in the final and won silvers in both of their Grand Prix meets. Chock and Bateswere sixth in the Final and also won silvers twice. All three can qualify for Helsinki, but possiblechallengers include Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker, who scored in both of their GrandPrix meets (best of fourth in Sapporo) and Elliana Pogrebinsky and Alex Benoit, fourth in theWorld Junior Championships last year.
The U.S. will send three women, two men, two pairs teams and three ice dance teams to the 2017 ISUWorld Figure Skating Championships in Helsinki (FIN) from 29 March 29 to 2 April.
| The Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon is a young race, inaugurated in 2000. But it has the eyesof the track & field world on it this week as Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele – a three-time Olympic goldmedalist – is expected to make a run at Dennis Kimetto’s World Record of 2:02:57.
We have a full preview of Bekele’s opportunity in an EXTRA edition of The Sports Examiner: clickhere to read it in PDF. The race takes place on Friday, Dubai-time, which is Thursday evening in theU.S.
| We forget our heroes as time dulls our memories of athletic achievements and they are replacedwith newer and shiner moments.
But the city of Fresno, California has done a marvelous service to recognize the achievements andhumanity of 1976 Olympic gold medal winner Maxie Parks.
The “Maxie L. Parks Community Center” was dedicated on 14 January, remembering not only what hedid on the track, but also in his civic and coaching work in his hometown of Fresno.
Parks’ achievements may have come 40+ years ago – he’s 65 now – but they are no less impressivewith the passage of time:
C 1971 State Junior College 440 yards champion for Fresno City as a freshman, after a strongprep career at Washington Union High School in Fresno.
C Four-time All-American at UCLA, where he placed fifth (‘73) and third (‘74) in the NCAA 440yards and was on two winning mile relay teams for the Bruins. Said his Bruin coach JimBush: “Maxie combines great desire, tremendous speed, and hates to lose.”
C U.S. national champion and Olympic Trials winner (in separate meets) in 1976, with a best of44.82. How good was that? In 2016, that mark would have ranked 20th in the world andseventh in the U.S. He would be great now, too.
C Fifth in the Olympic Games 400 in Montreal, and then anchored the U.S. to a runaway win inthe 4x400 m to claim an Olympic gold medal.
Maxie never lost his love for track & field and passed that on not only to his family, but to youngsterseverywhere, including a significant impact on many he coached. Always with a smile, always withgrace and with a personal warmth that made anyone he met an instant friend.
Audi Alpine Skiing World Cup:Kitzbuehel (AUT) and Garmisch-Partenkirchen (GER) ~ 20-22 January
| After nearly a month off, the speed racers are in full flight nowwith consecutive weekends of Downhill and Super-G events on thewomen’s alpine World Cup tour.
This week, the women’s tour is in Garmisch-Partenkirchen,Germany for a Downhill on Saturday and Super-G on Sunday,followed by a move to Italy for a Giant Slalom on Tuesday (inKronplatz) and another Downhill and Super-G in Cortinad’Ampezzo on the weekend.
That means the overall women’s World Cup leader, Mikaela Shiffrin of the U.S., will likely competeonly in Kronplatz and it’s a chance for second-place Lara Gut – the defending World Cup championfrom Switzerland – to catch up.
Going into this weekend’s races, Shiffrin has a 1,008-693 edge, with races scored 100-80-60-50-45-40-36-32-29-26 points for the top 10 and on down to one point for 30th. Gut could be in all five racesover the next 10 days and Shiffrin in only one.
For U.S. fans, still celebrating the first World Cup medal for Jackie Wiles in last weekend’sDownhill, it will be interesting to see if Lindsey Vonn is rounding into shape as she continues racingafter recovering from a broken arm in November. She was “only” 13th last week, but exactly onesecond from tying Wiles for bronze. That’s how small the margins are on the World Cup tour.
The men’s tour is in Kitzbuehel (AUT) for a Super-G on Friday, Downhill on Saturday and Slalom onSunday. That suits World Cup overall leader Marcel Hischer of Austria just fine. Although most
comfortable with the Slalom and Giant Slalom, he has earned medals in the Super-G and will try toextend his lead over Norway’s Slalom star, Henrik Kristoffersen. Hirscher owns a 973-692 pointsedge right now, but Kristoffersen is the defending champion in the Slalom at Kitzbuehel.
