Day 6, Part 3

:00:40. > :00:44.London 2012 is very much the people's Games. Part of what made it

:00:45. > :00:50.so successful that against all the odds, Sochi 2014 has a similar five

:00:51. > :00:55.with crowds streaming in. It is a great atmosphere but they are very

:00:56. > :01:08.much the Games of London Britain and there is one game he values above

:01:09. > :01:32.all else. -- southern Britain. -- Putin.

:01:33. > :01:37.He said of Russia would win one gold medal, he hoped it would be in ice

:01:38. > :01:42.hockey. They would never win just one of them but today is when we

:01:43. > :01:50.find out just how good that Russian team is. We will have to see how

:01:51. > :01:59.well they come together under the most intense scrutiny. A team of

:02:00. > :02:05.stars that start this afternoon. At this rate, the organisers will have

:02:06. > :02:13.to rename the other arena, such as being the dominance of Holland. It

:02:14. > :02:18.is the Women's 1000 Metres today. And Norway have another crack at

:02:19. > :02:25.history. Winter Olympics medal number 13 in the biathlon. First,

:02:26. > :02:30.the new favourites bought, slopestyle. It has at all, including

:02:31. > :02:36.kicking a Russian doll in the head, if you want to. We had a bronze for

:02:37. > :02:47.Jenny and for Katie it was so close. This is what happened earlier on

:02:48. > :02:52.today. Skip wedding, slopestyle, it is basically a blank canvas where

:02:53. > :03:00.the idea is just to express the best you can do. -- skip morning.

:03:01. > :03:07.Everyone is good mates. You have to be competitive to get there. Being

:03:08. > :03:13.creative is massive. Everyone has the same course and features to use.

:03:14. > :03:17.The same drawing board. And there are no rules, that is the most

:03:18. > :03:25.important thing. You have to do it this way... It is all about

:03:26. > :03:29.individuality. We have a game plan, definitely nervous because everyone

:03:30. > :03:37.is nervous. Everyone will be nervous, it is just how you deal

:03:38. > :03:51.with that. Everyone will be throwing down the best of the best. There

:03:52. > :03:58.will definitely be a good show. There is more than one way of

:03:59. > :04:00.getting down that slope. Basically, it is showing off to the best of our

:04:01. > :04:18.ability at! -- ability! Nicholas Goepper. Without poles.

:04:19. > :04:33.That is slightly frowned upon? He has had a problem with his hand

:04:34. > :04:38.or his wrist all season so it is difficult to carry poles. He is just

:04:39. > :04:46.sticking with what he knows. Whatever he is doing, it is working.

:04:47. > :04:58.You can still hear that barrel reverberate! Flawless. Top section,

:04:59. > :05:04.Don and dusted. What about the jumps? Heat-treated yesterday that

:05:05. > :05:13.his training day was the best ever, in his words. He opened up early on

:05:14. > :05:19.that! Really early. Yes! Oh, Mike goodness. And he never looked out of

:05:20. > :05:30.control. He was not foreseen that triple. Into the last 270, he was

:05:31. > :05:42.well on top of it. Double grab, he has not done that before. That was

:05:43. > :05:58.not out of control. He was just untying that double grab. . Triple

:05:59. > :06:05.1440. 92.4. No argument. There was not one single flaw in that. James

:06:06. > :06:10.Woods of Great Britain, dropping in for the final. His first run. He

:06:11. > :06:18.qualified in third place so he has the luxury of having seen nine

:06:19. > :06:25.finalists going before him. Carrying a slight injury. It did not affect

:06:26. > :06:39.his qualifying. He still went really well. Certainly the only rider we

:06:40. > :06:45.have seen getting that rail. Absolutely perfect rail section. In

:06:46. > :07:08.the bottom box. And nice, through that canon. The first of his jumps.

:07:09. > :07:14.Not too bad. Look at that grab. He did not even land, the Earth came up

:07:15. > :07:23.to meet him! My goodness! Beautiful run from James Woods. It was the

:07:24. > :07:36.first kicker, this is gorgeous. This is a masterclass. What an amazing

:07:37. > :07:43.shot! That is off the canon. Left double 1080. Absolutely massive. The

:07:44. > :07:48.judges will knock him down a little bit further. That is why he had to

:07:49. > :07:57.open out. Both of his toes almost meeting in the middle. Using all the

:07:58. > :08:07.leverage of those skis. Great score. 86.6. Silver medal position. Only

:08:08. > :08:17.two left to drop on this first run. Team GB enjoying themselves today.

:08:18. > :08:29.Slopestyle delivering. One of the elder statesman of this world. He

:08:30. > :08:41.went into this OK. Really nice on the rails. 450 of that. Of the

:08:42. > :08:57.Russian doll. Some butter on his take-off! The second jump. Big 1260.

:08:58. > :09:02.3.5 rotations. This is beautiful. This is like an ambassador's

:09:03. > :09:09.hospitality. Very smooth at the moment. It was immaculate. It was

:09:10. > :09:23.technical but not in the range that we have seen from Nicholas Goepper.

:09:24. > :09:28.Smiling, always smiling! 89.6. He was given second place in the

:09:29. > :09:33.booth, here. Nicholas Goepper is still in gold. Haatveit in silver.

:09:34. > :09:47.James Woods in the France medal position. One left. He said he left

:09:48. > :09:53.it late to qualify. Well-deserved? And outside shot. Using the double

:09:54. > :10:04.angle to really lock those in. That was nice. Very smooth through the

:10:05. > :10:19.third element. He linked all of those sections together. Finishes

:10:20. > :10:28.the rotation beautifully. He has so much... In the air! Oh, my goodness!

:10:29. > :10:36.Where is this going? That was very tidy. If you were looking for the

:10:37. > :10:41.weak spot, maybe at the top, not as technical as we saw from Nicholas

:10:42. > :10:47.Goepper. Or Haatveit or James Woods. He is looking for it but he is

:10:48. > :10:55.coming that the opposite way. Coming into the switch. And with the

:10:56. > :11:10.benefit of hindsight, that was not quite as brittle as it looked. --

:11:11. > :11:22.brittle. -- brutal. This is really computer Games stuff, nine. -- now.

:11:23. > :11:30.Yes, he can! 95.8. After the first run, Joss Christensen maintains the

:11:31. > :11:39.status quo. First place. Fantastic first run. Hopefully James Woods has

:11:40. > :11:43.somewhere to go with his second run. These glorious mountains that

:11:44. > :11:51.oversee the course down here at the Extreme puck. -- puck. It is the

:11:52. > :12:04.Men's final. This run was so beautiful up to the

:12:05. > :12:16.last kicker. How much pressure would you be under? Absolutely massive

:12:17. > :12:22.enjoy it? None of these guys have ridden at this level before, maybe a

:12:23. > :12:28.television audience of 1 million. Suddenly in front of 2 billion

:12:29. > :12:36.people at the Olympics! Solid, so smooth. Absolutely surgical. That is

:12:37. > :12:43.the hardest, most technical trick we have seen over the big, curved box.

:12:44. > :12:49.Immaculate! Absolutely ridiculous from him. He just needs to hold it

:12:50. > :13:05.together. Backwards for his trouble 14. -- triple. That was absolutely

:13:06. > :13:17.insane! He knows it! He kicks off his skis! And the switch. Talk us

:13:18. > :13:33.through these? Just look at this. Big. Glorious, slow motion, double

:13:34. > :13:42.12. So composed. Tail grab. He puts it down. The second and his head

:13:43. > :13:47.comes down. Both arms under his legs, there, in order to keep his

:13:48. > :14:03.body tucked up and keep that spin going round. Into second! Behind

:14:04. > :14:13.Joss Christensen. America occupying all the medal positions. James Woods

:14:14. > :14:23.needs 92.4 or better for a place on the podium. Come on! The whole of

:14:24. > :14:32.the UK is holding their breath. He has worked so hard with James Woods.

:14:33. > :14:37.Just brings him in. Quick hug. He is probably so pride. Just do have got

:14:38. > :14:55.to this point. He will be enormously happy. James Woods. 450. Again,

:14:56. > :15:09.really solid through this section. 270. Pretzel off. His confidence

:15:10. > :15:15.will be running at this point. Tidy. It will be difficult to improve on

:15:16. > :15:30.this score. Unless we see a triple, here. Well, you have got to give him

:15:31. > :15:34.a round of applause. And I think Goepper, applauding, probably knows

:15:35. > :15:43.that his medal is save at least this run. So close the Woodsy. The rail

:15:44. > :15:52.section was immaculate, nothing you can fault. So, so solid. The grab

:15:53. > :16:03.through their... His first kick, the landing, just sit back a little bit.

:16:04. > :16:07.Just goes really big. You can hear the man saying over the PA that if

:16:08. > :16:12.you have not got the triple, you are not going to bust into the 90s. But

:16:13. > :16:21.his skis are almost parallel there, going the wrong way. Seven J .40. I

:16:22. > :16:30.didn't think it was quite that low, but his first-round score, it was

:16:31. > :16:33.good enough for fifth -- 78.40. And after his hip injury over the last

:16:34. > :16:42.five days, he will be very very pleased with that result. Years, he

:16:43. > :16:51.has done exceptionally well. -- yes. Currently in force, hard -- had

:16:52. > :17:08.Andreas Haatveit. He dropped in W said he is a happy

:17:09. > :17:17.dude and we have seen smiles at the top and bottom of course. When there

:17:18. > :17:22.is no snow, he has won at the bottom of his garden and invites people

:17:23. > :17:34.round. So he has a dry slope as well? Bat is a man who loves his

:17:35. > :17:42.sport. -- that. He used the full flex of those tips just to hold

:17:43. > :17:53.himself on. Switch ten to finish. It is not going to be enough, is it? If

:17:54. > :18:02.Andreas Haatveit doesn't improve, it will be a USA, one, two, three and a

:18:03. > :18:06.victory lap. That is a very impressive feat by the American, to

:18:07. > :18:11.have used only one run in the final. Is he going to use it to

:18:12. > :18:21.showcase his best run? You have got too, haven't you? It is either that

:18:22. > :18:32.or backflips. 91 point AT! After everything we said. It is fourth.

:18:33. > :18:41.So, so close to a bronze. But the Americans have done it. It is the

:18:42. > :18:47.USA lock-out on the podium. Joss Christensen, Gus Kenworthy and Nick

:18:48. > :18:50.Goepper. And that podium will not change because the only man left to

:18:51. > :18:56.drop is this man, Joss Christensen. A lap of honour, where he will

:18:57. > :19:02.descend to claim the gold medal he has already won. My goodness. And

:19:03. > :19:08.you have got to say, the USA are the powerhouse. All four of their skiers

:19:09. > :19:14.making it through to the final. It just goes to show how strong the US

:19:15. > :19:16.team is, for someone to just squeezing for the last spot at the

:19:17. > :19:22.Olympics and they end up taking gold.

:19:23. > :19:31.For 50, 278. 270 at the opposite direction, known as a pretzel,

:19:32. > :19:39.because it will tie you up. -- 450, 270. Taking the same line as Woodsy.

:19:40. > :19:51.He is going to try and improve here, isn't he? Double 14? I think it was

:19:52. > :19:58.the turn. But what an incredible finish to a quite spectacular day of

:19:59. > :20:02.freestyle skiing here at the first-ever men's Olympics slopestyle

:20:03. > :20:07.contest. A huge run from Joss Christensen, considering that he

:20:08. > :20:10.didn't actually need to do that. Good on him for doing that, he could

:20:11. > :20:17.have done some straightforward jumps and just celebrated. The score from

:20:18. > :20:26.the first run stands and that is your podium. At the first ever free

:20:27. > :20:31.skiing slopestyle Olympic contest, it has been an American one, it has

:20:32. > :20:36.been an American one, two, three. Well, I think Woodsy acquitted

:20:37. > :20:40.himself extremely well considering his injury problems. I find myself

:20:41. > :20:43.in a lovely position. A lovely view of the mountains, the Olympic

:20:44. > :20:47.flame, the Olympic Park, absolutely packed today and if we twist around

:20:48. > :20:53.here, we have the Black Sea. It really is very close. That is all of

:20:54. > :20:57.the back of house stuff for the arena where the women have been in

:20:58. > :21:05.action with the ice hockey. Now it is time for the men. In there.

:21:06. > :21:09.Here at the Bolshoy arena in Sochi, the home crowd are gearing up for

:21:10. > :21:13.what they consider to be the biggest event of this year's Winter

:21:14. > :21:20.Olympics, the man's ice hockey tournament. Russia, with a hugely

:21:21. > :21:33.talented roster, R.N. -- are under incredible pressure to deliver gold.

:21:34. > :21:39.We will play with our hearts and this will be a big moment. But if

:21:40. > :21:42.they want to win on home ice, it won't be walking apart. They left

:21:43. > :21:46.Vancouver empty-handed after being knocked out in the quarters by

:21:47. > :21:54.Canada, who went on to to claim the gold. And the man who scored the

:21:55. > :22:01.winning goal, Sidney Crosby, is ready to take on the best in the

:22:02. > :22:05.world again. There are high expectations, as there are a lot of

:22:06. > :22:10.teams, but obviously with Russia plane, a proud hockey nation, they

:22:11. > :22:13.want to have a good showing. Being the defending champions, you have a

:22:14. > :22:19.target on your back, especially being from Canada. It takes place

:22:20. > :22:23.across two venues, where 12 teams will fight it out for the title. The

:22:24. > :22:28.second consecutive Olympics, the NHL has been put on hold. So expect all

:22:29. > :22:33.of the usual thrills and spills as team-mates opponents. You are

:22:34. > :22:37.playing against team-mates, people who know you well and who you know.

:22:38. > :22:41.It'll help you and her true in some ways. The weirdest part is in the

:22:42. > :22:45.village, when you walk by and by wearing different colours and with

:22:46. > :22:51.different guys you usually play against. But when she get out there,

:22:52. > :22:56.everyone knows what you have to do. An age-old rivalry will also

:22:57. > :23:02.re-emerge as Russia face off against the United States, evoking memories

:23:03. > :23:09.of the Miracle On Ice from the 1980s. The United States have beaten

:23:10. > :23:13.the Soviet Union! When I saw we would be playing the Russians in the

:23:14. > :23:18.preliminary rounds, I was really excited. Really? I was, really

:23:19. > :23:19.excited to have that game, and you know it will be in their homeland,

:23:20. > :23:39.displays will be off the charts. Alongside these ice hockey

:23:40. > :23:48.superpowers are current champions Sweden and other European teams.

