It was a day like no other at the Winter Olympics. It started with tears and ended with cheers. In between, there were moments to wonder what might have been. In the women’s downhill, Lindsey Vonn’s fifth and final Olympics ended after just 13 seconds. The 2010 gold medalist clipped a gate and careened down the course before coming to an earth-shattering stop on her back. The 41-year-old was immediately airlifted off the course and later underwent surgery to repair a broken left leg. I watched the entire thing unfold. The horrifying crash cast a pall over the remainder of the competition and overshadowed teammate Breezy Johnson’s terrific gold medal performance, the first for Team USA at the Milan-Cortina Games. In figure skating, it all came down to the U.S. and Japan for gold - and Ilia Malinin turned in a clutch performance in the men's free skate. The Quad God's performance wasn’t perfect, but he did plenty of what no one else can do as he pushed the limit in an extraordinary display of power and precision. Malinin led Team USA to gold, as America became the first nation to repeat in the team figure skating event. This is what the Olympics are all about - a range of emotions that go from euphoria to heartbreak. Yes, we saw it all today in Milan and Cortina. And remember, that was only Day 2. -Bruce |
