Vonn cements superstar status at problem-hit Games

Lindsey Vonn lived up to her reputation as the best downhill skier in the world by claiming the women's Olympic gold on Wednesday as Shaun White attempts to cement his position as a snowboarding superstar.

But with the Games in day six, more bad news greeted under-pressure Vancouver organisers after 19 people were injured when a barricade near the stage collapsed at a venue offering free concerts during the Olympics.

All were treated on site with nine then taken to hospital, mostly for minor injuries.

"When the incident occurred, everyone acted quickly, professionally, and took appropriate action," said Penny Ballem, manager of the LiveCity Yaletown venue.

That may be so but it adds to a growing list of problems plaguing the Games, which have been blighted by weather woes that have forced delays to key events and the cancellation of thousands of tickets due to safety issues.

Vonn delivered organisers some relief with a sizzling performance on the piste at Whistler, winning the United States' first ever Olympic gold in a thrilling downhill marred by a series of spectacular crashes.

It was flawless performance in perfect conditions on the technically challenging Franz's Run, with the shin injury she had complained about not an issue as she crossed the line in 1min 44.19sec.

Teammate Julia Mancuso came second at 0.56sec for a surprise silver while Austrian Elisabeth Goergl captured bronze.

"It's one of the most incredible moments of my life," said the untouchable Vonn, the winner of five consecutive downhills in the World Cup this season.

"When I crossed the finish line and saw my name in first and Julia's second, it was just the coolest thing."

With four disciplines still to go, she has chances to medal in both the super-G and super-combined, and a snowball effect could her see emerging as a realistic challenger in the more technical slalom and giant slalom events.

Russia's Nikita Kriukov also claimed a gold medal when he held off compatriot Alexander Panzhinskiy in a photo-finish to win the men's sprint classic, with Norway's Petter Northug Jnr taking third.

Norway's Marit Bjoergen won the women's sprint ahead of Poland's Justyna Kowalczyk and Slovenia's Petra Madjic.

White is another big name in action later Wednesday, with the flame-headed American expected to attempt his gravity-defying Double McTwist 1260.

He landed his unprecedented move, an inverted aerial in which he flips head over heels twice while spinning 3 1/2 times and holding the board, to win gold at last month's Winter X Games -- adding to his huge haul of medals.

The 23-year-old said he would be disappointed if he did not include the trick -- even though he struck his head in a hard fall on the first try at the X Games, which he admits shook him up.

"I don't want to give everything away. Big airs. I've been working on my double cork," he said.

His task has been made easier by the absence of US snowboarders Kevin Pearce, who suffered a serious head injury in training, and Danny Davis, who sustained a severe back injury in a quad bike accident.

Elsewhere, defending champion Shani Davis and US rival Chad Hedrick, the focus of a nasty 2006 spat, come together again as contenders in the 1,000-metre men's speedskating final.

Medals will also be decided in the luge doubles and in the women's 500m short-track, where China's dominant Wang Meng is clear favourite.

The men's ice hockey tournament continued with Finland beating Belarus 5-1, a game that saw Teemu Selanne equal the all-time Olympic record for most points of 36.

Sweden take on Germany later and the Czech Republic face Slovakia.