One of the iconic moments for Team USA in these Pyeongchang Olympics was Jessie Diggins pushing down the stretch during the women’s team sprint to earn America’s first-ever cross country gold medal.
nAbdul-Saboor made his Olympic debut this year for the men’s bobsled, competing in two-man and four-man bobsled. He and Nick Cunningham finished 21st in the two-man bobsled. Watch him compete here.Then, Abdul-Saboor -- again piloted by Cunningham -- placed 19th in the four-man bobsled.
nAntoine was hoping to win his second skeleton medal in the 2018 Olympics but finished 11th. Watch him compete here.
nIn her third Olympics, Britcher was up and down in the luge competition -- even setting a track record during one run. She finished in 19th place in singles. She fought for redemption for Team USA in the new luge team relay, where the team ended up in fourth place by about one-tenth of a second. Watch her compete here.
nGreubel Poser hoped to improve on her bobsled bronze medal from Sochi. She fell just short, finishing fifth while sledding with Aja Evans. They were only 0.13 seconds from another bronze. Watch her compete here.
nGunderson was a defender for Team USA in men's hockey. The team, which had a handful of players from the Philadelphia area, fell to the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals.
A three-time Olympian, Nolan Kasper competed in, but did not finish, the men's slalom in Pyeongchang. He also competed for the United States in the Alpine skiing team event, but the U.S. lost to Great Britain in the opening round of the bracket-style, single elimination event.
nKearney fell in the quarterfinal of the snowboard cross, losing his place in the finals. Watch him compete here.
nKolarik is a forward for Team USA's men's hockey team, which lost to the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals. Here he is going for a puck against Slovenia.
nKrueger won a silver medal in the 1,000-meter men’s short track speedskating -- the United States' first individual speed skating medal since 2010. He also competed in the 500- and 1,500-meter as well as in the 5,000-meter relay. Watch his medal-winning run here.
nSnowboarder Muss was fortunate to compete, and even to be alive. In April 2014 he suffered a complication during shoulder surgery and was clinically dead for 30 seconds. He was placed in a medically induced coma for two weeks, but made a full recovery in time for the 2014/15 season. He competed in snowboarding's parallel giant slalom but did not qualify for the finals.
nHe scored the first goal of the Olympics for Team USA, though the men's squad lost in a quarterfinal game to the Czech Republic.
nThe 28-year-old first-time Olympian dazzled with his style on the ice and interviews in Pyeongchang. He finished 10th in the men's competition. Watch his long program here.
nHe took the ice for the U.S. men's hockey team, which lost to the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals.
nSchoutens, who was born while her parents were at Princeton, helped Team USA win a bronze medal in speedskating's team pursuit, beating Canada by 0.45 seconds. She also competed in a slew of other speedskating races, including 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter races, for Team USA.
nSherk and Justin Krewson finished eighth in men's double luge, the best showing for Team USA in that event. Watch them compete here.
nTerdiman and his partner Matt Mortensen finished the men's doubles luge in 10th place. In the new luge team relay, he fought for redemption for Team USA, ending up in fourth place by about one-tenth of a second. Watch him compete here.
nDespite breaking her back in November 2016 while training in Austria, Meghan Tierney still managed to make it to Pyeongchang, finishing fifth in her quarterfinal snowboard cross race.
nWatson, who hails from Vineland, New Jersey but has Jamaican roots, is one of the first people to represent Jamaica in skeleton at the Winter Olympics. He finished 29th out of 30 athletes and became a crowd favorite. Watch his inspirational message to other athletes here.
nZapolski shined for the U.S. men's hockey team, stopping dozens of shots and leading the Americans all the way to the quarterfinals, where they lost to the Czech Republic in a shootout. Watch him stop shots on during a penalty kill here.
So, it’s fitting that Diggins ended the Olympics by carrying the American flag in Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium during the closing ceremonies.
Here’s five things that you need to watch on the final day of the Winter Olympics:
Historic Gold Medalist Carries the Red, White and Blue
Jessie Diggins captured the United States' first-ever women’s cross-country skiing medal when she and teammate Kikkan Randall won gold in the freestyle team event. The 26-year-old was the first cross-country skier to carry the U.S. flag in the Winter Games’ closing ceremonies.
"I actually thought there maybe had been a mistake. I was like, 'What? I can’t believe this,'" Diggins said on the "Today" show. "It is so humbling, and I feel so honored to have been picked."
