Source : ABC NEWS
Breezy Johnson’s pain of crashing was washed away by the euphoria of love, while Snoop Dogg showed his support with a magnificent snow jacket.
Here are the quick hits from the Winter Olympics.
1. Breezy’s Olympic engagement ring
Breezy Johnson didn’t get a medal, but she has a nice shiny ring to celebrate. (AP: Andy Wong)
It mightn’t have been a dream result, but it was certainly a dream moment for Breezy Johnson.
The American skier, who claimed gold in the women’s downhill earlier this week, crashed out of the Super-G dramatically on day six.
However, she wasn’t made to dwell on that disappointment for long.
As she pulled into the finish area, her boyfriend of two and a half years, Connor Watkins, was waiting.
Down on one knee, he presented both an engagement ring and a piece of wood emblazoned with the Taylor Swift lyrics “Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy?”
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“His words were so beautiful, and I echoed so much of what he said, and so I was just crying and thinking about how much I love him,” Johnson said of the proposal.
“I was feeling kind of stupid [after crashing out of the Super-G], which is the moment that you want the people you love around you, when you’re just feeling dumb and childish. ‘Tell me that I’m OK.’
“Just seeing him, I was like, ‘Yeah, it’s nice to see you, and let’s go commiserate a little bit together,’ and then obviously everything else happened.”
She said yes.
2. Heraskevych’s father heartbroken by disqualification
Mykhailo Heraskevych, father and coach of Vladyslav Heraskevych of Ukraine, reacts to his son’s disqualification. (Getty Images: Richard Heathcote)
Early on day six, Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified from the Milano Cortina Games over the use of a helmet depicting Ukrainian athletes killed during the country’s war with Russia.
Heraskevych, who held up a sign with the slogan “No War In Ukraine” days before Russia’s invasion at the 2022 Games in Beijing, was informed in a one-on-one meeting with IOC president Kirsty Coventry.
Heraskevych’s team has vowed to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Father and coach Mykhailo Heraskevych, who was pictured doubled over and inconsolable after hearing the news, was devastated.
“The International Olympic Committee destroyed our dreams. It’s not fair,” he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was not impressed with the decision.
“I thank our athlete for his clear stance. His helmet, bearing the portraits of fallen Ukrainian athletes, is about honour and remembrance,” Zelenskyy said.
“It is a reminder to the whole world of what Russian aggression is and the cost of fighting for independence. And in this, no rule has been broken.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha was equally scathing.
“The IOC has banned not the Ukrainian athlete, but its own reputation. Future generations will recall this as a moment of shame,” Sybiha said.
3. Fox presents gold to Australia’s newest Olympic champ
Cooper Woods celebrates his gold medal with Australian team Chef de Mission Alyssa Camplin, and Jessica Fox (right). (AAP: Dan Himbrechts)
Australia’s first gold medal of the Milano Cortina Games was presented by one of the country’s most decorated Olympians to one of the most unlikely, with Jessica Fox awarding mogul winner Cooper Woods with his prize.
Having never won a World Cup, only making the podium once in 51 starts and coming into the Olympics on the back of an underwhelming season, the 25-year-old was considered a long shot to be amongst the medals.
But Woods delivered on the big stage to take the gold ahead of mogul skiing greats Mikael Kingsbury and Akuma Horishima.
Canoe superstar and six-time Olympic medallist Fox presented his medal, with Woods a little star-struck.
“It was an amazing honour to receive my gold medal from a fellow champion,” Woods said.
“She’s an Aussie icon — so lovely, but it threw me off guard, she was very emotional handing me the medal, and it brought a lot of significance to that moment.
“She started tearing up a little bit, and I was just, ‘Oh my god, is this Jess Fox!’ That was so cool.
“It was really nice to receive something so elite from an Aussie icon.”
4. Ex responds to Norwegian cheater
The most cringe-inducing saga of the 2026 Games has another stanza.
After claiming bronze in the men’s biathlon, Norway’s Sturla Holm Laegreid went viral on Tuesday when he sensationally revealed he had been unfaithful to his ex-girlfriend.
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24 hours later, he said he was feeling deep regret for both stealing the limelight from compatriot and gold medallist Johan-Olav Botn, as well as for bringing his ex “involuntarily into the spotlight”.
Norwegian newspaper VG has since claimed to be in contact with the woman at the centre of the story.
She was reported to be unmoved by Laegreid’s apology.
“It’s hard to forgive. Even after a declaration of love in front of the whole world,” the woman, who wished to remain anonymous, said.
“I didn’t choose to be put in this position, and it’s painful to have to endure it.
“We’ve been in contact, and he’s aware of my feelings on this.”
5. Snoop Dogg shows support with a custom jacket
It was hard to miss Snoop Dogg at the women’s halfpipe final. (Getty Images: PA/David Davies)
American snowboard great Chloe Kim was going for a hat-trick of Olympic gold medals in the women’s halfpipe.
There were plenty in the crowd to watch Kim go for gold once more, but none dressed as well as Snoop Dogg.
The rapper and “honorary coach” of Team USA was in attendance, and you could not miss the 54-year-old.
Snoop was wearing an eye-catching red, white and blue snow jacket with Kim — standing on the podium after her 2022 triumph — emblazoned on it.
It was a larger-than-life jacket fit for a larger-than-life artist.
Snoop’s mighty jacket was not enough for Kim to achieve that third gold medal.
The California native came so close but had to settle for silver, just getting pipped at the end by a stunning performance from South Korean teenager Gaon Choi.