:23:49. > :23:52.Slovakia have one of the best players in the world in Dino Char,

:23:53. > :23:56.maybe they are medal contenders, but maybe just making bronze. Food you

:23:57. > :24:01.think will cause problems for the big boys? -- who are giving. Finland

:24:02. > :24:06.play with a North American flair, I think they will be a big surprise.

:24:07. > :24:10.So the stage is set for the big one. The final gold medal of this Winter

:24:11. > :24:13.Olympics will be won in this very venue. But which country will be

:24:14. > :24:20.crowned Olympic champion? I cannot wait to find out.

:24:21. > :24:25.Interestingly, the NHL, the National Hockey League in America, have

:24:26. > :24:30.produced a 150 page guide in this tournament, such as their interest,

:24:31. > :24:34.the tournament did start today, the big guns are in action, the USA,

:24:35. > :24:38.Canada and Russia. We will join the second period of Russia against

:24:39. > :24:39.Slovenia. There have been goals in the first period. We can catch up

:24:40. > :24:51.with the highlights. The atmosphere is wonderful. Can the

:24:52. > :24:59.Slovenians not be overawed? There is big danger. He scores! His first

:25:00. > :25:11.shot of the game. Top corner, ice cream of delight. It ripples around

:25:12. > :25:20.the Bolshoy eyes don't well, well, well. The poster boy delivers as

:25:21. > :25:30.they play after side, and he announces his arrival in Sochi. That

:25:31. > :25:32.is pinpoint perfect as he delivers a bullet over the shoulder and into

:25:33. > :25:47.the top of the Slovenia goal. Forward it goes. Malkin, 2-0. The

:25:48. > :25:56.one, to punch delivers. They are devastating. The red machine rolls

:25:57. > :26:11.into Sochi, and it is rolling all over Slovenia. Intoxicating stuff.

:26:12. > :26:14.Lays it off for Malkin. A lot of discussion about these people being

:26:15. > :26:16.rivals, even though they are countrymen, and Malkin hammers it

:26:17. > :26:38.home. A shot and a goal, into the top

:26:39. > :26:41.corner! A wonderful finish. And the power play didn't work and the

:26:42. > :26:59.Slovenians have their first ever Olympic gold. A moment of history

:27:00. > :27:06.for Leglic. Up and over and the first ever Olympic goal is scored

:27:07. > :27:22.here at the Bolshoy Ice Palace in Sochi. That is in a major -- a major

:27:23. > :27:29.achievement in the Bolshoy. What a moment for Slovenia to school at an

:27:30. > :27:34.Olympic Games. And this puts a slightly different complexion on

:27:35. > :27:45.this game. The Russian lead cut in half. Maybe now they can create.

:27:46. > :27:52.Malkin has options. Into Ovechkin, but doesn't pick out a team-mate.

:27:53. > :27:59.Malkin goes to the ice. Ovechkin, the superstar, tries to find Malkin.

:28:00. > :28:24.The two scorers. Deflected wide. The Russians like adversity, just to

:28:25. > :28:28.get the rise. They started so well, but over the second half of the

:28:29. > :28:33.first period, as we look at this play developed, it is a broken play,

:28:34. > :28:40.but that there is a precise finish from that young man, and the

:28:41. > :28:47.Slovenia, their first goal ever scored at the Olympics, and what a

:28:48. > :28:55.moment to put this lead in half. The toast of Ludhiana tonight, no doubt

:28:56. > :28:58.about that. -- of the capital. Irrespective of the scoreline. I'm

:28:59. > :29:03.not sure many Slovenians would have given it a chance of keeping this

:29:04. > :29:20.close after this time. A decent game package. -- of hockey.

:29:21. > :29:33.They look less overwrought now, the Slovenians.

:29:34. > :29:44.They will win possession back here. The Russians look ragged, actually.

:29:45. > :30:02.It has changed, hasn't it, the complexion of the game. Another

:30:03. > :30:13.giveaway and just saved. Varlamov Struggled with it. A clear a zipped

:30:14. > :30:37.effort goes over the top. The Slovenians with an opportunity

:30:38. > :30:45.to settle things down. Big slapshot into the glass and never Russians

:30:46. > :30:56.will break they have a four onto -- on 2.

:30:57. > :31:05.Crossed the line, that was a heat seeker. The Slovenians get it away.

:31:06. > :31:09.Another Russian attack is repelled. The defensive poise Slovenia is the

:31:10. > :31:10.tell-tale sign. It shows everybody they believe they can hang fire with

:31:11. > :31:36.the mighty red machine. Six minutes had gone. A long outlet

:31:37. > :31:37.pass towards the... Now, the Slovenians comeback the other way.

:31:38. > :31:46.Collect possession in the zone. Offside whistle blows. The ice

:31:47. > :32:15.cleaners are ready to come out. Accommodation is a good one at the

:32:16. > :32:19.moment on the bench of the Slovenians. The coach will be happy

:32:20. > :32:27.with what he has seen with his players -- the conversation. Look at

:32:28. > :32:39.the turnover. Varlamov nearly sees that go through him. Not only is

:32:40. > :32:43.Kopitar the star player on the ice for Slovenia, his father is the

:32:44. > :32:49.coach. They are calm, we have a bit of a TV time-out as they sweep the

:32:50. > :32:52.ice and get things organised. There is the Russian support and the

:32:53. > :32:56.Slovenians support out there together on the fourth level inside

:32:57. > :33:00.the Bolshoy. That lime green signature look of the Slovenian

:33:01. > :33:05.national programme. The flags are very similar, actually, the red,

:33:06. > :33:11.blue and white. But the tell-tale sign, as you mentioned, is the lime

:33:12. > :33:15.green. All of the athletes, and a number of them are here in the ring,

:33:16. > :33:18.trying to give their support to the Slovenian hockey players. It is a

:33:19. > :33:26.stat worth repeating that just one in six of all registered mail hockey

:33:27. > :33:29.players in Slovenia is playing in this tournament right now. It just

:33:30. > :33:45.shows what they have been able to achieve by getting here. And they

:33:46. > :33:49.are playing with a great deal of poise right now.

:33:50. > :34:01.Turnover in the zone. Russia clearway with Ovechkin. Well cut out

:34:02. > :34:04.by Slovenia. The question is now, these rising Starts of Russia, are

:34:05. > :34:38.they all brightness and no heat? Mursak with options out in front.

:34:39. > :34:41.Penalty coming. A penalty on the Russians and another power play for

:34:42. > :34:51.Slovenia. A chance for them to try this game up. It is ill disciplined

:34:52. > :34:55.by the Russian defence and when teams start taking penalties,

:34:56. > :34:59.obviously it is a sign of trying to restrain the opposition. And

:35:00. > :35:04.Slovenia right now are coming in force. It is a high stick, and

:35:05. > :35:09.Kopitar gives it right back. For only one penalty to be given,

:35:10. > :35:16.Slovenia are lucky, because Kopitar made no reception with his response.

:35:17. > :35:22.The trade-off is a two-minute power play for the Slovenians. They have

:35:23. > :35:28.five skaters and the aim is to move the puck around and try and isolate

:35:29. > :35:40.the extra person. Find a bit of space with Kopitar.

:35:41. > :35:49.Kopitar at the top. Trying to move it to the high percentage area

:35:50. > :36:01.inside. I thought he had kept it in, but a shake of the head. He is an

:36:02. > :36:05.offensive player, Kopitar, but he plays almost like the quarterback in

:36:06. > :36:15.an American football team, he will argue -- orchestrate the shape,

:36:16. > :36:22.position and eventually the shot coming from that position. A Stanley

:36:23. > :36:28.cup winner, great pictures of he and his dad sharing the cup with his

:36:29. > :36:43.team-mates. For those of you that don't know, Stanley Is the big

:36:44. > :37:04.trophy you can win in your -- in Canada.

:37:05. > :37:12.Kopitar and Ticar working the right-hand side. Nice distribution.

:37:13. > :37:23.Less crisp, bad pass. Kopitar trying to spin off. Ticar helps it on.

:37:24. > :37:35.Loses out, and it is given away. Cleared down the ice.

:37:36. > :37:47.Mursak... Rubbed out. And away it goes, and that will do it the power

:37:48. > :37:51.play, as Russian return -- Russia returned to five skaters. But it is

:37:52. > :37:54.another two minutes of the man-to-man hanging in this game for

:37:55. > :37:57.Slovenia, even if they didn't convert. They had possession for the

:37:58. > :38:02.majority of the time and continue to put questions on the Russian

:38:03. > :38:06.defence. I haven't seen another gear. We saw the incredible start at

:38:07. > :38:11.the Blaze of glory from the Russians to start this game with their

:38:12. > :38:20.superstars, Ovechkin and Malkin, but since then, we haven't seen another

:38:21. > :38:27.Russian goal. We haven't seen another offensive player. Only three

:38:28. > :38:31.shots in the second period through ten minutes, they had 18 in the

:38:32. > :38:38.first 20. That just highlights that they haven't been able to create, as

:38:39. > :38:58.they did. And the locals will start to get a little and see, you

:38:59. > :39:02.suspect. He is the captain. . He is the man who can open things up. Not

:39:03. > :39:08.the most dynamic but he is a very wise orchestrator. He will set the

:39:09. > :39:13.table. But they need to start working harder.

:39:14. > :39:35.Some good skating. The captain, of Slovenia. 21 shots, the total, for

:39:36. > :39:44.Russia at the moment. Only 64 Slovenia. You can see this

:39:45. > :39:49.scoreline. -- six for. This cried behind you, it could become a

:39:50. > :39:59.negative if the Russians do not pick things up.

:40:00. > :40:05.They have been very quiet in this second after dominating in the

:40:06. > :40:10.first. The Russians might be guilty of taking their foot off the gas in

:40:11. > :40:18.the first 20. They had a chance and they did not use it wisely. Slovenia

:40:19. > :40:32.deserve to be in this game. Most possession. -- nice position.

:40:33. > :40:58.Movement towards the net. There are two Rodmans on this team. Marcel and

:40:59. > :41:06.David. The Russian crowd trying to do their bit to get their boys back

:41:07. > :41:24.into this. Chipped into the zone. Side of the net. Great save! He

:41:25. > :41:32.sends this one in five. -- high. Beautifully controlled.

:41:33. > :41:50.They need to play with more of that attitude. This is the passion that

:41:51. > :42:01.this cried wants to see. This is Datsyuk. They need to have more

:42:02. > :42:18.purpose in the offensive zone. He has a back. Great play! The glass

:42:19. > :42:31.wobbles and the crowd is silenced. It goes higher. It gets too tight.

:42:32. > :42:46.His release for the goal was very good, technically.

:42:47. > :43:03.He does brilliantly. Off the back foot. And he is raging in front. The

:43:04. > :43:09.Russians will come and they will generate some fence. But it does not

:43:10. > :43:16.seem to be cohesive as a five-man block. Synchronised in how they want

:43:17. > :43:19.to attack. We watched those Finnish players earlier and the way the

:43:20. > :43:28.overlap and underlay each other and move the puck around, it was

:43:29. > :43:34.amazing. You can see him coming onto the ice. He is in a very good

:43:35. > :43:41.position to get a shot off. He is a leading goal-scorer in the NHL at

:43:42. > :43:46.this moment. A great outside move and that he lost possession coming

:43:47. > :43:51.into that he area. They need a string of three or four plays to

:43:52. > :43:54.generate something because the Slovenians are able to weather this.

:43:55. > :44:01.They have not had the break and they have kept calm. The Russian play has

:44:02. > :44:07.been drawn up on the board and when they have shot from a similar area

:44:08. > :44:11.to where the drawing is, they do far better than when they have comment

:44:12. > :44:16.to make too many passes and it has got to tight. They have allowed

:44:17. > :44:33.Slovenia to get back into full on positions. This is game number one

:44:34. > :44:37.for both of these teams. The USA against Russia is the big match at

:44:38. > :44:42.the weekend. Everyone is looking forward to that. It might be the

:44:43. > :45:01.hottest ticket in town. Great play to take under control. It goes wide

:45:02. > :45:08.of the target. That may very well have got the post. That was a

:45:09. > :45:12.surprise shot. It should not be a surprise that Slovenia will lead and

:45:13. > :45:17.they can make plays happen and they can shoot and school. They will

:45:18. > :45:26.press again, here. People talk about the miracle on ice and if Slovenia

:45:27. > :45:37.when, it will not be too far off. -- win. The miracle on ice was not for

:45:38. > :45:44.the gold medal. Nice play, download. And Rodman was caught between two

:45:45. > :45:48.minds, there, passing and shooting. The Russians can clear this one away

:45:49. > :46:01.and there is just the hint of an opportunity. It is too static for

:46:02. > :46:11.the Russians. You can see the body language, going around the ice ring.

:46:12. > :46:20.They have been disenchanted. That was a hard hat. -- hit.

:46:21. > :46:31.Uncompromising but he is strong, Datsyuk. Getting involved in a bit

:46:32. > :46:35.of a war. We are unlikely to see any fight in this competition. You don't

:46:36. > :46:42.really do that at the Olympic Games, but you never know! There is no

:46:43. > :46:54.reason for it at this stage. This is Datsyuk, trying to come out. And

:46:55. > :46:58.then some, from Russia with Love. That shot goes away from the right

:46:59. > :47:08.bar. That was how close it was. From just a couple of months ago. --

:47:09. > :47:12.moments. The Slovenians have that in nature menders performance. Have

:47:13. > :47:20.they got the energy to continue? Radyulov again.

:47:21. > :47:33.Beautiful. Radyulov, but it was stolen. Datsyuk wins it back. And he

:47:34. > :47:44.then gets knocked to the ice. No penalty called. Really good, great

:47:45. > :47:50.defensive play, that. It was, and that played back to Radyulov, that

:47:51. > :47:58.was a precise, quick movement from the Russians. A moment ago, he would

:47:59. > :48:05.love to have drawn a penalty himself but it was not called. An important

:48:06. > :48:10.moment. Russian power play. And it is the goal-scorer who will sit for

:48:11. > :48:19.two minutes. The look of anguish on his face. He gets the stick in. That

:48:20. > :48:23.was a sloppy play and the way this game has gone, you have a sense that

:48:24. > :48:41.Russia will use this to their advantage. When he looks up, he will

:48:42. > :48:47.see... He cannot win it. That was a big shot from the blue line. And the

:48:48. > :48:53.whistle-blower. Outside the zone, the faceoff came off the Russians

:48:54. > :48:57.stick last. That is the rule. If it was convenient, it would have been

:48:58. > :49:07.faceoff in front of the goal. They will have to work it over the blue

:49:08. > :49:11.line. He changes the formation of his draw for the Slovenians. You

:49:12. > :49:15.cannot even see him on the screen, he is so far away. There he is.