American chances are looking bright as Steven Nyman led the pack in the training runs for theDownhill yesterday. He scored a World Cup bronze in his last Downhill, on 17 December, at ValGardena (ITA).
C Panorama C
| Indoor archery is back and the third stage of the Archery World Cup is on tap in Nimes (FRA) thisweekend for both men and women.
In the men’s competition, American Brady Ellison has been on a tear, winning a bronze medal inRio, then a gold in the World Field Championships, then the World Cup Final in September and thefirst stage of the Indoor World Cup in November.
But he will be challenged by 2016 Olympic gold medalist Bonchan Ku of Korea, 2012 Olympic goldmedalist Jin-Hyek Oh (KOR) and Rio silver medalist Jean-Charles Valladont of France. Andthere is Ellison’s teammate and co-team silver medalist from Rio, Zach Garrett. Still only 21,Garrett was the World Youth Champion in 2015.
Olympic champion Hye-Jin Chang of Korea will lead the field as the favorite. The top U.S. entry is43-year-old Khatuna Lorig, who won a team bronze as part of the Unified Team – she was born inwhat is now Georgia – in 1992 in Barcelona, then competed for Georgia in 1996 and 2000 and thenfor the U.S. in 2008 and 2012 (at age 38).
Of special note: World Archery Secretary General Tom Dielen of Switzerland will also be at the event... as a competitor at age 48. Imagine Seb Coe running an 800 meters indoors this season, or JulioMaglione of FINA swimming in a World Cup meet ... but Dielen will be on the line, bow in hand. Goodfor you!
| The U.S. hasn’t won an individual Olympic medal in women’s archery since 1976 and a medal ofany kind since 1988. But there could be changes coming with the decision of the world’s second-ranked compound archer – Crystal Gauvin – to switch to the Olympic division (recurve) bow.
Now 32, Gauvin won the silver medal in the 2015 World Archery Championships in the women’scompound division, using a bow which has gears and pulleys that help shoot the arrow. There’s noguarantee, of course, that she will be able the master the Olympic bow as she did the Compound, butshe told WorldArchery.com, “Who knows what the future will bring. But for at least the next three andhalf years, I am 100% committed to competing with my recurve.”
No word on when she will debut with the new bow. As her goal is the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo,she is taking her time. We’ll keep you posted on her progress.
| The last World Cup races before the 2017 World Championships will beheld this week in Antholz-Anterselva, Italy with Individual, Mass Start andrelays to be held before a two-week break.
U.S. star Susan Dunklee wasn’t at her best last weekend (33rd and24th), but looks to move up from her current 16th place in the overallWorld Cup standings in the Individual 15 km and Mass Start 12.5 km races.
Teammates Joanne Reid and Clare Egan are 74th and 75th on theWorld Cup points table, respectively, this season.
Defending champion Gabriela Koukalova (CZE) remains the World Cup leader (587 points),trailed closely by Finland’s Kaisa Makarainen – a two-time champ herself – has 568, with LauraDahlmeier (GER) now third at 555 points.
For the men, France's Martin Fourcade, the five-time defending World Cup men's champion, ismaking a shambles of the seasonal race, with a 730-446 lead over Simon Schempp (GER).Fourcade has now won an astonishing (insane?) 10 of 13 events on the tour this season.
| A full program is on tap in St. Moritz (SUI) from Friday through Sunday for both bobsledders andskeleton athletes in the fifth of eight World Cup meets. The U.S. is having a good season – not great –so far, but is well positioned in each of the bobsled rankings:
C Men’s Two: Steve Holcomb ranks sixth in the driver rankings at 665 points, trailingYunjong Won of Korea (736), Rico Peter (SUI, 714) and AlexanderKasjanov (RUS, 698). Coming on fastest of all is Germany’s FrancescoFriedrich, who has won all three of his races (675 points); can anyonebeat him?
C Men’s Four: Holcomb again leads U.S. drivers, standing third (722), just behindKasjanov (787) and Peter (731). Codie Bascue – only 22 – stands 11th at520, with a best of fourth at Lake Placid.
C Women’s Two: The U.S. has three of the top ten sleds, with Jamie Gruebel Poser
second (809 points), Elana Meyers Taylor sixth (645, with one crashthat scored zero!) and Brittany Reinbolt, 10th with 480. The leader isCanada’s Kaillie Humphries (834), who has won two of the four raceson the circuit this season.