Some of the star power was in the stands, where President Donald’s Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, will lead the U.S. delegation. She also attended the bobsled final.
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The opening ceremony spotlight was on the mysterious Kim Yo-jong, the sister of the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, who was dubbed "North Korea's Ivanka." Will the real Ivanka Trump be able to seize some of that limelight?
As for entertainment, expect K-pop stars CL and the boy band EXO. Not to mention the commentary by figure skating and fashion experts Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski.
Watch the closing ceremony Sunday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC10 or on digital platforms here.
Or, if you are an early bird, watch the closing ceremony live (natural sound only) at 6 a.m. ET on digital platforms here.
OAR Defeats Germany in OT, Takes Home Men's Hockey Gold
Olympic Athletes from Russia beat Germany in overtime in the men’s hockey gold-medal game Sunday at Gangneung Hockey Centre. The score was 3-3 after the third period, and Kirill Kaprizov scored the last goal for OAR in sudden death, helping his team take home the gold.
The medal is Russia’s third in men’s hockey, following a silver in 1998 and a bronze in 2002. The nation won nine medals, seven gold, as the Soviet Union and took gold again when it played as the Unified Team at the 1992 Albertville Games.
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But because of a doping scandal that impacted the country’s entire Olympic program, the Russian national team has been banned from these Olympics — hence the Olympic Athletes from Russia name. If they beat Germany, the Russian flag will not be raised, and the Russian national anthem will not play. .
They face a surprising German team in the gold medal match. The Germans upset Canada in the semifinals, 4-3.
The Russians haven’t needed upsets to reach the finals. After losing to Slovakia 3-2 in its opening game, the Russians won four consecutive games by a combined score of 21-3, including a 6-1 win over Norway in the quarterfinals and a 3-0 win over the Czech Republic in the semifinals. In pool play, the Russians beat the United States, 4-0.
Watch live on NBCSN at 10:30 p.m. ET Saturday or on digital platforms here.
#GarlicGirls Trend as an Internet Meme, Fall in Final
South Korea’s curling team headed into the final against Sweden riding the culmination of a surprise winning streak.
Dubbed the “Garlic Girls” for their hometown’s locally grown garlic, they are a phenomenon not just on the ice, but on social media, too, where fans search for their nicknames and distinctive eyewear.
Unfortunately, the Girls fell to Sweden in the women's curling final. Sweden beat them for the gold, 8-3.
Watch on digital platforms here.
No, We Haven't Had Enough Figure Skating!
The Winter Games celebrated one of its best-loved events Saturday night with the figure skating exhibition gala, an unscored event that allows men and women skaters to stop worrying so much about which blade they landed that triple axel on and show off the beauty of the sport.
Skating exhibitions can be a lot of fun to watch. Without the pressure of competition, the moves are looser and more experimental. In the 1994 gala in Lillehammer, figure skater Surya Bonaly showed off her completely awesome, and very illegal in skating, backflip-to-one-blade move. (And then she pulled the same move in competition in 1998 at the Nagano games.)
In this year's event, Spanish skater Javier Fernández brought down the house with a workout-themed routine that featured multiple costume changes. Canadian ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, celebrating two gold medals and becoming the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history, skated a gorgeous routine to a song by The Tragically Hip.
Unfortunately, the gala did NOT see the return of the Prince of Pyeongchang, Pennsylvania's own Adam Rippon, who finished 10th in the men's competition.
Rippon was not invited to the gala, according to published reports. This is a shame; he shines in exhibitions. In 2017, at the Grand Prix exhibition gala, he skated to -- and sang -- Rhianna's "Diamonds."
The only U.S. skaters who participated were Alex and Maia Shibutani, the "Shib Sibs," who won bronze in ice dance.
Watch on digital platforms here.
Norway's 'Iron Lady' Takes Home 8th Gold in Cross Country
Norway’s "Iron Lady" Marit Bjoergen took home her second gold in the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang Sunday for Women’s 30km Cross Country Skiing.
Bjoergen, 37, made her Olympic debut in 1999 and Sunday’s gold is her eighth gold medal in the Winter Olympics.
Bjorergen stayed in the lead most of the one hour and 22 minutes that it took for her to complete the course. Finland’s Krista Parmakoski took home the silver, finishing nearly two minutes behind Bjorergen. And Stina Nilsson took home the bronze for Sweden.
