These are our our top picks to watch on day 9 of the Winter Olympics.
From the Shibutani siblings to national champs Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue back on the ice, the debut of snowboarding big air as an Olympic event and nail-biting semifinals in women's ice hockey, there was no shortage of must-see action on Day 9 of the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
Without further ado, here are our four to Watch on Day 9 (covering the action Sunday night through early Monday on the East Coast):
1. Top Three U.S. Ice Dance Teams Advance
All three American teams are in position to contend for a medal in ice dance following the short dance portion of the competition Monday at Gangneung Ice Arena. The favorites entering the competition also asserted themselves, with Canada’s Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir posting a world record-score for short dance.
The reigning United States champions, Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, are in third place with a score of 77.75, two-hundredths of a point ahead of the brother-sister pair of Maia and Alex Shibutani. Madison Chock and Evan Bates are seventh, after receiving a season-high score of 75.45.
Local
Virtue and Moir, who lead the field with 83.67 points, were Team Canada’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony and have a chance to become the most decorated figure skaters in Olympic history. A trip to the podium in Pyeongchang would net them their fifth medal between ice dance and the team figure skating event. The short dance will be followed by the free dance Tuesday (Monday night in the United States).
Must-See: Shib Sibs' Alex will make you cry with this tribute to sis
MORE: Hubbell and Donohue's Olympic debut in Pyeongchang; Connecticut's Depp-loving Donohue eyes ice dance medal in Pyeongchang
2. Connecticut's Julia Marino Advances in Women's Big Air
[[470893513, L]]
Team USA members Jamie Anderson, Julia Marino and Jessika Jenson all survived the women’s big air qualification round Monday (Sunday night in the U.S.). Anderson rebounded with a strong second run and stumbling during her first attempt. Marino, 20, made her Pyeongchang debut during the women’s slopestyle, finishing 11th.
They’ll be strong medal contenders in the big air, but they’ll have to catch Austrian Anna Gasser, who’s known for pulling off tricky technical moves and who finished first in the qualifying round.
The women’s qualifying round was the debut of big air in the Olympics. It’s as much a spectacle as it is a sport — competitors perform complex moves down a hill after launching off large jumps, aiming for height, distance, style and a clean landing. The scores are out of 100 and the top scorers will go for gold Friday (Thursday night in the U.S.).
Must-See: Julia Marino nails trick, makes big-air final
More: Top contenders crash in women's slopestyle
3. US Women’s Hockey Team Tops Finland, Advances to Gold Medal Game
The United States women’s hockey team advanced to the gold medal game for a third straight Olympics after beating Finland 5-0 in the semifinal.
Gigi Marvin opened the scoring just 2:25 into the opening period. Dani Cameranesi extended the USA’s advantage with two goals and an assist. Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Hilary Knight had a goal apiece as they turned a 5-on-3 into two goals 34 seconds apart in the second.
Maddie Rooney made 14 saves for the shutout.
The Americans will play Canada in the finals.
Must-See: Twin sister, best friends -- childhood pics from USA hockey stars
MORE: USA scores back-to-back power-play goals; USA's Dani Cameranesi goes topshelf
4. Bascue and USA Teammates Out of Contention for Bobsled Gold
Team USA's two-man bobsledders struggled on their first run and quickly found themselves out of medal contention.
Codie Bascue, 23, of Whitehall, New York, was making his Olympics debut in Pyeongchang.
Bascue, driving with Steve Holcomb’s name on his sled (Holcomb, who was meant to pilot a team in PyeongChang, passed away in 2017), hit a rough line at the top of the hill and was never able to recover in Run 1. He and Sam McGuffie were 0.91 off of medal pace after their first run. They weren't able to improve much on the second run.
Bascue, who now lives in Lake Placid, began sliding when he was only 8; he loved bobsled because of the extremes of a "crazy" start line to being "more focused than you have ever been in your life," once in the sled, according to NBCOlympics.com.
Must-See: How did bobsled get its name? Three lies and a true story
MORE: German bobsled crash from sled's point of view
The Alpine ski racer fuels up in the morning with scrambled eggs mixed with red bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, spinach, garlic, and cilantro. She tops it off with Cholula hot sauce, according to Women's Health.
The snowboarder eats chocolate pancakes with biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Celebrity chef David Chang surprised her with two of her favorite sweets in one: a churro ice cream sandwich.
<The snowboarder has a $920 burger named after him in South Korea, but his favorite thing is Americanized Chinese food, especially airport Chinese food, according to US Weekly.
The figure skater says he has a relatively organized nutrition schedule, but he told NBC Olympics he likes to indulge in desserts, especially Hershey's bars.
The Alpine ski racer is an absolute pasta fanatic. She told Eating Well that she makes a "mean mac and cheese."
The freestyle skater has nicknamed an Indian food buffet he goes to in Colorado "Curry in a Hurry." He told Men's Journal: "The first time I went there, I ate there eight days in a row."
The ice dancer loves Korean foods like barbeque, bibimbap, chap chae and duk bokgi, according to NBC Olympics.
The ice dancer starts every day off with a green tea and lemon but moves to herbal teas later in the day, NBC Olympics reported.
The snowboarder told the Chicago Tribune she was looking forward to sampling different foods in Korea. She’ll have plenty to choose from, including these fried mandu (Korean dumplings) at the Olympic Park.
The biathlete told NBC Olympics that her favorite foods are pizza, dark chocolate, and dried mango.
The bobsledder eats lots of veggies and lean proteins. She shared a pan-seared duck with swiss chard recipe with ESPN.