C Men’s Skeleton: Matt Antoine stands fifth in the points race with 714 and is withinstriking distance – on paper – of leader Martins Dukurs of Latvia (811).Then again, since Dukurs has won the World Cup seven times in a row,maybe it’s not that close. But Antoine was strong in Whistler and LakePlacid, but wants to improve on the ninth places in his two Europeanraces.
C Women’s Skeleton: Anne O’Shea is the top American at 10th in the points (616), well behindGermany’s Jacqueline Loelling (829) and Austria’s Janine Flock(753).
Meyers Taylor, with Lauren Gibbs, won at St. Moritz last year, with Holcomb second in the men’stwo, with Carlo Valdes.
The races from St. Moritz will be available for live streaming at www.NBCsports.com (check for times)as well as at www.IBSF.org, the Web site of the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation.
| The opening event of the 2017 UCI World Tour is underway with the Santos Tour Down Under.Begun in 1999, it’s held in and around Adelaide and in the 18 prior editions, has been won by anAustralian rider 11 times.
Australians have won the last three in a row and four of the last five, with Simon Gerrans thedefending champion. The race began on 17 January and will conclude on the 22nd.
The leader, halfway through, is Australia’s Richie Porte (AUS) in 10:34:59, trailed by GorkaIzaguirre (ESP, +20 seconds), Esteban Chaves (COL, +22), Jay McCarthy (AUS, +24) andNathan Haas (AUS, +27). The top 15 are still within a half-minute. Stage summaries:
UCI World Tour/Santos Tour Down Under: Adelaide (AUS)and environs ~ 17-22 January. (Full results here):
Stage 1 (145 km: Unley to Lindoch): 1. Caleb Ewan(AUS), 3:24:08; 2. Danny Van Poppel (NED), +:04; 3. SamBennett (IRL), +:06; 4. Jay McCarthy (AUS), +:07; 5.Nathan Haas (AUS), +:08.
Stage 2 (148.5 km: Stirling to Paracombe): 1. Richie
Porte (AUS), 3:46:06; 2. Gorka Izaguirre (ESP), +:16; 3.Estaban Chaves (COL), +:16; 4. Rohan Dennis (AUS),+:19; 5. Haas (AUS), +:19.
Stage 3 (144 km: Glenelg to Victor Harbor): 1. Ewan(AUS), 3:24:45; 2. Peter Sagan (SVK), same time; 3.Niccolo Bonifazio (ITA), same time; 4. Van Poppel (NED),same time; 5. Edward Theuns (BEL), same time.
Jan. 20: Stage 4 (149.5 km: Norwood to Campbelltown): Jan. 21: Stage 5 (151.5 km: McLaren Vale to Willunga Hill): Jan. 22: Stage 6 (90 km: in Adelade):
The four-stage women’s tour was held from 14-17 January, but is not a part of the UCI Women’sWorld Tour. The overall winner was Australia’s Amanda Spratt (6:59:36), followed by JannekeEnsing (NED, +25 seconds), Kirsten Wild (NED, +40), Lauren Kitchen (AUS, +50) and AlexisRyan of the U.S. (+51). For complete results, click here.
| The Challenge International de Paris is a major tournament for the Men’s Foil fencers with anenormous field of 210 entered.
The top 17 fencers in the world rankings are entered, led by a strong American continent:
C 1. Alexander Massialas, 2016 Rio silver medalistC 5. Race ImbodenC 9. Chamley Miles-WatsonC 12. Gerek Meinhardt
They will have to contend, according to the rankings, withOlympic gold winner Daniele Garozzo (ITA, ranked2nd), bronze medalist Timur Safin (RUS, 3),quarterfinalists Giorgio Avola (ITA, 4) and Richard
Kruse (GBR, 7), plus homestanding Erwan Le Pechoux (FRA, 6).
The individual tournament will be held on Friday and Saturday, with a team competition on Sunday.The second-ranked American squad is expected to include Massialas, Chamley-Watson, Imboden andMeinhardt. Russia is ranked first, Italy third and France fourth.
| The women’s Epee specialists are gathering in Barcelona, with 207 enrolled for the Ciudad deBarcelona tournament, led by top-ranked Sarra Besbes of Tunisia and Olympic gold medalistEmese Szasz of Hungary (ranked third).
