Day four in Sochi proved to be succesful for female Olympians. Female athletes from across the world broke records in three events! Tuesday's major events included biathlon, cross-country, snowboarding and ski jumping. Feeling a little lost? Keep reading for your daily Olympic recap!
Kate Hansen’s hilarious warm-up dance gets Beyoncé’s attention
As you can see from the gif above, Kate Hansen, 21, loves to dance. More specifically, she loves to dance to Beyoncé songs. “I know all of Beyonce’s choreo by heart,” her Twitter bio reads. The US luger prepares for events by warming up to Beyoncé's music, and in doing so she busts some killer moves. During a recent interview with NBC, she said her unique warm-up routine makes her feel “fierce.” After the Internet blew up with gifs of Hansen dancing, Queen Bey noticed and posted on her Facebook page, “Go Kate!” We second what Beyoncé said.
Erin Hamlin takes bronze in women’s luge singles, makes history
Erin Hamlin came in third place during the women’s luge singles and made US Olympic history in the process! She is the first American luger to medal in any singles luge event. Luge has been in the Olympics since 1964, yet no US Olympian has ever won a medal in singles luge. German lugers Natalie Geisenberger and Tatjana Hüfner took gold and silver, respectively.
Germany wins gold at first-ever women’s ski jumping event
On Tuesday night, in a great win for both women and Team Germany, Carina Vogt became the first ever women’s Olympic ski jumping champion. She finished off her jumps with a score of 247.4 points. Austrian Daniel Iraschko-Stolz took silver, while Coline Mattel won the bronze for France.
Domracheva wins gold in women’s 10-kilometer pursuit
Darya Domracheva took the gold medal in the women’s biathlon 10-kilometer pursuit. Her shooting was on point at the Laura Cross-Country Ski and Biathlon Center on Tuesday; she missed only one shot in her final round. Domracheva beat silver medalist Tora Berger of Norway by 37.6 seconds. Teja Gregorin took bronze for Slovakia. Domracheva is from Belarus, and her win officially puts them in the medals race.
Shaun White wipes out during halfpipe event, Switzerland takes gold
Olympic snowboarding champion Shaun White attempted to win his third consecutive Olympic gold medal on Tuesday. During his final run of the halfpipe competition, he crashed, and it was a tumble that cost him the gold. Last week, White pulled out of the slopestyle competition, a bold move that upset fellow athletes and fans. White, 27, did so because he wanted to concentrate solely on the halfpipe event. Though it was a major loss for White, it was a great win for Team Switzerland. Swiss snowboarder Iouri Podladtchikov, 25, took the gold, while silver and bronze went to two Japanese teenagers, Ayumu Hirano, 15, and Taku Hiraoka, 18.
Women’s 500-meter speed skating goes to South Korea
It took Lee Sang-hwa just 37.28 seconds to complete her final round in women’s 500-meter speed skating. The South Korean champion took gold at Adler Arena, and in the process, she broke an Olympic record. In 2002, Catriona Le May Doan skated in the same event, and her fastest round was 37.30 seconds. Sang-hwa’s coach, Kevin Crockett, said that in 2002 the ice was smoother, and he claims Sochi’s ice was “average” on Tuesday. The coach said that breaking the Olympic record in Sochi’s warm climate is “extraordinary.”
Canadian coach embodies the true Olympic spirit
This is what the Games are all about. Team Russia’s Anton Gafarov crashed during the semifinal of the men’s freestyle sprint. His left ski started to fall apart, but he put it back on and attempted to finish the event. After trying to ski down a hill, he fell again. Gafarov picked himself up, but by this point his ski was no longer a ski - it was a flimsy mess. That’s when Canadian coach Justin Wadsworth ran onto the course with a spare ski in hand. He quickly aided Gafarov with putting the new ski on. Gafarov finally skied past the finish line in last place as the crowd cheered.
Medal count as of Tuesday night: top five countries
- Norway: four gold, three silver, four bronze = 11 total
- Canada: four gold, three silver, two bronze = nine total
- Netherlands: three gold, two silver, three bronze = eight total
- United States: two gold, one silver, four bronze = seven total
- Russia: one gold, three silver, three bronze = seven total
To see a full list of the current medal count, click here.
Who is your favorite Winter Olympic athlete? Let us know in the comments and then come back tomorrow for another Sochi Scoop recap!