:49:16. > :49:25.Coming back into focus. This is a good time for the Russians

:49:26. > :49:31.to school. It has been a good period for Slovenia but Russia could end

:49:32. > :49:41.any hope with a goal, here. -- scorer. -- score. The options are

:49:42. > :50:20.far away. A one-man advantage not utilised

:50:21. > :50:27.yet. That is really skilful by Malky on.

:50:28. > :50:41.Oh, yes! Took some time, took some space and then picked his corner

:50:42. > :50:46.out. And the penalty comes back to bite the Slovenians right before the

:50:47. > :50:55.end of the second period as Russia extend their lead. A very calm

:50:56. > :51:09.build-up. And right in the middle waiting for the service. It goes

:51:10. > :51:18.right in up under the bar and bounces down and then Malkin taps it

:51:19. > :51:25.in. But there is no question now as they drop the pub. What does it do

:51:26. > :51:30.to the Slovenian spirit? They have been hanging tough all day. Not only

:51:31. > :51:35.have they been up against the Russian side, they have have been up

:51:36. > :51:45.against the crowd, but what can the Russians do with the momentum. In

:51:46. > :51:59.Olympic terms, they are debutants. Have they got the right stuff. They

:52:00. > :52:09.have shown so much in this period. May well get a turnover here, and

:52:10. > :52:10.they do. That allows them... Too many men on the ice for a moment the

:52:11. > :52:28.Russia. -- for Russia. Leglic is through! And it is two!

:52:29. > :52:33.What a response from Slovenia. Russia looked like they were going

:52:34. > :52:37.to pull away but a break from Leglic. He was devastating with his

:52:38. > :52:45.first, he was deadly accurate with his second. And he is the man for

:52:46. > :53:00.Slovenia. Leglic does it again, and he has got a goal itch. He takes it

:53:01. > :53:04.away from those defenders and he knows the far side is available.

:53:05. > :53:14.What a finish, simple and easy, and it is on the board. I am stunned. 68

:53:15. > :53:21.seconds. The Russians with the history, but it is the Slovenians

:53:22. > :53:25.that are showing the spirit here. They have put in a tremendous

:53:26. > :53:29.performance. Whatever happens from here, this has been quite

:53:30. > :53:45.remarkable. From a tiny nation of less than 2 million people.

:53:46. > :53:52.Well we don't get a track of the turnovers in the broadcasting

:53:53. > :54:09.position, but what concerns me about the Russians, they are turning the

:54:10. > :54:14.puck over too much. I would look to see the Kovalchuk goal again, I

:54:15. > :54:18.think it goes in, but it was so quick, Malkin then tapped it in. But

:54:19. > :54:21.the Russians are not making enough place to really show the sort of

:54:22. > :54:28.form they need to if they are serious about getting a medal this

:54:29. > :54:37.tournament. Medvedev sends it in. It bounces off the boards. Ovechkin

:54:38. > :54:44.does shoot but it comes high of the Plexiglas.

:54:45. > :54:54.Ovechkin will be a little concerned, but he never seems to get too

:54:55. > :55:00.serious. Kovalchuk does get credit. Sorry, just going to that goal

:55:01. > :55:02.again. Ovechkin is always poised to shoot, as he will on the straw right

:55:03. > :55:16.now. -- on this draw. It is somewhere underneath the pack

:55:17. > :55:23.as the whistle blows again. Still time to create at least one chance.

:55:24. > :55:28.In fact, so much so, they are going to change lines, the Slovenians, as

:55:29. > :55:32.we look at this again. Ovechkin trying to sniff out an opportunity

:55:33. > :55:36.and again, great coverage download to get on that puck. The Russians

:55:37. > :55:43.use the set pieces to try and get advantage. A horn in the crowd

:55:44. > :55:47.blows. There will be a big noise shortly.

:55:48. > :55:57.The period two is over, a period won by the Slovenians. They trailed

:55:58. > :56:06.3-2. Malky in and Ovechkin to start things off -- Malkin. Kovalchuk

:56:07. > :56:10.extended the lead again but another goal from Jeglic has stretched the

:56:11. > :56:21.game again. Already ahead of the Austrian was

:56:22. > :56:34.the 22-year-old champion Dick Button. John Curry did not put a

:56:35. > :56:36.foot wrong. Robin Cousins completes his programme to a great round of

:56:37. > :56:51.applause. Brian Boitano of the United States

:56:52. > :57:00.banking the Canadian audience. Plushenko, that was a breathtaking

:57:01. > :57:05.performance. The spotlight is on Lysacek. The crowd are on their

:57:06. > :57:16.feet, Lysacek at his very best. I tell you what, Robin Cousins can

:57:17. > :57:22.jump! You could do the triple jump! I don't do that anymore. So, men's

:57:23. > :57:25.downhill, men's figure skating, two of the blue ribbon events. How

:57:26. > :57:33.excited are you for those getting started? Probably as excited as any

:57:34. > :57:36.Olympics since I competed. There is such an energy. Plushenko has come

:57:37. > :57:40.back, there are eight or nine boys who could be in the top three by the

:57:41. > :57:45.end of tonight who know what to do, they are so hungry for it. And the

:57:46. > :57:49.last two days, if they are raping to go by, let's either delete it will

:57:50. > :57:58.be thrilling -- if they are anything to go by. Plushenko wasn't going to

:57:59. > :58:03.be selected, but he was, and he has owned this place so far. He owns

:58:04. > :58:07.every place he goes into, it is always only about him and that is

:58:08. > :58:12.how he has managed to stay around so long. He may not be the person he

:58:13. > :58:16.was when he won in Turin, but he obviously thinks he is capable.

:58:17. > :58:20.There is only so much bravado you can have, you have to be able to

:58:21. > :58:24.back it up. He did well in the team event, skated extremely well in the

:58:25. > :58:27.short programme. We weren't sure how he would deliver the long

:58:28. > :58:32.programme. That performance will not put him on the podium but if it is

:58:33. > :58:35.the least he can do, he has it in him to pull something out. In the

:58:36. > :58:39.commentary for the free programme event, you talked about smoke and

:58:40. > :58:45.mirrors. How does he pull the wool over the judges all tee eyes? He is

:58:46. > :58:48.performing from the waist up, engaging every single person in the

:58:49. > :58:52.audience, down the camera lens, and then if you go below the knees and

:58:53. > :58:57.look at the level of difficulty within the step sequences, in the

:58:58. > :59:02.old days, they didn't have to be that difficult. Now we are requested

:59:03. > :59:07.to do a certain amount of turns, using the blades properly, and for

:59:08. > :59:11.me, it wasn't the best. It is swings and roundabouts, you can find

:59:12. > :59:15.different skaters with different opinions and from different eras,

:59:16. > :59:21.everyone has something to offer, the other doesn't, and that will make

:59:22. > :59:24.that so interesting. So your evaluation is that it Plushenko

:59:25. > :59:29.skates to his best, it is not good enough to win if the rest do their

:59:30. > :59:33.best? It is going to be a really hard push for him. He will think

:59:34. > :59:36.he's the best, no matter what, which is the glory of watching his

:59:37. > :59:45.performance. Who would you look to to get on the podium? The Japanese

:59:46. > :59:49.number one, and very calm in the short programme. But Plushenko in

:59:50. > :59:53.his place, below him. You cannot discount Patrick Chan, the Canadian

:59:54. > :59:57.world champion. He has been up and down but he knows how to work that

:59:58. > :00:00.crowd, as well as the performance. Then you have to look at someone

:00:01. > :00:05.like Hernandez, the European champion from Spain. Who would have

:00:06. > :00:09.thought a Spanish man competing for the Olympic gold medal? But they are

:00:10. > :00:14.there. The Japanese have three great boys, all of whom can deliver a

:00:15. > :00:16.performance that puts them top. You were inside the team event and

:00:17. > :00:20.inside last night for the pairs, both won by Russia. How much

:00:21. > :00:32.difference is that crowd going to make? The Russian skaters feel

:00:33. > :00:37.support. They are incredibly knowledgeable. It might be polite

:00:38. > :00:42.applause from other countries but if you give them the performance, they

:00:43. > :00:47.will give you the credit. They have not wavered under the pressure. It

:00:48. > :00:52.has been phenomenal. And I would expect Plushenko to be buoyed by

:00:53. > :00:58.that support. Figure skating in general, this young 15-year-old, she

:00:59. > :01:06.was captivating. You cannot teach that. You must look at the videos of

:01:07. > :01:11.her aged ten, 11 and 12 and already doing triple jumps. The maturity

:01:12. > :01:16.with which she skates, going out in front of the home crowd, in your

:01:17. > :01:21.very first senior year, but being focused and controlled like that,

:01:22. > :01:24.unbelievable. How she can cope in a few days, you will have to wait

:01:25. > :01:29.because a lot of the ladies have left the country to do training and

:01:30. > :01:37.they will be back and it is another open book. Experience against you. I

:01:38. > :01:42.have to bring it back to Plushenko, what does your gut tell you about

:01:43. > :01:48.where he will in? It would be for medals in four Games. The most for

:01:49. > :01:53.any figure skater? In remarkable achievement and it is tough but if

:01:54. > :02:00.anyone can do it, if there is anyone who can respond to that, it will be

:02:01. > :02:05.Plushenko. That starts at 3pm. Do your preparation and we will look

:02:06. > :02:11.forward to that. From die here, back to the mountains. And the biathlon

:02:12. > :02:23.and cross country center. The ten kilometre classic. Look out for

:02:24. > :02:29.those Norwegians. He was what happened earlier on.

:02:30. > :02:36.The woman's ten kilometre classic. It has been in the cross-country

:02:37. > :02:49.programme from right at the beginning. This is a brutal climb.

:02:50. > :02:56.The first of those lips is the easier. The switchback Texan the

:02:57. > :03:00.lowest part and then it is a very long climb to the highest part. That

:03:01. > :03:06.is where we could see some breaks occurring. Back into the stadium

:03:07. > :03:14.after that look, they then have the hardest one to go. This long descent

:03:15. > :03:21.past the athletes village. And some twists and turns at the far end.

:03:22. > :03:26.Some technical corners which will certainly test Justyna Kolwalczyk.

:03:27. > :03:32.And then that five-minute killer hill climb, that has decided all of

:03:33. > :03:43.those injuries races. I do not expect things to be different today.

:03:44. > :03:59.-- injury and is. -- endurance. For gold medals. Will she add to that

:04:00. > :04:09.today? -- four. What sort of impact can this experienced athletes bring

:04:10. > :04:13.to the party? Charlotte Kalla. Could she become the first woman in

:04:14. > :04:18.history to defend this title? It was freestyle in Vancouver and she made

:04:19. > :04:28.that gold-medal in North America look effortless. It was a wonderful

:04:29. > :04:32.performance. Justyna Kolwalczyk, the reigning champion over 30

:04:33. > :04:43.kilometres. Is this her moment to shine here on her favourite

:04:44. > :04:51.technique? She has won the tour to ski for times and the sprint title

:04:52. > :04:59.once. Her major success is very much below par. -- Tour de ski. Really

:05:00. > :05:09.driving. It is not so much the tech week, it is the tempo. -- technique.

:05:10. > :05:18.This time is going to be impressive. She still has ten seconds to get

:05:19. > :05:30.inside that time. As long as she is within five seconds, that is a good

:05:31. > :05:37.start. Started with gold on the opening day, will she complete her

:05:38. > :05:52.medal collection? The reigning world champion, Therese Johaug. She will

:05:53. > :05:56.be still hungry. She is a monster when it comes to climbing. Dixie

:05:57. > :06:01.Alena Prochazkova. This is where she always gives time on her opponent.

:06:02. > :06:08.It is not always pretty. It is not about technique with Justyna

:06:09. > :06:15.Kolwalczyk, it is about the engine. Let us look at the split. Marit

:06:16. > :06:27.Bjorgen. She has gone for the high tempo. And here comes the current

:06:28. > :06:35.World Cup leader. She is dying, at least five seconds off the pace.

:06:36. > :06:43.Justyna Kolwalczyk leads, then Marit Bjorgen. The German is going very

:06:44. > :07:01.well into this. The defending champion, Charlotte Kalla, in sixth

:07:02. > :07:07.place. You have to admire... She still has such an appetite for the

:07:08. > :07:13.hard work and the training. She is a former world champion. Back in 2009.

:07:14. > :07:16.It would be fantastic if she could roll back the clock and get yourself

:07:17. > :07:23.back in contention for another medal, five years after winning the

:07:24. > :07:28.world crown. Here is Charlotte Kalla, the final hill. They turned

:07:29. > :07:32.to the left and in front of them appears this wall. The same one they

:07:33. > :07:43.had to climb at the end of the sprint. It is absolutely brutal.

:07:44. > :07:53.Coming towards the finish. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen. Will she claim

:07:54. > :07:57.a third Winter Olympic medal? She is getting it absolutely everything as

:07:58. > :08:01.she drives towards the finish. It is a fantastically brave performance

:08:02. > :08:05.from Aino-Kaisa Saarinen. She has left everything out on this course.

:08:06. > :08:13.This is as good as it gets in turns of commitment and effort. Justyna

:08:14. > :08:22.Kolwalczyk is such a gutsy competitor, she never does when she

:08:23. > :08:33.is beaten. -- never knows. She is way inside the time of Charlotte

:08:34. > :08:39.Kalla. 22 seconds. Charlotte Kalla, heading towards the finish. What can

:08:40. > :08:43.she managed to produce? It was the steepest part of the incline that

:08:44. > :08:52.resulted in her getting away from everybody. She is the defending

:08:53. > :08:58.champion. No one has ever won this crime in successive Games. This is

:08:59. > :09:01.Marit Bjorgen, heading towards the base of that really sharp incline.

