7 to Watch Sunday: ShibSibs, Bobsled and a Photo Finish

[[468455733, R, 300, 87]]Here are our “7 to Watch” in Pyeongchang for Sunday:  Must See Olympic Video: Chloe Kim Lands Back-to-Back 1080s, Wins Olympic Gold 1. Top Three U.S. Ice Dance Teams to CompeteThe United States, with three of the world’s best ice dance teams, is positioned for a figure skating medal in Monday’s competition (Sunday night in the United States). The best-known pair, brother-sister duo Maia and Alex Shibutani, finished second in an earlier team event, helping the U.S. to earn bronze. Must See Olympic Video: Snowboarder Lands on Back in Crash Other contenders: Madison Chock and Evan Bates, who finished eighth in the Sochi Games and then won their first national title together in 2015; and Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, who are making their Olympic debut as this year’s national champions.The Americans will face other top pairs Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, of Canada, and Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron, of France. The short dance will be followed by the free dance Tuesday (Monday night in the United States). Must See Olympic Video: Watch All 3 of Shaun White’s Gold Medal Runs Watch live on NBC 7 at 5 p.m. pT Sunday or on digital platforms at this link.[[474392133,C]]2. Defending Champ Bowman’s Quest for Gold in Women’s HalfpipeTeam USA’s Maddie Bowman begins her quest to repeat her Sochi golden run in the women’s freestyle skiing halfpipe with qualifying runs on Monday (Sunday night in the U.S.). She will lead a large contingent of U.S. athletes who hope to advance to the third and final run the next day.Bowman’s teammates include top contenders Devin Logan, who won silver in Sochi for slopestyle, and Brita Sigourney, who finished sixth in the halfpipe in Sochi. Sigourney is the first women to land a 1080 in a competition halfpipe run, which she did during the 2012 X Games in Aspen.But Team USA will have tough competition from Canada’s Cassie Sharpe, a standout for her bold tricks, and France’s Marie Martinod, who took silver in Sochi.Watch as part of NBC 7’s primetime coverage beginning at 5 p.m. PT Sunday or on digital platforms at this link.[[474393223,C]]3. U.S. Women’s Hockey Team Faces Finland in SemifinalsThe U.S. women’s hockey team heads into the semifinals after shutting out Russia, 5-0, and setting an Olympic record while doing it. Forward Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson scored back-to-back goals six seconds apart, the fastest mark ever.The U.S. women beat Finland 3-1 in their opening game of the Winter Olympics, with goals by Monique Lamoureux-Morando, Kendall Coyne and Danielle Cameranesi. They will play Finland again on Monday in Pyeongchang (Sunday night in the United States).Archrival Canada, which beat the U.S. 2-1 in the preliminary round, also plays Monday, taking on the Russians.At the 2014 Sochi Games, Canada rallied from 0-2 to win its fourth straight gold.Watch live on NBCSN at 8:10 p.m. PT Sunday or on digital platforms at this link. [[474393063,C]]4. U.S. Men’s Bobsled Team Faces Down Hard TimesThe U.S. men’s two-man bobsled teams will compete on Monday after getting through very tough times. Three-time Olympian Steven Holcomb died last year.Pilot Justin Olsen, a 2010 gold medalist, is vying for a top spot despite having had emergency surgery for acute appendicitis on Feb. 5. He was soon tweeting a video of himself doing pushups. Two-time Olympian Nick Cunningham and Codie Bascue are also in the mix.Germany has two top pilots in the race, Francesco Friedrich and Johannes Lochner, who was inspired by his Olympic silver medal-winning uncle, Rudi Lochner. Three-time Olympian Justin Kripps could contend for Canada’s first gold medal in the two-man since 1998. And South Korea, which has never won an Olympic medal in a sliding sport, has its hopes on Won Yun-jong.Watch as part of NBC’s prime time coverage beginning at 5 p.m. PT Monday or live at 3:15 a.m. PT Monday on digital platforms at this link.  [[474392153,C]]5. 1st-Time Olympians Chase Down Austria’s Gasser in Women’s Big AirNewcomers to Team USA will take on Olympic veterans in the women’s big air qualification round Monday (Sunday night in the U.S.). Julia Marino, 20, and Hailey Langland, 17, made their Pyeongchang debut during the women’s slopestyle, finishing 11th and sixth respectively.They’ll be strong medal contenders in the big air, but they’ll have to catch Austrian Anna Gasser, who’s known for pulling off tricky technical moves. Marino and Langland will be joined by teammate Jamie Anderson, who won gold in slopestyle in Pyeongchang.The women’s qualifying round is the debut of big air in the Olympics. It’s as much a spectacle as it is a sport — competitors perform complex moves down a hill after launching off large jumps, aiming for height, distance, style and a clean landing. The scores are out of 100 and the top scorers will go for gold Friday (Thursday night in the U.S.).Watch as part of NBC 7’s primetime plus coverage beginning at 9:30 p.m. PT Sunday or on digital platforms at this link.6. The Great Hope of Poland’ Delivers Country’s First MedalKamil Stoch, who the Polish prime minister called “the great hope of Poland” delivered the country’s first medal in the PyeongChang Olympics, winning the large hill gold medal.The Alpensia Ski Jumping Centre looked like a scene from the movie “Rudy” Saturday.Poland’s Kamil Stoch had just won the gold medal and was being paraded around on his teammates’ shoulders after his moment of glory.The favorite heading into the individual large hill event, Stoch delivered, edging out Germany’s Andreas Wellinger on the final jump to defend his crown Saturday, becoming the first man to repeat in the event since 1988.Watch the reaction to his win at this link.[[474416353,C]]7. Must Watch Olympics: Thrilling Photo Finish France’s Martin Fourcade overcame two missed targets and a tumble after his first penalty loop to beat German’s Simon Schempp in a dramatic photo finish to win the men’s 15km mass start Sunday at the Alpensia Biathlon Centre in Pyeongchang.The Frenchman captured his first gold medal in the mass start after grabbing silver in each of the past two Winter Olympics.Most Americans haven’t heard of him, but Fourcade is one of the most decorated athletes in French history. His win in Sunday’s mass start makes him France’s first four-time Olympic gold medalist.Fourcade won the 12.5km pursuit event earlier this week. He also won two gold medals at the Sochi games in 2014. See the final seconds of the battle at this link.[[472226703,C]][[472227583,C]][[474034123,C]]Photo Credit: Getty Images This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.
Source: NBC San Diego