Olympic viewing guide: How a Canadian could win gold for the U.S.
What to watch tonight and tomorrow morning
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It was an up-and-down Day 8 for Canada. Things started well enough last night when Meryeta O'Dine popped up from a crash in the mixed team snowboard cross final to grab bronze for herself and teammate Éliot Grondin (the second medal of the Games for both). But then things went south. The Canadian men's hockey team lost to the United States, and both curling rinks fell to Sweden to run their combined losing streak to four games. The real gut punch, though, came this morning when speed skater Laurent Dubreuil missed the podium in the men's 500 metres. It was the first time in nine races this season that Dubreuil failed to win a medal.
Through eight days of full competition, Canada has won 13 medals — one gold, four silver, eight bronze. That's tied for the third-highest total, but Canada ranks just 14th in the official standings, where gold medals are weighted heaviest.
Canada has a couple of chances to add to its tally on Day 9 in short track speed skating. Today's viewing guide will cover those and preview an interesting new bobsleigh event. Plus, the Canadian men's hockey team looks to secure an easier playoff path, Canada's curlers try to snap their losing streak, and the latest on the big snowboarding beef.
Here's what to watch on Saturday night and Sunday morning:
A Canadian is favoured to win the new bobsleigh event — for the U.S.
Bobsleigh slides into the spotlight tonight with the first two runs of the women's monobob at 8:30 p.m. ET and 10 p.m. ET. This is a new Olympic event in which, as the name suggests, only one person occupies each sled instead of the usual two or four. It should also be the most exciting bobsleigh competition of the Games because there's no clear favourite. In fact, probably half a dozen women could win gold.
The two racing for Canada are both contenders. Cynthia Appiah just finished third in the World Cup standings in her rookie monobob season after reaching the podium four times (two silver, two bronze). Christine de Bruin wasn't as consistent but showed a higher ceiling, winning gold in two races en route to placing fourth in the season-long chase.
Then there's Kaillie Humphries. The most successful Canadian bobsledder of all time won back-to-back Olympic two-woman titles in 2010 and '14 and bronze in '18 for Canada. But she now competes for the United States after a nasty split with the Canadian program. Humphries won the monobob world title last year for the U.S. and placed second in the World Cup chase this season, behind her good pal and American teammate Elana Meyers Taylor.
Humphries, however, is the (very slight) favourite to win Olympic gold after Meyers Taylor tested positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in Beijing and was forced to isolate for a week. She was cleared in time to participate in the official training runs, but missed the informal sessions. That would be a concern even on a familiar track. This one is new and is considered technically challenging, making those practice runs extra-important.
It wouldn't be a bobsleigh event without a German among the top contenders, and Laura Nolte fits the bill here. She didn't win a race this season but, in true German fashion, was a model of consistency, reaching four podiums in seven races and never placing worse than fifth. Australia's Breeana Walker (a gold, three silvers and a bronze this season) is a threat to win too.
The final two runs of the monobob go on Sunday night, and many of the women involved will also be contenders in the two-woman event, which starts Friday. Read more about Canada's chances in these competitions and the two men's events here.
WATCH | Cynthia Appiah's Beijing 2022 dream after Pyeongchang disappointment:
Canadian medal chances tonight and tomorrow morning
There are a couple of possibilities, both in the same sport:
Short track speed skating: Women's 3,000m relay final at 6:44 a.m. ET
The Canadian team is one of only four in the final, so obviously there's a good chance for a medal here, though they're the No. 4 favourite in the betting odds.
Canada's Kim Boutin is trying for her second medal of the Games and fifth Olympic medal of her career. That would put her even with fellow Canadian short tracker Charles Hamelin, and one away from long track skater Cindy Klassen's all-time record for the most medals by a Canadian in the Winter Olympics. Boutin is only 27.
Short track speed skating: Men's 500 metres
Neither Steven Dubois nor Jordan Pierre-Gilles is favoured to reach the final, but Dubois surprised us with a silver medal in the 1,500m earlier this week. He's ranked seventh in the world in the 500. Pierre-Gilles is 11th.
The Canadians will compete in the same heat in the quarter-finals, which start at 6 a.m. ET. The top two in each heat and the two fastest third-place finishers advance to the semis at 6:27 a.m ET. The final is at 7:14 a.m. ET.
Some other interesting stuff you should know about
The Canadian men's hockey team can make its playoff path easier. Last night's 4-2 loss to the United States raised all sorts of questions about shaky goalie Eddie Pasquale, and gave the Americans the inside track on winning the group. That matters because, while every team in the tournament advances to the knockout stage, only the winners of the three groups and the best second-place team get a bye to the quarter-finals. The rest must survive a one-game playoff. Canada (1-1) shouldn't have much trouble beating China in its group-stage finale Sunday at 8:10 a.m. ET. The host team is only here because it received an automatic berth (though, to be fair, the Chinese produced a respectable 3-2 loss to Germany after getting blown out 8-0 by the U.S.). But, the Canadians will be incentivized to run up the score to improve their goal differential, which could be the deciding factor for a quarter-final spot. The game could also be a chance to audition young Devon Levi in net. Read the case for switching to the collegiate standout here.
Canada's curling teams will try to snap their combined four-game losing streak. Brad Gushue's men's team lost its second in a row this morning, falling to the reigning world champion Sweden rink skipped by Nik Edin. The Swedes are alone atop the standings at 4-0. Canada (2-2) will try to rebound tonight at 8:05 p.m. ET vs. the defending Olympic champion United States (2-2). American skip John Shuster won a surprising Olympic gold in 2018, but his rink is not considered a top contender this time. Canada's women's team is in an even tougher spot. Jennifer Jones and company are also on a two-game skid after losing to defending Olympic champion Sweden last night. And now Canada (1-2) has to play back-to-back world champ Switzerland (4-0) at 1:05 a.m. ET.
And finally…
The Maple Beef has been settled. That's what other countries were calling it when Mark McMorris complained that he, not fellow Canadian snowboarder Max Parrot, should have won gold in the men's slopestyle event after the head judge admitted a mistake by Parrot was missed. McMorris tweeted a public apology today, and Parrot said McMorris also made amends face-to-face. "I told him no worries," the champion said. They'll square off again in the men's big air event, starting Monday. Read more about the McMorris-Parrot controversy here.
How to watch live events
They're being broadcast on TV on CBC, TSN and Sportsnet. Or choose exactly what you want to watch by live streaming on CBC Gem, the CBC Sports app and CBC Sports' Beijing 2022 website. Check out the full streaming schedule (with links to live events) here and read more about how to watch the Games here.
If you're located outside Canada, you unfortunately won't be able to access CBC Sports' coverage of the Games on the app or the website. That's due to the way the Olympics' media rights deals work. But if you're in the northern United States or other international regions, such as Bermuda, that regularly offer the CBC TV network, you can watch the Games there.
