Sunday's Olympic Highlights

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- Highlights from Sunday's action at the Vancouver Olympics:

-- France became the first nation to win two gold medals and they both came Sunday, in the biathlon sprint and Nordic combined. The French record for most gold medals in a single Winter Olympics is four, achieved twice.

-- The United States did not win a gold, but a silver in Nordic combined and a bronze in men's moguls left the American team with six medals overall. Team USA is off to a good start in its bid to equal the 25 medals won four years ago in Turin.

-- Johnny Spillane grabbed the silver in Nordic combined, the first Olympic medal ever won by an American in that sport. Nordic combined, which includes competition in ski jumping and cross-country skiing, has been a part of the Winter Games since the start in 1924.

-- Figure skating got under way with the pairs short program and the very first contestants on the ice were the favorites, China's Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo. They received the highest score (76.66) given in international pairs skating since the judging system underwent major revisions following the Salt Lake City Games.

-- The men's luge event, which went on despite the death of a contestant during training Friday, concluded without further incident. Felix Loch of Germany, who at age 20 seems likely to dominate the sport for years, was the winner.

-- Weather intervened during the biathlon sprint and wound up determining which athletes won the medals. Heavy snow began to fall during the competition, wiping out the hopes of those who did not have early starting times. The three medalists were among the first 10 on the course, with Vincent Jay of France becoming the surprise winner.