Speedskater Jordan Stolz goes for the gold in 500 meters
Olympics: What to watch
MILAN — American speedskater Jordan Stolz’s bid for four gold medals in four events continues in the 500-meter final and the Canada and U.S. men’s hockey teams are back in action on Day 8 at the Winter Olympics.
Here is a guide of what to look out for on Saturday (all times EST):
Stolz aims to go 2 for 2
The 21-year-old Stolz collected his first gold medal in Italy when he set an Olympic record in a blistering victory in the 1,000 meters on Wednesday. Not even a judge’s ruling that gave a competitor a second crack at it could stop Stolz from steamrolling to victory.
Stolz is the premier sprinter in the sport today and arrived in Milan with a legitimate shot at wins in the 500, 1,000, 1,500 and mass start. No, he’s not quite in the territory of skating great Eric Heiden — who went a staggering 5 for 5 in Lake Placid 46 years ago — but he’s pretty close.
“One gold medal is huge enough, right? It would be super nice to have two, three, right?” Stolz said.
Odermatt tries to repeat
Marco Odermatt is arguably the best skier on the planet. Yet the 28-year-old from Switzerland has been upstaged by teammate Franjo von Allmen, who has already claimed three golds in Bormio.
Odermatt gets another shot Saturday in the men’s giant slalom, where he is the defending Olympic champion. Italian great Alberto Tomba is the only man to win back-to-back giant slalom golds, reaching the top of the podium in 1984 and again in 1988.
Women’s quarterfinals
The women’s tournament will whittle down to its own version of the final four on Saturday. Finland and Switzerland meet in one quarterfinal. Canada takes on Germany in the other.
The semifinals are set for Monday.
Dandjinou hopes to fly
Canadian short track speedskating star William Dandjinou heads into the 1,500 meters hoping for a better result after a fourth-place finish in the 1,000-meter final.
Dandjinou actually led going into the final lap in the 1,000 only to come up inches short of a medal in a race where the gap between first and fifth was 0.118 seconds. The 24-year-old Dandjinou is the reigning world champion in the 1,500, having triumphed in Beijing last March.
If he wins, expect Dandjinou to ditch the “eagle celebration” that’s been his calling card after victories in exchange for something new.





