Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony Review: China Sets Off Propaganda Fireworks; NBC Awkwardly Balances Sports & Geopolitics

Winter Olympian who has been branded 'Russia's most beautiful' knows exactly how to motivate herself to win a gold medal.Yulia Kanakina is a former ballet dancer who will compete for the Russian Olympic Committee in the women's skeleton when it gets underway on Friday.She is a former world junior champion and has revealed she is aiming to get on the podium in Beijing, having claimed two top three finishes during this season's World Cup.The 26-year-old is making her Olympic debut in the Chinese capital and has opened up on how she motivates herself to win a medal.Speaking to Sport24, Kanakina said: “We have been getting ready for the Games for quite a long time, much work has been done. I need to keep myself in good shape, both physical and psychological, till the beginning of the competition.“Some people like to motivate me by saying ‘Yulia, the most important thing is to win.’“I don’t need this kind of motivation.

Olympic Games.Mae was seen as one of Britain’s most impressive musical stars, and her talent now doubt reaped reward, with the Sunday Times rich list estimating her fortune to be around £32 million in 2006.Remarkably though, the violinist put her musical attributes on hold as she looked to take on a career in skiing with aims of competing at the Winter Olympics.Despite holding British citizenship after being born and raised in London, Mae was born to a Singaporean mother and a Thai father, and her father’s nationality would prove to be her route to becoming an Olympian.After outlining her plans to compete at the Games, the musician opted to represent Thailand as an alpine skier, rather than Team GB as she felt this gave her the best chance possible to qualify for the Sochi event in 2014.In 2010 she told The Telegraph: “I am British, but realistically there is no way I could represent my own country, but because my natural father is Thai, they have accepted me.”Is Mae's story one of the great Olympic stories? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.Four years later she found herself on a plane to Russia in order to compete at the Sochi 2014 Games, as one of two Thai skiers competing in the giant slalom event.Despite achieving her dream though, it is more than fair to say that things didn’t go to plan for Mae.The skier ended up finishing 67th out of 67 finishers on the Sochi slopes, but still kept her head held high following her last place performance.Following the race Mae positively said: “It’s so cool. You’ve got the elite skiers of the world and then you’ve got some mad old woman like me trying to make it down.

Winter Olympics descended into absolute chaos.Players remained in their dressing room while they waited for the Russian Olympic Committee's (ROC) Covid-19 test results to come through following a delay.The ROC skated onto the Wukesong Sports Centre ice for the introductions but were left standing on the blueline as the Canadians failed to join them.When Canada eventually came out for the game, players on both sides took the ice wearing masks due to "safety and security concerns" as things got off to a chaotic and confusing start.ROC players, however, removed their masks for the third period while the Canadians continued to wear theirs.Canada went on to register a routine 6-1 win but despite the result being a forgone conclusion, the contest was far from uneventful."Russia's results from this morning weren't back in yet," said Canada forward Natalie Spooner."I know in the past few days they've had a few positives and we just wanted to make sure their results came back and we were safe to play."Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.And that's it, job done.

Breaking records isn’t only for the slopes! Chloe Kim’s net worth proves that being a professional snowboarder can earn an athlete some serious dough—especially if they’re as talented as her.

Don’t expect to see Kendall Jenner competing in the Winter Olympics anytime soon! The 818 Tequila founder shared a hilarious clip of herself absolutely wiping out, while snowboarding on Monday February 7. Kendall, 26, went off a ramp while snowboarding and landed flat on her face, but she took it all in stride, unafraid to make a joke at her own expense by sharing the video in her first ever TikTok.

Figure skater Nathan Chen brought glory to the United States on the ice during Monday’s primetime coverage of the 2022 Winter Olympics, shattering the world record in the men’s short program at the Beijing games. Nabbing 113.97 points, Chen brought in the highest short program score in figure skating history. Monday saw new highs for Chen and the winter sport, not for NBC’s fifth night of coverage, or at least in early numbers.

Savannah Guthrie loves reporting on the Winter Olympics but that doesn't mean she enjoys taking part!The Today show host opened up about being rescued while reporting on the sporting event back in 2018. MORE: Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb share disappointment over 2022 Winter Olympics Savannah spoke to her co-host, Hoda Kotb, about the experience and explained how horrified she was to discover she was going to have to learn to ski for a segment on the NBC show.WATCH: Savannah Guthrie shares behind-the-scenes with fans ahead of new project"So the [producers] were like, 'You're going to learn to ski in PyeongChang,'" she said, according to People magazine. "I never skied, because I grew up in the desert.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterNBC says it has “resolved” a “third-party error” that was inhibiting Leslie Jones’ social media commentary on the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.“This was the result of a third-party error, and the situation has been resolved,” an NBC spokesperson told Variety on Tuesday. “She is free to do her social media posts as she has done in the past. She is a super fan of the Olympics, and we are super fans of her.”Some of the comedian’s posts were blocked because of restrictions on sharing recorded video on social media, with NBC’s rights to the Olympics — which cost them $7.75 billion through 2032 — being very strictly observed.Jones, an Olympics live-tweeter since the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and a guest of NBC’s in Rio and at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games, said in a statement tweeted Monday that she is “starting to feel like this should be my last Olympics I live-tweet.” “I know I know, another celebrity bitching.

