BEIJING — Nathan Chen, the favorite yet again to win the Olympic gold medal in men’s figure skating, is caught between wanting to forget the 2018 Games and needing to remember them. Before the figure skating competition started at the Beijing Games, he stood before reporters and was asked if he had regrets from his Olympic debut, when he uncharacteristically faltered in the short program and ruined his chance of winning a medal. “I have a pretty terrible memory,” he said, making it clear that he didn’t want to talk…
Tag: Olympic Games (2022)
John-Henry Krueger Won a Medal for the U.S. but Now Skates for Hungary
At age 16, John-Henry moved to Salt Lake City to train with the American national team, spending three years there but missing a chance to compete in the 2014 Olympics after contracting the swine flu. Krueger next lived in South Korea, where short track is practically the national sport, and later the Netherlands, joining his American compatriots for only a few months each year on the World Cup circuit. Explore the Games A few months after the 2018 Olympics, Krueger moved to Budapest, this time joining Cole, who was already…
The Day in Olympic Falls: Snow, Ice, Tracks and Hills
They fell on the snow and they fell on the ice. They fell on flat tracks and steep hills. They fell on their backs and their hips and, most jarringly, at least one fell going as fast as she could. The Olympics have long been about successes and reaching higher than anyone else. But getting to those heights sometimes means living on the edge. Even the best athletes at the Beijing Games understand that their gold medal dreams can end in an instant. Mikaela Shiffrin found that out again on…
Do Airbags Make Things Too Easy for Aerial Snowboarders and Skiiers?
ZHANGJIAKOU, China — In the Olympic-level snowboarding and freestyle skiing world, there is an innocuous-sounding compound word that almost always evokes a visceral reaction — a deep sigh, a shaking of the head, a knowing nod. Airbags. Nothing has revolutionized the halfpipe, slopestyle and big air competitions quite like giant airbags. And nothing has so divided devotees of the events, who see airbags either as useful training tools or a misguided shortcut to success, even cheating. “Airbags have become like the performance-enhancing drug for freestyle skiing and snowboarding over the…
Downhill Men’s Skiing Race Postponed Because of High Winds
The men’s downhill race at the Beijing Olympics on Sunday was postponed a day because of high winds, conditions that had contributed to competitors’ unease about a high-speed dash down an icy, unfamiliar racecourse. After several delays to Sunday’s scheduled start and a meeting at the base of the mountain with leaders of the local organizing committee, the F.I.S., which is skiing’s world governing body, and the Olympic Broadcasting System, organizers announced that the race will take place at noon on Monday between the first and second heats of the…
Meet the U.S. Figure Skating Team
Meet the U.S. Figure Skating Team Juliet MacurReporting from the Beijing Olympics ⛸ James Hill for The New York Times Mariah Bell, 25, is proof that experience and perseverance still matter. Last month, she became the oldest female U.S. singles champion in 95 years. Her soulful, balletic performance to the song “Hallelujah” will give you goosebumps. NYT
Pelosi Warns U.S. Olympic Athletes Not to Anger China With Protests
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi discouraged Olympic athletes from protesting at the opening ceremony in Beijing on Thursday, saying that it wasn’t worth the risk of reprisal from a “ruthless” Chinese government. Pelosi said that she and other politicians would speak out against China’s human rights record, but that athletes would be at risk if they use their platforms to protest. “I would say to our athletes: You’re there to compete,” she said. “Do not risk incurring the anger of the Chinese government, because they are ruthless.” It is not known…
Once Again the Olympic Games Will Begin, Despite Everything
The Winter Olympics will go forward. They always do. The opening ceremony is Friday in China, which is hosting the celebration of sport and unity even as it is caught in the cross hairs of international controversy over its record on human rights. Amid the hoopla and celebration, the Beijing government will be asked about its crackdowns in Hong Kong and Tibet and the repressive treatment of its predominantly Muslim Uyghur minority. Perhaps the organizers or the International Olympic Committee will give faint assurances about the well-being of the tennis…
Winter Olympics Open Amid Walls, Masks and Clouds of Disinfectant
There will surely be wonders, because there always are at an Olympic Games. Someone — quite possibly someone you have never heard of — will dazzle with speed or grace or ferocity or pluck. But there is a certain sadness to the Beijing Winter Games, which officially open on Friday. Be it politics or policy or pandemic, the Olympics have become subdued in the very city that, in 2008, made them into a wondrous, ambitious and abiding spectacle. Thousands of visitors from all corners of the world have descended on…
What to Know Ahead of the Olympics
What to Know Ahead of the Olympics Andrew Keh��Reporting from Beijing Are any countries boycotting the Games? China’s record on human rights, including the abuse of Uyghur Muslims in the country’s Xinjiang region and the suppression of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, has led activists around the world to call for countries and sponsors to boycott the Beijing Games. Several countries, including the United States, Australia, Britain and Canada, have announced a “diplomatic boycott” of the Games, meaning their government officials will not attend any ceremonies or events. NYT