(BEIJING) — Kamila Valieva earned the highest score in the women’s figure skating singles event short program at the Olympics on Tuesday.
The 15-year-old, who represents the Russian Olympic Committee, scored a mark of 82.16, putting her in first place going into the free skate portion of the competition.
The winner of the women’s event will be determined after skaters compete in the free skate event on Thursday. The gold medal will be awarded to the skater with the highest total score (calculated as the sum of the two programs).
Anna Shcherbakova of the ROC is in second place with a score of 80.20 and Sakamoto Kaori of Japan is in third place with a score of 79.84.
Valieva stumbled on her first jump in what was her first time competing since it was revealed she tested positive for a banned substance in December ahead of the Russian Figure Skating Championships, according to the International Testing Agency.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled on Monday to allow Valieva to skate, despite the failed drug test.
During the figure skating team event, Valieva became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Olympics.
Russian athletes at the Olympics are competing under the name “Russian Olympic Committee” due to an ongoing ban against Russia participating in the games due to its previous doping violations. This is the second Olympics in a row in which Russia has been banned.
Russia has been banned from all its international sporting events because of the doping allegations.
Russian athletes who could prove they were clean and unconnected to the cover-up are allowed to compete.
(BEIJING) — U.S. skier Mikaela Shiffrin on Tuesday came up empty handed in her fourth competition, placing 18th in the downhill skiing event, after wiping out in her first two races and finishing ninth in the super-G event.
Shiffrin was expected to be a downhill contender, although the event wasn’t her strongest. Her time of 1:34.36 placed her 2:49 behind Corinne Suter of Switzerland, who took gold with a time of 1:31.87. Italy brought home both the silver and bronze medals, with Sofia Goggia finishing in 1:32.03 and Nadia Delago finishing in 1:32.44.
“Racing DH tomorrow!” Shiffrin said on Twitter on Monday. “The track is spectacular and I have ‘overthought’ the crap out of it over the last couple days so it’s prob time to just point ‘em straight and get low.”
The six-time world champion is one medal away from tying the record for most Olympic medals by a female American Alpine skier — four. She is two gold medals away from holding the record for most golds ever by a female Alpine skier — also four.
She is expected to compete in the combined on Feb. 17. She also said on Thursday she may compete in the team event, which she had not planned to enter coming into the Games.
Shiffrin last week finished ninth in the super-G, with Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami winning gold, her second medal of the Games.
Two days earlier, Shiffrin had shockingly busted out of the competition just seconds into the first run of the slalom. Shiffrin missed the fourth gate in her run, the event where she won her first Olympic gold in 2014.
The skier, who was expected to challenge for several medals in Beijing, sat on the side of the hill, with her head in her hands, for 20 minutes after the stunning accident.
The 26-year-old also fell during her first run in the giant slalom last Monday, disqualifying her from the event.
“Could blame it on a lot of things…and we’ll analyze it till the cows come home, but not today,” Shiffrin said on Instagram following that crash. “Today I chalk it up to really awful timing of a really frustrating mistake. Moving focus to slalom now, AND cheering for my teammates in the second run of the GS and the DH!”
Sweden’s Sara Hector took the gold in the giant slalom with a time of 1:55:68, followed by Italy’s Federica Brignone with a time of 1:55.97 and Gut-Behrami with a time of 1:56:41.
Shiffrin, a Colorado native, has been competing since she was 16 and quickly became one of the sport’s all-time greatest skiers with her record-setting performances. She is the most decorated Alpine skier in the world circuit having won 11 World Championship medals, six of them gold.
At 18 years old she became the youngest slalom champion when she won a gold medal in the 2014 Sochi Games. Shiffrin won a gold medal in the giant slalom competition and a silver medal in the combined competition during the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Monday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Washington 103, Detroit 94
Brooklyn 109, Sacramento 85
Oklahoma City 127, New York 123 (OT)
New Orleans 120, Toronto 90
Portland 122, Milwaukee 107
Chicago 120, San Antonio 109
Utah 135, Houston 101
Denver 121, Orlando 111
L.A. Clippers 119, Golden State 104
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Minnesota 7, Detroit 4
Chicago 3, Winnipeg 1
Toronto 6, Seattle 2
Edmonton 3, San Jose 0
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
(6)Kansas 76, Oklahoma St. 62
(INGLEWOOD, Calif.) — The Los Angeles Rams delivered a Hollywood Super Bowl ending Sunday, defeating the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 in front of a star-studded home crowd at SoFi Stadium.
Watch game highlights from ABC’s Good Morning America:
LA Rams’ two-time All-Pro offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth talks Super Bowl LVI victory:
(INGLEWOOD, Calif.) — The wife of the Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Van Jefferson left SoFi on a stretcher Sunday after going into labor during the Super Bowl LVI, a team spokesperson confirmed to ABC News.
The news came hours after Samira Jefferson posted an Instagram Story from an interview with The Atlantic, during which she said she hoped her water wouldn’t break during the game.