Winter Olympic dream crushed.However, there was another twist as Charles’ Canadian teammate Florence Brunelle was relegated to fourth after earning a second penalty of the games.Brunelle had made an illegal pass past Kexin, allowing Charles and Kexin to qualify for the semi-finals."This incident wasn’t Canada’s fault… look at the footage closely and you will see it was the Chinese competitor who flicks the marker," one fan tweeted.Another added: "Biggest cheaters on the planet."While Brunelle, who was disqualified from the event told Canadian media: “That’s sport. Through making mistakes, I’ll learn.

American Olympic team.Harding’s desperation to overcome Kerrigan saw ex-husband Jeff Gillooly and bodyguard Shawn Eckhardt hire Stant and his uncle Derrick Smith to set up the attack.Their long-term rivalry came to a head at the National Championships in Detroit back in January 1994.Stant clubbed Kerrigan’s right knee after a practice session ahead of the event, with the American superstar’s traumatised face emblazoned across newspaper covers.As she sat on the floor, Kerrigan tearfully screamed: “Why? Why? Why? Why me?”Fortunately for Kerrigan, she escaped the horrible attack with severe bruising and no broken bones - but it ruled her out of the championships the following night.Two days later, Harding won gold at the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and guaranteed her spot at the upcoming Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.Kerrigan was fit enough to compete at the Olympics a month alter, and she was offered a spot to compete at the Games by her fellow skaters. Do you think Tonya Harding deserved a lifetime ban? Let us know in the comments section. An FBI investigation was launched into Eckhardt, with Harding’s bodyguard confessing to his involvement in the attack on 12 January, sensationally incriminating Stant, Gillooly and getaway car driver Smith.The United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) considered banning Harding but decided to allow her to compete as no evidence had surfaced regarding her claims of not being involved in the attack.Gillooly surrendered to the FBI four days after a warrant was issued for his arrest, and confessed on 27 January that he orchestrated the shocking attack - implicating Harding, Eckhardt, Stant and Smith.Harding continued to deny her involvement in the attack saying:

Scots curler Bruce Mouat was wearing his rainbow laces with pride yesterday in his bid for Olympic glory.

She has made live tweeting during the Olympics a tradition every two years.But Leslie Jones has revealed that perhaps the closing ceremony has come for her social media posts about the global games.The 54-year-old comedian took to her Twitter on Sunday night to share a statement that she may be pulling the plug on posting about the Winter Olympics due to'folks who don’t want me to do it.'Scroll down for video Taking a stand: Leslie Jones (seen in took to her Twitter on Sunday night to share a statement that she may be pulling the plug on posting about the Winter Olympics due to 'folks who don’t want me to do it' She wrote: 'i m starting to feel like this should be my last olympics i live tweet. I know I know, another celebrity b****ing [eye roll emoji] But i'm tired of fighting the folks who don't want me to do it'Perhaps most shockingly, she pointed the finger at her former employer NBC for being the reason why she is drawing near to that decision. She wrote: 'i m starting to feel like this should be my last olympics i live tweet.

Beijing Winter Olympics.The lack of snowfall across the UK alongside its lack of facilities for sliding sports and curling mean Britain are underdogs for pretty much every event at the Winter Games.While the Russian Olympic Committee and China are both riding high with two golds, British athletes in the bobsleighing have to fund themselves while the cross-country skiing team make life easier for themselves by residing in Norway.That means Team GB’s measly tally of 32 medals across 23 winter Olympics is unlikely to drastically improve any time soon.And yet the athletes still partake in their events with greater morale than other nations, for example Germany, who have complained about not having hot food.That is down to Britain’s stars receiving a fantastic support package, despite their not so glamorous performances across the actual events.An operation dubbed ‘Home from Home’ has ensured Team GB athletes for the first time have training spaces at each of the three Games hubs around Beijing, courtesy of freight containers arriving from the UK beforehand.For training, ten Watt bikes, two ski Ergs, a cross-country treadmill and six Olympic lifting areas have been set up.An additional 70 sofas, 180 mattress toppers and 40 Smart TVs were brought in to make their stay as seamless as possible.Do you think Team GB will manage to secure a gold medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics? Let us know in the comments section.Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into

Let the games begin!