Like several other athletes, the curler loves Korean barbecue. He's also a fan of pizza and wings when he's back home in Minnesota, according to NBC Olympics.
The curler used to work at a place called Tornado Steakhouse. Naturally, he likes steaks, NBC Olympics reported.
The U.S. women's hockey team fills up with a range of things, including the classic and protein-rich peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, the New York Times reported.
The Alpine ski racer is a fan of big salads and chicken breasts for lunch, but in general loves meals with lots of meat and vegetables, he told ABC.
The speed skater loves kimchi and Korean barbecue, but nothing beats wings and fries from Crunchies & Munchies in Florida, she says.
The luger has cold cut meats for breakfast, along with two to four boiled eggs, bread, yogurt, granola and fruit, according to Cosmopolitan.
The hockey player loves her mom's home-cooked enchiladas and shrimp jambalaya, according to Cosmopolitan.
The freestyle skier snacks on carrots and hummus and eats other healthy foods like quinoa salad, greens, and pumpkin seeds for lunch, Cosmopolitan reported.
The curler loves a big bowl of pasta and a glass of wine after competing even though the curling team mostly sticks to a super-healthy diet, according to First We Feast.
The snowboarder says her favorite pasttime is going to In-N-Out for burgers, according to Cosmopolitan.
The curler always has a chocolate milk between games, she told Cosmopolitan.
The cross-country skier has a sweet spot for apple pie despite the fact she removed gluten and many processed foods from her diet, First We Feat reported.
The figure skater usually makes overnight oats with almond milk for breakfast. He told Bon Appetit that it's important to be consistent with breakfast while traveling.
The bobsledder makes protein bites out of oats, peanut butter, a little honey, protein powder, dark chocolate chips, crushed almonds, and sometimes dried cranberries, according to Bon Appetit.
The freestyle skier loves brown cheese from Norway, but her favorite is Cabot cheddar from her home state of Vermont, according to Delish.
The hockey player loves kimchi and said she's looking forward to trying authentic Korean food while in Pyeongchang, NBC Olympics reported.
The luger ate an entire slice of pizza in one bite in a video posted to Twitter.
The cross-country skier loves to bake and whips up everything from banana bread to pancakes and muffins while training, according to Cosmopolitan.
<The biathlete told NBC Olympics that if he had to indulge in one type of food, it would be Mexican food.
The pair skater told InStyle that she always drinks a glass of milk in the morning and then again at night.
The snowboarder makes green smoothies packed with protein powder and 100 superfoods, according to InStyle.
The Alpine skier's favorite breakfast is a "large sweet-potato, shiitake mushroom, red onion, garlic, and spinach stir fry with two fried duck-eggs on top," InStyle reported.
The cross-country skier told Delish that her favorite dessert is chocolate. "When I'm traveling the world, there are a million different kinds," she said.
The curler said sushi in Japan was everything he expected, according to Food and Wine.
The speed skater posted a "nood photo" of himself eating a giant plate of noodles before the Winter Olympics.
“Cauliflower! I can eat a whole head of cauliflower in one sitting," the hockey player told For the Win.
The speed skater told Bon Appetit her favorite food is "any type of meat."
The speed skater loves doughnuts and Oreos, according to Bon Appetit, but he "sadly can’t eat them very much or else coaches will get upset."
The speed skater has been pursuing culinary studies and Bon Appetit reports that he made it clear on his Olympics profile that he loves ramen but "does not like cucumbers in any form."
When he's done competing, the bobsledder is all about Five Guys burgers, according to Bon Appetit.
The speed skater told Bon Appetit that she likes fresh mango right off the tree.
The bobsledder has sung the praises of campfire coffee, according to Bon Appetit.
The snowboarder makes her own maple syrup in Lake Tahoe, Bon Appetit reported.
The speed skater told Delish that she eats avocado toast with an egg after practice.
The ice dancer always starts the day by swigging one or two glasses of water. Although she adopted a vegan diet, she has since been incorporating some animal products back into her meals, according to Delish.
The ice dancer says nothing compares to "some quality pizza at a nice Italian restaurant" after competition, Delish reported.
The figure skater makes her own banana muffins, a treat she calls her guilty pleasure, according to Delish.
The Nordic combined skier is a big believer in everything being OK in moderation, according to Delish. He dives into an IPA, ice cream and his wife's baked goods when he's not competing.
The short-track speed skater eats a carb-rich meal of pasta or rice and a protein before training, Delish reported.
The curler says she has "a big sweet tooth for fruity candies like Starburst and Skittles," according to Delish.
The snowboarder snacks on protein shakes and carries protein powder with her to "ensure I can get what my body needs to repair after a hard day on the hill," Delish reported.
The biathalon competitor goes for a large salad and a "heaping plate of rice" with chicken and veggies for lunch, according to Delish.
The downhill skier drinks "lots and lots" of coconut water when competing. She also uses the beverage as a base for her morning smoothies and carries a bottle with her to the slopes, First We Feast reported.
"In the off-season I want to go for the record of eating 70 super spicy wings," the bobsledder told First We Feast.
The speed skater loves Korean barbecue, but he says his absolute favorite food is Chinese lumpia, a pastry similar to spring rolls, according to First We Feast.
The skeleton racer snacks on cottage cheese and protein powder to get ready for competition, First We Feast reported.
The figure skater told First We Feast: "I’m an all-American girl, so I go for a burger and fries and a shake."
The bobsledder indulges in crunchy peanut butter and chocolate milk after he competes, according to First We Feast.
The short-track skater downs protein-rich foods like hard-boiled eggs between racing events, Bustle reported.
