Pairs figure skating finals, Men's downhill, snowboard cross and speed skating

11:36 -- Chinese have arrived in figure skatingPang and Tong are up next, both in red, he's got black pants. Nail their first two jumps, and they're off and running, very profession. "To Dream The IMpossible Dream," wonder if their coach is sending a message.... First minute sees three jumps, then a nice lift; crowd is into it, wants to see someone perform well, they're just beaming -- and they're looking at each other!

Such good vibes right now. Castanets, the red fits well, speeding about together. Whoah, a nice lift/spin of her in the air, crowd oohs. Announcers totally silent, a good sign. Back to "Dream" music; coach must be thinking so many things right now. Whoah, huge throw, triple salchow; crowd roars. They're nearing the end; and it's a perfect throw triple loop, and wow, as Sandra says, "now they're savoring this performance." Crowd is roaring even before they finish, final huge lift, and the crowd stands for them, it's great!

"They've waited so long," says Scott. "They have worked so hard for this," says Sandra. Audience is still applauding, he's totally pumped. Start talking about the judges, basically the only thing that can stop them now. He kisses the ice afterwards, they're so happy sitting there. And they're into first!

And now... Shen and Zhao. 18 years together... he's 36, she's 31. They smile at each other beforehand, she's in red, he's in burgundy. Wedding celebration postponed to after the games. Nice artistry right away, they're telling a story. Nail the first jump, huge roar; and they're also looking at each other! Nails the second jumps, not bad on the third by him.

Music is powerful, so are they. Nice lifts, so high and strong. She smiles at him afterwards, now her death spiral. They're totally in synch, nice little trick of hooking each other with their feet. So fast, cover a ton of ice, and she slips on a simple lift, Sandra gasps, "huhhh!" Never seen that type of mistake before. Huge throw; this will be interesting; last throw, she holds on to the landing. Hmmm.... Some mistakes, but will overall strength of the program be enough? I was too nervous for them to really enjoy it as much as the other one; I think it's their time, though. Nice final lift and touch, and the crowd roars for them, too. "Knowing them, you want it for them," says Scott, perfectly.

Well, that's why you build a lead -- five points -- and a reputation. I think they'll win gold in their fourth Olympics. Sandra says there were lots of little errors.... Scott says they've been unbeaten all season. Yao Bin sits with them, an unimaginable moment for them. Sandra says the program was a little bit off, all the way through, loss of concentration on the basic lift. And they win gold, easily; with their best score of the season. They don't know yet, until the announcer says, "currently in first place," then they beam, hug, cry. Wow!

A storybook ending; not the most amazing performance individually, but in totality a great capper, with China going 1-2. He says "thank you" to the camera afterwards.

Not even close; Chinese 216 and 213 points, Germans 210 for bronze, Russians 194. Wow. Yao Bin has a look of "quiet compassion" about him backstage, as Dick Button says. Inside he's got to be ecstatic; to go from being laughed at, to gold and silver at the Olympics.

World changes.

Final hour -- all pairs figure skating Medal count, U.S. has eight to be well out in front, but Switzerland has three golds to our two. Dick Button is talking about the Chinese skaters, he really appreciates the great skating they're giving us. He kindof rambles a bit, but he knows a lot of stuff, so always worth listening. Until it's time to go to the rink....

Yuko Kavaguti and Smirnov first, Sandra tells us they were on fire in practice today. Both Yuko and Tamara have iron wills, Sandra tells us. She's in red, he's in gray. They emote joy, classical piece. She touches down on the first throw, not sure if it was a triple or a quad. Nails the second side-by-side jump; they're pretty fast, but not heavy at all. Total unison on their spins; not much of a sense of a couple, they just need to look at each other, you okay, I'm okay, kind of thing.

He steps out on the second part's first jump, just kindof a random thing. Danube Waltz, a mistake, so trite and expected; then he throws her and she falls, takes a second to get back into it. Their run of 12 straight Olympic pairs titles is over. Sandra says "they're like in shock, not prepared for a performance like this at all." Heh, heh, wait until their coach sees them.... Big finish, just pointless at this point. "Fine line between wanting it and wanting it too much, squeezing it too hard," Sandra says, they should've just trusted in themselves. It's what happens when you know your best may not be enough to win.

Yuko looks depressed in the kiss and cry, they're in first for now but are likely to not even win a medal. "Way below what they're capable of doing, obviously," says Scott.

Savchenko/Szolkowy of Germany, he's black by the way. Rough warmup, says Scott. She's in white, he's in white and burgundy pants. Start with backs to each other, then skate together. If they don't fall, they have a shot; side-by-side is tough for them, they nail it; she doubles the second one, but it's behind them now; huuuuge throw. Hmmm... Oh, he just randomly falls on their next jump, didn't seem that hard. All the artistry and chemistry in the world won't make up for that. Their lifts are pretty great though; music is really nice as well. They finish well, Scott says this helps them shake off a horrible season, which he says "was a nightmare covered in molasses."

In first, for the moment; may finish third though.... They look pretty darn grim.

