Winter Olympics 2018: Ester Ledecka adds another gold
The Olympics will come to an end this weekend. Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic made history Saturday with her second gold medal -- the first woman to win two gold medals in two different sports during the same Winter Olympics.
What to watch Friday:
Men's Snowboarding (big air gold medal final)
Time: 8-11 p.m.
Channel: NBC (LIVE) | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Men's Speed Skating (1,000m gold medal final):
Time: 8-11 p.m. ET
Channel: NBC (LIVE) | Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Ester Ledecka adds another gold in snowboarding
1:05 a.m.: Ester Ledecka, who shocked the world with a gold medal in the Alpine super-G, took the gold in parallel giant slalom. She became the first woman to win two gold medals in two different sports at the same Winter Olympics.
She outraced Selina Joerg of Germany to the line in the final and won by .46 seconds, a much more comfortable margin than the .01-second edge in the super-G race that left her staring at the clock in shock.
Ledecka is the reigning world champion in parallel giant slalom.
Ledecka's super-G win was one of the most unconventional and out-of-nowhere gold medalists in Alpine history. Her posted time of 1 minute, 21.11 seconds was 0.01 seconds -- yes, one one-hundredth of a second -- better than Austria's Anna Veith, the defending Olympic champion and, as the leader until the moment when the relatively unknown and low-ranked Ledecka took her turn as the 26th woman down the slope, the presumed repeat Olympic champion.
This, the 22-year-old Ledecka would explain later, was what went through her mind at that moment: "Is this a kind of mistake?"
Then came this: "OK, they're going to change the time. I'm going to wait for a little bit, and you're going to switch and (add) some more seconds."
Switzerland overtakes top-seeded Austria in Alpine skiing team event
11:12 p.m.: Switzerland has beaten top-seeded Austria to take the gold medal in the Olympic debut of the Alpine team skiing event. Switzerland was up 2-1 in the final matchup when Swiss ski racer Daniel Yule wrapped up the win as Austrian Marco Schwarz skied out along the side-by-side parallel slalom course.
Norway edged France in the bronze medal match. The countries were tied at 2, but Norway's top skiers were faster. Each team had two male and two female skiers.
The Swiss ski team ended the Pyeongchang Games with two gold medals and seven total. Austria's ski squad also had seven medals, including three gold. Norway's Alpine skiers also had seven medals, including one gold.
Several of the world's top racers, including American Mikaela Shiffrin and Austrian Marcel Hirscher, skipped the event.
American Kyle Mack takes silver in men's Big Air
Canadian snowboarder Sebastien Toutant has soared to gold in the Olympic debut of men's Big Air. Toutant scored a 174.25 in the final to give Team Canada its 11th gold of the Pyeongchang Games.
Kyle Mack of the United States took second with a score of 168.75. He had a chance to better Toutant but sat down on his third and final jump.
Billy Morgan of Great Britain earned bronze in front of a boisterous crowd at Alpensia Ski Jumping Centre. Ivanka Trump was also in attendance.
Red Gerard, who captured the first gold medal for the United States in Pyeongchang in the slopestyle event two weeks ago, finished fifth.
Mikaela Shiffrin isn't so sure this is it for Lindsey Vonn
9:00 p.m.: Lindsey Vonn has said repeatedly that the Pyeongchang Olympics will be the last Winter Games of her career. But her U.S. teammate and heir apparent Mikaela Shiffrin isn't so sure she really means it. Vonn is 33. Shiffrin is 22. Each has won three Olympic medals.
"Whenever I hear anybody say something about this," Shiffrin says, laughing, at a press conference. "It's like, 'most likely,' 'probably,' 'maybe,' 'we'll see,' 'not sure.' I'm like, 'Knowing Lindsey, I don't believe her.'"
They were the only two members of the country's Alpine team to earn medals at the Pyeongchang Games. Vonn won bronze in the downhill and Shiffrin won gold in the giant slalom and silver in the combined.
Medal Count so far
Norway leads with 37 medals, although they are tied with the Germans with 13 gold medals apiece.