The men’s mass start free cross-country race was delayed an hour due to weather and shortened from 50km to 30km. American Scott Patterson finished in 8th with the ROC taking home the gold and silver.
Cross country skiers competing for gold in the men's 50km mass start didn't have the comfort of postponing the final race in Beijing like their alpine skiing counterparts on Saturday.
The 50km mass start went ahead — not as planned though, heavy winds gusting up to 40mph delayed the race by an hour and event organizers sliced its original distance from 50km to 30km.
American Scott Patterson finished in eighth while the ROC's Alexander Bolshunov won gold -- his fifth medal of the Olympics -- in the shortened race.
Here's a look at some of the damage the winds did to racers faces:
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A weather bulletin two hours before the race had temperates at 3 degrees Fahrenheit. The report said winds were gusting at 30 mph and the wind chill was -21 degrees.
