Poulin leads Canada past Germany

Marie-Philip Poulin’s injured right knee held up just fine.

And the Canadian women’s hockey icon added another entry to her “Captain Clutch” reputation.

Returning to the lineup after missing two-plus games, Poulin injected a spark into a slow-starting Canadian team by making a key defensive play and then scoring to tie the Olympic career record in a 5-1 win over Germany in the quarterfinal round of the Milan Cortina Games on Saturday.

Canada advanced to the semifinals set for Monday and will play Switzerland, which defeated Finland 1-0 in the day’s other quarterfinal. The top-seeded and tournament-favored Americans will play Sweden, the Group B winner after the Swedes upset Czechia on Friday.

Vonn says she can return to U.S.

Lindsey Vonn’s latest surgery on her left leg that she broke in the Olympic downhill “went well” and now she “will be able to finally go back to the U.S.,” the American skiing standout said Saturday.

The 41-year-old Vonn is being treated at a hospital in Treviso.

She crashed 13 seconds into her run during last Sunday’s race and was airlifted off the course by helicopter. She said Monday she had suffered a “complex tibia fracture that is currently stable but will require multiple surgeries to fix properly.”

She said on Wednesday that she had a “successful” third surgery.

Van ’t Wout picks up second gold

Jens van ’t Wout of the Netherlands won the gold medal in 1,500-meter short track speedskating, adding to his Olympic haul after winning gold in the 1,000 earlier this week.

South Korea’s Daeheon Hwang took the silver medal and Roberts Kruzbergs of Latvia was third for bronze as Canadian short track star William Dandjinou had to settle for fifth.

Van ’t Wout raised his arms after crossing the line in 2 minutes, 12.219 seconds and immediately skated over to a sea of orange-clad teammates to share hugs at the Milano Ice Skating Arena.

Hwang, the gold medalist in the 2022 Beijing Games, finished in 2:12.304.

Flock earns first Olympic gold at 36

Austria’s Janine Flock’s long road to Olympic gold is over. The 36-year-old skeleton slider — winless in 16 all-time appearances at the Olympics or world championships — won gold at the Cortina Sliding Centre, the biggest victory of her long career.

Flock jumped to the front during her first run and stayed there throughout the competition. She navigated four runs in 3 minutes, 49.02 seconds. Susanne Kreher and Jacqueline Pfeifer, both of Germany, took silver and bronze.

“I can’t believe it. It doesn’t feel real right now,” Flock said. “It’s a dream to do this.”

Flock has enjoyed plenty of success through the years. She’s a three-time World Cup overall champ and has multiple medals from the world championships. Just never gold. Not until Saturday.

Prevc flies 464 feet for gold

Domen Prevc of Slovenia soared through the raindrops to take gold in the men’s large hill ski jumping competition.

Prevc was in second place with one jump remaining. He saved his best for last, flying a staggering 464 feet (141.5 meters) — the best of the night — to move ahead of Japan’s Ren Nikaido and Kacper Tomasiak of Poland.

The 26-year-old didn’t feel much pressure heading up the hill one last time. He leaned into the joy of the sport he discovered while following in the footsteps of his siblings.

“Even for the second round, I was like, ‘do your thing, do your best, enjoy the jump and feel the air,’” he said.

Norway’s Kirkeeide bounces back

Maren Kirkeeide’s first Olympic biathlon race ended with a dismal 49th-place finish early in the Games.

Her second went far, far better.

The Norwegian earned gold in the women’s 7.5-kilometer sprint, clearing all 10 of her shots before crossing the finish line in 20 minutes and 40.8 seconds, just ahead of Oceane Michelon of France 3.8 seconds back. Lou Jeanmonnot missed one but held on for the bronze, 23.7 seconds back.

“I wanted to try my best, and I got some positive feedback from the coaches, and then I got some extra motivation, and it helped me all the way to the finish line,” Kirkeeide said.

Jeanmonnot now has a full set of medals in Italy. She took silver in the 15-kilometer individual race and was part of France’s gold medal-winning mixed relay.