OTTAWA, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Competing at every Olympic Winter Games since 1924 with at least one medal each time, Team Canada is slated to repeat the long history of success in Beijing.
While coming off their second most successful Winter Olympics with 11 gold medals in 2018, it is expected to take a step back with six golds in the upcoming games.
According to Gracenote, a sports data provider company that has been forecasting Olympics results for over a decade, Canada is expected to take home six golds, six silvers and eleven bronzes. The 23 combined would be six less than 2018 and the lowest since 2002 when Canada won 17 medals at Salt Lake City.
By total medals, the country's best performance was in the 2018 Olympic Winter Games where Canadian athletes won 29 medals. Canada set a record for most gold medals won by a country in a single Winter Olympics with 14 at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. Along the nearly 100-year nonstop participation in Winter Olympics, Canada has also hosted the winter games twice: in Calgary in 1988, and in Vancouver in 2010.
While Canada is expected to win just six gold medals in Beijing, the element of luck will be a bigger factor than past Olympic games due to the potential of athletes pulling out due to COVID-19 which could push the country's tally to over ten.
Canada's top medal hopefuls at Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics are as follows.
Ice Hockey (Expected: 1 gold)
Women's ice hockey has been dominated by Canada with four golds and two silvers since the sport was added in Nagano in 1998. The 2022 squad features 13 returning Olympians who are vying to better their silver medal performance in Pyeongchang. Their closest competitor is Team USA who captured gold in 2018 and 1998 games.
Meanwhile on the men's side, the withdrawal of National Hockey League (NHL) players means Canada will likely finish off the podium in Beijing.
Freestyle Skiing (Expected: 1 gold)
Since 2010, Canadians have won 10 out of 26 events in this sport including four in 2018. The most hopeful in Beijing is in men's moguls where defending champion Mikael Kingsbury is favored to repeat his result at the 2018 games.
There are also high expectations in women's ski cross with three Canadians in the top five of the 2022 World Cup standings. 2014 gold medalist Marielle Thompson and 2018 silver medalist Brittany Phelan are Canada's best shot at upsetting world No. 1 Sandra Naeslund of Sweden.
Snowboarding (Expected: 1 gold)
In men's big air, teammates Maxence Parrot (2nd place) and Mark McMorris (3rd place) are looking to better their podium finishes from 2018. Parrot is coming off a battle against cancer in 2019 when he was diagnosed with Hogkin's lymphoma 11 months after his silver medal in Pyeongchang.
Long Track Speed Skating (Expected: 3 golds)
Laurent Dubreuil (men's 500m world champion) and Ivanie Blondin (women's mass start) are the favorites to capture gold in their disciplines. Blondin is projected to win a second gold in the women's team pursuit.
Not to be forgotten, Dutch-born Ted-Jan Bloeman, who captured the lone medals for Canada in 2018 will be in contention in the 10,000m and 5,000m distances, where he finished 1st and 2nd respectively in Pyeongchang.
Short Track Speed Skating
Canada is sending the maximum squad of ten (five male and five female) to try to replicate the five medals won in 2018.
The most notable name is 37-year-old Charles Hamelin who will participate in his fifth and final Olympics. The five-time medalist will be looking to become Canada's most decorated Olympian. Hamelin will compete in the Men's 5000m relay where expectations are high after Canada finished atop the recent World Cup.
On the women's side Canada is led by Kim Boutin, who took home three medals (silver in 1000m, bronze in 500m and 1500m) in her Olympic debut in Pyeongchang. The 27-year-old has continued to add to her accolades, especially in the 500m distance where she captured the World Cup in 2019-20 season and came runner-up in 2021-22.
Curling
Despite winning gold in mixed curling, Team Canada was disappointed to come home without a medal in the men's or women's tournament. In Beijing, Canada is calling on former gold medalists to bring the country out of their slump.
2006 gold medalist Brad Gushue is the skipper on the men's side who face tough competition against co-favorites Team Great Britain led by Bruce Mouat.
On the ladies' side, Canada is relying on Jennifer Jones' team, who hopes to replicate their gold medal from 2014. ■
