Winter Olympics: This morning ... men's freestyle figure skating live from Sochi, Russia

I love every winter sport during the Winter Olympics but my favorite, by far, is ice skating. Singles, pairs, dancing ... it's all entertaining. Today marks the halfway point of the 2014 games.

While NBC is covering the skating events during evening prime time, those with the NBC Sports channel can watch the competition live this morning. It got underway around 10:00 EST and will last for a while because there are, I think, 24 skaters. After yesterday's short program, today the men are performing their freestyle talents.

Nothing like watching the Winter Olympics with one eye at the foot-and-a-half of snow outside my window....

Ice skating in downtown Richmond

Ice skating in downtown RVA. Would love to have something like that here in the Shenandoah Valley....

Strength through sorrow ... "Be tough"

"Be tough."

One young lady during Thursday night's ladies figure skating competition at the Olympics had us all admiring her strength in the face of overwhelming sorrow.

Canada's own Joannie Rochette was in Vancouver to skate when her mother, who had arrived to enjoy the Olympics and watch her daughter compete, died of a heart attack on Sunday. How does someone so young overcome something that tragic to skate the long program just four days later?

But overcome she did as she remembered her mother's words: "Be tough." And she won the bronze medal for Canada as she skated an almost flawless program, and ended her time on the ice by blowing a kiss to her dad sitting in the stands ... and then a kiss heavenward as she glided to the sidelines.

Joannie Rochette was an inspiration to those who watched her ... and she was a champion who made her country proud.