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.