It was supposed to a star-studded night draped in red, white and blue:
Mikaela Shiffrin, the skiing sensation who won a gold medal one day earlier, was skiing in her signature event, expected to easily win the gold medal.
Nathan Chen, the Quad King on the ice, would erase that disappointing team performance and start his path toward the podium in the individual competition.
Lindsey Jacobellis, the most decorated women's snowboard cross athlete ever, a five-time world champion, would end her Olympics woes and finally win a gold.
Then, in a span of just a few hours, it all went sideways.
Shiffrin vomitted before her first run, then turned in two subpar performances by her world-class standards. She finished in fourth place, just off the podium.
Chen, expected to turn in a wow performance with his signature quads, didn't land a single one. But he did fall three times, a devastating performance for the man who entered the Olympics as a medal contender.
U.S. & World
And Jacobellis' appeared to put her Olympics struggles behind her by easily advancing to the finals, then taking a lead through the first half of the race. But she couldn't keep up with the competition down the stretch, and she finished in fourth place.
The result? Americans at home wondering what just happened.
Mikaela Shiffrin's first run, just after vomitting:
[[474258953, C]]
Shiffrin's second run leaves her in fourth place:
Nathan Chen falls three times during short program:
Linsdey Jacobellis finishes fourth in snowboard cross:
