I was blessed to watch Alysa Liu live, the Bay area sensation on ice win the gold medal in this years winter Olympics.
Alysa Liu-Min-Nating lived up to the hype. She needed a perfect performance to defeat the two ladies from Japan, and she did just that a broadcaster said. However, if Japan's Kaori Sakamoto had won gold or even Mono Chiba, I wouldn't have been shocked. I got the Alysa Liu-Min-Nating from a skating broadcaster.
"She skates with so much freedom and wild abandon, throws herself into these jump, she's a veteran and has the experience," an announcer said about Sakamoto who place second to Liu with a silver medal.
Sakamoto, right after finishing her performance on ice to seize the silver medal.
The Bronze medalist, Mono Chiba was also a sheer pleasure to watch. Everything she does is done with precision and accuracy, a broadcaster said about Chiba. One thing is certain to me, I wouldn't want to be a figure skating judge. Chiba, Sakamoto and Lui are all first place podium pythons in my opinion.
Prior to this years Olympics, I never heard of Alysa Liu. She's only 20, and like Chiba she won back to back world champion in figure skating before the age of 20.
Lui retired from the sport when she was 16, obviously came back to skating at the highest level. After winning the gold in February she said; "I don't feel the pressure, I don't care about competition results. I skate now to show my art, and that was art," Lui said.
Oakland native Alysa Liu after winning the gold
There were 351 events during the two weeks of the Olympics and my favorite sports besides the women's single skating events included the doubles figure skating competition and the men's and women's hockey gold medal matches, both against Canada. I'm no hockey fan by any stretch of the imagination, but it was a sheer pleasure to watch the women play the Canadians from start to finish. I even called out from work to watch the USA gals play Canada live and wow, what a game. With just over two minutes left in regulation, America trailed Canada 0-1. USA's leading scorer Hilary Knight tied the game in regulation and the American ladies went on to win in sudden death with a 2-1 victory over the Canadians, the same score as the men who also won in overtime against Canada.
The cross country skiing showcased the endurance and stamina needed for the athletes who participated.
The uneasy covenant between the mind and body. Can the mind overcome the pain of the body? You perform beyond the pain...an indelible snapshot of determination, was said about USA's Jessie Diggins, a skier.
Another skier who put her signature on February's Olympics was Italy's Fredera Brignone, who broke her leg 10 months before the Olympics and won the gold medal in women's Super G. I saw the replay of Brignone breaking her leg in the spring of 2025, and it hurt my leg just watching. Seeing her seize gold in February was sports magic.
Ninety-two or 93 countries participated in this years winter Olympics and before the games in February I never heard of the county Georgia which is in-between Russia, Turkey and Armenia, and to its west, the Black Sea. Several of their athletes impressed me, especially figure skater Anastaiia Gubanova. I think she placed 14th overall and in my mind she should have been on the podium for a silver or bronze medal, again, I wouldn't want to be a figure skating judge.
Georgia's Anastasia Gubanova after her fantastic Olympic performance. Fourteenth place? She got robbed.
The perfect mix of technical precision and beauty, figure skating capture's the magic of allure and the passion of precision.
"So much dimension to their skating, technically they were machines tonight," a judge said. The level of sportsman ship is the best I've ever seen, another one said during the women's Short Skating event.
Participating in her 23rd winter Olympic's, USA's Lindsey Vonn acquired a silver medal, while the American snow boarder Chloe Kim clinch a spot in the next winter Olympic's by winning her third world title in snowboarding.
Speed skater Jordan Stolz seized the gold in the 500 and 1,000 meter races. Stolz and Eric Heiden are America's only two time gold medalists in speed skating. Stolz also got a silver medal in the 1500 meters race, becoming the only Olympian to win speed skating medals in the 500, 1000 and 1500 meter races in the same years Olympics.
I watched the entire gold medal game of the USA women and most of the men's game, also against Canada. I'm no hockey fan by any stretch of the imagination, I don't dislike the sport, it's just not for me, but wow, both matches were a blast to watch.
The USA women, after defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime for the gold medal.Seven of the last eight gold medal games in women's hockey have been between America and Canada. This year's American team featured 12 new players to the Olympics.
During the entire history of the winter Olympic's the Canadian women's team has only lost four games, including this year's gold medal loss to the Americans. The USA ladies also defeated Canada 5-0 in this year's preliminary round in the Olympics. The American gals have handed Canada all four of their Olympic hockey losses including the 1998 gold medal match.
Bravo to the women's hockey gold medal team for declining their invitation to visit America's shame. Months after winning the gold medal, Trump launched America into an unjust and unprovoked war. On day one, more than 100 Iranian girls between the ages of 7 and 12-years-old were obliterated by a U.S. Tomahawk missile.
Trump touting "Praise be to Allah. Tuesday will be power plant day and bridge day all wrapped up in Iran. There will be nothing like it. Open the FUCKING straight you crazy bastards or you will be living in hell!!! Just watch! An actual Trump tweet on Easter Sunday. This is not America, but the Olympics are.
Mark Izzy Schurr
