As the 2022 winter Olympics draws to a close, the United States are behind only Norway and the Russian Olympic Committee for total medals with 19. With eight of those being gold medals, the United States are also in third place in that category, behind Norway and Germany. Catching Norway in total medals will be a difficult task but with a couple promising events left, the United States could catch them in gold medals.
So far the United States Olympic highlights have included a gold medal in the women’s 500m speed skating event. Erin Jackson made history when she became the first American black woman to win an Olympic medal in speed skating. Not only that but Jackson became the first American to win that particular event since the 1994 Games.
Another gold medal came in the men’s figure skating short program. Nathan Chen was able to win the event in remarkable fashion as he set a world record with a score of 113.97, breaking Yuzuru Hanyu’s previous record. This was a huge achievement for Chen who had a disappointing 2018 Olympics, with several mistakes in the short program. Chen has continued to improve through the years and has performed very well at the World Championships the past two years. Everything came together in the short event this year for Chen, as he helped the United States earn another gold medal.
One of the coolest stories so far in my opinion for the United States was Kaillie Humphries winning a gold medal in the women’s monobob event. Humphries had won two gold medals before but never had she won gold for the United States. The former Canadian gold medalist became a citizen of the United States recently and became the first Olympian to win gold medals for two different countries. Humphries completely dominated the event but what was more special than the performance was the reaction of Humphries. Seeing Humphries excited to not only win another gold medal but to win for the United States and the emotions that she had was truly unforgettable.
The United States will have an opportunity to add a gold medal when the women’s hockey team plays Canada in the final. So far the women for the United States have been playing well and have beaten both the Czech Republic and Finland 4-1 to play for a gold medal. Winning against Canada will be no easy task as Canada has scored 21 goals through their last two games.
Another opportunity at gold will come with the men’s curling team. Currently, it is not looking good for the United States, especially after their round robin loss to Italy. There is a scenario where they will not make it past the round robin stage. However with a clutch shot maker like John Shuster, anything is possible and the men’s curling team should not be counted out for gold just yet, especially after winning gold at the 2018 Olympics.
With many events yet to take place, the United States could definitely add a significant amount of medals to their totals. No matter what happens during the remainder of the Olympics, the United States has a lot to be proud of with the efforts of athletes like Jackson, Chen, Humphries and Chloe Kim winning gold in their respective events.
Sources: NBC Olympics; NBC Sports