:09:02. > :09:06.She was detached at the last checkpoint. Here comes Charlotte

:09:07. > :09:13.Kalla, inside the slipstream at the moment. Switching tracks. She is

:09:14. > :09:23.pushing, watching the clock. They currently do, 28.48.1. No woman has

:09:24. > :09:29.ever defended this title. What an effort from Charlotte Kalla. Into

:09:30. > :09:35.the lead. She has gained another two seconds on Aino-Kaisa Saarinen. That

:09:36. > :09:45.could be crucial. And here is Marit Bjorgen, slipping and sliding. But

:09:46. > :09:49.the most brutal of climbs. Justyna Kolwalczyk, around the corner. She

:09:50. > :10:00.dreaded so much excitement when she won the 30 K, four years later, on

:10:01. > :10:04.her favourite technique, will it be gold again for the Polish woman?

:10:05. > :10:10.Overcoming ankle problems earlier this year. She was out of the

:10:11. > :10:15.medals. They think this is good enough for gold. What a performance!

:10:16. > :10:19.What a commitment from Justyna Kolwalczyk. Could it be that she has

:10:20. > :10:27.once again delivered a gold performance here, four years after

:10:28. > :10:36.her victory in Vancouver? She was agonisingly close to a medal in the

:10:37. > :10:41.skiathlon. Marit Bjorgen, already has a gold medal in the skiathlon

:10:42. > :10:47.and she said anything else was a bonus. She picked up bronze in

:10:48. > :10:58.Vancouver. Can she raised something in the last 150 Metres to give

:10:59. > :11:13.herself a chance of a bronze medal? The iron Lady can she get a medal?

:11:14. > :11:18.She will finish outside the time of Aino-Kaisa Saarinen. She does not

:11:19. > :11:21.add to her glittering array of gold, silver and bronze medals with this

:11:22. > :11:32.event but you cannot take anything away from her commitment. Therese

:11:33. > :11:37.Johaug. Driving, pushing, can she get roles? She got fourth place in

:11:38. > :11:44.the skiathlon, she does not want to miss out. Yes, Therese Johaug is on

:11:45. > :11:50.the podium, she finds something heroic in the last few hundred

:11:51. > :11:54.Metres. And what about that reaction from Justyna Kolwalczyk? She is such

:11:55. > :12:01.a tough competitor, she is so passionate and she rarely shows

:12:02. > :12:05.emotion. Once again, the golden girl from Poland and the crowd will

:12:06. > :12:15.celebrate. A second Winter Olympic gold medal. The best chance for gold

:12:16. > :12:21.for Justyna Kolwalczyk and she has delivered that in style. Tetyana

:12:22. > :12:28.Antypenko -- Therese Johaug, she upgrades.

:12:29. > :12:34.That is a brutal sport, the aerobic engine of the Games. Very good

:12:35. > :12:40.performance from Justyna Kolwalczyk. Back in the hockey... Russia are up

:12:41. > :12:53.against Slovenia. The tribal expect more from the home nation. I was

:12:54. > :12:57.speaking with the President of the Federation and he said this would be

:12:58. > :13:03.the biggest result in Slovenian sporting history, should they get

:13:04. > :13:06.victory here. They will have to defend well to do anything like that

:13:07. > :13:18.and they need another couple of golds. -- golds. To become under

:13:19. > :13:23.that -- to be poised, that is an indication of just how relaxed they

:13:24. > :13:32.are, even within this potentially historic moment for their programme.

:13:33. > :13:39.Chip and chase. Quickly back onto it. There is space for the Russians

:13:40. > :13:50.to break forward. If they use this wisely, they can create something

:13:51. > :13:59.big. It does not make. For Valeri Nichushkin. They may get a couple of

:14:00. > :14:16.opportunities but they have not had enough and am to really push on. And

:14:17. > :14:17.you watch great defensive play. Robert Kristan has been doing his

:14:18. > :14:41.jump all day in the Slovenian gold. -- goal. The response is good.

:14:42. > :14:50.Slovenia in possession, good possession also. He will hold on and

:14:51. > :14:58.the whistle will blow. Offensive zone face-off. The defensive stance

:14:59. > :15:02.of the Russians is very evident as it are retreating from putting too

:15:03. > :15:06.much pressure in the offensive zone and is trying to turn it over, they

:15:07. > :15:09.don't want to take a chance with the scoreline as it currently heads.

:15:10. > :15:13.That is where the Slovenians have hurt them on the break. They have

:15:14. > :15:28.pulled back that this is a dangerous game to play, playing defence for

:15:29. > :15:34.the rest of this period. An overpressure start to come? -- when

:15:35. > :15:35.will the pressure starts to come? Chipped over the top on the

:15:36. > :15:51.redirect. Slovenia go on the change. Gets the

:15:52. > :15:57.chip in front, then stands they and watches. Yes, waiting for return

:15:58. > :16:01.service, waiting for it to come back, but they have to work harder,

:16:02. > :16:10.the Russians, as they turn it over again. With a bit of speed they come

:16:11. > :16:22.back the other way. This could be danger. The puck doesn't go in, or

:16:23. > :16:27.does it? The red light is on. The Russians will celebrate this one,

:16:28. > :16:37.and I'm sure it will go upstairs. Did you see it crossed the line?

:16:38. > :16:43.Well, unfortunately this is a no-go. Becomes like a rocket maa cuts in

:16:44. > :16:47.the middle of the eyes. Let's watch it again. -- the middle of the ice.

:16:48. > :16:52.He takes the goal out, maybe you are right, that is a goal. We did not

:16:53. > :17:00.see that from our position, but here it is and that should be awarded as

:17:01. > :17:03.a goal. He obviously knows more than we did from our vantage point, but

:17:04. > :17:08.that should be a goal. Good job by the officials to go over to the

:17:09. > :17:16.timekeeper bench and review it. That is without doubt across the line

:17:17. > :17:23.before they come off the moorings. The two captains skate away.

:17:24. > :17:34.Razinger looks resigned. I will be stunned if this is not given. I

:17:35. > :17:38.can't believe it was that smooth, the puck Sorter kicked itself out

:17:39. > :17:46.freely, and we didn't realise it had gone in with the initial rush.

:17:47. > :17:55.Nichuskin will get the credit for the goal. Let's have a look at it.

:17:56. > :18:00.He never touches it again. A natural momentum carries it through the

:18:01. > :18:04.legs. Now the Russians starting to respond when they realise it will be

:18:05. > :18:10.awarded. The discussion continues on the Slovenian bench. You could not

:18:11. > :18:16.see the puck crossed the line. You only saw it on the wrong side of the

:18:17. > :18:26.net after it was removed. What a response, and a shake of the cheque

:18:27. > :18:30.-- head from the coach. The Russians doubled their advantage, and ugly

:18:31. > :18:34.goal, but a goal. A goal that the home fans will be quite happy to

:18:35. > :18:53.discuss the bars around Sochi tonight. -- in the bars.

:18:54. > :19:00.Have the Slovenians got another goal in them?

:19:01. > :19:06.It's been the second unit that has done so well. Nichuskin, the

:19:07. > :19:16.goal-scorer. No offside given, tries to feed it,

:19:17. > :19:40.but well blocked. Really good defensive play.

:19:41. > :19:47.Takes a bad deflection, but takes it on with his feet.

:19:48. > :20:12.I think there is more in store. Now the goal has gone in and the crowd

:20:13. > :20:19.is ignited, whilst it was a sloppy goal, his matches the execution,

:20:20. > :20:23.because of the net coming off at first sight, but you can still

:20:24. > :20:32.expect the Russian to take something from this.

:20:33. > :20:41.Medvedev, finishes well on the hit. A pause for a moment as this one is

:20:42. > :20:52.building again. Nice defensive play. Second opportunity from the knees,

:20:53. > :21:05.but denied twice. Very impressive from the

:21:06. > :21:14.Slovenians, who continue to come. Quite rightly, these should not be

:21:15. > :21:27.in the same weight division. Nichushkin has it again, the

:21:28. > :21:33.goal-scorer, the man who made it 4-2.

:21:34. > :21:48.Swinging the opportunity, Nichushkin again. A big shot from the blue

:21:49. > :22:00.line, but over the top of everybody. It came from Anton Belov. The

:22:01. > :22:03.Slovenians are running around a bit in their own zone. Just wide of the

:22:04. > :22:29.target. Wonderful strike! Beautiful

:22:30. > :22:34.slapshot, Anton Belov. A bolt from the blue. And now normal service is

:22:35. > :22:45.resumed. Belov receives the accolades. Now

:22:46. > :22:53.they are on their feet and the flags fly high. This venue marches to the

:22:54. > :23:01.drum of the Russian band. And there it is Belov ringing the bell. Look

:23:02. > :23:09.at the stick curl as he blasts it up and over the blocker's side. More

:23:10. > :23:22.cowbell is what they wanted, and the Russian fans are excited now.

:23:23. > :23:29.This is the scoreline we were probably expecting, 5-2, 6-2, but it

:23:30. > :23:33.has been so much closer. In a similar way to the Japanese in the

:23:34. > :23:43.women's competition, the lowest ranked side has come in and worked

:23:44. > :23:49.very, very hard and looked the part. Tarasenko, when low. The Russians

:23:50. > :23:51.are on their toes now. -- went low. Anything could happen from here.

:23:52. > :24:14.They have so much firepower. Anisimov blaze that one in. In

:24:15. > :24:17.football terms, this is like having Reynaldo -- Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney,

:24:18. > :24:25.it's like the all stars, the best players in the world. And an

:24:26. > :24:31.impressive performance from this man, who collected one of those

:24:32. > :24:36.goals, the fourth. He just had so much speed and power, Nichushkin. He

:24:37. > :24:42.just makes the decision, and he made it somewhere halfway up the ice that

:24:43. > :24:45.he was going to go and cause mayhem in front of the Slovenian goal. We

:24:46. > :24:52.will see what happens. He does more than that, he just stings the

:24:53. > :24:56.Slovenian hopes with a fourth goal, and who saw the reaction from the

:24:57. > :25:01.coach of Slovenia. They know the game was just getting away from

:25:02. > :25:05.them, and now with the fifth, it's a long way to combat the Slovenia now

:25:06. > :25:14.to really try and get points in this game. And watch Belov again. Oh,

:25:15. > :25:25.my. The old Russian faithful. He drops the hammer.

:25:26. > :25:35.A shot from Slovenia from the blue line.

:25:36. > :25:42.It went high on the far side, and nearly beat the blocker. Well, he

:25:43. > :26:09.did beat the blocker, but he also beat the net.

:26:10. > :26:24.Easy enough though, that one for Markov. The options are there.

:26:25. > :26:37.Rodman, Now in his 30s. Open ice to skating, and this is

:26:38. > :26:47.where he is dangerous. -- to skate in. He misses high.

:26:48. > :27:06.Medvedev with the crossing pass. Malkin snuff out -- snuff out by

:27:07. > :27:18.three. There is the scorer of the fifth goal, Anton Belov. There it is

:27:19. > :27:19.one more time. He has rung the bell himself as he goes away and

:27:20. > :27:34.celebrates. A talented young player. Good

:27:35. > :27:39.skating, into the offensive zone. Mersak Still has it, but unable to

:27:40. > :27:50.finish it. Now there is trouble at the other end. A hard-hit coming on

:27:51. > :27:57.the play. The puck is released and Slovenia have it again. They do work

:27:58. > :28:01.hard. They work hard to get back in defensive positions and they skate

:28:02. > :28:03.well. Every single opportunity they have to compete and get the puck

:28:04. > :28:15.back, they don't give up. Goes cross corner. It is a soft

:28:16. > :28:17.dump. We will explain those in a moment. Soft dumps are nothing bad,

:28:18. > :28:40.don't worry. Now moving forward. Maybe looking

:28:41. > :28:45.for more. Belov, On the blue. Just explain when I say a soft dump, what

:28:46. > :28:50.am I talking about? It is territorial. Control. You try to put

:28:51. > :28:54.the puck in a soft space to pursue it and put pressure on the defence.

:28:55. > :28:57.I sometimes call it a pressure puck, where you put it in an area

:28:58. > :29:03.that gives you the advantage and then you can try and win it back in

:29:04. > :29:08.a better area on the ice. Sort of like an up and under in rugby, quite

:29:09. > :29:10.possibly. You know you will possibly give possession away, but you might

:29:11. > :29:21.gain it back in a better position. The difficulty here is, as soon as

:29:22. > :29:27.you turn your back, the forwards are trying to get the puck behind the

:29:28. > :29:30.defence and make them turn, so if you turn, you lose track of the

:29:31. > :29:34.player other than the one pursuing you, so that is where you make

:29:35. > :29:38.mistakes. Get the puck behind them and see if you can cause pressure.

:29:39. > :29:44.The Russians having a bit of pressure themselves, and they are

:29:45. > :29:45.taking a penalty. This will give the Slovenians the extra man advantage,

:29:46. > :30:08.and maybe the chance to school. -- to score. Artem Anisimov puts the

:30:09. > :30:15.pressure on. There are a number of different penalties. It will cost it

:30:16. > :30:32.going off very period of two minutes or less. -- going off for a period.

:30:33. > :30:35.Obviously, minor and major penalties and the management of this penalties

:30:36. > :30:39.and your physicality throughout the game and your discipline is so

:30:40. > :30:44.important because it will limit or create opportunities with the

:30:45. > :30:49.advantage or disadvantage and this is an opportunity for Slovenia to

:30:50. > :30:58.get this game back within only two goals. If you treat someone up, two

:30:59. > :31:12.minutes but if you had someone at stake punch them, you will get done.

:31:13. > :31:18.-- hit someone with your stick. It is only illegal if it gets seen!

:31:19. > :31:30.Make some noise. This is a power play, an extra man advantage. They

:31:31. > :31:39.have two utilise this, they need to score. Anze Kopitar. Possession

:31:40. > :31:43.gained. Playing up front, he had a stint on the back-end of the power

:31:44. > :31:56.play Addie Hazard, he is there superstar. Forced back in to

:31:57. > :32:01.neutralise. Anze Kopitar, he is the man they will want to remain but he

:32:02. > :32:16.has orchestrated a good offence across the line. Back to Jan Mursak.

