Norwegian day in Beijing?
The Olympic Sunday in Beijing is mainly dominated by the Norwegians, who will probably bring home at least two gold medals. Switzerland and Austria have good prospects of finishing ahead in alpine skiing. For Germany, there will probably not be much to harvest on Sunday. This means that Team Germany will probably lose some ground in the medal table.
In the men’s giant slalom Marco Odermatt is the big favourite. But the other Swiss and also the assembled Austrian team also have what it takes to compete for the medals. In the core Olympic sport we expect at least one or two medals for the Alpine republics. Maybe Germany’s Linus Straßer will manage to surprise in Yanqing.
In the men’s cross-country relay and also in the two biathlon events there could be three gold medals for Norway within a few hours. If everything goes according to plan, our home athletes have no medal chances in this slot of the schedule. Only Benedikt Doll is still an outsider in the pursuit of the ski hunters.
It will be a quiet day for our athletes from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. A special focus is still on the last group match of the German men’s ice hockey team against the USA. After this match we will know how it will go on for Toni Söderholm’s team and who will be the opponent in the playoffs.
The most important decisions of the day
Alpine Skiing – Men’s Giant Slalom
from 3:15am CET – Yanqing Alpine Ski Centre
Alpine skiing remains one of the core sports of the Winter Olympics. However, the time difference from China to Central Europe makes it somewhat difficult to follow the races live. The men’s giant slalom starts at 3:15 a.m. on Sunday night. However, the second run will then be served at breakfast time and at the latest then many Swiss will switch on the TV.
If we believe the quotes, then winning the gold medal for the Swiss is only a formality. But there are some athletes who have something against it. Manuel Feller, Henrik Kristoffersen Luca de Aliprandini and Alexis Pinturault should be the candidates who can make life difficult for the Swiss.
Especially in the technical disciplines, we have seen in the women’s race, especially twice in the form of Mikaela Shiffrin, how quickly a favourite can say goodbye. Therefore, it is not easy to find the right bets in this decision. Once again, no bets should be placed on German precious metal in the alpine races in Yanqing.
Biathlon – Women’s 10 km Pursuit
from 10:00 CET – Zhangjiakou Biathlon Centre
Denise Herrmann’s triumph over the 15 kilometres has sparked desire among the German women’s biathlon team But there was a major setback in the all-important sprint of all things. Vanessa Voigt was still the best German in 18th place. Therefore, it will hardly be enough to compete for the top places in the pursuit on Sunday. The favourites would have to make extreme mistakes.
Marte Olsbu Roeiseland will even be able to afford one or the other shooting mistake. The Norwegian is extremely strong in the cross-country skiing and this winter she once again distinguished herself with safe shooting. Basically, the sprint winner should almost be a bank on her third Olympic victory in Zhangjiakou.
Naturally, the women who were among the front runners in the sprint are now also the candidates who can hope for a medal in the pursuit. These are above all Elvira Öberg, who likes to give herself a ticket at the shooting range, as well as Dorothea Wierer and Lisa Theresa Hauser. So at least for Austria there is a chance of a medal on Sunday.
Biathlon – 12.5 km pursuit of the men
from 11:45am CET – Zhangjiakou Biathlon Centre
He did it again. Johannes Thingnes Boe is in sensational shape in time for the Olympics. There are few who can even come close to keeping up with him in the cross-country. His lead over Quentin Fillon Maillet in the pursuit is 25.5 seconds. The Frenchman is not without a chance, but if Boe also performs like this on Sunday, then the next gold cannot be taken away from him.
But in the fight for the other medals, especially for bronze, there will be a fight and a fight. Tarjei Boe and Sturla Holm Laegreid throw their hats into the ring from the Norwegian team. The Swedes Sebastian Samuelsson and Martin Ponsiluoma can also be among the front runners. So it could well be an exciting biathlon Sunday.