Winter Olympics.It is a nightmare athletes hope to avoid: a top falling down and revealing your nipple to millions around the world.This was the upsetting reality for superstar French ice skater Papadakis, whose nipple emerged as she and Cizeron aimed for the gold medal before they were docked precious points due to the clothing malfunction.At the Gangeneung Ice Arena, partner Cizeron twirled around her during their performance, loosening her top inadvertently which subsequently exposed her nipple.Just 22 years of age and one of the favourites to win gold, Papadakis described the unfortunate mishap as her ‘worst nightmare’.“My costume opened up,” Papadakis said afterwards.“It was difficult. It’s the first time that something like that happened.“I tried to stay focused and finish without anything else happening.”Papadakis and Cizeron were left in second place at the halfway point in the competition after receiving an incredible 81.93 score from the judges - despite the incident. Do you think Papadakis and Cizeron should have been docked points for the incident? Let us know in the comments section. According to Cizeron, the incident cost them points as the duo went on to secure the silver medal.“It’s just frustrating to miss a few points just because of a costume issue," Cizeron explained.“It’s not what we get ready for when we train.

In an unfortunate turn of events, Vincent Zhou will not be able to compete in the Men’s ice skating events at the 2022 Winter Olympics.

kicked off their opening day, tweeting her thoughts about the city’s alleged human rights violations.“There is no reason to watch a Winter Olympics that is holding up and spreading propaganda for a regime that is committing actual genocide and ethnic cleansing,” she claimed. “On top of poisoning the world and killing 6 million people.

2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, the 24-year-old was closing in on the finish when disaster struck.Broadcasters were forced to cut away from footage to show views of the mountain after O'Brien lost her balance and crashed over the line - with her leg twisting 90 degrees.O'Brien could be seen clutching her injured ankle after coming to a stop, but only had thoughts for others as she worried about causing a delay on the competition.Having received immediate care from paramedics, the young skiier was taken on a stretcher to hospital with the US Ski & Snowboard Team then offering an update.They wrote on Twitter: "Nina O'Brien crashed into the finish but she is alert and responsive."The organisation added: "She was worried about delaying the race."And also she wanted to know how fast she was skiing."O'Brien was sixth after her first run and had been competing for a possible medal before her second run came to a disastrous end.Team-mate Paula Moltzan would go on to finish 12th after watching her colleague fall, with attention of the squad then turning back to the condition of O'Brien.Having confirmed that O'Brien was alert, responsive and worried about delaying the race, the US Ski and Snowboard Team asked fans to send her their well wishes. One Twitter user wrote: "Easy to forget sometimes that danger is always present for these athletes.

Daft Punk’s music made an unlikely appearance at the Winter Olympics yesterday (February 6).A medley featuring a series of tracks from the former dance duo’s final album ‘Random Access Memories’ was used to soundtrack a routine in the US figure skating Team Event in Beijing.The team were sitting in third place behind Japan in a battle for the silver medal before Madison Chock and Evan Bates performed their Daft Punk routine which included snippets of ‘Within’, ‘Contact’ and ‘Touch’.As a result the team picked up the silver medal. You can view the pair’s routine below.#NBCOlympics #WinterOlympics2022 #TeamUSAUSA's Chock/Bates channel Daft Punk to win team ice dance | Winter Olympics 2022 | NBC Sports pic.twitter.com/PCmjpiqKLL— Pitbull (@Willian87420216) February 7, 2022Daft Punk split last February after 28 years together.

Dan Walker made a brutally honest assessment of his BBC Breakfast co-star John Watson when his sports segment went wrong.The savage segment ended up with Dan slamming John's athletic ability in front of his viewers, with Sally joining in to tease that John was 'ignoring them' on air.BBC Sports presenter John was delivering a segment on curling in Edinburgh as the Winter Olympics in Beijing have just kicked off.To liven things up, John decided to try his hand at curling in front of the viewers, but it didn't quite go to plan.Presenters Dan and his co-host Sally Nugent proceeded to commentate on John's performance, but couldn't resist making some cheeky digs at John whilst doing so.At one point, Dan poked fun at John's athletic ability when he said that John "lacks power".When John slid off on the ice, he looked impressive and Dan remarked: "Nice technique, that," and Sally agreed: "He's good!"Sadly though, the curling stone didn't move quite as far as John hoped and he stayed rooted to the ice on his knees.Summing up his performance, Dan cheekily jibed: "I can't believe [it] John, you lack power there John. I thought you had it in you..."Backing Dan on the teasing front, Sally said: "Shall we just stay on this [segment] so we can see John get up off the floor? See how that goes?"However, John got good feedback from the expert, Michael, who told him it was a "strong start"."If Michael says it's a strong start then I'm happy with that.

With the first full day of games tucked away, NBC posted some early numbers from the Beijing Winter Olympics and the glass seems to be half full.