SALT LAKE CITY (voa) – A new world record has been set in the men’s 5,000 meters speedskating on the first day of competition in the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Jochem Uytdehaage of the Netherlands clocked under six minutes and 15 seconds to break the event’s record by more than four seconds and take the gold medal. Derek Parra of the United States also broke the previous record but had to settle for second place.
The first gold medal of these games went to veteran Stefania Belmondo of Italy, in the women’s 15-kilometer freestyle cross-country skiing.
The 19th Winter Olympic Games are being held under tight security in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States and some athletes and journalists are complaining there is too much security.
Olympic organizers have rebuffed this criticism. For his part, President Bush says he hopes the Olympics will provide “lasting memories of laughter and triumph.” He declared the games open late Friday, as he joined the athletes and more than 50,000 cheering spectators in the Rice-Eccles outdoor stadium.
The victorious 1980 U.S. ice hockey team did the honors of lighting the Olympic cauldron which will burn continuously until the games end on February 24.
WOMEN’S MOGULS SKIING
World champion Kari Traa of Norway has captured the Olympic gold medal in the women’s freestyle skiing moguls event held in Deer Valley, Utah. Traa, who won the bronze medal at the 1998 Nagano Games, was awarded 25-point-nine-one by the judges to take the gold. The 28-year-old was a strong favorite coming into the Games after going virtually unbeaten this season.
Shannon Bahrke was jubilant after capturing the first medal for the host United States. She won the silver with 25.06 points.
Defending Olympic champion Tae Satoya of Japan had to settle for bronze medal with a score of 24.85 points.
NORDIC COMBINED SKIING
Jaakko Tallus of Finland is the current leader of the Nordic Combined ski event at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Tallus racked up a total of 267.5 points in his two leaps off the K-90 ski jump in nearby Park City on Saturday. Mario Stecher of Austria is currently in second place, 48-100ths of one point behind. Samppa Lajunen of Finland is third, trailing by 53-100ths of one point.
The highest ranked American is Bill Demong, who finished the jumping portion in eighth place, 2.20 points behind.
The second and final leg of the Nordic Combined event is the 15-kilometer cross-country ski race which will be held Sunday at Soldier Hollow.