:32:17. > :32:21.He was denied twice. He is quite happy just to keep possession for

:32:22. > :32:28.Russia and kill some time. 50 seconds remain on the power play for

:32:29. > :32:35.Slovenia. That is a great clearance by Yevgeny Medvedev. A red wall

:32:36. > :32:57.confronts him. Ziga Jeglic is on it. What can they

:32:58. > :33:00.come up with? Good play by the Slovenians to keep them under

:33:01. > :33:11.pressure. Working this one really hard. On the blue line, if you want

:33:12. > :33:29.some. Assessing the options. All-out war going on in front of the net. He

:33:30. > :33:39.was sat upon, there, wasn't he? The Slovenians are going to the net and

:33:40. > :33:52.that was a good shot. It is a little bit of popping it over. Ride them,

:33:53. > :34:00.cowboy, in front! 5-2, in favour of the Russians. Time is running out

:34:01. > :34:04.for Slovenia. It has been a heroic effort as the Russians look for

:34:05. > :34:20.more. The power play comes to a close. 11,633 in this facility. This

:34:21. > :34:26.is a 15,000 seat facility but there is just so much media that it

:34:27. > :34:32.reduces. But this is a cathedral for ice hockey. The President of

:34:33. > :34:37.Slovenia will be here at the weekend, as will the President of

:34:38. > :34:56.Russia. There is the small matter of Russia versus USA. Again you can see

:34:57. > :35:01.on the BBC. -- again. -- a game. They have had to work for it and

:35:02. > :35:14.perhaps that is the best kind of win in these early Games. Here is David

:35:15. > :35:28.Rodman. Tomaz Razingar, holding on a little bit. The referee will want

:35:29. > :35:35.him to let go. There is a break. This could be a problem. That was a

:35:36. > :35:53.decent save in the end. The puck went all the way back. One of the

:35:54. > :36:04.elite. From the Pittsburgh Penguins. He is integral to Russia's hopes.

:36:05. > :36:10.Strong play defensively by Russia but still Slovenia with possession.

:36:11. > :36:27.The side of the net! That was really close from Rodman. Evgeni Malkin

:36:28. > :36:39.clears. That was a lovely pass. He gave and he went. Cleared away.

:36:40. > :36:44.There could be a break here. Jan Mursak lost possession but he will

:36:45. > :36:53.be hit hard. Nearly a chance from Anze Kopitar. Half-hearted from

:36:54. > :36:59.everybody. Wide from Ziga Jeglic. It feels like a training game. The

:37:00. > :37:08.Russians have 16 from the National hockey League. That is a nine hour

:37:09. > :37:24.difference from North America. Perhaps some fatigue setting in.

:37:25. > :37:33.This is a good learning experience. Great puck possession.

:37:34. > :37:44.Robert Sabolic. Big contact. He controls that well, no. And he

:37:45. > :38:02.cannot clear the zone. They will look to recycle and eventually...

:38:03. > :38:10.Anton Belov will clear that. Two minutes remaining. We have seen a

:38:11. > :38:22.few things today. That is more good skill. And they come away. Big shot.

:38:23. > :38:34.Valeri Nichushkin. He has had a very good game. He is the one player who

:38:35. > :38:47.has kept going all day, Valeri Nichushkin. ?176! I don't believe

:38:48. > :38:58.that, he is a very big boy! Once this red Russian train gets on the

:38:59. > :39:02.track, you want to get off. The way that Valeri Nichushkin converted, it

:39:03. > :39:08.is very impressive, their power and speed. Have Russia looked like a

:39:09. > :39:16.team under pressure? Not necessarily but 18 that needs to play better in

:39:17. > :39:22.their next match. The Slovenians have played a very clever and very

:39:23. > :39:26.determined brand of hockey. And they have also been very applied, they

:39:27. > :39:30.have executed when they had a chance and they have been very resourceful

:39:31. > :39:35.but the Russians have also been wasteful. Trying to do too much to

:39:36. > :39:39.entertain this big ride at home. And they often do that, they remind me

:39:40. > :39:43.of the French rugby team. When things are going well, they are

:39:44. > :39:48.unstoppable but when you break them down, all of a sudden there is

:39:49. > :39:57.emotional confusion and some congestion and they can become

:39:58. > :40:14.breakable. Could not quite excited that pass. Alexei Emelin back in his

:40:15. > :40:17.own end. -- execute that pass. He wanted that the other way. A bit of

:40:18. > :40:34.possession, this. Controlling nicely. It is keep away

:40:35. > :40:44.from the Russians. They will count down the clock. Very shortly you

:40:45. > :40:49.will hear this place erupting. There you go. The home fans are happy,

:40:50. > :40:56.Russia starts with a win, beating Slovenia. Not the greatest

:40:57. > :41:03.performance but a few moments of magic along the way. But is it

:41:04. > :41:09.enough to convince that they could go on to get a gold medal? Hard to

:41:10. > :41:14.tell, there are a number of great teams still today. The Russians have

:41:15. > :41:19.started but they have got a long way to go to build on that performance

:41:20. > :41:25.to go. Russia run-out as the victors against Slovenia.

:41:26. > :41:31.After a sticky second period, Russia comes through. One of their big

:41:32. > :41:36.rivals, USA, will play at the same time. The other venue, some

:41:37. > :42:00.psychological warfare from the organisers. There were lots of goals

:42:01. > :42:11.on this one. -- in this one. He fires and scorers! -- scores! And

:42:12. > :42:34.the Americans are on the board first.

:42:35. > :42:53.Here is the turnover. He shoots and scorers! -- scores! Slovakia would

:42:54. > :43:01.be happy with that first period. This is what Slovakia will do. They

:43:02. > :43:09.will sit out and wait. Just a nice little shovel step and a beautiful

:43:10. > :43:20.shot on Jonathan. Captain at the line. Knocked down. Callaghan tries

:43:21. > :43:32.to wrap it around. Popping the puck along the board. Look at that, the

:43:33. > :43:39.other way. Ryan McDonagh, he has been the best new range this year

:43:40. > :43:48.with some nice defensive play. And he scorers! And the Americans retake

:43:49. > :43:55.the lead. Going back to Ryan McDonagh. He skated up the ice.

:43:56. > :44:06.Recognises that his team-mates are going on the change so he gets it in

:44:07. > :44:28.deep. He goes down to protect the puck. Kept in. Another chance! The

:44:29. > :44:33.USA fourth line lights up. 3-1. Comes over to stop his team-mate in

:44:34. > :44:40.the wide open net. Three goals in just over two minutes in the second

:44:41. > :44:53.period. 20 seconds late in the American power play. Kessel again.

:44:54. > :45:06.Kessel attacks the net. His shot is deflected. Kessel again. The loose

:45:07. > :45:21.puck! Where is it? It is in the net! Racegoer. Kessel finally hangs it

:45:22. > :45:41.in. -- banks. - bangs. Kessel whacking added. It was like a

:45:42. > :45:48.baseball game here. It was bouncing. Dancing through the neutral zone.

:45:49. > :45:53.Chipset in, and he can't get the shot away. -- chips it in.

:45:54. > :46:08.Slovakia getting a change, the long bomb hops over the stick. Backes.

:46:09. > :46:27.Into the glass. . Loose puck in front of the US net. It stays out.

:46:28. > :46:39.The nearside, Stastny chips it out, and the US escape a great chance.

:46:40. > :46:50.Here is Paul Stastny, he scores! His left leg looks badly injured,

:46:51. > :47:01.Marchenko. And Stastny makes it 5-1. I think -- I think Jonathan Quick

:47:02. > :47:04.owes him a favour. He remembered what he was like playing street

:47:05. > :47:16.hockey commie goes the other way and it goes right to Paul Stastny. He's

:47:17. > :47:29.looked really good on the power play, jumping up, good defensively,

:47:30. > :47:40.nice job by Paul Stastny. Martin takes the past. He is pushed off the

:47:41. > :47:52.park. Regains it in centre. The passes in behind Kessel.

:47:53. > :48:13.Along glove by Quick. Phil Kessel scores for the United States.

:48:14. > :48:19.Welcome to the copy -- hockey game Peter Budaj. The first one he faces

:48:20. > :48:28.is just a tick tack Blake from Phil Kessel. It comes all the way up,

:48:29. > :48:34.nice strength on the pass to Kessler. Quick puck movement, all

:48:35. > :48:35.the time in the world for the USA to make the play, and they will make

:48:36. > :49:02.you pay. Great puck movement, dominating on

:49:03. > :49:07.the scoreboard, 15-3 in the face-off circle. The Slovakians have been

:49:08. > :49:14.chasing all right. Now, Kessel in the corner. To the near boards,

:49:15. > :49:18.holding the puck up high. A nice backhand saucer pass. Dustin Brown

:49:19. > :49:29.this time. A frustrated and disconsolate

:49:30. > :49:35.Slovakian bench as the Americans are running it up. He hasn't even taken

:49:36. > :49:43.his helmet off, and he is still fuming. Let's give the youngster the

:49:44. > :49:49.benefit of the doubt, but you see him standing around, 68, blue, doing

:49:50. > :49:54.it the entire period. No step upon Dustin Brown. No awareness by the

:49:55. > :49:55.Slovakian team of whether US players are on the offensive zone and it is

:49:56. > :50:05.gift after gift. If you're joining us, quite a

:50:06. > :50:09.dramatic day for team GB. We have the slopestyle earlier on with James

:50:10. > :50:12.Woods. But he has had an injury problem, a bad training for and

:50:13. > :50:17.ended up in fifth, which was creditable. Then a surprise finalist

:50:18. > :50:23.in the 500 metres short track, the first time there's ever been a woman

:50:24. > :50:26.make the final, but she was disqualified, but is still in great

:50:27. > :50:32.form, heading to her favoured events, the 1000 metres. Then there

:50:33. > :50:39.was Lizzie Yarnold, Britain's brightest hope for a gold medal. You

:50:40. > :50:44.always feel nervous before you compete or train in the skeleton.

:50:45. > :50:49.It's something where you need to feel aware of being nervous, because

:50:50. > :50:55.it can be quite dangerous. But it is the thrill and the adrenaline that I

:50:56. > :50:58.really love. As you walk to the starting block, you have to be

:50:59. > :51:01.completely focused, yet really exhilarated and ready to produce a

:51:02. > :51:07.lot of power, and Sprint really fast.

:51:08. > :51:14.As soon as I am into position, I'm completely relaxed, and I breathe

:51:15. > :51:19.out, and I let my body mould into the sled. I have come so far in just

:51:20. > :51:24.a very short three years. When I came into the programme, Amy Lewis

:51:25. > :51:29.had won the gold medal, and it was the same team she had around her

:51:30. > :51:33.that is around me, so I slot into the athlete position in the amazing

:51:34. > :51:44.opportunity that is skeleton. Your mind takes over. The peripheral

:51:45. > :51:47.vision and everything takes over and you are feeling the interaction

:51:48. > :51:52.between you and the ice, and it is all your senses working at 100 mph.

:51:53. > :51:57.There is no perfect run. There's always something you can improve on.

:51:58. > :52:01.A slight angle into the corner, the speed, the line, there are different

:52:02. > :52:07.lines you can take on one or the other corner. It is not only about

:52:08. > :52:12.doing well against other athletes, it's seeing how good I can be

:52:13. > :52:21.against myself. I am so proud to say that my whole -- main competition is

:52:22. > :52:26.in my team. Shelley is a great ambassador. She was part of the

:52:27. > :52:30.programme I've got into in 2008. She has so much experience. We are

:52:31. > :52:35.friends away from the track, but once we are in the starting block,

:52:36. > :52:39.like any other athlete, she is my rival. Her performance has pushed me

:52:40. > :52:43.to be better, because I know I cannot let up. Every session means

:52:44. > :52:45.everything. Every gymnasium session, sliding session, I have to be the

:52:46. > :53:08.best version of me that I can. A very impressive slide. World Cup

:53:09. > :53:11.champion, Lizzy Yarnold. The great things about the Olympics is that

:53:12. > :53:16.it's a magical event -- the great thing. It's only my first Olympics,

:53:17. > :53:20.someone taking one step at a time. I hope to perform at my best, and I'm

:53:21. > :53:33.unbelievably motivated. So, fingers crossed.

:53:34. > :53:39.And you can see highlights of those first two runs coming up a little

:53:40. > :53:44.later, but it is fair to say that Lizzy Yarnold has made the perfect

:53:45. > :53:47.start, nearly half a second in front after the first two runs, and you

:53:48. > :53:57.can see the final runs starting tomorrow at 3:30pm. Lizzy Backes

:53:58. > :54:03.going for gold. Shelley Rudman is 11th after her first two runs. --

:54:04. > :54:38.Lizzy Yarnold. Completely annihilating the

:54:39. > :54:46.competition. Two gold medals to the Dutch, they are loving it.

:54:47. > :54:58.Another clean sweep by the Dutch. She has won the first medal ever for

:54:59. > :54:59.the ladies of the Netherlands in the final. Fantastic performance there

:55:00. > :55:13.by the Dutch. Holland house it's known as now, and

:55:14. > :55:18.we already have had a winner of the 3000 metres. Two Americans to look

:55:19. > :55:31.out for. We will join them live shortly, but one of the early

:55:32. > :55:35.starters has laid down a marker. Zhang Hong Doing her best to get

:55:36. > :55:44.into the medals. She was sixth in scope -- Salt Lake

:55:45. > :55:48.City when they skated over that 5000 and 10,000. She was seventh in the

:55:49. > :55:53.thousand metres on this very nice in March of last year. Christine

:55:54. > :56:05.Nesbitt made her Olympic debut insuring. She got a silver in the

:56:06. > :56:15.six lap pursuit -- in children -- Turin. Then in Vancouver she got the

:56:16. > :56:22.goal. A personal best for Nesbitt is 1.12.68. She has a season best of

:56:23. > :56:29.1.13 .77. The Chinese competitor, Zhang Hong, as a season best of

:56:30. > :56:35.1.13.82. Remember, Zhang Hong not particularly quick over the opening

:56:36. > :56:39.200. A good opening effort from both skaters. Nesbitt had a hip problem

:56:40. > :56:44.earlier this month, and also an eating disorder where she could not

:56:45. > :56:51.eat certain products, but it's not showing here. It is the bell this

:56:52. > :56:56.time. Can they maintain it? Look where the market is for the leading

:56:57. > :57:02.time. Zhang Hong is absolutely blazing away around the ice. If she

:57:03. > :57:09.can continue with this kind of tempo she could do a long 15, or a 16, and

:57:10. > :57:14.that is getting close to the rink record. I said this would be a fair

:57:15. > :57:18.pairing, and it is certainly reflected. Coming into the finishing

:57:19. > :57:21.straight, lining up the run. Zhang Hong coming up to the line. Let's

:57:22. > :57:30.look at the finishing time. Look at that. 3.13 seconds off the previous

:57:31. > :57:34.leader's time, and we have in charge of the contest, Zhang Hong of China.

