| CNN | - |
(CNN)
-- Armchair Olympic fans, be warned. It's week one of the Winter Games
in Sochi, Russia, and there are a mind-blowing number of events to try
to follow.
5 things to watch at the Winter Games on Saturday
updated 7:46 PM EST, Fri February 7, 2014
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Canada's Max Parrot has the highest qualifying score heading into the slopestyle finals
- Hannah Kearney of the United States is looking for her second gold in the women's moguls
- Russia is leading Canada and China in team figure skating competition
- Germany's Felix Loch is considered king of the luge
Here are five things to look for Saturday at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games:
1. Men's slopestyle finals
Dude, seriously? No Shaun White in the Olympic debut of the men's slopestyle finals?
If you've been living
under a rock, the biggest name in snowboarding withdrew from the
competition before it began -- to focus on the men's halfpipe next week.
But who cares? With or
without White, it's going to be an awesome ride to watch as eight
snowboarders run what looks like a downhill obstacle course -- riding
rails and grabbing not just big, but giant air -- where they are judged
not just on tricks, but style.
Already, there has been a
bit of controversy about the course with complaints by some that it was
too intense, too dangerous, leaving a handful of snowboarders injured.
Olympic officials made changes to the course to make it a bit safer.
Who to watch:
Canada's Max Parrot, the
reigning X Games gold medalist in the event, had the highest qualifying
score with 97.50 heading into Saturday's semifinal and final rounds.
Also, keep an eye on
Finland's Roope Tonteri, Norway's Staale Sandbech and Canada's Sebastien
Toutant, who are all likely to delight viewers with their twisting
flips and speed.
2. Figure skating team competition
It's day two of the
Olympic debut of the team figure skating competition, and it may be a
little confusing for part-time fans who only follow the sport every four
years during the Winter Games.
So here's what to know:
Each nation enters men's, women's, pairs and ice dance skaters, who all
perform a short program and a long program. The highest combined total
determines which countries medal.
The team event is
separate from the Olympic skating events that award medals for each
category: men's, women's, pairs and ice dancing.
Heading into Saturday's
competition, Russia holds a commanding lead, thanks in large part to
Yevgeny Plushenko's skate in the men's short program.
Plushenko may be a
three-time Olympic medalist, but his presence in Sochi was marked by
controversy. The 31-year-old was named the only male figure skater on
the Russian team, beating out 18-year-old Maxim Kovtun for a spot on the
team, despite finishing second to him in the Russia's national
championships.
The women's and ice
dancing short programs and pairs free skate are on tap Saturday, which
will determine the five teams that advance to Sunday's long programs.
Currently, Canada is in second place, followed by China and Japan. The United States is tied for fifth with Germany and France.
The finals are Sunday.
3. Women's moguls final
Call it a Vancouver 2010 Winter Games redux, with all eyes on the competition shaping up between the United States and Canada.
American Hannah Kearney,
a 27-year-old from New Hampshire, looking to repeat her gold medal
performance in the freestyle skiing event.
Standing in her way, just like last time, is Canada.
Chloe, Justine and
Maxime Dufour-Lapointe, sisters from Montreal, Quebec, have advanced
along with Kearney to Saturday's semifinals after Thursday's qualifying
round. The finals follow later Saturday.
Chloe and Justine
Dufour-Lapointe are considered possible medal contenders. Also in hunt
for a medal is American Eliza Outtrim, Perrine Laffont of France and
Yulia Galysheva of Kazakhstan.
American Heidi Kloser is
expected to be on the sidelines cheering on her teammates after she was
forced to pull out of the moguls competition. She fell Thursday just
minutes before her qualifying run and tore a knee ligament.
Kearney sent Kloser a message of support via Twitter: "You are a beast. You will be back and you will be stronger than ever."
On Friday, Kloser tweeted a picture of herself wearing her Olympic uniform and giving a thumbs up.
"Heading to the Opening Ceremonies! Excited that I will still get to walk!," she said in the post on Twitter.
4. Luge men's singles
Let's be honest. Most of
us don't know a thing about the luge other than it features somebody
going feet first down a twisting, turning track of ice. Or if it's the
doubles, two people going feet first down the track.
Still, we watch it.
Why? Because it's fast and furious.
Just ask India's Shiva
Keshavan, who appears to have turned in one of the early memorable
moments of the Sochi Games during a practice run in the men's luge
singles that begin Saturday. The finals are Sunday.
On Friday, Keshavan was
on the track, traveling an estimated 70 miles per hour, according to
reports, when he slid off his sled during a turn and onto the ice.
Incredibly, he was able to get back on the sled -- while sliding -- by
flipping his body back on it.
Who to watch:
By all accounts, Felix
Loch of Germany is the man to beat. He's considered the king of the luge
hill, so to speak, after winning gold in Vancouver four years ago.
In the 24-year-old's way is Italy's Armin Zoeggler, the 2002 and 2006 Olympic gold medalist in the event.
5. Women's hockey preliminaries
Let the rivalry renew. Canada and the United States begin the quest Saturday to win the gold medal in women's hockey.
Canada is looking for a
four-peat on the top of the Olympic podium, while the United States is
looking to break its golden drought.
This time, the two teams won't have to wait until the finals to meet. They will play one another in the preliminary round
Because the two teams
are so strong and so dominant, there has been a change in the lineup,
according to Bleacher Report. The two teams will play one another in the
preliminary round, though could still end up vying for the gold in the
medal round.
The two teams are scheduled to play against one another on Wednesday.
But first up Saturday for Canada is the team from Switzerland, while the United States will face off against Finland.
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