Winter Olympics: Canada wins first gold ever on home soil

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - A pair of gold medals managed to brighten up the Vancouver Olympics on Sunday, the first bringing a sense of relief to the tragedy-stricken sport of luge and the second helping host nation Canada to finally win at home.

Felix Loch, a 20-year-old German, sped safely down the shortened track at the Whistler Sliding Center and won in a four-heat time of 3 minutes, 13.085 seconds - only two days after a Georgian competitor was killed on the same stretch of ice.

A few hours later, Alexandre Bilodeau became the first Canadian to ever win an Olympic gold medal on home soil in the men's moguls.

"I don't think I really realize it," Bilodeau said. "It's too good to be true."

In Canada's two previous Olympics - the 1976 Montreal Summer Games and the 1988 Calgary Winter Games - the country failed to climb to the top of the podium.

The euphoria that spread over Canada was far different than the somber mood at the luge venue, with many still mourning the death of Nodar Kumaritashvili. The 21-year-old Georgian luger died Friday after crashing and hitting a steel girder while on a training run. Luge officials then changed the start position to try to prevent another accident.

"It was the right decision," Loch said. "I was worried that I wouldn't do so well, but it's OK. It's great."

In figure skating, Chinese husband and wife Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo set a world record in winning the opening pairs short program.

The two-time bronze medalists were the first skaters of the night - usually a disadvantage - and managed 76.66 points, .70 ahead of two-time world champions Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy of Germany, who skated last.

"It was a gift for Valentine's Day, and today was just the short program," Zhao said. "Hopefully tomorrow will be as good as today."

Earlier Sunday, the wet weather on Whistler mountain came in handy for French biathlete Vincent Jay, even if the same conditions caused more problems for the yet-to-start Alpine skiing events.

A mixture of snow and rain kept the Alpine racers off the courses yet again at the Vancouver Games. And it also made for difficult conditions for much of the 10-kilometer biathlon sprint, affecting most of the pre-race favorites.

Jay, however, shot flawlessly and took advantage of an early start number to win in 24:07.8.

Five-time Olympic champion Ole Einar Bjoerndalen of Norway was hurt by poor shooting. He missed three shots in the prone position to end all hopes of a medal, and had another miss in the standing to finish 1:41.1 behind Jay.

"I was very bad at the first shooting. It was not because of the conditions, it was my own mistake," Bjoerndalen said. "It just wasn't my day."

Another Frenchman, Jason Lamy Chappuis, also won a gold medal, overtaking Johnny Spillane of the United States on the final straight in the Nordic combined individual race.

"Johnny was pretty good. I just tried to catch him. It was good to have a view in front of me and a goal to catch him," Chappuis said. "I can't believe I am an Olympic champion."

In women's speedskating, Martina Sablikova of the Czech Republic won the women's 3,000 meters, the first of a possible two long-distance golds.

Also, women's ice hockey entered its second day of competition, with the United States routing China 12-1 and Finland beating Russia 5-1.

But Alpine skiing, the marquee sport on the mountain and the one most affected by the bad weather since before the games started, is still waiting to get going.

International ski federation president Gian-Franco Kasper maintains that everything is still fine despite a revamped schedule that will see seven events held on seven consecutive days.

"The weather forecast looks relatively good tomorrow for the men's downhill, then we've got to get in a women's training," Kasper said. "If in 16 days we still have the same situation, then I'll get worried."

The weather in Whistler caused problems on the World Cup circuit in the mid-1990s, with no races in three straight years. And the Olympics haven't been immune to Mother Nature either.

"Since 1970 we've never had an Olympics or world championships without delays or postponements, so it's nothing new," Kasper said. "We're used to it."

The men's ice hockey tournament doesn't start until Tuesday, but Canada may be wishing for more time after a slap shot hit Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby on his shin during his last National Hockey League game before the Olympics.

Although he appeared tentative during his first shift after the shot, by the end of the game the 22-year-old Crosby showed no visible signs the foot was hindering him. The Penguins lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Nashville Predators.

"I will be there," Crosby said of the Olympics. "I'm on the flight tonight."

-AP