BEIJING — In the first period of the gold-medal men’s hockey game, Finland’s Hannes Björninen high-sticked Russian Olympic Committee’s Egor Yakovlev, and the Russians responded with a power-play goal. It was so nice to see Russia make somebody pay for breaking a rule.
Finland won the game, but Russia was the story of yet another Olympics. The Russians finished second in the medal count here, behind Norway; imagine what they’ll do when they are actually allowed to participate.
That happens in Paris in 2024, by the way. The IOC’s Russia problem has never gone away. It just keeps getting bigger.
