BEIJING 鈥� There could be plenty of medals handed out to Canadians Tuesday at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Canada could threaten in big air snowboarding, speedskating and bobsleigh. Additionally, playoff qualification begins in the men鈥檚 hockey tournament and the women鈥檚 figure skating competition will get started.
Here are five things to watch at the Beijing Olympics on Tuesday, Feb. 15.
Kripps trying to repeat as Olympic champion
Driver Justin Kripps and brakeman Alexander Kopacz won gold in the two-man bobsleigh in Pyeongchang four years ago. And while Kripps won鈥檛 have Kopacz with him this go around, he鈥檒l still be looking to repeat in the event on Tuesday, this time with Cam Stones on the brakes.
Big Canadian medal hopes in snowboard big air
Both the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 snowboard big air events go on Tuesday and a number of Canadians are expected to be in medal contention. On the women鈥檚 side, 2021 Winter X Games big air gold medallist Laurie Blouin is a strong contender, while in the men鈥檚 competition Mark McMorris, Darcy Sharpe, Max Parrot and 2018 Olympic gold medallist S茅bastien Toutant all have good shots.
Canada pushing for the podium in team pursuit
The men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 speedskating team pursuit competitions play out on Tuesday and Canada should be pushing for medals in both. Led by double Beijing medallist Isabelle Weidemann, the women鈥檚 team appears strong having won a silver medal in the 2021 world championships. The men鈥檚 team also won a silver medal in the 2021 world championships and for Ted-Jan Bloemen, a medal in the team pursuit would be a nice end to what has been a disappointing time in Beijing.
Women鈥檚 figure skating competition begins
The women鈥檚 singles figure skating competition will begin Tuesday with the short program. Canada鈥檚 Madeline Schizas will be looking to build on the personal best scores she posted during the team competition and make an unexpected podium push. The status of 15-year-old Russian phenom Kamila Valieva, who became the first woman to land a quad jump at the Olympics during the team competition, is unknown at the moment. Valieva tested positive for a banned substance, putting in doubt both her eligibility to compete in the women鈥檚 individual competition and the gold medal she helped win for Russia in the team competition.
Men鈥檚 hockey qualification playoffs get going
Canada will look to qualify for playoffs in the men's Olympic hockey tournament on Tuesday. Once again, the Canadians will face China after beating the host nation 5-0 on Sunday. This time, though, a spot in the quarterfinals is on the line. The winners of Tuesday's four qualification games will join the U.S., Russian Olympic Committee, Finland and Sweden in the playoffs.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 13, 2022.
The Canadian Press
