Canada gave its nervous nation a huge sigh of relief, jumping to leads of 3-0 and 4-1 in the first period alone on its way to 7-3 trouncing of Alex Ovechkin and the world champion Russians their hockey quarterfinal.
This was the first time Canada beat Russia at the Olympics in 50 years, and only the second time in 11 Olympics games against the Russians or Soviets.
"Trust in each other, trust in our game plan, all those things are important," Canadian captain Scott Niedermayer said.
In other quarterfinal hockey action, Swiss goalie Jonas Hiller kept the Americans scoreless by stuffing Zach Parise several times, with two more of Parise's shots clanking against the goal posts.
Then there was the shot that Hiller tried swatting away, but it went off his shoulder and into the net - a millisecond or two after the second period ended.
"We kept saying on the bench, 'Don't get frustrated,"' Parise recalled.
Parise finally scored 2:08 into the final period by redirecting a shot by Brian Rafalski early in a power play. Switzerland fought to tie it, but Ryan Miller made 19 saves and Parise scored again with 11.2 seconds left. The Americans are two wins from their first Olympic gold medal since the "Miracle on Ice" in 1980.
GIANT SLALOM
While this is Lindsey Vonn's worst event, no skier wants to go out like she did.
"I was like a pretzel," she said, "so tangled up."
American Julia Mancuso, the defending Olympic champion, was next, and starters made the mistake of sending her out while Vonn was still down. That meant a restart, which is tough on the body and the mind. She wound up 18th - and furious. She'll have at least one night to keep stewing over it.
Elisabeth Goergl of Austria was the leader. The top American was Sara Schleper, in 14th place.
Also notable in this event was Marjan Kalhor becoming the first Iranian woman to compete at a Winter Olympics. The 21-year-old Kalhor, who wore a pink head scarf beneath her safety helmet to comply with Islamic dress code, was all smiles at the end of her run, despite being the slowest of 68 skiers who finished the run.
SHORT TRACK SPEEDSKATING
The 3,000-meter relay team of Allison Baver, Alyson Dudek, Lana Gehring and Katherine Reutter was last across the finish in the four-team final, but got promoted to third when the apparent winners from South Korea were disqualified.
Reutter also set an Olympic record in winning her heat in the 1,000 meters. The rest of the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals are Friday.
Apolo Anton Ohno is a baby step closer to another medal, too, winning his 500-meter heat. He, too, has to endure three more rounds if he's going to extend his record of Winter Olympics medals by an American. He has seven, including gold in this event four years ago.
Teammate Simon Cho also advanced.
BOBSLED
Just a few days ago, American Erin Pac said she didn't feel safe on the Whistler Sliding Center track, then she strained her left hamstring in training.
Now she and brakeman Elana Meyers have a bronze medal, finishing behind a pair of Canadians.
This was the first U.S. medal in sliding after getting shut out in men's and women's skeleton and two-man bobsledding. However, Americans are now 3-for-3 in women's bobsled since it was added to the Olympic program.
SPEEDSKATING
Martina Sablikova of the Czech Republic captured her second gold medal in Vancouver, adding the 5,000 meters to the 3,000 title she's already won.
"If there was another 100 meters I would not have made it," Sablikova said through a translator.
Stephanie Beckert of Germany got silver, and 37-year-old, defending Olympic champion Clara Hughes of Canada thrilled the crowd by taking bronze.
"This crowd gave me wings," said Hughes, who also won two bronze medals in cycling at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. "It was one of the best races of my life. Now, I am officially retired."
Jilleanne Rookard was the top American, finishing eighth.
SVEN KRAMER
The coach who cost Sven Kramer the gold medal in speedskating's 10,000 meters will be keeping his job.
Kramer said Wednesday that Gerard Kemkers has helped him too much to end their relationship over one mistake, no matter how colossal it was.
"I don't want to blame anyone," Kramer said. "That doesn't help you to move on from this."
In the Netherlands, 6.7 million of the nation's 16 million people watched the race on television. "How is this possible!" screamed the headline in the mass circulation newspaper De Telegraaf.
Kemkers said he still hasn't seen the replay. Nor does he need to.
"It is burned into my retina," he said.
IOC president Jacques Rogge called Kramer the "best speedskater of his generation," comparing him to the the sport's all-time greats such as Eric Heiden and Johann Olav Koss.
CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING
Marcus Hellner was so far ahead at the end of his anchor leg that he had time to collect a Swedish flag to wave as he skied to the finish of the team relay, earning his second gold medal of these Olympics and Sweden's first in this event since 1988.
Norway got silver, and the Czech Republic took bronze.
The Americans were 13th.
ATHLETES COMMISSION
Angela Ruggiero is at her fourth Olympics as a hockey player. She'll be around the games for the next eight years as a member of the International Olympic Committee.
Ruggiero and British skeleton racer Adam Pengilly were voted onto the IOC and its athletes' commission in an election of their fellow athletes. Voting took nearly three weeks, with seven others vying for the job.
The U.S. now has three members on the 114-member IOC.
JOHNNY WEIR
Figure skater Johnny Weir wants the French broadcasters who made derogatory comments about his masculinity to "think before they speak." He said understanding was more important than an apology.
"I don't want, 50 years from now, more boys and girls to go through this same thing," he said.
MEN'S CURLING
The reigning world champion British men aren't going to get a medal. They're headed home, eliminated by a Swedish team that will next face top-seeded and unbeaten Canada.
