Christie smiling again in Sochi as luck changes
A SMILE was back on the face of speed skater Elise Christie yesterday after she put a testing week in Sochi behind her to qualify for Friday’s 1,000m quarter-final.
Christie was stripped of a silver medal in the 500m final after placing her hand on a Korean rival as she fell, was the subject of Twitter abuse as a result of that disqualification, then choked back the tears after being eliminated from the 1,500m heat for skating outside of the finish line.
Mindful of her previous tough luck, Christie hung back from her rivals in yesterday’s heat before making her move with three laps to go, crossing the line in first place.
The 23-year-old said: “I was told about all the support back home and I smiled for the first time in a while. I was considering not getting back on the ice, but the support has pushed me to get back on. I’m really pleased with how I skated.”
In the men’s 500m event, Team GB’s flag-bearer at the opening ceremony Jon Eley qualified from heat one, but compatriot Jack Whelbourne twisted an ankle and missed out on a quarter-final spot.
David Murdoch’s curlers reached today’s semi-finals, gaining two points with the final stone of their tiebreaker to beat Norway 6-5.
Women’s bobsleigh pair Paula Walker and Rebekah Wilson placed 12th after two heats, 1.87 seconds behind leaders America, who boast London 2012 4x100m gold medallist Lauryn Williams as brakesperson.
Britain’s violinist-turned-slalom skier Vanessa Mae finished 67th and last representing Thailand.
Teenager Rowan Cheshire, who spent Sunday night in hospital after suffering concussion during a fall in halfpipe skiing practice, has been ruled out of tomorrow’s event.
TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS
■ Eve Muirhead’s rink take on Canada in their curling semi-final at 10am, while GB’s men meet Sweden at 3pm
■ Jenna McCorkell, 11-time British champion, starts her figure skating short program at 3pm
■ Two-woman bobsleigh continues at 4.15pm with the final heat at 5.25pm