The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Russia crash out of ice hockey, Kim glides towards gold Posted: 19 Feb 2014 02:49 PM PST With many fans believing the Olympics begin and end with Russia's vaunted hockey team, things looked good when the hosts took the lead in their quarter-final against Finland. But a lacklustre performance saw them slump to a 3-1 defeat, their second successive Olympic Games quarter-final exit. Russian coach Zinetula Bilyaletdinov knows the reaction from the Russian media and fans to another embarrassment will be swift and scathing. "Well, eat me now. You'll eat me and I'll be gone," said Bilyaletdinov. Russia's highest profile star Alex Ovechkin, one of the faces of the Sochi Games, moaned: "It sucks." Finland go on to face Sweden, 5-0 winners over Slovenia, in the semi-finals. Defending champions Canada edged Latvia 2-1 and will face old rivals United States who reached the semi-finals with a 5-2 win over the Czech Republic. South Korean superstar Kim Yu-Na opened up a fractional 0.28 lead on Russian teenager Adelina Sotnikova in the short programme of the women's figure skating. Fifteen-year-old Julia Lipnitskaia had been expected to challenge Kim after helping Russia to the new team gold just over a week ago but instead she is struggling in fifth after a fall on a triple flip. It was national champion Sotnikova, 17, who lifted Russian spirits with a rousing skate to "Carmen" which brought the 17,000-capacity crowd at Iceberg Skating Palace to their feet. Kim, 23, had earlier scored 74.92 points for her skate to "Send In The Clowns" with Sotnikova just marginally behind with 74.64. Italy's Carolina Kostner is sitting third with 74.12 with less than a point separating the top three skaters. "I was really nervous, my legs started trembling and shaking," said Kim, who opened with a triple lutz-triple toeloop combination and also included a triple flip and double axel. "The jumps didn't go well in the warm-up. I tried to remember the good practices I had. I just told myself: 'believe in yourself'." Japanese star Mao Asada's Olympic challenge is however over as the Vancouver silver medallist slumped to 16th leaving her facing mission impossible when the free skate takes place today. In the mountains above Sochi, four-time world champion skier Ted Ligety won the men's giant slalom. The 29-year-old, who won combined gold at the 2006 Turin Games, did enough on his second ski to beat Frenchman Steve Missillier by nearly half a second in an overall time of 2min 45.29sec. French tyro Alexis Pinturault took bronze. "This is the event I wanted the most," Ligety said. "This is the event I have been putting so much pressure on myself to win, so to pull through is an awesome feeling." Norwegian biathlete Ole Einar Bjoerndalen finally sealed his reputation as the greatest Winter Olympian in history by taking a record 13th medal with gold in the mixed relay. Bjoerndalen, 40, now holds the record outright for the most medals at Winter Games after overtaking his compatriot, the cross country ski legend Bjoern Daehlie, who won 12 medals. Bjoerndalen has now also won eight gold medals at Winter Olympics, equalling Daehlie's own record. "It's cool. It's a big thing for me," he said. Russia's Vic Wild captured the men's snowboarding parallel giant slalom title just minutes after his wife Alena Zavarzina took bronze in the women's event behind winner Patrizia Kummer of Switzerland. Cross country skiing superstar Marit Bjoergen took Norway to victory in the women's team sprint race, the fifth Olympic gold of her career, while Finland won the men's race. Czech speed skater Martina Sablikova defended her Olympic crown in the women's 5,000m while Ireen Wust of the Netherlands took silver – her fourth medal of the Games. – AFP, February 20, 2014. |
| Costa late show gives Atletico precious Milan win Posted: 19 Feb 2014 02:44 PM PST Milan had kept Diego Simeone's side on a tight leash throughout a thrilling encounter at the San Siro, but after missing three golden chances to take a first-half lead, the hosts were stunned in the 83rd minute when Costa rose to head inside Christian Abbiati's near post following a corner. Atletico, currently joint top of the Spanish top flight, will now fancy their chances of qualifying for the last eight of the competition for the first time since 1997 when the sides meet at the Vicente Calderon in a fortnight. The visitors started crisply, stringing passes together with apparent ease and Costa holding off challenges to give Milan an early reminder of their current form. However Los Colchoneros failed to build on that momentum and, after weathering the early storm, Clarence Seedorf's side found their feet to go on and hit the woodwork three times in an enthralling opening half. Milan sniffed the opener when Adel Taarabt's ball was put through for Kaka only for the Brazilian to send a curling left-footed strike off Thibaut Courtois's crossbar. Minutes later Taarabt's cross was met by Kaka, but Courtois performed heroics down low to palm the former Real Madrid man's precision header off the post. Tempers flared when Emiliano Insua put in a crunching tackle on Mattia De Sciglio and, after both sets of players clashed, the Argentine was shown a yellow card. De Sciglio tried to play on, but soon hobbled off to be replaced by Ignazio Abate. Atletico had few clear chances in the opening period, while Milan proved dangerous on the counter, just as Simeone had predicted, and they came close again on the half-hour when Balotelli's backheel found Kaka, whose latest effort skimmed the bar on its way over. Atletico started strongly after the interval and on 52 minutes Costa was allowed space at the back post to attempt a bicycle kick when a cross was whipped in at the back post, but his effort was off target. Kaka then sidestepped a challenge on the edge of the area but sent a tame shot wide. Balotelli was coming in for some punishment and, before being replaced by Giampaolo Pazzini, he had a number of free-kick attempts. One, on 65 minutes, was deflected out for a corner, from which Michael Essien sent a glancing header wide of Courtois's upright. Atletico had the momentum in the closing stages and, on 75 minutes, Costa did well to hold off his marker and set up Raul Garcia, whose drive from 20 metres was blocked down low by Abbiati. Seedorf replaced Balotelli with Pazzini on 77 minutes but by then a tiring Milan had little left to offer. The visitors pressed and, after a first-time Garcia effort had just missed the target, they made the difference from a corner, which Abate inadvertently headed towards the back post where Costa met it with a powerful header of his own. – AFP, February 20, 2014. |
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