Figure skating unveils new, modern soundtrack

When the International Skating Union made the popular decision to allow lyrics in all performances, the Paul Simon classic “The Sound of Silence” seemed like it would be a natural choice.

The folk tune is light and airy and fits neatly within the confines of traditional figure skating.

Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres went in another direction.

Yes, the French pairs team chose the 1960s hit for their short program last year, and will bring it back for their Olympic program today. But rather than the melodic version performed by Simon and Art Garfunkel, they opted for a haunting, heavy metal cover by American rock band Disturbed.

“It was our coaches who found it,” James said. “They were like, ‘We really think it could be a hit.’ And Morgan listened to it and was like, ‘I don’t like it,’ because we weren’t used to it. And I was like, ‘OK, let me see if I can get into this.’ I thought it could be amazing, and I was like, ‘Morgan, let’s trust them.’ And we were so right to have trusted them.”

That’s because the stirring rendition, coupled with the pair’s dramatic program, became such a fan favorite that they replaced this season’s program with it for the Pyeongchang Games.

“When you have a powerful voice and words to express,” James said, “it changes everything.”

Now, nobody is throwing tradition out the window. Fans still will see four Olympic programs set to “Carmen” and three to “Swan Lake.”

But the decision after the 2014 Sochi Games to allow lyrics in all disciplines expanded the breadth of what is available, and skaters have taken broad liberties with it.

Ed Sheeran and Coldplay will provide popular soundtracks to the rest of the Olympic skating scene. The rock bands Imagine Dragons and Snow Patrol, English vocalist Benjamin Clementine and pop musicians Lorde, Christina Aguilera and Adele also have music in the mix.

Sweeney crashes out

American luger Emily Sweeney avoided serious injury in a frightening crash that knocked her out of the Pyeongchang Olympics on Tuesday during the final heat of the competition.

The diagnosis was that Sweeney had only some bumps and bruises. “I’m OK,” Sweeney said. Sweeney lost control around Curve 9, the track’s most treacherous spot, and then began careening all over the track. She wound up sliding feet-first up one curve toward the track roof before getting thrown from her sled and eventually tumbling to a stop.

Many in the crowd looked at the monitors, horrified. The stands were filled with fans cheering raucously, and they immediately went silent waiting for some sort of sign that Sweeney would be all right.

NBC encouraged

While gold medals aren’t awarded a quarter of the way into a race, NBC says it is encouraged by how the viewing public has responded to the Olympics.

NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus said ratings are exceeding the guarantees that NBC gave to its advertisers, which has enabled the network to sell even more commercial time. NBC said before the Games it had sold $900 million worth of advertising.

Through five days, the Nielsen company said NBC’s prime-time Olympics viewership is down 6 percent from the 2014 games in Sochi. This year’s numbers include primetime programming on the NBCSN cable network and digital streaming, which adds about 2 million viewers each night to the 22 million who watch on the broadcast network. Those extra options weren’t available four years ago.

“The Olympics continue to defy media gravity,” Lazarus said.

Skater suspended

Japanese short-track speedskater Kei Saito has tested positive for a banned diuretic in the first doping case of the Pyeongchang Olympics.

Saito, a reserve on the 5,000-meter relay team, tested positive for Acetalozamide, which can be used to treat conditions such as glaucoma and altitude sickness but can also be a masking agent to disguise the use of other banned substances.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced the case Tuesday, saying Saito “accepted on a voluntary basis to be provisionally suspended and to leave the Olympic Village.”