BC-OLY—Pyeongchang Olympics-The Latest,331
The Latest: Crowd sparse as Olympic ice dancing begins
AP Photo OLYFS113, OLYFS802, OLYSJ101
Eds: With AP Photos.
Gangneung Ice Center has been pretty much filled for most of figure skating, one of the premier events of the Winter Olympics. But not for the start of ice dancing. The building that has a capacity of about 12,000 was half-empty when the skating began. There were sections near mid-ice and also in the end zones that were practically unoccupied. The top ice dance couples are not scheduled to perform until deep into the 24-duo short dance.
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) — The Latest on the Pyeongchang Olympics (all times local):
10:30 a.m.
Gangneung Ice Center has been pretty much filled for most of figure skating, one of the premier events of the Winter Olympics.
Not Monday morning (Sunday evening U.S. time), though. The building that has a capacity of about 12,000 was half-empty when the short dance began. There were sections near mid-ice and also in the end zones that were practically unoccupied.
For most other figure skating events at these games, the arena filled up quickly. But it never had so few people in it for the beginning of a competition.
The top ice dance couples are not scheduled to perform until deep into the 24-duo short dance.
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10:10 a.m.
Ice dancing is underway at the Olympic Games with two-time medalists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada and France’s Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron the heavy favorites to win gold.
Three American couples have a chance at landing on the podium.
Maia and Alex Shibutani, the siblings who helped the U.S. win team bronze, are making their second Olympic appearance. They’re joined by Madison Hubbell and Zachary Donohue, the reigning national champs, and Madison Chock and Evan Bates, the latter of whom is competing in his third Olympics.
The short dance is Monday South Korea time (to be broadcast Sunday night in the U.S.) with the free dance wrapping up the competition Tuesday.
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10 a.m.
After a one-day break, Olympic figure skating resumes with the ice dancing short program.
A strong performance from Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir helped Canada win gold in the team competition, but Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France and American siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani could provide serious competition.
Medals are up for grabs in just three events Monday: men’s 500-meter speedskating, men’s large hill team ski jumping, and men’s two-man bobsled.
In the women’s hockey semifinals, the Americans play Finland, while defending champion Canada faces Russia.
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