Five of the top six-ranked fencers are entered, also including Russia’s Tatiana Logunova (second),Olympic silver winner Rossella Fiamingo (ITA, 5) and Olympic bronze medalist Yiwen Sun ofChina (sixth).
The top U.S. entries are sisters Courtney Hurley (ranked 16th) and Kelly Hurley (18) andKatharine Holmes (19), but look out for Anna van Brummen, who surprised with a World Cupvictory in Sozhou, China in November, defeating Besbes along the way. Van Brummen was ranked187th at the time; she’s up to 46 now.
That American quartet will fence in the team competition on Sunday. Estonia is top-ranked and thefield also includes Romania (2), China (3), Russia (4) and Korea (5).
| A thin weekend on the international calendar with just a Mogulscompetition set for Val St. Come, Quebec (CAN). Local fans are hoping fora repeat of 2016, when homestanding Mikael Kingsbury and SochiOlympic champ Justine Dufour-Lapointe won the men’s andwomen’s divisions, respectively.
Dufour-Lapointe currently stands fourth in the World Cup Moguls pointslist, behind Australia’s Britteny Cox (200), France’s Perrine Laffont(160) and Keaton McCargo (84) of the U.S. Kingsbury is currentlysecond to Kazakhstan’s Dmitriy Reiherd (150 points to 140).
In the meantime, the top American aerial skiers are in Lake Placid for the 2017 NationalChampionships. That means Ashley Caldwell, who has been the U.S. champion for three yearsrunning and comes off a World Cup victory – also at Lake Placid – last week.
Kiley McKinnon has been just as consistent as Caldwell, but just one place lower, finishing secondat the National in 2012-13-15-16. She hasn’t been as good on the World Cup tour so far this year,finishing 13-14-22 in her three competitions so far. That could lead to an opening for Megan Nick(3rd at Nationals 2016), Madison Varmette (4th in 2015), the perfectly-named Winter Vinecki(5th in 2016) or perhaps Elle Gaudette (5th in 2014).
Among the men, Mac Bohonnan won silver last week at Lake Placid, and the 2015 nationalchampion. He’s currently standing fourth in the World Cup Aerials points list.
His likely challengers include Jon Lillis, National bronze winner in 2013 and fifth last week at LakePlacid; Alex Bowen, World Championships silver medalist in 2015 and 2013 Nationals silverwinner; Chris Lillis – the youngest man ever to win a World Cup aerials event and still only 18 –currently 10th in the World Cup standings, and Eric Loughran , currently 17th on the World Cuptable.
| The 24-team men’s World Championships is continuing in France, with group play continuingthrough 20 January. The four groups are now two-thirds through, with the leaders (so far):
C Group A: France (4-0)C Group B: Spain (4-0)C Group C: Germany and Croatia, both 4-0C Group D: Denmark (4-0)
The leading goal scorer through the first eight days of the tournamentremains Macedonia’s Kiril Lazarov, with 37.
The tournament continues through 29 January, at eight sites throughoutthe country.
| No news is no news on the Olympic Winter Games front for the National Hockey League, which hasnot made aby substantive moved toward participation in the 2018 Games in PyeongChang.
A 13 January story on ESPN summed up the situation with this quote from NHL DeputyCommissioner Bill Daly: “We still do not have the details of precisely how the expenses related toour possible participation would be funded as they have been in the past in the event we decided togo” and “there does not appear currently to be anywhere near the requisite support from our clubsthat would be necessary for the league to commit to Olympic participation in 2018.”
On the other side, the International Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation aretrying to figure out how to make things work. IIHF President Rene Fasel told the Toronto Sun: ““Ithink Gary (Bettman) was very disappointed about not having the league get the respectconcerning the situation of (the IOC not covering) insurance and transportation costs.
“The Rio Olympics were big because of track and field, Michael Phelps, the big names. As an IOCmember, we need the big names, the best of the best. And I really hope for the sake of our sport wehave the best of the best in Korea.”
One of the issues for the NHL team owners, of course, is injuries – and wear and tear – to theirhighly-paid players. Helene Elliott, writing in the Los Angeles Times, wrote this on 10 January:
“It’s not usually news when Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews collects two goals andfive points over five games. But considering that his spree padded his totals to seven goals and 20points — and was probably his most productive stretch this season — it emphasized how much the28-year-old center has struggled.
“But so have several older players who played in the preseason World Cup last September. Kingscenter Anze Kopitar, 29, who played for Slovenia in Olympic qualifying before the World Cup, wasstuck on three goals through Sunday. The San Jose Sharks’ Joe Thornton, 37, has two goals (and arespectable 24 assists). Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf, 31, has five goals. Ducks right wing Corey
Perry, 31, who averaged 37 goals in his previous three seasons, has seven goals. Kings wingerMarian Gaborik, 34, suffered a broken foot at the World Cup and has two goals in 18 games.
“Could it be they’ve played too much? The NHL and NHL Players’ Assn. plan to stage the World Cupagain and have said they’d like to create other international events to increase revenues and exposurebut they must proceed cautiously if the cost is extensive wear and tear on players.”
That reality is surely having an impact on the Olympic discussions.
| Cross-Country Skiing:
The U.S. chase for World Cup medals will continue this weekend in Ulricehamn (SWE), with a 15 kmFreestyle event for men and 10 km Freestyle for women on Saturday and then relays on Sunday.
Americans Jessie Diggins (fifth overall) and Sadie Bjornsen (16th) have had the strongestseasons so far and will be sharpening their racing in advance of the World Championships coming upin Lahti (FIN) next month. Both have been named, along with World Cup scorers Liz Stephen,Sophie Caldwell, Kikkan Randall, Ida Sargent, Sophie Brennan and Caitlin Gregg to theU.S. team. For Randall, it’s a remarkable ninth selection to the U.S. World Championships team.
From this group, much is expected.
“This is undoubtedly the strongest team that the USA has ever fielded at a major championships," saidU.S. Cross Country Head Coach Chris Grover. "We have many veterans with World Cup podiumexperience in this group - athletes that are at the heights of their careers and their racing abilities. Wehave an experienced staff that knows how to manage the challenges of the major events and aworld-class service team that has been making great skis all season long. Lahti will be the perfectsetting for the USA to showcase our newfound strength in cross country ski racing.”
For the men, last week’s World Cup Sprint silver medalist Simi Hamilton leads the squad, alongwith World Cup scorers Noah Hoffman, Andy Newell and Erik Bjornsen. The full list is here.
| Nordic Combined:
If history holds, German domination will continue this week in Chaux-Neuve (FRA) for twoGundersen-style competitions off a 118 m Hill and a 10.0 km cross-country race. The defendingchampions are, of course, German: current World Cup leader Eric Frenzel and the third-placer sofar this season, Fabian Riessle. Frenzel has won five of the eight events this season and five of thelast six!
Bryan Fletcher continues as the top American – currently 21st overall – with a best finish of ninth
After winning five of first seven competitions and earning a medal in each this season, she “fell” tosecond and forth in front of home fans in Sapporo (JPN). Now what?
The women jumpers are in Zao, Japan, so Takanishi and teammate Yuki Ito will have the support ofa partisan crowd once again. Takanishi hasn’t had two straight meets in which she did not win amedal since a 12th and fifth at Sapporo (!) in February 2013. The next meet: also in Zao, where shewon twice.
The men are still in Poland and will jump off the 134 m hill in Zakopane, with a team competitionscheduled for Saturday and individual jumping on Sunday. The World Cup race remains close, evenwith a recent surge from 2014 double Olympic champion Kamil Stoch. He’s in front now, with 833points, followed by Norway’s Daniel Andre Tande (767) and early-season leader Domen Prevc(SLO, 751).
| Snowboarders are in the U.S. for a FIS World Cup in Snowboardcross at Solitude Mountain, Utahfor the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix. Men’s and women’s Snowboardcross competitions will be held onSaturday (individual) and Sunday (team).
The U.S. has a strong entry, led by 2006 Olympic silver winner Lindsey Jacobellis, currently thirdin the World Cup standings (600 points), and Salt Lake City native Faye Gulini (currently 13th).They are chasing front-runners Belle Brockhoff of Australia (1,000 points) and Chloe Trespeuch(FRA, 800).
Gulini, especially, is happy to race at home. “We travel all over the world for our races, so to have anevent like World Champs in the U.S. [in 2019] right in my backyard is awesome. I’m really excited forthe opportunity to compete in the U.S. Grand Prix this coming season and ride on the amazing terrainat Solitude.”
Hagen Kearney of the U.S. leads the men’s points standing in Snowboardcross (1,000) with twoother Americans in the top 10: two-time World Championships bronze winner Nate Holland(seventh, 360) and Sochi bronze medalist Alex Diebold in 10th (260). Two-time Olympic goldmedalist Seth Westcott – 2006 and 2010 – is also expected in the field, although his last World Cuppodium finish was in December 2014.
Diebold said, “I am excited to finally have a World Cup back on U.S. soil. Solitude has really stepped
up and provided a great venue and an amazing piece of hill space. With plenty of snow and Nick Romabuilding the course, I think it's going to be one of the best races of the season.”
The competition will be streamed and televised in various parts. On Saturday (21 January), theSnowboardcross finals will be streamed at NBCsports.com beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern time. OnSunday (22 January), the team finals will be streamed at NBCsports.com, also at 2 p.m. A highlightsshow will air on NBC at 3:30 p.m. Eastern.
| Across the pond, Slopestyle and Halfpipe competitions are being held at Laax (SUI), with 16-year-old Chloe Kim ready to tackle to Halfpipe again and add to her World Cup lead.
Last year’s Youth Olympic Winter Games champ, Kim has competed in three World Cup events, wontwo and was second in the other. She won the season opener at Copper Mountain and led thequalifying at Laax on the 16th.
She has plenty of competition, including a strong U.S. contingent that includes two-time OlympianElena Hight (fifth at Copper Mountain), 2006 Winter Games gold medalist Hannah Teter (sixth)and Summer Fenton (ninth).
The U.S. has six of the top 12 in the men’s halfpipe standings after the Copper Mountain event, withChase Josey third, Louie Vito fifth, Greg Bretz ninth, Danny Davis 10th, Jake Pates in 11thand Tony Miller, 12th. Swiss Patrick Burgener and Iouri Podladtchikov went 1-2 at CopperMountain and led the World Cup standings.
In Slopestyle, the season opened last week in Kreischberg (AUT), with Norway’s Mons Royslandand Austria’s Anna Gasser winning. Ryan Stassel of the U.S. claimed his first World Cup medalin Slopestyle, a silver, ahead of teammates Red Gerard (third, age 16!) and Eric Beauchemin(ninth). The top American finishers behind Gasser was Kirra Kotsenburg (12th) and KarlyShorr (15th).
| The Seamaster ITTF World Tour for 2017 opens in Budapest this week for the Hungarian Open,with 358 entries from 54 national associations worldwide in the four divisions. The top entries – byworld rankings – in the tournament include:
C Men/Singles: 8. Vladimir Samsonov (RUS) 9. Chih-Yuan Chuang (TPE)13. Bo Fang (CHN)
C Men/Doubles: 13. Bo Fang/Yu Zhou (CHN)21. Hugo Calderon/Gustavo Tsuboi (BRA)29. Chien-an Chen/Chih-Yuan Chuang (TPE)
C Women/Singles: 10. Men Chen (CHN)27. Jie Li (NED)28. Jian Zeng (SGP ~ new for Singapore)
C Women/Doubles: 40. Matilda Ekholm (SWE)/Georgina Pota (HUN)73. Maria Dolgikh/Polina Mikhailova (RUS)75. Ye Lin/Yihan Zhou (SGP)
The only listed U.S. entry is 2016 Olympian and 2015 Pan American Games gold medalist JenniferWu in the women’s singles division; she’s ranked 134th worldwide at present.
| There isn’t a great reason for us to go into detail on the Australian Open, the first of the fourannual Grand Slam events in tennis and well covered elsewhere.
By way of summary, we can say that the singles tournaments have progressed into the second roundand the top remaining seeds are:
C Men’s Upper bracket:1. Andy Murray (GBR)4. Stan Wawrinka (SUI)5. Kei Nishkikori (JPN)
C Men’s Lower bracket:2. Novak Djokovic (SRB)3. Milos Raonic (CAN)6. Gael Monfis (FRA)
Highlights of the top-level (Championships ~ Grand Prix ~ World Cup ~ National Teams)competitions in Olympic sports for the coming weeks:
Sport Date(s) Type ~ Event Site
C 15-21 January 2017Handball 11-29 Jan IHF Men's World Championship FRABiathlon 16-22 Jan BMW World Cup 6 ITA Antholz-Anterselva
Snowboard 16-21 Jan World Cup: M&W Halfpipe & Slopestyle SUI LaaxTennis 16-29 Jan Australian Open AUS MelbourneCycling 17-22 Jan MWT: Santos Tour Down Under AUSEquestrian 19-22 Jan Jumping World Cup CSI-5* GER LeipzigFigure Skate 19-22 Jan U.S. National Championships USA Kansas CityFreestyle 19 Jan U.S. Freestyle Championships: Aerials USA Lake PlacidSnowboard 19-22 Jan World Cup: M&W Snowboardcross USA Solitude Mtn.Alpine Ski 20-22 Jan World Cup: M Downhill/Slalom/Super-G AUT KitzbuehelArchery 20-22 Jan Indoor World Cup: Stage 3 FRA NimesBob & Skel. 20-22 Jan BMW World Cup 5 SUI St. MoritzFencing 20-22 Jan W Epee World Cup 3 ESP BarcelonaFencing 20-22 Jan M Foil World Cup 3 FRA ParisSki Jumping 20-21 Jan World Cup: W (HS 106) JPN ZaoAlpine Ski 21-22 Jan World Cup: W Downhill/Super-G GER Garmisch-Part.
Freestyle 21 Jan World Cup: M&W Moguls CAN Val St. ComeFreestyle 21-22 Jan World Cup: M&W Ski Cross FRA MegeveNordic Cmb 21-22 Jan World Cup: Gundersen HS 118/10 km FRA Chaux-NeuveSki Jumping 21-22 Jan World Cup: M (HS 134) POL ZakopaneX-Cntry Ski 21-22 Jan World Cup: M 15 km F/W 10 km F + Relays SWE UlricehamnTable Tennis 17-22 Jan ITTF World Tour 1: Hungarian Open HUN Budapest
C 22-28 January 2017Sailing 22-29 Jan Sailing World Cup I USA MiamiAlpine Ski 24 Jan World Cup: W Giant Slalom ITA KronplatzAlpine Ski 24 Jan World Cup: M Slalom AUT SchladmingEquestrian 25-29 Jan Dressage World Cup CDI-W USA WellingtonFigure Skate 25-29 Jan European Championships CZE OstravaSnowboard 25-27 Jan World Cup: M&W Slopestyle ITA Seiser AlmFencing 26-28 Jan M Epee World Cup 3 GER HeidenheimFreestyle 26-28 Jan World Cup: M&W Slopestyle ITA Seiser AlmBob & Skel. 27-29 Jan BMW World Cup 6 GER KonigsseeEquestrian 27-29 Jan Dressage World Cup CDI-W NED AmsterdamEquestrian 27-29 Jan Jumping World Cup CSI-5* SUI ZurichFencing 27-29 Jan W Sabre World Cup 2 USA New YorkKarate 27-29 Jan WKF Karate 1 Premier League 1 FRA Paris
Luge 27-29 Jan FIL World Championships AUT InnsbruckNordic Cmb 27-29 Jan World Cup: Gundersen HS 109/5-10-15 km AUT SeefeldShort Track 27-29 Jan ISU World Junior Championships AUT InnsbruckSpeed Skate 27-29 Jan ISU World Cup 5 GER BerlinAlpine Ski 27-29 Jan World Cup: M Downhill/Giant Slalom GER Garmisch-Part.
Alpine Ski 28-29 Jan World Cup: W Downhill/Super-G ITA Cortina d'Amp.
Athletics 28 Jan Indoor World Tour 1: New Balance USA BostonBob & Skel. 28 Jan IBSF World Junior Skeleton Champs LAT SiguldaBob & Skel. 28-29 Jan IBSF World Junior Bobsleigh Champs GER WinterbergFreestyle 28 Jan World Cup: M&W Moguls CAN CalgaryRugby 28-29 Jan Men's HSBC Sevens Series Rd 3 NZL WellingtonSki Jumping 28-29 Jan World Cup: M (HS 145) GER WillingenSki Jumping 28-29 Jan World Cup: W (HS 100) ROU RasnovSnowboard 28 Jan World Cup: M&W Parallel Giant Slalom SLO RoglaX-Cntry Ski 28-29 Jan World Cup: M 30 km C/W 15 km C + Sprint SWE Falun
C 29 January-04 February 2017Cycling 29 Jan MWT: Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race AUS GeelongFootball 29 Jan Men’s National Team vs. Serbia USA San DiegoMultisport 29 Jan Winter World University Games KAZ AlmatyTaekwondo 30 Jan U.S. Open Championships USA Las VegasAlpine Ski 31 Jan World Cup: City Event SWE StockholmWrestling 31 Jan Dave Schultz Memorial International USA Colo. SpringsAthletics 01 Feb Indoor World Tour 2: PSD Bank GER DusseldorfEquestrian 01-04 Feb Dressage World Cup CDI-W NZL FeilfingFreestyle 01-04 Feb World Cup: M&W Halfpipe & Slopestyle USA Mammoth Mtn.
Snowboard 01-04 Feb World Cup: M&W Slopestyle & Halfpipe USA Mammoth Mtn.
Freestyle 02-04 Feb World Cup: M&W Moguls & Aerials USA Deer ValleyHockey 02-12 Feb W World League Round 2 ESP ValenciaSnowboard 02-05 Feb World Cup: M&W Par. Slm/GS & Snowcross BUL BanskoBob & Skel. 03-05 Feb BMW World Cup 7 AUT IglsEquestrian 03-05 Feb Jumping World Cup CSI-5* FRA BordeauxFencing 03-05 Feb M Sabre World Cup 3 ITA PaduaFencing 03-05 Feb W Foil World Cup 4 POL GdanskFootball 03 Feb Men’s National Team vs. Jamaica USA ChattanoogaFreestyle 03-05 Feb World Cup: M&W Ski Cross GER FeldbergRugby 03-04 Feb Women's HSBC Sevens Series Rd 2 AUS SydneyShort Track 03-05 Feb ISU World Cup 5 GER DresdenX-Cntry Ski 03-05 Feb World Cup: M&W Sprint + Skiathlon KOR PyeongChang
Athletics 04 Feb Indoor World Tour 3 GER KarlsruheLuge 04-05 Feb Viessmann World Cup 7 GER OberhofLuge 04-05 Feb FIL World Junior Championships LAT SiguldaNordic Cmb 04-05 Feb World Cup: Gundersen HS 140/10 km +Team KOR PyeongChang
Rugby 04-05 Feb Men's HSBC Sevens Series Rd 4 AUS SydneySki Jumping 04-05 Feb World Cup: M (HS 225) GER ObertsdorfSki Jumping 04-05 Feb World Cup: W (HS 94) AUT Hinzenbach
The Sports Examiner was created to cover championship-level international sports – with a specialemphasis on those sports and events that are part of the Olympic/Winter Games programs. You canget it sent directly to your e-mail inbox by signing up at www.TheSportsExaminer.com.
These athletes deserve the comprehensive coverage given to a fairly small number of sports which arethe most popular in individual countries, such as baseball, basketball, football (several kinds), icehockey and others. Why not offer an all-in-one briefing, available online, which can provide fans witha 360-degree view of the top-level meets, matches and tournaments in world sport?
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About the Author
Rich Perelman has been a bid developer, planner and/or operator of 20 multi-day, multi-venueevents, including five Olympic/Olympic Winter Games, in the U.S., Canada and Europe. In additionto nearly 100 books, event and statistical guides, he has written for the Los Angeles Times, Track &Field News, Universal Sports and many other publications. He is a longtime member of theAssociation of Track & Field Statisticians (ATFS), International Society of Olympic Historians (ISOH)and the Track & Field Writers of America (TAFWA).
Archives
If you’re looking for previous issues, you can findthem here (scroll to the bottom of the page to theArchives header and pick the month you want toaccess). All editions are in PDF format of 1-5 MBeach and may be viewed or downloaded directlyto your device.
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Codes and Symbols
It wouldn’t be sports without symbols, right?First and foremost, we use the InternationalOlympic Committee’s three-letter country codes;the complete list can be found here. Othercommon symbols:
dnf = did not finish kg = kilograms dns = did not start m = meters dsq = disqualified w = wind-aided HS = hill size in ski jumping (always in meters)
The Sports Examiner for 19 January 2017: Vol. 2, no. 9. Copyright 2017 by Perelman, Pioneer & Co.;All rights reserved.
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