[Kelekin]

Posting this early since I have it done already (and heading to bed now!).

Canada sits T-2nd in the Medal totals, and T-2 in total Gold medals. February 13th will be a really busy day for Canadians, with our first Men's Hockey game, three Curling draws, and lots more speed-skating.

[10 PM] Curling – Women’s: CAN (3-0) vs. DEN (0-3). Jones’ rink should win this one and go to 4-0.

[11:15 PM, 2:30 AM] Ski Slopestyle – Men’s Qualifications, Finals: Only one Canadian in the competition, Alex Beaulieu-Marchand. If he can make the final, anything can happen as he is extremely skilled, but he is not favoured for a medal.

[12:30 AM, 1:40 AM] Skeleton – Women’s Runs 1 & 2: Skeleton begins with two Canadians in the mix in Sarah Reid and Melissa Hollingsworth. Depending on the day, Reid can be brilliant. 5th in the world last season, two podiums this year, but lots of mistakes have led to some terrible performances too. Hollingsworth was favoured for Gold in Vancouver, and at 33, this is likely her last Olympics. Her best performance this year is a 5th, but like Reid, can be brilliant depending on the day.

[3 AM] Curling – Men’s: CAN (2-2) vs. DEN (2-2). Two mightily struggling rinks face off against each other in this match-up. Jacobs’ rink needs to get things together to build momentum for the rest of the week. Canada can’t afford a loss, still needing to face most of their toughest competitors.

[3 AM, 4:10 AM, 5:05 AM] Short Track Speed Skating – Ladies’ 500m Quarters/Semis/Finals: Three Canadians are in the round of 16. Marianne St-Gelais should easily move on to the semi-finals, but Valerie Maltais has an extremely tough heat with two medal hopefuls. Jessica Hewitt will need to get by Elise Christie to move on to the semi-finals. St-Gelais is the strongest chance for Canada, but has only one podium finish on the World Cup this season.

[3:25 AM] Short Track Speed Skating – Men’s 1000m Heats: Canada has three competitors in the heats for the 1000m. Cournoyer has an easy heat, as do our two strongest competitors, Charles Hamelin and Olivier Jean. Jean is inconsistent but very capable of making it to the finals, and Hamelin has been dominant in the 1000m this year.

[4:31 AM] Short Track Speed Skating – Men’s 5000m Relay Semi-Finals: Canada’s heat will consist of Italy, China, and Russia. Unlike in the past, the Chinese team, whilst talented, is extremely young and Russia has been strong (thanks to Victor An). Canada and Russia should get through, with USA and Korea to move on in the other semi-final.

[7 AM] Speed Skating – Women’s 1000m: After a brilliant performance from Denny Morrison, the women will look to follow it up with four competitors in the mix. Nesbitt represents our best chance. After dominating the sport for four years, she ran into troubles this past fall and has struggled mightily with form. Nesbitt was strong in the 500m, finishing 12th in a distance where she has never excelled. If she is on form, she could find herself on the podium.

[8 AM] Curling – Women’s: CAN (4-0) vs. SUI (3-1). Canada has faced two of its’ three toughest competitors in GBR and SWE, and will have its’ last major challenge versus the Swiss team.

[8 AM] Figure Skating - Men’s Short Program: Patrick Chan, Kevin Reynolds, and Liam Firus begin their competition. Patrick Chan is a gold-medal hopeful, and a top 6 finish for Reynolds is doable.

[9:15 AM] Luge – Team Relay: Another new team event this year, it will consist of 1 woman, 1 man, and 1 men’s double team. Germany should easily win this event, with Canada, Russia, Italy, Austria, and United States fighting for the medals. Canada has four silver medals in this event in six world cups.

[10 AM] Hockey – Men’s: Canada begins their tournament against powerhouse Norway (kidding – but if their cross-country team could skate, they’d be the favourites).

Other Events: Biathlon – Men’s Individual 20km, Cross-Country Skiing – Ladies’ 10km Classic.