USA Hockey unveils men's Olympic roster; three-time gold medalist Shaun White is back
With the countdown for the 2022 Winter Olympics in full swing, countries and their perspective athletes are prepped for what could be an unusual two weeks in China.
The International Olympic Committee says the games will continue as scheduled and with the coronavirus pandemic still wreaking havoc across the world, the IOC and its television partner NBCUniversal are keeping a close eye on things.
While most of the Olympic sports for the United States have named their participants for Beijing, a few athletes still have qualifying left to do to earn their place on the team.
Here are some headlines involving Olympic athletes:
– Lawmakers seek to strip IOC of tax-exempt status for going easy on China's Winter Olympics
– Texas man charged by federal prosecutors with supplying performance-enhancing drugs to Olympians
– Olympic medalist, Texas A&M track star Deon Lendore dies in car crash
– Five things we learned from U.S. Figure Skating Championships ahead of 2022 Winter Olympics
Security concerns
Security is always going to be a concern traveling overseas for athletic competitions, and the Beijing games are no different. The United States is among several countries that are taking their cybersecurity seriously by encouraging athletes to leave their personal electronic at home. Rented laptops and burner phones will be encouraged.
Return of Shaun White
The 35-year-old Shaun White, a three-time Olympic gold medalist, is heading for his fifth Olympics after he earned a spot in the finals of a World Cup event in Switzerland. He finished fifth in the qualifying round ahead of Saturday's 12-man final and would guarantee his place on one of the four men's halfpipe spots.
USA Hockey roster unveiled
The 25-player roster (14 forwards, 8 defensemen, 3 goaltenders) for the U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team was unveiled Thursday, with the squad comprised of 15 current collegiate players. Some of the notables are Matty Beniers, who was the No. 2 pick of the Seattle Kraken in last year's NHL draft and Jake Sanderson, a 2020 No. 5 pick of the Ottawa Senators. Six of the players have NHL experience. The USA Hockey team, which averages 25 years of age, opens the Olympic tournament Feb. 10 against China.
Mike Tirico doing double duty for NBC
NBC's Mike Tirico had what seemed like a difficult choice between working the Winter Olympics or the Super Bowl. Well, he's doing both. In what the network is calling "an unprecedented hosting double," Tirico will travel to Beijing to host NBC's Olympic prime time show, beginning on Thursday, Feb. 3 and running through Thursday, Feb. 10. The next day, he'll fly 6,200 miles to Los Angeles and resume his Olympic hosting duties on Friday night from a special set outside SoFi Stadium, site of Super Bowl 56.