The NFL star confirmed the birth of his and Samira’s second child on Instagram late Sunday. On his Story, he posted a photo of himself holding the newborn while in bed. He wrote, “x2!!!!!”
The Jeffersons are also parents to 5-year-old daughter Bella.
The Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23 to 20 Sunday.
ABC News’ Kaylee Hartung contributed to this report.
(LOS ANGELES) — Los Angeles Rams’ wide receiver Van Jefferson has a lot to celebrate after he and his wife, Samaria Jefferson, welcomed their second child — a son — following Jefferson’s historic Super Bowl win Sunday.
Jefferson, 25, shared a photo on Instagram of him hugging his newborn, writing, “x2!!!!!” The Jeffersons are also parents to daughter Isabelle, 5.
Samaria Jefferson went into labor during the Super Bowl and the NFL shared a video clip on Twitter of Van Jefferson “hustling out of the stadium to get to his wife” after the Rams’ game against the Cincinnati Bengals concluded. The Rams had clinched the title with a 23-20 win at SoFi Stadium.
Samaria Jefferson said she was expecting back in September 2021, with an Instagram video and heartfelt message marking the anniversary of when they started dating in high school. She shared her excitement about her husband’s first Super Bowl appearance on Friday, tweeting, “Cant believe i’m about to watch my husband play in his first Super Bowl in a couple days AND welcome our new baby in the same week. Thank You, God 🤍.”
Ahead of Sunday’s big game, Samaria Jefferson had told The Athletic that she wasn’t planning on missing her husband’s first Super Bowl game. “Just like any other game, I’m going to be there this Sunday and I’m going to stay calm … and pray to God my water doesn’t break,” she told the sports website.
Van Jefferson joined the Rams in 2020 and is the son of Shawn Jefferson, a former wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals and now a coach for his former team.
(BEIJING) — Russian figure skating star Kamila Valieva will be allowed to continue competing at the Winter Olympics despite failing a drug test, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled on Monday.
“On the basis of the very limited facts of this case, and after consideration of the relevant legal issues, [the court] has determined that no provisional suspension should be imposed on the Athlete,” CAS said in a two-page decision.
Denying Valieva a chance to compete “would cause her irreparable harm,” the court said.
It was revealed on Friday that 15-year-old Valieva tested positive for a banned drug in December ahead of the Russian Figure Skating Championships, according to the International Testing Agency.
“The late notification is extremely unfortunate, as it affects not only the athlete, but also the organizers of the Olympic Winter Games,” Matthieu Reeb, director general of CAS, said in a press conference in Beijing on Monday. “In other words, we would not have this case and I would not be here if these anti-doping test procedures would have been completed in one week or 10 days, as it is generally the case, for example, at the Olympic Games.”
Fridays news had thrown into question the ROC’s gold win in the figure skating team event, because of her participation, and her ability to continue competing in the Olympics. The United States won silver in the team event and Japan won bronze.
Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a heart medication, in a sample tested at a World Anti-Doping Agency accredited lab, according to the International Testing Agency. The drug is classified by WADA as a hormone and metabolic modulator, according to the ITA.
The Russian Anti-Doping Agency was notified of the result of the test on Feb. 8, one day after the Team Event ended, according to the International Testing Agency. Valieva was provisionally suspended from participating in the Olympics, the ITA said. She is scheduled to participate in the women’s singles event on Feb. 15.
Because she is a minor, and with the case was not under the jurisdiction of the International Olympic Committee, the ITA did not reveal the banned substance was found in Valieva’s blood when it was notified.
Valieva appealed the suspension before the Russian Anti-Doping Agency on Feb. 9 and the body decided to lift the suspension, allowing her to compete, according to the ITA, which is in charge of drug testing in sports.
The ITA was notified of the test result on Feb. 8 after the Figure Skating Team Event, which Valieva participated in, was over, the body said on Friday.
The ITA led the appeal of the decision to lift the suspension along with the IOC and the International Skating Union to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the ITA announced on Friday.
A decision on the results of the team figure skating event will be made by the International Skating Union, according to the ITA.
The ITA said the current appeals procedure will only look into the provisional suspension placed on Valieva, not the full case. CAS said on Saturday it planned to hold a private video conference to examine the case of Valieva on Sunday and announce its decision on Monday.
Valieva made history in Beijing when she became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Winter Olympics. She won the women’s portion of the team event, earning the ROC 10 points.
Russian athletes are competing under the name “Russian Olympic Committee” due to an ongoing ban against Russia participating in the games due to its previous doping violations. This is the second Olympics in a row that Russia has been banned from.
The World Anti-Doping Agency banned the country from all international sporting events because of its doping violations.
The agency allowed Russian athletes who could prove they are clean and unconnected to the cover-up to compete.
ABC News’ Alexandra Faul contributed to this report.
(BEIJING) — American bobsled athletes Kallie Humphries and Elana Meyers Taylor took gold and silver respectively in the first monobob competition in Olympics history.
Meyers Taylor’s silver was especially impressive considering she spent a week in quarantine after a positive COVID-19 test.
