The U.S. women’s hockey team did something they haven’t done in two decades on Thursday. They knocked off the Canadian hockey team in the Olympic final to win their first gold medal in 20 years. Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson scored an impressive goal in the sixth round of a shootout to give the Americans a 3-2 victory and, more importantly, a gold medal. You can watch Lamoureux-Davidson’s goal below.
The win was especially sweet for the U.S. women’s hockey team because it came four years after Canada beat them 3-2 in overtime in the Olympic final in Sochi. It also ended a five-game losing streak to Canada for the U.S.
"It is everything for our country," U.S. coach Robb Stauber said after the game. "I am just so thankful for the outcome. It was a thrilling final. It was unreal."
While the American team was understandably excited after the game as they celebrated their gold medals, the Canadians were downright deflated. Even though they have enjoyed a dominant run as of late, they didn’t look happy about having to accept silver medals following their loss to the U.S.—and one player was so upset about it that she couldn’t fathom the idea of keeping a silver medal around her neck. So when an Olympic official placed a silver medal on Jocelyne Larocque, she responded by removing it right away.
Larocque sparked a lot of social media reactions with her decision to take off her silver medal. Some people praised her for being so competitive, while others used words like "childish" to describe her behavior.
Larocque was eventually forced to put the silver medal back on. After she held it in her hand while the Canadian team was still on the ice, she was approached by a high-ranking hockey official as she made her way back to Canada’s locker room. That official told her she was required to wear the silver medal for "legal" reasons.
Larocque spoke about why she removed the medal while speaking with the media. "Just hard," she said. "We were going for gold."
She also said that, one day, she will celebrate the silver medal. But for now, she just can’t bring herself to do it. "Once we reflect," she said. "But now, not at the moment."
