Stand-out performances of the 2018 Winter Olympics

The 19-day 2018 Winter Olympics was an event of shocks, successes and record-breakers. Taking place in Pyeongchang in the South Korea, audiences saw everything from previous gold medal takers not even making the podium, and never-heard-of-before athletes stealing the show — but what were this year’s stand-out performances?

With input from Chill Factore, where you can get lift passes for the UK’s longest indoor real-snow slope, we’ll discuss the best 2018 Winter Olympics performances — and why they were unforgettable.

Norway’s Marit Bjoergen: cross-country skiing

Norwegian, Marit Bjoergen, clinching her eighth gold medal at the final event of the 2018 Winter Olympics was a stand-out moment for all viewers. Now the most decorated Winter Olympian of all time, Bjoergen, 37, couldn’t hide her euphoria when she won first place for her performance in the women’s cross-country skiing. Afterwards, she said: “I’ve had an amazing day. Today, my skis were good and it was special.”

From the start, Bjoergen was the one to beat. She broke away early and took the lead for over 60 seconds at the halfway mark — too much for her competitors. Following Bjoergen was Swedish opponent, Charlotte Kalla, who was trying to become her country’s most decorated Olympian. Unfortunately, she finished nearly three minutes behind the victor.

What made this performance somewhat poignant was the fact that this was Bjoergen’s last ever Olympic event, following an incredible 16-year career. A BBC sports commentator said: “It is the greatest cross-country performance you could ever imagine. She has transcended the boundaries of her sport.”

The US’ Ryan Donato: ice hockey

Before February this year, even avid Winter Olympic fans may not have heard of ice hockey player, Ryan Donato. However, this Harvard University student has been touted as the saviour of US ice hockey in this year’s Winter Olympics.

Donato scored both goals when the US beat Slovakia 2-1 for the first time, and he even netted two goals out of five when his team took on Slovakia in the play-offs. Mark Arcobello, was quick to praise his said teammate following the victory, and said: “Donato can really shoot it.”

The rising ice hockey star made up nearly 50% of his team’s scoring, and it’s no doubt that Donato has been a key factor in the US’ ice hockey success during the 2018 Winter Olympics. Although his team crashed out of the event at the quarter-final stage, Donato has clearly made his mark on the sport.

Czech Republic’s Ester Ledecka: snowboard parallel giant slalom and skiing super G

Without a doubt, Ester Ledecka, from the Czech Republic, was one of the biggest names of the 2018 Winter Olympics — not least because she was the first female athlete ever to win multiple gold medals in separate sports at the same Olympic event.

Being a renowned snowboarder — she also claimed the gold medal for her performance in the parallel giant slalom in snowboarding — it was a resounding shock to experts and fans when Ledecka skied her country to victory in the skiing super G event, beating her nearest opponent by 0.46 seconds!

Ledecka has been snowboarding since aged five, however, she only began on the skiing circuit two years ago and even borrowed a pair of skis to claim the top-spot in this year’s skiing super G event! The 22-year-old Czech superstar said: “I love racing. This is the best thing about my job.”

Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu: figure skating

Being the defending Olympic figure skating champ, it was perhaps not too much of shock that Yuzuru Hanyu gave an indelible performance in men’s free skate at this year’s Winter Olympics.

Securing a score of 111.68 — the second highest score for the event ever — one of the most memorable parts of Hanyu’s performance was the ending, where his fans lavished multiple Winnie the Pooh teddy bears at him in congratulations. Why Winnie the Pooh? The fictional bear is actually Hanyu’s unofficial mascot and good-luck charm. Johnny Weir, American skater and sport commentator, described the Japanese skater’s performance at this year’s event as “liquid silk.”

Great Britain’s Lizzy Yarnold: skeleton

Lizzy Yarnold is riding high right now, touted as one of our best ever winter athletes, the 29-year-old from Kent put on an astounding show at this year’s Winter Olympic Games — defending her title and keeping her firmly in the world’s number-one spot for the skeleton event!

Yarnold is Great Britain’s first winter athlete to win two gold medals, and her performance at the 2018 skeleton event was greeted by great applause. Despite suffering from a virus that affected her breathing and caused dizzy spells, Yarnold won by 0.45 seconds with a track record of 51.46 — although, she trailed behind Austrian Janine Flock prior to the fourth and final run before clinching the lead.

Fellow Brit and bronze-winner at the skeleton event, Laura Deas, said of Yarnold: “Lizzy is such a phenomenal athlete. She is so consistent and she knows how to bring it when it matters.”

Clearly, Yarnold was elated to have kept a hold of her top-flight position, tweeting after the event: ‘I won the Olympics again!!! #HistoryMaker’.

“No other female has tried to retain this title and one of the reasons is because it is so hard. To have the mental grit to come back and say, ‘I don’t care about all that, I am going to come back and show you what I can do’. I’m sure if Lizzy Yarnold decides she’s achieved everything she can, she will find something else to do and succeed at that,” said Alex Coomber, an Olympic skeleton racer, when speaking on a BBC broadcast.

Norway’s Simen Hegstad Krueger: 30km skiathlon  

Norway were the team of the 2018 Winter Olympics — but which of its athletes stood out from the rest? Although there were many outstanding performances, Simen Hegstad Krueger played a particularly unforgettable role for his country.

Touted as this year’s ‘comeback king’, Krueger had to overcome being ensnared in a crash at the very start of his event — enough to knock even the most experienced athlete off their game. Instead, the steely Norwegian dusted himself off and went on to win gold in the 30km skiathlon by a massive eight seconds.

Despite crashing into Andrey Larkov and Denis Spitsov, Krueger eventually took the lead in the remaining 5km and soared to victory — claiming his first gold medal which he said was an “indescribable feeling.”

Germany’s Aljona Savchenko and Bruno Massot: pairs skating

German figure skating stars, Aljona Savcehnko and Bruno Massot, grabbed all the attention when they took to the ice at this year’s free skate event. So much so, that the pair even set an Olympic record with their score of 159.31!

What made this score such an inspirational one, was that the pair believed that they’d blown their chances of success because of an error in the short section. Despite this set-back, there were tears on the ice when the pair completed their flawless free skate performance, which catapulted them from fourth the first place — although, the anxious wait for their competitors to complete their performances before the first-place spot was confirmed was clearly agonizing for the pair.

The duo’s performance included triple twist lifts, triple flips and a side-by-side, triple toe that had the audience dumbfounded by its perfect symmetry. After winning the top spot, Massot said: “We were two fighters. We were on the ice for a medal, and for a gold medal, and we didn’t give up.”

Final medal table by country

Wondering which nation ranked where in the medal table? Check out where GB landed and who made the top ten…