Canada miss out on historic Vancouver gold medal

Hannah Kearney delivered on the final run of the competition

Canada's wait for Olympic gold on home soil continues as Hannah Kearney of the United States pipped Jennifer Heil to gold in the freestyle skiing moguls.

Local favourite and reigning champion Heil looked set to create history when she held the provisional lead with only Kearney left to ski.

But the American produced a scintillating final run to clinch gold.

The host nation missed out in the 1,500m short track skating as Charles Hamelin failed to reach the final.

Hamelin was Canada's big hope for gold in the speed skating, but the crowd at the Pacific Coliseum watched him win only the B final because he failed to qualify for the medal race.

Instead, Jung-Su Lee of South Korea won the gold and Apolo Anton Ohno of the United States took silver.

"Usually, I'm able to go through to the finals if I have good races but it happens sometimes in short track," said Hamelin.

Canada have never won an Olympic gold medal on home soil, failing to capture any at the 1976 Montreal Summer Games or the 1988 Calgary Winter Games.

For the Vancouver Games, the country is desperately waiting to see who will reach the top of an Olympic podium.

And it was in the moguls that Canada missed their best chance of ending their hoodoo.

Defending Olympic champion Heil, who had won her last four World Cup events, had been favoured to win gold, and was in first place with only one other skier left at the top of the Cypress Mountain slope.

But Kearney delivered on the final run as she tore through the slushy, rain-soaked moguls to win by a margin of .94 points.

American Shannon Bahrke took bronze to add to her silver medal from 2002, leaving the US top of the medal standings on day two and compounding the misery for the hosts.

"I know Canada hasn't won a gold medal on their home turf, but I have a feeling they'll do it these games," Kearney said. "But I'm pleased that I could stop that for now."

Silver medallist Heil said: "I felt like I was standing on the shoulders of so many Canadians. I felt like I had their wings on my back. This is Canada's medal."