US flag bearer 'dishonorably' chosen in coin toss, athlete says

Washington (dpa) - A coin toss that decided which US athlete will carry the American flag at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics prompted a complaint from the disgruntled loser.Shani Davis, a two-time winner of Olympic gold in speed skating, criticized the coin toss."I am an American and when I won the 1000m in 2010 I became the first American to 2-peat in that event. @TeamUSA dishonorably tossed a coin to decide its 2018 flag bearer," Davis said on Twitter.Davis added that it wasn‘t a problem for him because he can "wait until 2022," implying that he will compete again in four years. Then Davis, who is black, seemed to suggest that race played a role by adding the hashtag for Black History Month, which is marked every February in the US. Davis became the first black athlete from any country to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics in 2006.The winner of the toss was Erin Hamlin, a white woman and top competitor in the luge. Hamlin is a former two-time world champion and four-time Olympian, and is competing in the Games for the last time.Hamlin and Davis were among eight nominees for the flag bearer role. The method used to select who will carry the flag is a vote by the eight federations representing the individual sports: biathlon, bobsled and skeleton, curling, figure skating, hockey, luge, ski and snowboarding and speed skating. That voted ended with a tie, with four for Hamlin and four for Davis.