Humphries, meanwhile, who was competing for the United States in the Olympics for the first time after winning two golds for Canada in the two-person bobsled, dominated the competition, winning by more than 1.5 seconds.
Canada’s Christine de Bruin, who had held second entering the fourth and final run, earned the bronze. Meyers Taylor saved her best run for last, passing de Bruin to claim second.
Meyers Taylor, who had been selected as a flag bearer for Team USA at this year’s Winter Olympics, was forced to isolate after testing positive for the virus on Jan. 29 and missed the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games on Feb. 4.
Athletes inside the closed loop at the Olympics, which separates athletes, team officials and members of the press from the rest of the Chinese population, live under a daily regimen of temperature checks and COVID tests administered by workers dressed in full-body personal protective equipment.
She spent isolation away from her teammates, husband and young son, who has Down syndrome and is still nursing, she told ABC News earlier this month.
During that time, she missed crucial training days but was able to get an exercise bike dropped off to train in isolation.
Meyers Taylor was permitted to reenter the Olympic village on Feb. 5 after receiving two negative COVID-19 tests, per Olympics regulation.
Meyers Taylor ranks No. 1 in the world in two-man and monobob and is the only woman to win four Olympic bobsled medals for the U.S.
Going into her fourth Olympics, she had two silver medals and one bronze.
ABC News’ Ibtissem Guenfoud and Maggie Rulli contributed to this report.
(LOS ANGELES) — It began with a chance encounter at a resort in Cabo. Two men who were both at a proverbial fork in the road in their respective careers.
Matthew Stafford. The 12-year veteran quarterback who just finished up another losing season with the Detroit Lions. With little team success and suffering through several rebuilds, the 34-year-old Stafford could sense his window to win the biggest prize of all, the Super Bowl, was closing quickly. He knew a change of scenery was needed.
Sean McVay is the charismatic 36-year-old head coach of the Los Angeles Rams. The grandson of former NFL head coach and executive John McVay, Sean was coming off another tough playoff exit in the NFC Divisional round, just two years removed from his first Super Bowl appearance against the New England Patriots. The man many around league referred to as the “offensive guru” felt he had to shake up his team.
Stafford and McVay were introduced by a mutual friend. Over drinks, the two hit it off and bonded over their careers.
Now, one year later, both men finally reached the top of the hill that at one point seemed so fleeting and illusive: celebrating their first Super Bowl title, a thrilling 23-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. And to cap it all off, it was Stafford, with the ball in his hands, who delivered the eventual game winning touchdown pass to Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp with under two minutes to play to secure Los Angeles’s first Super Bowl title since 1999.
Talk about a perfect ending to an unbelievable story only fit for Hollywood.
“You put the ball in your best player’s hands when it matters the most, and that’s what we did with Matthew,” McVay, who became the youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl, said following the game.
“And he (Stafford) delivered in a big way and is a world champ.”
Despite this being his first-ever Super Bowl, the bright spotlight certainly didn’t faze Stafford.
“I love those kind of drives… you’re sitting in the huddle and the belief that I have and in the teammates that I have is just unwavering,” Stafford said.
“I believe in those guys so much and we got it done.”
But there looked like a time where the Rams would come up short in the big game yet again.
After a back-breaking interception closed out the first half, Los Angeles held on to a tight 13-10 lead. Cincinnati capitalized on this momentum swing to begin the third quarter. In less than five minutes, the Bengals came roaring back, thanks to a one play, 75-yard touchdown pass from Joe Burrow to Tee Higgins, and a field goal by rookie Evan McPherson.
But if there is one thing fans who have watched the Rams this season have come to realize, it’s that you can never count this team out. They have been in this spot before many times, including in the divisional round against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, and two weeks prior against the 49ers in the NFC Championship game.
The Rams defense clamped down, not allowing the Bengals to score a single point the rest of the way and sacking Burrow seven times.
Then, Stafford and Kupp rallied the offense after losing key receiver Odell Beckham Junior to a knee injury, finishing off one last comeback with the go-ahead touchdown to keep the Lombardi trophy in Los Angeles.
Finally, vindication for a team that went all-in, acquiring big name players like Stafford, Beckham and former Broncos All-Pro Von Miller to add to the main stays led by Kupp and arguably the league’s top defensive end Aaron Donald.
“You got to be relentless,” said Donald.
“You know it was right in front of us…all offseason you work, you train, you got camp, you got a long season just for this one game. You know we the last team standing.”
Just the way McVay had envisioned his return trip to the big game ending.
“You get over it (loss in last Super Bowl appearance). You know, as a competitor, you have to be able to do that,” said McVay.
“But certainly, this was really satisfying to see these guys and to see the looks on their faces.”
As for Stafford, all the ups and downs and heartbreaking seasons he endured early in his career was all worth it.
“For 12 years, that goal wasn’t reached and it tore me up inside,” said Stafford.
“But I knew I could keep playing and try to find a way. You know, the fact that we reached that goal is so special.”
