Germany's Anke Wischnewski is the latest to lead, but will be challenged by Russia's Tayana Ivanova. Fast start but pace dropping, Ivanova can only go to second. Five to go.

Rob Hodgetts
BBC Sport in Sochi

The Japanese media are outnumbering the rest by a considerable distance here at the ski jumping. It seems Sara Takanashi is a very big deal back home. One friendly chap I spoke to said she is a "big, big star" and everyone knows who she is. Will everyone in Japan be watching, I asked him. "Yes, many, even though it is 2am."

Luge involves hurtling feet first down a track on a tiny open sled at speeds in excess of 80mph.

There are four runs in the men's and women's events, two runs in the doubles and one in the relay, with the lowest aggregate time winning.

Competitors steer using their legs and shoulders; the smallest mistake can prove costly - luge is the only one of the sliding sports that is timed to one thousandth of a second.

Read more with our luge cheat sheet

Right then, business end of this women's luge final - seven sliders to go. Seven women with nothing more than lycra and a helmet for protection, sliding on 1300m of ice at speeds of 80mph. Want to know more? Let me help...

American Shaun White is aiming for his third successive halfpipe gold medal, with the final starting shortly.

He tells BBC Sport: "If you enter a competition, you want to win. The only time I'm OK with losing is if I do my best but someone does even better."

Image source, Getty Images

British pair Stacey Kemp and David King suffer a disappointing time in the pairs short program as they score 44.98, which is not good enough to qualify for the next phase.

BBC Sport commentator Sue Barker says: "That must've felt like a very long two minutes 45 seconds for them as there were a number of errors. You could see from their reaction they were not happy with that. They've not been at their best and we've seen them skate a lot better in the past."

BBC's Robin Cousins, who won a gold in figure skating at the 1980 Olympics, adds: "You could see the tension from Stacey right from the beginning. It was not their best performance."

American Kate Hansen is the latest to hurtle down the ice tunnel and into the lead. All in all, each run takes just over 50 seconds. For the remaining lugers, it's the biggest 50 seconds of their lives. Only nine remain.

Also in the luge, the current leader is kept behind in a waiting area, in front of the camera, for as long as they are in front. So, each time they remain in top spot, the camera pans to a cheesey celebration. If they are beaten, they are pulled into obscurity. Brutal.

The lugers are going in reverse order, so the lead is changing hands almost constantly. Canada's Arianne Jones is the latest to hold top spot.

Image source, susannatapani

Finnish ice hockey player Susanne Tapani posts a picture on Instagram of her breathing fire,, external with the help of the Olympic flame.

Right then, the final run of the women's luge is back under way. In the break, the course has been cleared and the temperature lowered to make conditions even faster. You can watch the medals be decided at the top of this page.

Have I just seen that correctly? Is BBC Two's coverage really being aided by a modified shopping trolley? More importantly, how did they get a trolley to decorate in such a way? Did they ask a student to steal one? Did it cost them a pound?

Rob Hodgetts
BBC Sport in Sochi

"The competitors are having one training jump ahead of the first round. The top 30 from that go through to the final.

"Decent crowd in, though you could argue they may have over-catered seats-wise. The acoustics are good though - the slap as their skis hit the snow cracks around the stands like a rifle shot. A reassuring sound, of course, because it generally means they are on their feet and safe."

British skip Eve Muirhead tells BBC Sport: "That was more like Team Muirhead today. We had a great chat with our coach and nailed down what we didn't do well yesterday. But today we did not give USA a chance.

Image source, Reuters

"Things are not perfect yet be hopefully we go on and on and can get better. We knew if you kept the pressure on, they will not keep making the big shots and saving themselves. It was always going to take a game to get into our stride, but we are now feeling relaxed."

Anna Sloan adds: "We all came out firing and we all made key shots. This was a good stepping stone for us and builds our confidence for the next game."

It's the calm before the evening storm in Sochi. There's fireworks ahead in the shape of gold medals to be awarded in three of the most spectacular sports. On BBC Two right now, Clare Balding has taken her place in the Olympic Park. With lights, music, and general night-time merriment, the Park is a bit like Glastonbury, only with snow instead of mud.

Not only have Great Britain claimed victory over the US, but they have also claimed a couple of Olympic records. The seven-stone end is an outright Olympic best, while 12 points in a single match equals the top score.

Image source, Getty Images

So, with a second British curling victory of the day in the bag, our evening will be split between women's luge, men's halfpipe snowboarding and women's ski jumping. The luge gold medal will be won in the next hour or so. The fourth and final run has just entered a short break before the top 15 sliders go for the medals.

Steve Cram
BBC Sport curling commentator

"The Americans did not play very well, but Eve Muirhead knows her team was much better from the start and got a deserved victory."

It's all over. Great Britain's women, the world champions, record their first victory of the Games as the United States concede four ends early. Set-up by that seven-point haul in end four, GB add three more points in end six to take a 12-3 victory.

Rob Hodgetts
BBC Sport in Sochi

This inaugural women's ski jumping event is being billed as a straight shootout between the two teenagers, Sara Takanashi of Japan, and American Sarah Hendrickson. Here's what they had to say:

Takanashi, 17, who has won 10 of the 13 World Cup events this season: "For me, it's not failure not to win the gold medal but it is my aim."

Hendrickson, on jumping six months after tearing her ACL: "Of course, I this in the back of my head. I know I can get injured again but I have to push it out of my head."