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Tag: gold medalist

  • Meryl Davis And Charlie White: U.S. Ice Dancers Win Gold In Sochi

    American ice dancing pair Meryl Davis and Charlie White made their nation proud by winning the gold in the Winter Olympics in Sochi. It is the first gold for Team USA in ice dancing; they had previously won silver four years ago in Vancouver. They also won bronze in this year’s new team event.

    The duo, who both hail from Michigan, scored in the free dance portion with 116.63 points and finished with 195.52, enough to beat Canadians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who won the event in 2010. The Canadian pair, who also happened to be the American team’s training partners in Detroit, scored 190.99 points. Winning bronze are Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov from Russia, and at fourth place are Nathalie Pechalat and Fabian Bourzat from France.

    The pair’s intricate choreography and superb technical skills were brilliantly showcased. They glided and spun across the ice to the music from “Scheherazade,” ending their dance with White on one knee, and Davis resting her head on his back.

    They have been asked about their chemistry, and whether it extends off the ice. In a 2012 interview, White said that they get asked about it a lot, and while awkward, they have become used to it. For them, it is central to their sport to show they are in love on the ice, which makes it easy for the audience to think they are a couple even after they’ve taken off their skates.

    Dancing together for more than half of their lives is also a big factor in making them feel comfortable with each other, which is obvious in their intimacy on the ice, and the spirit with which they danced. The 27-year-old Davis and 26-year-old White were first paired together as kids—when Davis was 10 and White, 9. They had been skating together ever since, and it definitely showed in their performance on Monday during the ice dancing finals.

    http://youtu.be/hkqMcm3HUmM

    Image via YouTube

  • Natalie Geisenberger: German Luger Takes Gold In Sochi

    Germany goes wild as Natalie Geisenberger gets the gold in the women’s luge event, a win that was never a doubt among followers of the sport. With a final time of 3 minutes and 19.768 seconds, Geisenberger has set the second-biggest victory margin in luge Olympic history, beating her teammate Tatjana Huefner by 1.139 seconds.

    Geisenberger, 26, was already an accomplished World Cup champion who dominated 7 of the 8 events in the World Cup circuit. Winning the gold medal and an Olympic title just adds more credit to her name. According to Geisenberger, the first three runs were near perfect, with the last one being just good enough. She holds the record for being the only slider to have managed a run of under 50 seconds, which she was able to do on 3 out of 4 runs. “The feeling was that I could make a little mistake and still win – that was a good feeling.”, said the German gold-medalist.

    Americans also had a lot to celebrate. Erin Hamlin from Remsen, New York, came in third and nabbed the bronze medal. This win goes down in history as the very first medal awarded to an American singles Luge athlete since the event became part of the Olympics 50 years ago in 1964. Hamlin crossed the finish line rejoicing with her hands up in the air. After the event, she was congratulated by U.S. coach Mark Grimmette.

    America always came in fourth place in singles at the Olympics, and this year’s historic win is sure to be talked about among fans and athletes of the sport back in the States. Hamlin was awarded the fifth medal for USA Luge, with four medals – two bonzes and two silvers – awarded to participants of doubles races.

    All three women who stood on the podium were already world champions, another historical moment for women’s Luge.

    Image via YouTube

  • McKayla Maroney To Appear On Episode of “Bones”

    Olympic gold medalist, McKayla Maroney, went into the audition for a character on Bones while having a severe sore throat and not having rehearsed her lines. She never dreamed that she would land the part, but she did and will be appearing on tonight’s episode.

    “I had strep throat when I went in. I didn’t know my lines or anything!” Maroney told TVGuide.com. “I kind of just winged it. I honestly had no idea how I did. … So when I got the part, I was so excited.”

    Her character is obviously a gymnast, and is the prime suspect in her rival’s murder. “The plot is so crazy,” Maroney said. “It’s funny because a lot of people have been tweeting me, ‘I always knew she was a little dangerous. Of course she’d go in for this. Of course she’s a suspect.’”

    Even though her character is a gymnast on the show, this opportunity called for Maroney to show off more of her acting skills rather than the gymnastics that she is know for.

    “I probably would’ve done some vaulting, but they didn’t have any set up for the level that I am. They were all for younger gymnasts,” she says. “It’s more acting-based. I had to do gymnastics, like I did a round of handspring layouts, which I do every day in the gym and isn’t hard for me to do. But it was very hard for me to be ready to do gymnastics and then be ready to act. I would do a tumbling pass and then have to talk. But that’s how it’s supposed to be, like I’m in the gym and it’s OK if I’m out of breath. It was an amazing experience. I had so much fun. Everyone was so nice.”

    Maroney doesn’t say whether or not her character is guilty, but she does say that she can definitely relate to her. “She wants to be the best, which I can relate to, and [Amanda] was her top competition. When this happens, she’s scared and freaked out,” Maroney said. “The weird thing is, when I was on set, it was really emotional because a little part of you thinks, ‘What if this happened at my gym?’ It’s scary.”

    To see Maroney in action, watch tonight’s episode of Bones at 8/7c on Fox.

    [Image via Twitter]