Biathlon Day in Zhangjiakou
Actually, only four medal decisions were scheduled for Friday in the Olympic programme. In the biathlon, however, there is a change in the schedule. The women’s mass start was actually scheduled for Saturday, but will now already take place on Friday. At 8:00 a.m. the women will fight for the last biathlon medals before the men’s race continues at 10:00 a.m.
Without question, these two decisions in Zhangjiakou are the big highlights of the day, but there are definitely more winter sports worth watching. Germany, Austria and Switzerland all have four athletes competing in the men’s ski cross. There should definitely be at least one medal for the athletes from our home region.
Early in the morning Sabrina Cakmakli will probably have no chance in the freestylers’ halfpipe. Just making it to the Olympic final can already be considered a success. There should also be no surprise in the men’s 1000 metres in speed skating. It is very likely that the Dutch will win the next gold medal in this event.
The team sports are also worth a look on Friday. In men’s ice hockey, the two semi-finals are on the programme Finland and Slovakia as well as Russia and Sweden will play out the finalists among themselves. In addition, the Swiss women will play Japan in the semi-finals of the curling tournament and want to make it to the final.
The most important decisions of the day
Biathlon – Women’s 12.5 kilometre mass start
from 8:00 am CET – Zhangjiakou Biathlon Centre
Things get really busy on the biathlon track on Friday. At 8:00 a.m. the mass start of the women starts and there the German women want to know it once again. Denise Herrmann or Vanessa Voigt certainly have the best chances from the German camp. Lisa Theresa Hauser has to be kept on the radar from the Austrian team, while the Swiss women will not reap anything.
But the big favourite in this race is also the Norwegian Marte Olsbu Roeiseland, who already won three gold medals and one bronze in Zhangjiakou. At the moment she simply delivers the best overall package of safety at the shooting range and speed in the cross country.
Other than that, Elvira Öberg should be rated highly. Hanna Öberg, Dorothea Wierer and Kristina Reztsova from Russia are also highly rated. Tiril Eckhoff will have to shoot cleanly if she wants to be among the front runners. Maybe the Belarussian Dzinara Alimbekava is a kind of secret favourite, even if not everything went according to plan for her in Beijing so far.
Men’s 1000 metres speed skating
from 9:30am CET – National Speed Skating Hall
Is the Netherlands a winter sports nation or not? Opinions differ on the answer to this question. But the fact is that the men and women from Holland have dominated speed skating for years. All gold medals at the current Winter Games for the Oranje have been won on blades, either in speed skating or in short track.
On Friday, too, there is a lot to suggest that there can be gold for Holland again. At the bookmakers, Thomas Krol is the big favourite in the men’s 1000 metres. According to the odds, two other Dutchmen, Kai Verbij and Hein Otterspeer, follow behind. Even a triumph with gold, silver and bronze does not seem out of the question.
If anyone can break through the Dutch phalanx, it should be local hero Zhongyang Ning. Otherwise, Havard Lorentzen from Norway is probably the only other athlete who can hope to take part in the fight for the medals. After all, he is second in the World Cup over this distance behind Thomas Krol.
Biathlon – 15 kilometres mass start of the men
from 10:00 CET – Zhangjiakou Biathlon Centre
The final decision in the biathlon is also on the schedule on Friday. The men’s mass start is without question the highlight in this discipline. It could come to a showdown between Johannes Thingnes Boe from Norway and Quentin Fillon Maillet from France. Both men made the best impression in Zhangjiakou and are already highly decorated before the last race.
But especially in the mass start it is very important to shoot well and not to let the field go with unnecessary penalties. Should the two big favourites show any sign of weakness, it could be the hour of many other biathletes.
Emilien Jacquelin, Sebastian Samuelsson or Eduard Latypov have just as much chance as the German men. Especially Benedikt Doll and Philipp Nawrath proved to be competitive in the cross-country. Roman Rees was strong at the shooting range. If the overall package is right for one of the Germans, then a medal could be in the cards.
