So far, Canada has earned more than 20 medals at the Winter Olympic Games in Beijing this year, marking a successful endeavour
Canada starting to get more medals
By Jerrison Oracion, Senior Columnist
A week into the Winter Olympic Games in Beijing this year and the entire world is mainly still talking about it. Compared to the recent Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, there were not a lot of cases of the Coronavirus being reported. After a week of mainly getting bronze medals, Canada is starting to get more gold and silver medals while some athletes experience disappointment and some surprisingly did better than they thought.
There was also the controversy involving Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva who tested positive for a heart medicine that is considered banned and still was able to compete without the Russian Olympic Committee informing the International Olympic Committee about the positive doping test. However, she did not make it to the podium placing fourth in women’s figure skating. The investigation on whether she should have been disqualified from competing in the Winter Olympic Games could lead to Russian athletes not competing in the Olympics under the Russian Olympic Committee flag; additionally, her situation shows that doping is not going to help you get a medal and creates problems for all athletes. At the time of writing, Canada could still get a medal in pairs figure skating.
In hockey, the Canadian Men’s Hockey Team was not able to make it to the semifinals making it the first time since Turin 2006 that they did not get a medal. Even without the United States in the semifinals, it is pretty much boring and rushed especially the last few games all in one day. Although, the Canadian Women’s Hockey Team had the opposite outcome of what happened in the gold medal match in Pyeongchang four years ago by beating the United States 3-2 and winning every game during the Winter Olympics.
There is also disappointment for Canada’s curling teams after the women’s team led by Jennifer Jones did not qualify for the knockoff rounds; however, the men’s team led by Brad Gushue (gold medalist in 2006) could get a bronze medal. Isabelle Weidemann kept on getting medals for Canada including a gold medal in women’s team pursuit where it was made possible after one of the Japanese speed skaters slipped. Meanwhile, in short-track speed skating, Charles Hamelin got one more gold medal in the men’s 5,000m relay topping up his career.
Canada also got more snowboarding medals including a bronze medal in mixed team snowboard cross for Meryeta O’Dine and Eliot Grondin, a silver medal in men’s snowboard cross for Grondin, and another medal for Maxence Parrot with a bronze medal in men’s big air. There were also freestyle skiing medals for Canada including Marielle Thompson getting a silver medal in women’s ski cross. So far, Canada has earned more than 20 medals at the Winter Olympic Games in Beijing this year, marking a successful endeavour.