:57:35. > :57:46.And the Vancouver gold medallist, Christine Nesbitt, she going -- is

:57:47. > :57:55.going 1.15.62. So Zhang Hong with a new record. That is sometime. That

:57:56. > :58:00.is a marvellous time. She really went out hard, and maintained the

:58:01. > :58:07.speed during the last lap. Sitting nice and deep, full extension of the

:58:08. > :58:13.leg. The boots are custom-made, so they are only made for each

:58:14. > :58:17.individual. I'm sure she could go so much quicker if she had kept her

:58:18. > :58:21.upper body a little bit more still, and the high-5 from the coach as she

:58:22. > :58:30.goes past, that says it all. Could that be the gold medal skate?

:58:31. > :58:37.The marker certainly laid down by the Chinese athlete. We will join

:58:38. > :58:42.the action live. And before you talk about this, have you recovered from

:58:43. > :58:46.the drama of earlier on with Elise Christie?

:58:47. > :58:53.The answer is no. I don't think I'll ever recover from. I called a winner

:58:54. > :58:58.in short track, and that was history in the making, but will talk about

:58:59. > :59:02.it over it over and over again, but Elise Christie, she blazed away, and

:59:03. > :59:07.instead of going underneath or outside the skates, she literally

:59:08. > :59:14.tried to go through Fontana because she was so inspired to try and rob

:59:15. > :59:18.her of a medal. Would you agree? I would indeed. What we must draw from

:59:19. > :59:21.that is that Christie is in the unequivocal form of her life,

:59:22. > :59:25.nothing will face, and I think we're going to hear a lot more about her,

:59:26. > :59:35.particularly in the thousand metres. The skaters almost ready to get

:59:36. > :59:42.underway here. And as you can see, we have Wang of China, and Erbanova

:59:43. > :59:48.of the Czech Republic. The fastest 200 we have had so far is 17.94. The

:59:49. > :59:55.leader, still sitting right up there, Zhang Hong, and I think she

:59:56. > :00:03.will stay there sometime. Although they've gone away quick, it's about

:00:04. > :00:07.sustaining the effort. Wang moving to the outer lane, her team-mate on

:00:08. > :00:12.the leaderboard in first position. She will know what she has to do.

:00:13. > :00:16.Incidentally, there has never been a Chinese skater that has won an

:00:17. > :00:21.Olympic gold medal at 1000 metres, so this could be a first. You can

:00:22. > :00:31.see the mark across the rink, which is the time marker for Zhang this

:00:32. > :00:36.the same scenario as the 500, when she's not a good starter, skated the

:00:37. > :00:42.fastest lap of the 500 competition, and then had to settle for fourth,

:00:43. > :00:45.first loser, a non-podium visitor. We saw the smile on her face after

:00:46. > :00:55.the time here, and I think she will sit there sometime. the latest to

:00:56. > :01:01.skaters to complete the distance. Erbanova of the Czech Republic has

:01:02. > :01:10.gone into third position with that time, just shy of the leader, and

:01:11. > :01:21.Wang Beixing of China is fifth. Erbanova of the Czech Republic is

:01:22. > :01:30.1.7 seconds off the time of Zhang, it is enormous. Zhang did set the

:01:31. > :01:34.track record here, 1:14.02, and Erbanova no really pushing on to get

:01:35. > :01:40.the best possible time she can achieve -- now really.

:01:41. > :01:45.Unfortunately, that 1.7 seconds difference off the leader is huge.

:01:46. > :01:48.It certainly is, and you were making reference earlier to the fact that

:01:49. > :01:55.China have never won the gold in this. They did get a silver in 1992

:01:56. > :01:59.and a bronze in 1994. That is what they do, they warm up on those

:02:00. > :02:16.standing bikes. That is how they are robustly get themselves organised.

:02:17. > :02:24.-- aerobically. Now, Angermueller and Kaylin Irvine I'm from Canada.

:02:25. > :02:32.Irvine making her Olympic debut. 13th in the world singles

:02:33. > :02:37.championships back in March. And Angermueller, actually one place

:02:38. > :02:45.better in 12th. Angermueller competed in Vancouver in the 1500,

:02:46. > :02:53.the 1,000 and the 500th. But the trophy cabinet was empty after that.

:02:54. > :03:09.-- the 500. I think that was. By Angermueller, but we have to weight.

:03:10. > :03:15.It was marginal, wasn't it? I think it was Irvine. Again, the skaters

:03:16. > :03:20.are only allowed one false start, unlike speed skating, when you are

:03:21. > :03:25.allowed two. If either makes a false start now, they have to leave the

:03:26. > :03:29.ice. The skater wearing the red armband starting on the outside will

:03:30. > :03:34.finish on the outside. It is used for identification purposes.

:03:35. > :03:47.Angermueller has the white armband, starting on the inside.

:03:48. > :04:00.Now we are away. So this is pair 13 of 18, 36 competitors in 18 pairs

:04:01. > :04:06.tackling the 1,000m, that was first held in 1960. The Soviet Union won

:04:07. > :04:11.it on that occasion. You can see, that is the line across the track of

:04:12. > :04:17.the split time of the leader, and both skaters have a lot to do. We

:04:18. > :04:22.have a fall. The German has gone down. She slid across the ice,

:04:23. > :04:27.Angermueller. So Angermueller is out of the contest and now Irvine of

:04:28. > :04:38.Canada continues to cover the distance in a time trial mode. She

:04:39. > :04:45.needs to keep her concentration, just 1.42 seconds off the leader,

:04:46. > :04:54.Zhang. Angermueller having a down her ankle. Maybe she is severely

:04:55. > :05:01.injured. One of the blades of the skate cut into the other leg. Irvine

:05:02. > :05:06.coming down the home straight. It is not going to affect the overall

:05:07. > :05:15.standings, it is just a classification skate for her. It

:05:16. > :05:23.puts Irvine in ninth position. The closing time, 1:17.24. Well, Holland

:05:24. > :05:35.Avenue 110 medals so far in this long track speed skating -- have

:05:36. > :05:40.won. She just lost balance there and tried to correct. Lucky not to take

:05:41. > :05:46.out Irvine as well. Fortunately, those barrier protection pads are

:05:47. > :05:50.cushioned. The skaters are travelling at something like 35, 38

:05:51. > :06:01.mph, so when they do eventually crash out, you see the hand go out

:06:02. > :06:08.first, just completely lost it. She did actually just get out of the way

:06:09. > :06:19.in time. So we are onto the next pair, 14. What I would like to

:06:20. > :06:26.underline here is that Holland have won ten medals here, four of which

:06:27. > :06:32.have been gold in Sochi. They have won this on three occasions, the

:06:33. > :06:36.last time in 2006. We are going to get the first of the Dutch skaters

:06:37. > :06:42.coming onto the ice in this next pair. Can you imagine what kind of

:06:43. > :06:47.tension Zhang of China must now be under, having to watch the coming

:06:48. > :06:53.four pairs Mister Mark she is used to it, she was in the same position

:06:54. > :07:15.in the 500th. She lead and lead and it almost came down to the final

:07:16. > :07:22.pair. Marrit Leenstra up against Aydova. Just freezing the ice

:07:23. > :07:28.again, where Angermueller will have caused a divot. They freeze it and

:07:29. > :07:33.then refreeze it. I wish they could show us a shot of that, I thought it

:07:34. > :07:44.was a fire hydrant. It is the same principle. So Leenstra against

:07:45. > :07:52.Aydova. The Netherlands against canister -- Kazakhstan. If what you

:07:53. > :08:00.are watching is inspiring you, go to the BBC website for information

:08:01. > :08:05.about where you can take part. Not just long track, but short track as

:08:06. > :08:09.well. There is a profusion of Dutch again in the arena and every time

:08:10. > :08:15.they win a medal, they all congregate in our hotel, which means

:08:16. > :08:20.we never get any sleep. That is the problem. Well, not until the early

:08:21. > :08:27.hours. This event is a real aerobic challenge. Being welcomed to the

:08:28. > :08:38.starting area. Leenstra, but 24-year-old, 19th in the 500. A

:08:39. > :08:46.former world junior all-round champion, she was 11th in the Sprint

:08:47. > :08:52.Championships insults -- in Salt Lake City. And for Aydova, this is

:08:53. > :08:54.her second Olympics. She skated in the 1,000 in Vancouver, when she was

:08:55. > :09:13.16. Waiting for the crowd to be quiet.

:09:14. > :09:22.Aydova are Kazakhstan is the national record-holder but Leenstra

:09:23. > :09:28.has got a quicker time. Only Zhang has gone inside 1.15, so they are

:09:29. > :09:32.going to have to skate their socks off. They are already behind the

:09:33. > :09:40.Chinese skater. Leenstra won the Dutch trials to make this, so she

:09:41. > :09:54.is, on paper, the quickest Dutch female skater over this distance.

:09:55. > :10:01.They still have Margot Boer to come and they are talking her up. But

:10:02. > :10:06.here comes Leenstra to get the bell. She is 1.7 off the pace, which is a

:10:07. > :10:10.lot to ask her to close down on Zhang. It is important with the

:10:11. > :10:14.exchange that Leenstra has the right of way, so Aydova will have to wait

:10:15. > :10:24.and allow Leenstra to go over to the inside. Leenstra lining up for the

:10:25. > :10:32.run to the line. They pierce the timing beam which sends the signal

:10:33. > :10:37.to the finishing times. Good enough to put her second in the competition

:10:38. > :10:45.at this stage. 11th place for her opponent, Aydova. That was a good

:10:46. > :10:51.skate by Leenstra. Of course, we have Ireen Wust, the Olympic

:10:52. > :10:57.champion at 3,000m. She is coming later on, in one of the later pairs.

:10:58. > :11:02.But Leenstra really has set a challenge to the other Dutch female

:11:03. > :11:09.skaters. Just while we are seeing the images of the last two skaters,

:11:10. > :11:13.it could change. There are two very handy Americans in this competition,

:11:14. > :11:17.the next one particularly, Heather Richardson, who has been on fire all

:11:18. > :11:22.season. She has won three of the last four rounds of the World Cup,

:11:23. > :11:30.and she has had some sensational times. We are just going to see

:11:31. > :11:44.whether or not she can take over the lead here. She has a 1:13 to her

:11:45. > :11:50.credit in Calgary, but her season's best, 1.4 Tienpont 22 in Kazakhstan,

:11:51. > :11:56.so she has to go faster. Richardson is a former in-line skater, engaged

:11:57. > :11:57.to a man who won the bronze medal in the 5,000m. He will be somewhere in

:11:58. > :12:15.the stands. She has failed to get a medal in the

:12:16. > :12:18.last three events in Vancouver, but she is peaking at the right time,

:12:19. > :12:32.Richardson. An interesting style of start. Against her is Kodaira Japan.

:12:33. > :12:42.She was third in Vancouver. -- of Japan. We are looking for a faster

:12:43. > :12:49.200 and Zhang. And she is ahead. -- van. Very good start by Richardson.

:12:50. > :13:00.The USA have been telling everybody all week, " we have the quickest

:13:01. > :13:07.racing suits" . Until now, the Dutch had proved differently but

:13:08. > :13:10.Richardson is making a statement. They are off the pace, it underlines

:13:11. > :13:18.the quality of the skate by the leader of the competition. Into the

:13:19. > :13:23.back straight now, they have less than 400m to go. Richardson knows

:13:24. > :13:35.she has two pick the pace appear significantly. 23 years of age, the

:13:36. > :13:42.American. Nearly at the line now. Here comes Richardson. 1.21 seconds

:13:43. > :13:55.off the pace. That puts her into the bronze-medal position at this

:13:56. > :14:00.stage. Kodaira, seven. -- seventh. So 1.21 seconds off the time of the

:14:01. > :14:06.leader for Richardson. That just shows you the quality time that was

:14:07. > :14:11.set by Zhang Hong of China. Richardson coming from in-line

:14:12. > :14:16.skating, that is wide there is that unusual start position she adopts --

:14:17. > :14:21.that is why. Actually putting a hand down on the ice while starting. Not

:14:22. > :14:26.a very good technical skater but, until now, has always produced very,

:14:27. > :14:32.very fast times. The overall leader of the World Cup, as I said, but she

:14:33. > :14:38.has not got the power and speed to deny the Chinese skater Zhang the

:14:39. > :14:43.lead. Can her fellow country woman, the world record-holder Tom do it?

:14:44. > :14:50.Brittany Bowe is out on the ice next. In fact, my apologies, it is

:14:51. > :14:57.going to be Margot Boer next of the Netherlands, versus Fatkulina.

:14:58. > :15:03.Margot Boer, there she is, got the bronze medal in the 500m and the

:15:04. > :15:10.Dutch, well, they feel that Margot Boer can get a medal here in the

:15:11. > :15:14.1,000m. Fatkulina of Russia got the silver in the 500m, so you are

:15:15. > :15:17.looking at the silver and Bronze medal winners here from the 500m

:15:18. > :15:30.that took place a little earlier in the competition. Margot Boer, fourth

:15:31. > :15:33.in Vancouver, sixth in the 500 metres, then finally got her medal

:15:34. > :15:40.here just the other day when she got the bronze in the 500th. Away they

:15:41. > :15:47.go, and a roar in the arena. The noise is resonating around as they

:15:48. > :15:53.tried to kick Fatkulina on. She has one medal already, the silver from

:15:54. > :15:58.the 500. They are both inside 17.94. Both posting the same time for the

:15:59. > :16:05.first 200. That's a fabulous opener by both skaters. Fatkulina charging

:16:06. > :16:09.down the back straight behind Boer. Really working at closing the gap.

