Rob Hodgetts
BBC Sport in Sochi

Half an hour before the combined slalom gets under way. Floodlights on full beam despite it being the middle of the afternoon. Course inspections done, racers back at the top. Butterflies flying in all directions. To quote Lizzy Yarnold, "If you can get them flying in the right direction it can really help your performance." At the bottom, excitement is building. It's a good format - string out the drama over a few hours, then a full-on slalom shootout for the chocolates.

Image source, AFP

Drum rolls, please, because here's our curling fact of the day. Did you know, external curling stones have sensors and lights which detect if a stone has been released before the red hog line? Well, they do. What's the hog line? The red line before which the thrower must let go of the rock during delivery.

Britain have stolen the hammer. That must surely be worthy of an exclamation mark! There was some fine play by captain Eve Muirhead during that end and it's no surprise the Scot is sparkling on this big stage because curling is her family trade. Her father, Gordon, is a former curling world champion while her younger brother, Thomas, won world junior gold in Sochi last year.

Switzerland's Dario Cologna is on course to become only the third man to successfully defend his men's 15km classic title.

Cologna, who also won gold in the men's skiathlon, is the fastest finisher so far. He finished in 38 minutes 29.7 seconds, nearly four minutes ahead of Britain's Andrew Musgrave, who is set to finish outside the top 40. Fellow Brits Andrew Young and Callum Smith are still on the course.

Jackie Lockhart
2002 world curling gold medallist on BBC TV

"Team GB curling captain Eve Muirhead got many, many messages from Japan after the Vancouver Games. She resembles a famous Japanese cartoon character and fans from Japan often sent her lookalike pictures."

We've had a quick look at various websites, but without any joy. Anybody care to help? Who is Eve's Japanese cartoon character look-a-likey?

Japanese flags seem to outnumber Union flags at the Ice Cube Curling Centre, but national flags count for nothing in the world of curling. Britain leading 4-2 with one stone remaining in the fourth end.

Image source, AFP

Andrew Musgrave did not find his groove during his 15km trek. The Briton hauled himself over the finishing line in 42:21.7, which is over three minutes behind current leader Livo Niskanen. Musgrave can expect to fall further down from the 14th position he currently holds.

Finland's Livo Niskanen sets the early pace in the men's 15km classic, finishing in 39:08.7. The 15km classic is essentially a time trial, with the athlete which posts the fastest time winning gold.

Jackie Lockhart
2002 world curling gold medallist on BBC TV

"Our girls played a good second end. They kept asking questions of Japan. It was just a good shot from the Japan skipper, Ayumi Ogasawara, that changed that end. You have to accept that your opposition will occasionally play the best shot. What is important is to keep forcing them to make difficult shots."

It's tit for tat in the curling as Japan drags themselves level to 2-2 against Britain. The Brits don't look too happy on the ice.

Image source, Kikkan Randall

Most people would be terrified at coming face to face with a scarf-wearing 10ft polar bear but cross country skier Kikkan Randall is made of stern stuff. After all, cross country skiing is not for wimps. Oh. Actually, scrap that, I'm told the polar bear is merely a mascot and the American has posted a picture on Facebook, external of her posing with Sochi mascots, Bear and Leopard. (Yes, they are actually called Bear and Leopard. To remove any doubt, Bear is on the left and Leopard on the right.)

The men's 15km classic is under way with three British competitors - Andrew Musgrave, Callum Smith and Andrew Young - among the 92 entrants.

Switzerland's Dario Cologna, who won the men's skiathlon title on Sunday, is the defending champion. Each competitor races against the clock and sets off at 30-second intervals. Musgrave is currently 13th out of the 35 who have gone past the 2.2km checkpoint, while Smith and Young are yet to start.

Czech Republic secure a 4-2 victory over underdogs Latvia for their first victory of the three-game preliminary round between Latvia, Sweden and Switzerland.

We're down to the last two shiny pieces of granite at the first end of the round robin match between Britain's women. Oof. Japan's captain Ayumi Ogasawara with a catawampus of a shot and Britain's skip Eve Muirhead ruthlessly takes advantage to eke a 2-0 lead.

The Czech Republic have extended their advantage over Latvia to 4-2 in the third period of their Group C match. The Czechs surprised many by winning gold in 1998 and are 10-1 to repeat that feat by some bookmakers.

Rob Hodgetts
BBC Sport in Sochi

Tell you what, while we are waiting for the combined slalom to start (11:30 GMT), let's take in the scenery. We'll go to the top of the Kavkazskiy Express gondola, on the summit of Rosa peak at 2,320m. From there, we'll get a great view back down to the coast and the Black Sea, under the setting sun, and the resort of Sochi.

Image source, BBC / rob hodgetts

Over in the Ice Cube Curling Centre, Britain's female curlers and their Japanese opponents have been introduced to the crowd and the first end is under way. Britain have the advantage of launching the last stone in the first end and the reigning world champions, ranked third in the world, are expected to see off the ninth seeds.

In breaking news, Sochi's organisers have revealed that over 2.5 metric tonnes of food have been used to make meals for over 185,000 employees, clients and spectators. That's about 14kg per spectator, which doesn't sound too gluttonous.

Unfortunately, they do not say which have been the most popular foodstuffs but the catering staff do expect to serve up 265,000 litres of borscht, which is beetroot soup to you and me.

American slider Noelle Pikus-Pace:, external I had a reminder in my phone that just told me I need to compete in the Olympics today... LOL...in case I forget.

Pikus-Pace is second after two of the four runs in the women's skeleton and 0.44 seconds behind Britain's Lizzy Yarnold.

Many of the national papers believe Lizzy Yarnold is in the driving seat thanks to her 0.44-second lead at the mid-way point.

"There was definitely a whiff of resignation in the air as Yarnold's nearest challenger suggested the gold was now only hers to lose," writes the Daily Telegraph's , externalIan Chadband of Lizzy Yarnold's performance on Thursday.

The Independent's Robin Scott-Elliot, external says: "The scoreboard will make good reading for Lizzy Yarnold when she wakes up on Friday morning. When she gets up on Saturday morning it may well make perfect reading."