11:00 -- Top pairs skaters up, Men's snowboard crossU.S. must've done well here for them to showcase it at 11, I smell gold and silver?! Seth Wescott and Nate Holland; Seth almost messed it up in qualifiers, spun around at some point.

USA! USA! Funny how they're just wearing jeans. Canadian out early, but Holland pushing the Canadian around. Oh, Nate spins out, back in it. Seth now in second, Canadian seems pretty far out front though, Seth making his move, now totally passes him, and just waxes him -- whooo!!!!! Wins gold again, a great run. Second gold of the Games for the U.S. Teammates and coaches come out to congratulate him. Really a veteran race by Seth, came out of last. Teammate Watanabe hugs him to the ground.

They interview Lindsey Jacobellis, who showboated and fell four years ago, settling for silver. She's talked about this a million times, "this is not the face of someone who won a silver medal, this is the face of someone who lost gold." She's pretty stand-up about the whole thing, then and now.

Here's what I wrote four years ago; glad to see her back with a chance at redemption. Although, really, that's life -- when you're young you do stupid things, but if you didn't, you might not be in position to compete at the Olympics.

Like last night, they go straight into finals. Also like last night, timing bodes pretty well for American. Swiss, Canadian 1, Canadian 2, Lindsey--in the bad last position where nobody's won yet. Will announcers mention that? Nope. Pretty tense here.

Gets out a bit slower than others, totally aggressive, she's into first! So close, wow. Whoah, more contact--Lindsey's way out front, other rider; total crash! She's gonna win, easily, wow, this is a lot of fun. Only 2 riders on the course right now. Oh she falls, no way! On the home stretch, unbelievable, in sight of the finish line. Announcers are in shock, she is too. Still gets silver... Swiss rider Tanja Frieden wins. Announcers say she may have fallen on an unnecessary showboat trick. Oh well, that's sports.

Nice replay, show one Canadian climbing back onto course to get bronze; ooh, other one getting medical attention. Wow, she's being taken off on a sled, all immobilized.

She claims she tried to stabilize, but it didn't work. Seems okay in post-race interview, at least talks about it. Feel bad for her; oh well, she'll be back in Vancouver. Funny shot at end, Wescott celebrating, cause his girlfriend won.

Announcer admits he'd probably have done same stylish move, but it costs Lindsey.

9:26 -- Snowboard Cross Semis
Seth and Nate versus the Austrians. They have this cool camera on their helmets; U.S. 2nd and 3rd at the moment, Nate farther out, now the leader Austrian goes down, Americans 1-2, they're just cruising, finish 1-2. Nice!

Second semi has two Canadians, a German and a Frenchie. it's really fun watching these races, they have a good head-to-head format. German and Canadian go down, now one of the Canadians way out in front, and the Frenchie finishes second.

Meanwhile, a delay at the speedskating oval for the men's 500M, none of the three machines could do a good enough job laying down the ice. An hour delay... sheesh. Coaches are pretty irate, surface is too rough. Dan Jansen said "quite frankly it was an embarrassing situation, the athletes prepare their whole lives for this, the crews need to do the same." Shani Davis of the U.S. is shown briefly, he's not expected to do anything at this distance and didn't in the first heat; withdraws from his second heat. Hmmm, not good all around.

Second American pair, Evora and Ladwig, in turquoise (again, I think). Again, she seems to be having a ball, it makes her likeable, albeit not a contender's look. I liked the other Americans' program better, but they were enjoyable too. Great scores, by far the best they've ever gotten, into first for now....

A Russian pair up, Vera Barizova and Yuri Larionov; he's in gray, she's in red. They're really nice together; unfortunately seh falls on a throw. Ah, they're still young, going for 2014. in Russia. Doing all their jumps in the second part, get a bonus but also more tired, so.... She pats the side of her head afterwards; yesterday he was looking all Frodo after falling, today I guess it's her turn. Hmmm, into second; not bad.

Funny, backstage one of the Chinese skaters, Zhao Hongbo, and one of his coaches are throwing a football back and forth. Zhao's got decent form. Back, profiles the Chinese coach, Yao Bin; 1980, world championships, the first time they went abroad, they fell a lot, embarrassing he says. And now -- ha!

He's missed a lot of his family, breaks down crying talking about it. You need people like this to do the near-impossible. He's very patriotic; I like him a lot. Scott says he was there in 1980, we can all learn how to turn life's failures into success.

Next, Canadians, Annabelle Langlois and Cody Hay, Aaron Copland's Grand Canyon Suite; he's in blue, she has pinkish hue on top. She falls on a throw; gets right bak into it. Carrying a decent amount of speed, nice lift, she has a big smile on her face, nails the next throw; they're relaxing a bit. Side-by-side jumps, she hangs on to hers. Sandra says they were tighter here, lack of experience hurt. Looks like they mess up the ending a bit; big hand from the crowd anyway.

They show the disasterous fall in Torino for Dang Zhang/ Hao Zhang, she tore ligaments, yet they got up after a few minutes, and won silver. That was truly amazing; in fifth at the moment, in black. Sheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov, great piece of music. They're really fast. Oh, and he falls on his combination near the start; ugh. Very precise after that though, she's playing to the audience a bit. Sortof all for nought....

