5 to Watch: Jacobellis Redemption Denied, No Slalom Medal For Shiffrin

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Heavy Favorite Shiffrin Struggles in Slalom, Finishes Fourth

Mikaela Shiffrin, the heavy favorite to win the women's slalom and claim her second gold medal in as many days, missed the podium and finished in fourth place in Pyeongchang on Friday.

Shiffrin’s fourth-place finish is an astonishing upset, as the slalom is her specialty: Last year, she became the first woman to win three consecutive slalom world titles in 78 years and she won gold in Sochi.

Frida Hansdotter of Sweden took gold, Wendy Holdener of Switzerland took silver and Katharina Gallhuber of Austria won bronze.

The 22-year-old American vomited before her first run, saying her nausea was "kind of sudden" and "almost felt like a virus.” Although she used the break between runs to rest up (literally—she is known for her love of napping) second run wasn’t enough to get on the podium.

The day before, Shiffrin took gold in the giant slalom.

Watch here.

Chen Stumbles Again But Advances to Final With Teammates Rippon, Zhou

After a shaky debut, Nathan Chen stumbles again in Pyeongchang, falling three times to finish 17th in the men’s short program.

Leading up to the Games, Chen said he’s worked to improve every aspect of his performance, adding "more passion in my skating and more of a connection to the music.” But can he find momentum after two sub-par starts?

Chen, a pre-games favorite, missed on all his jumps, plummeting to 17th place with a tentative and passionless showing.

Chen’s teammates will advance, finishing above the 18-year-old. Veteran Adam Rippon, 28, lived up to his flair for the dramatic programs, performing to techno song "Let Me Think About It" by Ida Corr vs. Fedde Le Grand, earning him seventh. Seventeen-year-old teammate Vincent Zhou finished the short program in 12th. 

Chen, Rippon and Zhou will go for gold Saturday morning (Friday night in the U.S.).

Watch here.

Redemption Denied: Lindsey Jacobellis Fails to Medal in Snowboard Cross

Lindsey Jacobellis, the most decorated women’s snowboard cross athlete ever, will finish her fourth Olympics just like the first three: without a gold medal.

Jacobellis, a five-time world champion, reached the finals of the event, then held onto a lead for the first two-thirds of the race. But she faded late, and finished in fourth place.

Italian Michela Moioli, France's Julia Pereira De Sousa Mabileau and the Czech Republic's Eva Samkova finished in the top three.

For Jacobellis, it's just the latest moment in a disappointing Olympic career. It began 12 years ago, in Torino, when she seemed to have the gold medal wrapped up, with a huge lead down the race’s final stretch. But she tried a flashy move off a jump and fell, and settled for silver.

Since then, the Olympics have been her kryptonite. She crashed in early rounds in both 2008 and 2012, and failed to reach the final.

And now, one more disappointment: A solid run, but a finish just off the medal stand.

Recap on digital platforms here

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PARK CITY, UT - JANUARY 12: Kiley McKinnon of the United States competes in the Ladies' Aerials Finals during the 2018 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup at Deer Valley Resort on January 12, 2018 in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

Kiley McKinnon Eliminated After First Round

Madison's Kiley Mckinnon made her Olympic debut early Thursday morning with two jumps that qualified her for the finals in the women's aerials, but she fell short of getting a medal. McKinnon, one of three Olympic athletes from Madison competing in Pyeongchang, came in 10th during the first of the finals, so she did advance to the second of three rounds. 

Fellow aerial skier Mac Bohonnon and ice dancer Zachary Donohue are the other Madison athletes competing. McKinnon's American teammate, Madison Olsen  advanced to the super finals, but did not win a medal.

You can watch coverage of the women's aerials finals during the primetime coverage on NBC beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Friday or you can watch the recap here.

Ryan Donato Carries USA Hockey to Victory Over Slovakia

College players have led the United States to a much-needed 2-1 victory over Slovakia in group play Friday (Thursday night in the U.S.) at the Pyeongchang Olympics.

Ryan Donato, a forward at Harvard University and Boston Bruins prospect, scored two power-play goals and University of Denver star Troy Terry dominated with his speed.

Donato delivered the kind of offense USA Hockey wanted when it picked four NCAA players for its no-NHL Olympic roster.  The National Hockey League decided that it would not allow its players to participate in the 2018 Winter Games for the first time since 1998. 

Slovakia will face Slovenia next, after splitting its first two games of the preliminary round. Team USA will face the tournament favorite, the Olympic Athletes from Russia.

Watch here.

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