Day 6

Let's start with skating. Firstly, how many times is Scott Hamilton going to use the term, "the devil's in the details" to describe the deductions skaters receive on minor mistakes. We get it, find something new to say.

Last night's men's short program is the reason I love skating so much. After a night of falls in the pair's long program, the men really pulled it together when it counted. I love that the top three in the standings actually reflect the three best performances of the night. And I really love that American Evan Lysacek (the current World Champion) is in a virtual tie with Russian Evgeni Plushenko (the 2006 Olympic Champion) and Japan's Daisuke Takahashi without having attempted the quad toe loop. That just goes to show how strong the rest of Lysacek's skating skills are and I think that's a really good sign as to how he'll do in the long program. Biggest upsets of the night: Frenchman Brian Joubert and current U.S. National Champion, Jeremy Abbott. Both came into the competition as medal contenders but took themselves out of the race last night.

Skating factoid of the day: No reigning men's world champion has won the Olympics since American Scott Hamilton in 1984. That may not sound good for Lysacek but factoid number two: the only men to ever do that are all American. Of course, that should all be taken with a grain of salt, since they told Michelle Kwan in 2002 that all the ladies' Olympic Champions had been the World Champions the previous year, as she had been in 2001 and we all know how that worked out. (Not bitter at all...)

Once again, American Lindsey Jacobellis manages to disappoint. In 2006 in snowboard cross, Jacobellis was all set to win gold and on the last little jump of the course, she did a little victory trick and fell and had to settle for second. This year, she didn't even make it to the finals. But that made room for Canada's Maelle Ricker to win her country's second gold medal on home turf.

First reaction to the headline, "Pregnant Olympian a Rarety": don't know who this is, but she's really dumb for putting her baby's life at risk for the Olympics.

Second reaction: ...unless it's curling, which is pretty much the least active Olympic sport you could come up with. (Besides maybe ping pong, but that's a Summer sport.)

Which it turned out to be. Canadian curler Kristie Moore is 5 months pregnant. She's also the alternate on her team, so she's unlikely to compete anyway. But if her team makes the podium, she will win a medal as well. Moore is the second known athlete to compete at the Olympics while pregnant. The first was Magda Julin who won the gold in figure skating at the 1920 Winter Olympics while she was three months pregnant.