Springfield skater, Mavs defenseman lose openers in Sochi

Two athletes with western Missouri ties suffered losses Thursday at the Sochi Winter Olympics.

Emily Scott, the Springfield short track speedskater, finished last in her four-skater 500-meter quarterfinal and didn’t advance. China’s Li Jianrou won the gold medal.

Scott will compete in two more events, the 1,000 and 1,500, which starts Saturday.

Henrik Odegaard, the Missouri Mavericks defenseman who competes for Norway, played 16 minutes but was on the ice for one of Canada’s goals in a 3-1 loss to open Group B play. Norway plays Finland at 11 a.m. Friday and Austria at 2 a.m. Sunday.

Meanwhile, U.S. skeleton racer Katie Uhlaender, who took over the northwest Kansas cattle ranch her father ran before he died five years ago, was in fourth place heading into Friday’s final. Currently ranked 15th in the world, Uhlaender suffered a concussion earlier this season and was not expected to be in the medal hunt.

This story was originally published February 13, 2014 at 2:20 PM with the headline "Springfield skater, Mavs defenseman lose openers in Sochi."