:16:10. > :16:19.It's all about maintaining the speed during this last lap. The second lap

:16:20. > :16:25.was 20.09. A combined time, what are they on? Boer beginning to pay the

:16:26. > :16:32.price. The quads are filling with lactic acid, but Fatkulina is still

:16:33. > :16:38.embracing the challenge. Can she had another medal to the silver she won

:16:39. > :16:45.in the 500? Off the bend, lining up the runs the line. Remember the time

:16:46. > :16:52.to beat, 1.14 .02. It's going to be Boer that takes the clash on the

:16:53. > :16:58.line. They failed to be the Chinese skater's time, but seconds Boer, and

:16:59. > :17:06.third Fatkulina with two more heed to go. -- second for Boer. -- two

:17:07. > :17:15.more to go. Excellent second section, especially by Boer. There

:17:16. > :17:20.was a big smile from Zhang Hong, still leading, she went in the first

:17:21. > :17:25.group. She has been waiting an awful long time now watching the number of

:17:26. > :17:38.skaters go by. Only two more pairs to skate. Four left. Zhang will not

:17:39. > :17:41.be able to watch. After this next pair, then she can watch, if they

:17:42. > :17:46.don't beat her time. A chance to look at the technique of the

:17:47. > :17:53.finishing effort from Margot Boer. There she is. She is celebrating

:17:54. > :17:58.because she thought that was another pair out of the way, I'm still the

:17:59. > :18:19.leader of the contest. Now, out onto the ice is Ireen Wust. She finished

:18:20. > :18:24.in the silver medal positions in the world championships. And on that

:18:25. > :18:28.occasion, Brittany Bowe, the world record-holder, she was third, so we

:18:29. > :18:31.have a silver and bronze medal pair of winners of last year 's world

:18:32. > :18:41.champions against each other in the penultimate heat. That world record

:18:42. > :18:50.held by Bowe, in Salt Lake City. Away we go. Now then, 17.94 is the

:18:51. > :18:57.time to beat the first 200. To skaters on the ice who are both very

:18:58. > :19:07.capable performers -- well within their compass to go quicker. At the

:19:08. > :19:15.moment Bowe is inside it. Ireen Wust is likely to pick up the tempo as

:19:16. > :19:19.the distance unfurls. Bowe will be able to creep in behind Ireen Wust,

:19:20. > :19:26.nice and tight, trying to draft her as she comes into the inner bend.

:19:27. > :19:31.13th in the 500 was Bowe, but this is our speciality. But the world

:19:32. > :19:34.record-holder cannot match the pace of the Chinese skater. If this

:19:35. > :19:39.continues, and they do not pick up pace, it will mean that the Chinese

:19:40. > :19:43.skater is guaranteed a medal. What colour it will be, we have to wait

:19:44. > :19:53.and see with the conclusion of the contest. But these are the final

:19:54. > :19:56.metres. Ireen Wust, and Bowe the world record-holder, and they're not

:19:57. > :20:01.going to do it. No, they come up to the line and post their times. What

:20:02. > :20:08.that means now, with one pair to go, is that Ireen Wust has gone into

:20:09. > :20:15.second, so she cannot beat the time of Zhang, that that has put her in

:20:16. > :20:23.the silver medal position, and Boer has gone to third.

:20:24. > :20:31.Ireen Wust, such an outstanding athlete. She has really come to

:20:32. > :20:35.these Olympics, to come to win five medals, possibly five goal, but that

:20:36. > :20:39.won't be the case any longer. She had really set her heart on getting

:20:40. > :20:43.a medal in the 1000 metres -- possibly five gold medals. She still

:20:44. > :20:47.has the 1500 metres where she is the Olympic champion, and the 5000

:20:48. > :20:55.metres, which I am sure she is bound to win. It looks like the triple

:20:56. > :20:58.Olympic gold medallist Ireen Wust has a very good chance of getting

:20:59. > :21:05.another medal to add to the tally. A bronze in the 1500. Gold in the 1500

:21:06. > :21:09.in Vancouver, and a gold just the other day in the 3000, and it looks

:21:10. > :21:21.at the moment she has a fair chance of getting another medal. Final pair

:21:22. > :21:33.on the ice. Lotte van Beek got a silver in Sochi a year ago. Lee Sang

:21:34. > :21:37.Hwa Is the queen of the 500. She won the gold medal in Sochi, a couple of

:21:38. > :21:45.days ago, posting the Olympic record. And in Vancouver, she also

:21:46. > :21:52.got the goal for the 500 metres. So, a 500 metres pair, the last, ready

:21:53. > :21:57.to go. On the right, Lotte van Beek. We can expect a quick start from the

:21:58. > :22:03.Korean, but it is all about measuring your effort over the

:22:04. > :22:15.complete laps. Here comes Lee Sang Hwa. Remember, the time to beat,

:22:16. > :22:19.inside 17.94. Has Lee Sang Hwa paced herself good enough for the 1000

:22:20. > :22:26.metres? Lotte van Beek crouched in behind. Trying to get some valuable

:22:27. > :22:30.speed. Coming into the inside lane. They are lining up for the run to

:22:31. > :22:36.the line, and then it will just be 400 metres to go. She is just about

:22:37. > :22:45.on the tempo here. But what it does mean at this stage of the

:22:46. > :22:50.competition, only Lee Sang Hwa can deny Zhang Hong, because the other

:22:51. > :22:55.skater is behind, so she's guaranteed a medal this time. It

:22:56. > :23:00.looks to me as though Lee Sang Hwa is beginning to tire a little, but

:23:01. > :23:04.here comes Lotte van Beek. Lotte van Beek with a storming finish down the

:23:05. > :23:11.inside. Watch the clock. There it is, fifth place for Lotte van Beek,

:23:12. > :23:16.and for Lee Sang Hwa, the celebrations are unfolding away.

:23:17. > :23:21.Zhang Hong has got a gold medal after finishing fourth in the 500.

:23:22. > :23:25.She is the number-1 finisher here in the 1000 metres, and that is the

:23:26. > :23:32.first time in the history of the event that China have ever won the

:23:33. > :23:36.gold medal. Being congratulated by Boer, who got the bronze in the

:23:37. > :23:40.500th. She has had to wait and wait because she went very early in the

:23:41. > :23:45.competition, but she did not disappoint. She stormed around the

:23:46. > :23:53.eyes. She was the seventh pairing of 18, so she had to Joerg -- enjoy

:23:54. > :23:56.incredible pressure while 11 other pairs came on. But she has conquered

:23:57. > :24:07.the distance and become the gold medal winner in the 1000 metres.

:24:08. > :24:12.Wust second, Boer third. The Chinese having a magnificent day in the

:24:13. > :24:20.short track. A somewhat peculiar final, I must say, also winning the

:24:21. > :24:27.1000 metres here. That makes the haul of medals by the Dutch 12 in

:24:28. > :24:33.all. The gold medal haul is still four. But for the skater from China,

:24:34. > :24:45.she is the Olympic 1000 metre champion. And deservedly so. There

:24:46. > :24:49.she is. The time, up 1.14.02. She went in the first raft of skaters,

:24:50. > :24:55.up against Christine Nesbitt, who was Olympic champion in Vancouver,

:24:56. > :24:59.she had to enjoy all the pressure -- ensure all the pressure. I did get

:25:00. > :25:03.the tip early on, keep an eye on Zhang Hong, because as I said in

:25:04. > :25:07.commentary, the complete lap in the 500 was the fastest of the whole

:25:08. > :25:14.contest. Not a quick starter, but certainly fast once she gets going.

:25:15. > :25:20.There is the national flag. They all do that, a few laps of honour to

:25:21. > :25:24.celebrate. Boer He's getting a bit of a flavour for this. Now she has

:25:25. > :25:32.been the eternal fourth, she's got a couple of bronze medals. The 500,

:25:33. > :25:37.the thousand and 1500 still to come. Did she fall? Let's confirm the

:25:38. > :26:00.official result. Not surprisingly, more medals for

:26:01. > :26:03.the Dutch, silver and bronze, and amazing golf of the Chinese

:26:04. > :26:07.athlete, especially because she was skating so early -- an amazing gold

:26:08. > :26:11.medal for the Chinese athlete. We will head back up to the mountains,

:26:12. > :26:17.a potential chance in the biathlon for Winter Olympic history. Rob

:26:18. > :26:47.Walker is the commentator. Can he pull out a brilliant last lap

:26:48. > :26:56.and give himself an opportunity, Moravec? He has only missed one

:26:57. > :27:00.target. Beatrix, he is leading at the moment. All he can do is ski his

:27:01. > :27:02.heart out on the last lap and hope that others feel the pressure in the

:27:03. > :27:08.range for the last time. Only one miss so far for the

:27:09. > :27:35.Latvian. That's good stuff from the Latvian,

:27:36. > :27:49.he was certainly one of the names that we thought might be able to get

:27:50. > :27:58.in amongst the leaders. His last five shots, and he starts with this.

:27:59. > :28:04.And the man who was eighth in the world championship is going to

:28:05. > :28:19.struggle to replicate a finish in the top ten. That is why he finds

:28:20. > :28:26.himself adrift at the moment. Svendsen, How important will these

:28:27. > :28:31.next five shots before his career? Still short of the time, and he

:28:32. > :28:43.might be able to trace him down if he gets five. Good solid shooter --

:28:44. > :28:51.solid shooting. Svendsen Just the one miss for him. You can see that

:28:52. > :29:06.Beatrix is already out in 29.54. Taking his time here. Extraordinary

:29:07. > :29:19.how the French always seem to produce a champion.

:29:20. > :29:32.Svendsen, 18 seconds behind Garanichev. Fourcade is 15 seconds

:29:33. > :29:42.behind his compatriot, exiting the third shooter. Everybody watching

:29:43. > :29:49.around in the area around the north of Italy. Hofer, he has done so much

:29:50. > :29:54.for Italian biathlon. He misses number 20. How many times have we

:29:55. > :29:58.seen that? He took so long over that. You sense the agony in his

:29:59. > :30:04.face. He was composing himself, taking extra seconds, and it just

:30:05. > :30:10.went wrong at the crucial moment. That is desperately unlucky for

:30:11. > :30:24.Hofer. I wonder what was going through his mind.

:30:25. > :30:31.the mental control is what this is all about, and Bjoerndalen has been

:30:32. > :30:35.quick to say there has been a lot of criticism about the Norwegian team

:30:36. > :30:39.and their form and has been quick to say that as soon as everybody

:30:40. > :30:42.relaxes, the results will come. He says it is not physical, it is

:30:43. > :30:47.mental and that is where they have gone wrong so far. And if anybody

:30:48. > :31:05.knows about keeping cool under pressure, it is Bjoerndalen.

:31:06. > :31:11.Anev is usually so reliable with a weapon but it has started to go

:31:12. > :31:24.wrong this season. Can he finish in style. No his campaign for the 13th

:31:25. > :31:38.medal will have to wait for the relay. Simon Eda, just the one miss

:31:39. > :31:43.so far. -- Simon Eder. He has thrown away his chance with two misses.

:31:44. > :31:51.That is a real shame. Let's have a look at Eder's time. Comfortably

:31:52. > :32:13.inside. Out he comes, ten seconds or so in hand for Simon Eder. Speaketh

:32:14. > :32:20.a clear those two missed attempts for Eder. The son of Alfred Eder,

:32:21. > :32:26.the coach of the Austrian team but also a world champion himself, what

:32:27. > :32:55.a fabulous feeling that must be. Of the damage is done, it would be a

:32:56. > :33:02.very quick time from Lowell Bailey. As I mentioned at the start,

:33:03. > :33:06.normally between two and 5% of the field should clear in the

:33:07. > :33:11.individual. No one has got through four shoots. We have six or seven

:33:12. > :33:20.who has shot 19 out of 20, three of them are in the podium position. Is

:33:21. > :33:33.it going to be Bjoern Ferry's Bay? No. -- they. Huge noise here in the

:33:34. > :33:50.stadium for our first finish -- our first finisher Garanichev. He

:33:51. > :33:58.has not had a bad night at all on the biathlon course. He may have

:33:59. > :34:08.taken the perfect advantage starting first. Only ten seconds behind

:34:09. > :34:11.Eder, he had a lead over Svendsen, it could be a medal, which would be

:34:12. > :34:15.a fantastic occasion for the home fans. Beatrix is in for his

:34:16. > :34:27.lassitude, this crucial for the Frenchman. 19 goes wide, and now

:34:28. > :34:35.Beatrix is going to have to ski for the gold medal, rather than shoot

:34:36. > :34:46.for it. Looking pretty good for Erik Lesser. 15 out of 15 for the German.

:34:47. > :34:50.Great stuff so far. His grandad was in the relay the East Germany and

:34:51. > :34:55.fell after colliding with a spectator when he was in

:34:56. > :35:00.silver-medal position. There is Winter Olympic history in the

:35:01. > :35:04.family, and plenty of it. After the second shoot, he is in third

:35:05. > :35:17.position. After the third should, in third position. You have to remember

:35:18. > :35:26.that Beatrix has already missed. And Kaukenas had a meltdown on the last

:35:27. > :35:28.three. That miss on his 19th attempt for Beatrix, he was now in third

:35:29. > :35:47.after shooting four. Eder leading. It is going to be a very hard for

:35:48. > :35:49.kilometres for Svendsen, who will be in very shortly, having started

:35:50. > :36:11.number nine -- four kilometres. Certainly an advantage to go in

:36:12. > :36:17.group one. All of the flags hanging limp in the firing area, just the

:36:18. > :36:27.occasional puff of wind coming through but nothing to trouble them,

:36:28. > :36:34.especially not in the standing position. Hoisting up his bib number

:36:35. > :36:43.just so he gets more traction between his race suit and his ski

:36:44. > :36:52.suit. I think that Miss will prove expensive for Moravec. Eder's time

:36:53. > :37:00.was beyond them anyway. A messy shoot, what a shame, having started

:37:01. > :37:09.so well. So Moravec had said for the last four kilometres before the

:37:10. > :37:16.finish -- heads out. Fak has finished, three minutes down on

:37:17. > :37:24.Garanichev. Semenov, the Ukrainian, first in the sprints. One miss so

:37:25. > :37:27.far. Simon Eder's time has ticked by. Good shooting. Good finish to

:37:28. > :37:44.his efforts in the range from the Ukrainian. Rastorgujevs' 19 out of

:37:45. > :37:51.20 could see him into the top five. 10th position after the third

:37:52. > :37:56.should. But that Miss... And again. The confidence has gone. The legs, I

:37:57. > :38:09.suspect, have gone as well after 16 kilometres. Svendsen has missed out

:38:10. > :38:17.on the top spot. This difficult time here in Sochi continues. I shake --

:38:18. > :38:20.a shake of the head, a disparaging look up at the scoreboard. Something

:38:21. > :38:26.is not working for Svendsen and he will need to gather himself. He has

:38:27. > :38:31.lost another ten seconds to Garanichev on that final four

:38:32. > :38:43.kilometres, so he is well below his best at the moment.