Amazing that they're the third-best Chinese team; much more muscle than all the other teams to this point, although there's no sense of unity between them. Nice throws late, really impressive; lacks passion or something though. Wonder why more skaters don't have the sense of this is my last time on Olympic ice, doing what I love, let me leave it all out there; they're obviously tired, though. "Lack of elegance, lack of finish," says Sandra, "lack of musicality" says Scott. They're into first with the scores for now, six pairs left, including two Chinese.

Here's what I wrote about them four years ago; note the prescient gauge of the Chinese's strength in four years:

The Chinese arrive
Zhang/Zhang--who will attempt a throw quad sowchow, which has never been landed in competition. Apparently they've made it about half the time in practice. Better uniforms tonight, light whiteish/blue.

The throw is their first move--and wow, she totally falls, hits the ice hard, unable to protect her body. I've never seen anyone fall like this before in competition--oddly enough, Chinese coach is impassive, doesn't rush to their aid like any American coach would've done.

He immediately goes to her aid, and slowly brings her off the ice. And now--it looks like they're going to try and skate again! Announcer asks what happens next... answer is they continue from where they stop, if the referee allows it. And they're going to continue! My gosh.

He's holding her very tenderly; announcer rightly says this isn't about a medal, it's about fulfilling a dream. So they start up again... and do a difficult double axel/triple toe loop!

Wow, a huge throw; then a nice lift. This is amazing. Most people would've given up, and rightly so. But they're not just skating, they're skating well. Almost like nothing happened. They're gonna get one heck of a standing ovation. Talk about the Olympic spirit. And mind over matter. She's a little shaky, but who knows, maybe they'll even get enough points for a medal.

The music is beautiful. Man, ice skating gives you more moments like this than all the other sports combined for some reason. It's one reason why we all love it so.

I'm so glad I don't know what happens here. A little out of unison on their final spins--but who cares. And the standing ovation goes on and on, and the announcers let us soak it up. It's really amazing; especially on replay, which NBC only shows at the end.

The most amazing thing--they get the silver! With their teammates taking bronze, and fourth. The Russians, as they always do, take the gold. Unusually, she tears up. I think the torch has been passed though; the Chinese know they could have won gold here, and the judges do too. The Times notes in its article that landing the jump may have been the only way they could've knocked off the big red machine--in four years, I think the playing surface will be even.

Mukhartova/Trankov, skating to "Love Story," she in red, he in white and black; she falls early, on a side-by-side. So no drama here, either. Wow, he just fliiings her on a throw; effortlessly for him, she fights for the landing. These Rooskies are tough. Cheesy music, but good to skate to. They're not bad; funny, Jami Salé and David Pelletier, who used this music two Olympics ago, are commentators for Canadian TV, they're just sitting there stone-faced afterwards. Not sure why they aren't speaking.

Jessica Dube and Bryce Davison from Canada, "The Way We Were" -- wow, holy cheesy 70s music night, she's in brown, he's in white and brown. They nail their openings, crowd is roaring. But they seem nervous or tentative at the moment, like they're tense, not feeding off the crowd. Oh, and she falls, right after Sandra says "her weakness, the triple salchow." They should loosen up and skate better now that they're out of it. Gorgeous death spiral; odd, they're performing as if they're not a couple; she falls again as he throws her. Ah, chemistry, so elusive but so crucial. They finish up well, good-night Canada; she looks like she's going to cry, Scott likes how they didn't give up this time, unlike in the short program.

Here's what I wrote about them the last time out, note Dick Button was commentating then:

Next, Dube/Davison from Canada, both in black, with silver collars. They look like prom king and queen, she's just 19. Interesting how in pairs the women tend to be older than in individual. Nice jumps to open. Good music. Their hand/arm movements seem so choreographed, though. Nice throw; good side-by-side spins. Surprisingly good performance so far, if they do gaze into each others' eyes a bit much. Hammond says it's her first year in senior competition; this team could be quite good back home in four years. Small bobble on a lift; she seems to be getting tired; then he biffs the final lift--they're young. Bezic notes they really fell apart down the stretch; Button says they'll be worth watching.

9:12 -- Pairs figure skating, free skate
Medal night, with Dennny and Barrett up first, in 14th place; she in purple, he in black. Phantom of the Opera... sheesh. They're doing really well, not my cup of tea, but Scott says their "meteoric rise" is because of their consistency; I like passion and risk more. Sandra says it's another personal best performance, crowd really loves it. Wow, she's just 16; he's 25. She looks older than that. 158.33 points, a good score; she seems super-sweet.

8:00 -- Men's downhill and snowboard-cross
Bode Miller's featured at the start of the night in the men's downhill, I already know the result so am watching to get to pairs figure skating. He seems to have matured; which is good, because previously he was a huge waste of talent. He does win bronze, he's happy too.

After that Mary Carillo does the mandatory report on Churchill, the town in the north where the polar bears live; and then it's the quarters of snowboard-cross. Defending champ Seth Wescott and contender Nate Holland, both Americans, win their matchup against two other pretty easily when one of them fall. It's a fun sport to watch, and in the second quarters two Austrians make it out, one of them in a photo finish.