From the German point of view, only Benedikt Doll is still within reach. Third place is definitely possible with a gap of 30 seconds, especially since there will be four shootings in the pursuit. For the remaining athletes from Austria and Switzerland, it will be a matter of building on their form in the direction of the relay. Even a top ten finish seems to be out of reach.
Important Olympic hockey matches tonight
Men – Finland vs. Sweden
9:40am CET – Preliminary Round – Beijing National Indoor Stadium
Even if nothing is at stake, there is still a lot of prestige in the duel between Finland and Sweden. Both teams have come through unscathed in their first two hockey matches in Beijing, winning against Slovakia and Latvia in regulation time respectively. Sunday’s match will be about who will earn the slot in the quarter-finals as group winners.
If the score is tied after 60 minutes, even the team that loses in overtime or in the penalty shootout at the end still has a chance to qualify directly for the quarter-finals as the best group runner-up. But the two neighbours will not play for results. Especially in this Scandinavian duel, only victory counts.
Men – USA vs. Germany
14:10 CET – Preliminary Round – Wukesong Arena
It wasn’t really expected that the US would come on so strong at the Beijing Games. But after two games, the United States have wins over China and Canada to show for it. A draw after 60 minutes is already surely enough to bring home the group win and qualify directly for the quarter-finals.
If one is honest, the German team in Beijing is obviously not in a position to build on the successes of Pyeongchang. The performances so far do not suggest that they can fight for the medals. The Canadians have already clearly shown the DEB men their limits, and in the end they only managed a narrow victory against China. So a defeat against the USA in the final group game is likely to be on the cards.
Team Germany to watch in Beijing
When you look at how strong the German athletes were in Yanqing Sliding Centre, you may already watch the first two heats in the women’s monobob from 2:30 in the night. Mariama Jamanka and Laura Nolte will enter the competition.
Other than that, the schedule doesn’t hold many highlights for the German team on Sunday. There are outsider chances in the men’s giant slalom and in the biathlon men’s pursuit. Otherwise, in the women’s biathlon and also in the men’s cross-country relay, it’s all about making the best possible impression.
In the freestyle qualifications, the women hope to get a place in the final, although this should be a difficult task. At the end of the day, the Olympic programme has another treat in store. It will be interesting to see whether the German men’s ice hockey team will go beyond themselves in the third and last group game against the USA.
Team Austria to watch in Beijing
Team Austria shouldn’t expect too much this Sunday either. Of course, the men’s giant slalom, just like all alpine decisions, is an important competition for Team Austria. Manuel Feller and Marco Schwarz should have the best chances to compete for the medals. Stefan Brennsteiner and Raphael Haaser are rather outsiders.
The same goes for almost all other Austrian athletes on this day. An insider tip, however, is Lisa Theresa Hauser in the women’s biathlon pursuit. She made a good impression in the sprint and if she can show her strength at the shooting range, then maybe even a medal beckons. It’s a bitter pill that the Austrians won’t be competing in the cross-country relay.
Apart from that, the Austrian women are in the freestyle and want to secure a place in the final. We will have to see what Katrin Beierl is capable of with the monobob. One should not expect a top ranking after the first two runs. Vanessa Herzog will be the lone Mohican in the women’s 500-metre speed skating event.
Team Switzerland to watch at Olympia 2022
For the Swiss it will be interesting especially at night. The monobob is still an exotic event in the ice canal before the strong Swiss women will try to work their way into the final in slopestyle, this time in ski freestyle. Mathilde Gremaud already has a medal in Big Air and should be confident of making it into the top twelve ladies.
Then it’s on to the men’s giant slalom in Yanqing. The odds suggest that anything less than a gold medal for Marco Odermatt would almost be a sensation. With Loic Meillard, Justin Murisier and Gino Caviezel, the Swiss are bringing other strong athletes to the start. In the cross-country relay, on the other hand, there will be nothing to harvest.
This also applies to the two biathlon events, in which the Swiss women and men are only trailing behind. Even a place among the top 20 would be a great result. The two Swiss teams are stronger in curling. The women in particular are fully on course for the semi-finals, but the men can also make it into the medal round.