:38:44. > :39:06.For Cade is a brilliant finisher. -- Martin Fourcade. That is why he has

:39:07. > :39:12.is not lost on individual since 2008. He should stop the clock in

:39:13. > :39:18.around five seconds' time. He has got a lead of just shy of 12

:39:19. > :39:23.seconds. He held his nerve beautifully on those last five shots

:39:24. > :39:29.in the range. Didn't panic about the miss, because he will know that you

:39:30. > :39:33.can still win with one miss. Svendsen's challenge has come and

:39:34. > :39:42.gone, but the dream of another gold is very much still alive for Martin

:39:43. > :39:47.Fourcade. Lukas Hofer comes along the line into third place at the

:39:48. > :39:52.moment. You can tell from the reaction of him crossing the line

:39:53. > :39:55.that it is an opportunity missed and they will be so disappointed, his

:39:56. > :40:06.growing army of fans back home in Italy. Great celebrations when he

:40:07. > :40:09.tied for that first World Cup win. Head in hands full Svendsen. He

:40:10. > :40:24.needs to figure out what is going wrong here in Sochi.

:40:25. > :40:42.Eder has got the company of a very good skier with him.

:40:43. > :40:50.Eder is really driving now. Garanichev's time is now starting to

:40:51. > :40:59.look like it is one that could get him in the mix for a medal. Simon

:41:00. > :41:03.Eder, eighth in the sprint, seventh in the pursuit, still pushing, still

:41:04. > :41:10.driving. How close can he get to Garanichev's time? This is a Berlin,

:41:11. > :41:15.brilliant effort from the Austrian. But he is going to be outside the

:41:16. > :41:22.time set by the Garanichev. So the Russian has managed to survive a big

:41:23. > :41:29.threat. Good performance from Simon Eder. He has left everything out on

:41:30. > :41:37.that course. Will it be enough to get him on the podium? Bronze medal

:41:38. > :41:39.is the best he can hope for. Garanichev has produced a

:41:40. > :41:45.sensational last lap and he went very quick on the first one as

:41:46. > :41:51.well, he certainly save something for tonight. Garanichev has taken

:41:52. > :41:56.ten seconds out of Svendsen, ten out of Eder, what will he do out

:41:57. > :42:02.Fourcade? You have say Martin Fourcade looked very composed coming

:42:03. > :42:08.out of the range. Business as usual for the French number one and of

:42:09. > :42:13.course, the world number one. A long established record when it comes to

:42:14. > :42:22.the individual event for the Frenchman. He has found his rider be

:42:23. > :42:26.read in the pursuit and the celebrations will be huge among the

:42:27. > :42:33.French team if he was able to make it two golds in two races. Bjorn

:42:34. > :42:43.Ferri, a hugely experienced campaigner. Preparing for a life

:42:44. > :42:52.after biathlon and he has sacrificed lunch to try and -- sacrificed much

:42:53. > :43:01.to try and squeeze everything out of the latter part of his career. I

:43:02. > :43:05.gold medal in the pursuit in bank over Piccadilly -- Vancouver last

:43:06. > :43:09.time-out. You can see these facilities here are absolutely

:43:10. > :43:13.packed. It is the best crowd we have had here at the Games. Those

:43:14. > :43:17.supporting cross country were basking in the sun for a few hours

:43:18. > :43:22.and then taking the hike down to the biathlon stadium. Enjoying what they

:43:23. > :43:28.have seen so far. They could be on for a Russian medal. Well still

:43:29. > :43:38.waiting to track Martin Fourcade out on the tracks. Garanichev still has

:43:39. > :43:46.the lead. Beatrix coming into the finish. He won't be quicker than

:43:47. > :43:53.Garanichev. Simon Eder is drifting past. A good effort by the

:43:54. > :43:59.Frenchman, but there will not be a medal to him. That miss on the last

:44:00. > :44:02.shoot is going to be the most expensive mess that Beatrix ever

:44:03. > :44:09.makes, because Martin Fourcade has now opened up a gap of 23 seconds

:44:10. > :44:16.over Simon Eder at 17.8, with just over two kilometres to go. He is yet

:44:17. > :44:23.to go through 80. We'll be there any moment now.

:44:24. > :44:33.Erik Lesser. This looks good. This looks very good indeed. Is he on his

:44:34. > :44:40.way to shooting clean and giving himself a huge, huge chance of

:44:41. > :44:46.getting on the podium? Two more. This can sometimes be the Georgiou

:44:47. > :44:52.one. And he is there. -- the dodgy one. Four clean shoots, the coaches

:44:53. > :44:56.put their hands in the air. What a chance. And a 16 second advantage

:44:57. > :45:01.over Martin Fourcade coming into the range for the last time. Fourcade

:45:02. > :45:06.was very quick with the rifle, so the margin has been cut and he is

:45:07. > :45:13.flying around the last lap but a 9-.6 second advantage to the German.

:45:14. > :45:24.Fourcade extends his lead and the message will get to him very fast

:45:25. > :45:27.that Erik Lesser is a threat. This is the kind of race where one of the

:45:28. > :45:39.unfancied competitors gets onto the podium. Leicester -- Lesser is a

:45:40. > :45:43.quality performer, but we weren't talking about him getting on the

:45:44. > :45:53.podium. Everybody connected with him loves that. Huge composure from the

:45:54. > :45:59.German. Moravec, coming towards the finish. It will not be a recreation

:46:00. > :46:06.of his magnificent silver behind Fourcade in the pursuit. But

:46:07. > :46:15.nonetheless, he is having a great Olympic games overall. A good season

:46:16. > :46:18.all round for Moravec, and with the bronze medal in the sprint, they

:46:19. > :46:25.have the good makings of a relay team, but note further medal for

:46:26. > :46:35.Moravec in the 20 kilometre individual. -- no further medals.

:46:36. > :46:49.So the question out on the course is how quickly will Erik Lesser go on

:46:50. > :46:52.the last lap. Schempp, The winner of the last two events in the World Cup

:46:53. > :47:16.going into these games. Semenov, bringing his campaign to

:47:17. > :47:21.the end. Pretty steady from the Ukrainian, but that was better. Now

:47:22. > :47:29.then, Martin Fourcade. How much has he extended his advantage on the

:47:30. > :47:39.last four kilometres? He will be being fed information that Lesser

:47:40. > :47:44.had shot clean and was ahead of him. Martin Fourcade, unbeaten in

:47:45. > :47:48.the 20 kilometre individual as far back as 2012. He already has one

:47:49. > :47:53.gold medal. Back came in the pursuit. He is the best in the world

:47:54. > :47:59.so far -- that came in the pursuit. He has once again produced a

:48:00. > :48:03.masterful performance here, full of composure and confidence. He is

:48:04. > :48:11.going to go into first place, weight quicker than Garanichev, but will it

:48:12. > :48:19.be fast enough to stay ahead of Erik Lesser, who is out on the course

:48:20. > :48:25.behind him. Fourcade extending his lead to 43 seconds over Garanichev,

:48:26. > :48:30.but you have to remember that Lesser was quicker in the pursuit, he skied

:48:31. > :48:35.faster him as well. Don't write him off just yet. I think the big

:48:36. > :48:40.question is whether Lesser as recovered in the 48 hours since the

:48:41. > :48:43.pursuit and filled up his fuel tanks again for the individual race -- has

:48:44. > :48:49.recovered. This is the most taxing of all of the races. Fourcade knows

:48:50. > :48:54.that the gold medal is by no means a certainty. He is not a man shy of

:48:55. > :49:02.celebrating. But he needs to wait and watch and see what Erik Lesser

:49:03. > :49:08.can do on the last lap. That is as it stands. He left the shooting

:49:09. > :49:16.range with a nine second advantage, but that is cut down to 3.2. From

:49:17. > :49:21.17.8 up to 18, a lot of climbing to be done. If he gets to 18 with the

:49:22. > :49:25.lead, he has a chance, but if he is three or four seconds down with 18

:49:26. > :49:34.kilometres to go, then Erik Lesser will be looking for the silver

:49:35. > :49:40.rather than the gold. Garanichev in second and Eder in third. But it is

:49:41. > :49:48.all about how quickly Erik Lesser can compete -- complete the last two

:49:49. > :49:56.kilometres of the course. Bergman has been around for awhile. This is

:49:57. > :50:01.fourth games. His best form was in 2012 in the world Championships.

:50:02. > :50:08.Medal after medal, but just getting outsprinted by people like Fourcade

:50:09. > :50:24.and Svendsen. This is good from Bergman, but not

:50:25. > :50:29.challenging the leading times. One of the most astonishing facts is

:50:30. > :50:39.that after three shoots, he is right up there with the best. Plenty of

:50:40. > :50:43.drama to still come on the range. Erik Lesser, 21st in the sprint,

:50:44. > :50:50.16th in the pursuit, he peaked early in the season to make sure he

:50:51. > :50:57.qualified for the German team. And as he drives on through the last

:50:58. > :51:01.kilometre and a half, Martin Fourcade's older brother coming to

:51:02. > :51:05.the finish. What expectation there was for him after becoming the World

:51:06. > :51:09.Cup leader overall just a few weeks before Vancouver. He since admitted

:51:10. > :51:15.that the pressure got to him. Now, Erik Lesser has drifted six seconds

:51:16. > :51:24.outside the time set by Martin Fourcade. That is a nine second

:51:25. > :51:29.swing in 800 metres. Six seconds to make up on the downhills into the

:51:30. > :51:35.stadium, virtually impossible, and I think Fourcade can start to think in

:51:36. > :51:39.terms of his second gold medal. Well, he would surely go down as one

:51:40. > :51:45.of the French all-time greats if he were to secure gold medals -- a gold

:51:46. > :51:49.medal in the individual to go alongside the one in the pursuit.

:51:50. > :51:52.But let's not take anything away from this performance from Erik

:51:53. > :51:59.Lesser. It's been absolutely brilliant. The man currently

:52:00. > :52:03.occupying silver, Garanichev, his time is over 30 seconds slower than

:52:04. > :52:09.Martin Fourcade. So if Erik Lesser can keep going and the gap does not

:52:10. > :52:15.grow that much, Erik Lesser will be the man to occupy silver, and

:52:16. > :52:22.Garanichev will move down to bronze, relegating Simon Eder into fourth

:52:23. > :52:29.place. There will be a massive reception for Erik Lesser. There is

:52:30. > :52:35.the German coach, to his left side. This is where it gets tough because

:52:36. > :52:38.the lactate levels are rising. You just have to get your feet

:52:39. > :52:47.underneath the body with every stride you take. There are seconds

:52:48. > :52:54.to be gained. Boe, Coming in for Norway, way off the pace. Not a good

:52:55. > :53:04.day for the Norwegians, and there will be an investigation going on

:53:05. > :53:11.amongst the Norwegian press. Bailey, the American, coming into

:53:12. > :53:15.the range again. Seventh in the event in Turin. He has been around a

:53:16. > :53:29.while. Erik Lesser is still ahead as we see

:53:30. > :53:36.Ferry cross the line. It is long overdue to see the Germans get some

:53:37. > :53:41.hardware. They were so good in the 90s and early 2000. Here comes Erik

:53:42. > :53:44.Lesser, the margin when we last saw him was 8.3 seconds, and it looks as

:53:45. > :53:50.though Fourcade is still pulling away.

:53:51. > :53:58.Erik Lesser very close to finishing the best race of his career. He goes

:53:59. > :54:01.round the last corner. Fourcade's time is going to elude him, but will

:54:02. > :54:06.he managed to get himself into silver medal position? Fourcade

:54:07. > :54:11.starting to celebrate. He thinks Erik Lesser is the only remaining

:54:12. > :54:16.challenge. Will it be silver? He has to finish inside 15 minutes, and

:54:17. > :54:22.he's going to do so. What a performance from Erik Lesser. That

:54:23. > :54:30.is a sensational, sensational effort from a man whose grandfather fell en

:54:31. > :54:34.route to a silver medal in the German relay in 1972, and it looks

:54:35. > :54:40.as though it will be silver for his grandson. What a dramatic end to

:54:41. > :54:45.Erik Lesser's race. He did all he could to stay with the pace of

:54:46. > :54:48.Martin Fourcade, but the way Fourcade accelerated in the last

:54:49. > :54:55.four kilometres, the German had no answer. Although it is not a gold

:54:56. > :55:01.medal, he will, it looks as though at this stage, definitely be on the

:55:02. > :55:06.podium. Gold for Fourcade, silver for Erik Lesser, and that leaves the

:55:07. > :55:12.birthday boy, Garanichev, currently in bronze medal position.

:55:13. > :55:18.A stunning performance from Martin Fourcade. But what of the man

:55:19. > :55:22.looking for his 13th Winter Olympic medal to make him the most medal

:55:23. > :55:32.Winter Olympian of all time. Well, he finished in 34th, and what hurt

:55:33. > :55:37.was for Mrs in the shooting -- four misses. He will be looking for his

:55:38. > :55:41.13th medal in the relays in the next ten days or so. Lee Jackson, serving

:55:42. > :55:52.member of the military, he finished in 40 Second Place for the UK, -- 40

:55:53. > :55:56.Second Place. -- 42nd place. He has been quite a day on the Olympic Park

:55:57. > :55:58.and in the mountains, but tomorrow is even bigger. Britain's best

:55:59. > :56:11.chance of a gold medal. You step onto the track. Take a deep

:56:12. > :56:18.breath. Thinking about the lines. Adrenaline is pumping. There is no

:56:19. > :56:29.room for fear. Read the ice, focus, concentrate. Then, an explosion of

:56:30. > :56:37.power and strength. Corner one, shoulders, feet, body position. A

:56:38. > :56:47.tap of the toe and a move of the head. Lightning fast reflexes, you

:56:48. > :56:51.feel the track. It is a quest for the fastest line, finding the

:56:52. > :57:01.perfect angle. You have to stay calm. The tiniest of errors will

:57:02. > :57:06.cost you. Making the smallest adjustment in a split-second

:57:07. > :57:10.reaction. It is about accuracy, precision... One false move, and

:57:11. > :57:23.you're off. On cold ice. It was a bit of British Olympic

:57:24. > :57:28.history with police Christie in the 500 metres short track speed

:57:29. > :57:30.skating. -- Elise Christie. She made the final, but was unfortunately

:57:31. > :57:33.disqualified, but she is in great form and will go well in the

:57:34. > :57:41.thousand metres. That's about it from me. Clare is Up next. We will

:57:42. > :57:45.be back for the figure skating, it is the men's short programme. It

:57:46. > :57:57.really should be one not to miss. And we also have the Olympic debut

:57:58. > :58:01.of the luge relay. For me, it is goodbye, but Claire is up