Emotional Rollercoaster for Canada on Day 3 of the Games

CREDIT: MADDIE MEYER/GETTY IMAGES

On the day, Canada had a mix of heartbreak, fourth-place finishes and medals.

Heartbreak Early

Canada’s Mixed Doubles Curling duo of Rachel Homan and John Morris needed a win to punch their ticket to the semi-finals. They squared off against an Italian duo that surprised everyone, going 8-0 in Round Robin play up to this point.

In a back-and-forth nailbiter, eight ends were not enough for the two teams. Canada had the hammer in the extra end.

After the last stone was thrown it was too close to call. Close enough that they had to measure it twice and by millimetres, Italy remained undefeated with the 8-7 win and Canada found themselves out of the playoff picture.

It was a heartbreaking loss for Canada after they showed resilience throughout the Round Robin.

Canada Earns First Gold

Max Parrot after, overcoming cancer in 2019, comes back to the Olympics after his silver in 2018 to claim Canada’s first gold in Beijing with a score of 90.96. Mark McMorris repeated as the bronze medalist for the third time in a row, while Toutant came in 9th. This is back-to-back Olympics where Parrot and McMorris share the podium.

Speed Skater Kim Boutin added to her collection winning her fourth Olympic medal. She repeated as the bronze medalist in the Women’s 500m.

Canada also gets a surprise medal in a debut event. They became the first-ever bronze medalists in the Ski Jumping Mixed Team event. It also happens to be Canada’s first-ever medal in Ski Jumping.

Canada increased their medal tally to one gold, two silver and four bronze.

Controversy on the Ice

In Women’s Hockey Canada takes down the Russian Olympic Committee by a score of 6-1. Olympic rookie phenom Sarah Fillier adds another goal, scoring in three straight games. Captain Marie-Philip Poulin also gets her first goal of the 2022 Olympics.

There were concerns about if the game was going to happen at all. The start of the game was delayed by an hour as Canada refused to take the ice after it was reported that there were complications with the ROC test results. The game was played with both teams wearing N95 masks.

Gina Kingsbury, Director of the Women's National Team, released a statement not long ago stating that they and the ROC agreed to delay the game "as an abundance of caution." Kingbury also mentions that all tests came back negative before the start of the third period. "The teams were given the option to remove their masks for the final period, but Canada's players chose to finish the game with masks on."

Some Medal Hopefuls

In Women’s Freestyle Skiing Big Air, 20-year-old Canadian Megan Oldham qualified for the final in first place with a score of 171.25. Teammate Olivia Asselin, who turns 18 four days after the Olympics, qualified 11th with a score of 147.75.

On the Men’s side, Evan McEachran qualified for the final in 11th with a score of 170.25. Fellow Canadian Edouard Therriault just misses out on the final as he placed 13th

Narrowly misses the podium

Canada’s Figure Skaters came in fourth in the Mixed Team Event. It is the first time Canada will not medal in the event as they won silver in Sochi and gold in PyeongChang. One positive to look forward to heading into the individual events is soon to be Madeline Schizas. She put up personal bests in both the short and free programs as an 18-year-old. We wait to see what she could do as a 19-year old when it’s time for her individual event.

James Crawford came in fourth in the Men’s Downhill. After turning some heads in the trial runs, Crawford finished 0.23 seconds off the lead and 0.07 seconds off the podium. Brodie Seger finished 22nd, 1.99 seconds off the lead while Broderick Thompson did not finish.

Highlights for Day 4 of Beijing 2022

Men’s and Women’s Snowboard Parallel Giant Slalom gets underway.

Runs three and four of the Women’s Luge. Canadians sit in 13th, 15th and 17th.

The Women’s Freestyle Skiing Big Air Final takes place as two Canadians are in the hunt for the podium.

Keegan Messing finally arrives in Beijing in time for the Men’s Figure skating event.

James Crawford turned some heads in the downhill. Can the Canadian Alpine team make some more headlines?

A rivalry matchup in Women’s Hockey. Canada and the US square off for top spot in the group.

Follow @deanmatheos and @CanOlyBlog on Twitter and @deanssportsrecaps on TikTok or updates.