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4 to Watch: Soaring Snowboarders and Spinning Skaters Highlight Today's Olympics Events

Southern California snowboarders Chloe Kim, Maddie Mastro and Hailie Langland and figure skaters Adam Rippon and Mirai Magasu will all be part of today's action in Pyeongchang

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Figure skaters Adam Rippon and Mirai Nagasu made their first appearances in Pyeongchang in a star-studded day of Winter Olympics events.

In snowboarding, two competitors with ties to Southern California competedin halfpipe qualifying and a third took on Pyeongchang's unusual slopestyle course.

Here are the four events to follow Sunday and early Monday.

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Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

1. Mikaela Shiffrin's Giant Slalom Medal Quest Will Have to Wait 

Mikaela Shiffrin's debut at the Pyeongchang Winter Games was cancelled about three hours before it was scheduled to begin Monday because of strong winds. It was the second Alpine skiing race called off at the Olympics.

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The event was rescheduled for Wednesday.

Shiffrin became a breakout American star at the Sochi Olympics, where she became the youngest-ever Olympic slalom champion at age 18. She’s looking to add a lot more hardware this time. Now 22, Shiffrin has committed to skiing both the giant slalom and the slalom In Pyeongchang, and she might add the other three individual women’s races. Last year, Shiffrin became the first woman to win three consecutive slalom world titles in 78 years.

Up first for Shiffrin: The giant slalom. She’ll look to better her fifth-place finish in the event from the 2014 Olympics. She won a silver medal in the giant slalom in the 2017 World Championships.

Lindsey Vonn, another standout American skier, will not compete in the giant slalom.

Originally from Pennsylvania, Adam Rippon moved to Lakewood to focus on training.

2. Adam Rippon, Mirai Nagasu Carry U.S. to Team Bronze

America’s attempt at a gold medal in the figure skating team event came up short as the team finished with the Bronze medal. The team’s chances took a hit when one of its stars, Nathan Chen, fell during his Olympic debut on Friday. Adam Rippon represented the U.S. in the men’s free skate, one of three programs in the Team Event. Rippon had a fluid and steady routine, but his score was hurt by not hitting a quad.

Canada took home the gold and the Olympic Athletes from Russia took home the silver.

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3. Jamie Anderson Defends Gold Medal in Women’s Slopestyle

With a near flawless first run Jamie Anderson defended her gold medal in PyeongChang. Anderson led a strong group of Americans who were expected to contend for medals in the women’s slopestyle and was considered the favorite to repeat.

When slopestyle made its debut at the last Olympics, riders from Canada, Norway and the United States each won a medal. U.S. medalist Sage Kotsenburg has since retired and the U.S. are considered the underdogs in Pyeongchang. The course is one of the most unique designs ever seen.

Chloe Kim and three other Americans are through to the finals in women's halfpipe snowboarding. The 17-year-old Kim posted the top score during qualifying Monday to earn the top seed in Tuesday's final. Kim was the only rider to go over 90 points, putting up 91.50 in her first run and topping it with 95.50 in her second.

All four American riders pushed through to the 12-woman final. Maddie Mastro was fourth in qualifying, with 2002 Olympic champion Kelly Clark 11th and Arielle Gold 12th.

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4. USA’s Bergsma Skates in 1500-Meter Speed Skating

Heather Bergsma once again faded in the 1500-meter speed skating race, finishing eighth at the Pyeongchang Games on Monday.

Taking the gold was the Netherlands’ Ireen Wust. Miho Takagi of Japan won silver, Marrit Leenstra, also of the Netherlands, took the bronze.

Bergsma’s teammate, Brittany Bowe, was fifth.

Four years ago in Sochi, Bergsma entered the 1500-meter as a medal favorite — but she struggled there too, finishing seventh. Bergsma beat Wust and Takagi at the 2017 World Championships. Wust had already won a silver medal in Pyeongchang, in the 3000-meter race.

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