Important Olympic hockey matches tonight
Men – Finland Finland vs. Slovakia Slovakia
5:10 a.m. CET – Semifinals – Beijing National Indoor Stadium
The runners-up from Finland are the only team still undefeated at the Beijing Olympics. That means Suomi should also be favoured in Friday’s semi-final and can reach their second major final in a year with a win. The Finns already had a clear 6:2 victory over Slovakia in the group stage.
The Slovaks are counting on super talent Juraj Slafkovsky, who has already scored five goals in this tournament and is just 17 years old. They are also hoping that noble Petra Vlhova will continue to bring them luck. After all, after two opening defeats, they have recently won three in a row and another advantage for the Slovaks should be that they have nothing at all to lose in this semifinal as the glaring underdogs.
Men – Russia vs. Sweden
14:10 CET – Semifinals – Beijing National Indoor Stadium
The Russians are in the semi-finals, but the Pyeongchang Olympic champions have not offered outstanding hockey so far. There were three narrow victories against the underdogs from Switzerland and twice against Denmark. The Sbornaja even suffered a defeat against the Czech Republic. That means they will have to improve if they want to play for gold again.
The Swedes have generally performed well in their four games and have only lost two thirds. Against Finland that was enough to lose the whole match. Otherwise, there were three wins and the Tre Kronor also played strongly against Canada in the quarter-finals. We would tend to bet on the Scandinavians making it to the final.
Team Germany to watch in Beijing
An ice hockey semi-final with German participation would have been very nice on Friday. However, the day also has a lot up its sleeve for German sports fans. Those who want to get up at night and root for Sabrina Cakmakli in the halfpipe will hardly be rewarded for their sleep deprivation with a German medal.
There may be precious metal afterwards, however, and several of them. In the men’s ski cross, the German men want to do the same as Daniela Maier and win a medal. Then it’s on to the women’s biathlon, where anything is possible. The German women are not favoured, but if everything works out and the material is good again, there could be a medal.
In the men’s speed skating there is nothing in it, but also in the men’s mass start in the biathlon one can hope for good results. Benedikt Doll is perhaps the hottest German iron. At the end of the day, the schedule still has the first two runs in the women’s two-man bobsleigh. Germany has three strong sleds at the start and they all want to be among the front runners.
Team Austria to watch in Beijing 2022
For the Austrian sports fans who are only after precious metal, the Olympic day has already ended early. Team Austria has four athletes competing in the ski cross at the Genting Snowpark and Tristan Takats in particular is expected to be in the running for the medals. But especially in this discipline there are always outsiders who can be among the front runners.
After that, there are only very slim chances of a medal in Zhangjiakou. In the two mass starts in the biathlon there will probably be nothing to win, even if Lisa Theresa Hauser can be among the front runners on a perfect day. There will be nothing to harvest in the men’s race. Simon Eder and Felix Leitner do not have the form to fight for a place on the podium.
At the end of the day, the Austrians still provide a sled in the women’s two-man bobsleigh with Katrin Beierl and Jennifer Onasanya. However, neither the results in the World Cup nor the times in the training sessions suggest that this bobsleigh will be able to place in the top three in the first two runs.
Team Switzerland to watch at Olympia 2022
On Friday, things get a little more relaxed for Swiss sports fans. Setting the alarm clock and turning on the TV in the night should not be necessary. The first athletes from Switzerland will be in action from the early hours of the morning. In the men’s skicross, Alex Fiva, Ryan Regez, Joos Berry and Romain Detraz are four Swiss athletes at the start. Ryan Regez in particular is considered to have a good chance of making the podium.
Once the medals have been handed out in the Genting Snowpark, there will be no excitement for the time being. In the women’s biathlon, Lena Häcki, a Swiss, will be competing, but she will have no chance of a top place. In the men’s event, not a single Swiss could qualify for the mass start.
In the women’s two-man bobsleigh, where the first two runs will be held, the two Swiss sleds are also only outsiders. But things will get interesting at lunchtime. Then the women’s curling team around skip Silvana Tirinzoni will meet Japan in the semi-finals. In the round robin, Switzerland won 8:4. So a place in the match for gold beckons.
