(ATR) Japan and athletes from Russia have risen to the top of the figure skating world at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympics.
It began on Feb. 17, when Japan placed two athletes atop the podium in the men’s single free skating event, medals obtained with a combination of short program and free skate scores.
Yuzuru Hanyu earned the gold medal while Shoma Uno earned silver after good technical runs in each discipline. Spain’s Javier Fernandez Spain took home the bronze.
Before the women’s individual event began, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada won their third Olympic gold in the ice dance discipline on Feb. 20. The French duo of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron took home the silver despite an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction during their run. The United States siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani claimed bronze for Team USA.
The women’s single program will conclude Friday morning at the Gangneung Ice Arena. After the short program on Feb. 21, two Olympic Athletes from Russia, Alina Zagitova and Evgenia Medvedeva, lead the event with Kaetlyn Osmond of Canada in third.
Two athletes from Japan are also in fourth and fifth, creating the possibility of an ice dancing sweep for Japan. However, Satoko Miyahara and Kaori Sakamoto trail the athletes from Russia by six and seven points heading into the final on Feb. 23.
Click here for pictures of these athletes as they seek gold in PyeongChang.
Written by Kevin Nutley
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