Pyeongchang brings highlights

Snow is falling and ice is freezing. Four years ago we witnessed the storylines that unfolded during the 2014 winter games in Sochi, Russia. This year, we shift our attention to South Korea where the newest host of the Olympic winter games resides.

From snowboarding to curling, to ice hockey, I’ll cover the biggest storylines to unfold thus far in the games.

Early on, the ever anticipated snowboarding events took place with recurring names like Sean White, while new faces began to make names for themselves.

First off, Chloe Kim, the snowboarder from Long Beach, Calif. People first started to take notice when the 17-year-old tweeted during the middle of the snowboard halfpipe competition “Could be down for some ice cream rn.”

It was only up from there on as she dominated the women’s halfpipe final, landing two backside 1080’s during her victory lap.

She easily took home gold but also wasn’t the only American to take home the gold amidst the snowboarding finals.

Legend White was looking to erase his disastrous run during the 2014 Sochi games and regain his leg atop the podium. White landed back-to-back 1440s to edge off the silver medalist Ayumu Hirano. That was White’s third gold medal, and first in nearly eight years.

His 2014 games were not only a teaching moment for the veteran border but set himself up for more success in these games. Without winning in Sochi, it made him more determined than ever to come back strong in these games.

On the other side of the age spectrum, the 17-year-old Red Gerard amazed himself with a gold in the men’s slopestyle. His humble and novice-toned interviews after taking home the gold told the story of the kid’s inexperience in the competition. It also showed his determination to not only be back but to bring more medals back to the States.

The American’s dominated the snowboarding side of the games, but there is still much to be covered.

The United States women’s ice hockey team has dominated thus far in the games. The team’s goal differential of plus 7 had them easily beating Finland and the independent athletes from Russia, but that isn’t the only big story on this side of the sport.

Both Korean nations decided to combine women’s teams in hopes of showing a sign of peace and bringing a more competitive edge. While the team lost two games at a score of 8-0 to Sweden and Switzerland, the score isn’t what people are focused on.

The two neighbors, who are normally in a constant state of tension, are showing a significant effort of peace and willingness to end futile hostile efforts. They hope friendships and bonds between the two foreign countries will be symbolic of things to come between to two north Asian countries.

The young Olympic season has still to yet birth more stories and spotlights. With a large chunk to come, American athletes will look to step up their game and erase recent woes in the medal count and bring the award back to the States.