Two-time U.S. Olympic bobsled medalist Elana Meyers Taylor pledged to donate her brain for concussion research in hopes of helping other female athletes. 

"I think the hardest thing for me, just being an advocate for women in sports, was knowing that women are more likely to suffer concussions but there’s not much out there on women and concussions," Meyers Taylor said Friday. "How it affects us differently, because obviously there are hormonal differences. We just don’t have the research on it."

Earlier this week, the Boston-based Concussion Legacy Foundation announced the pledge by Meyers Taylor.

An international court has dismissed appeals from 47 Russian athletes who were seeking last-minute entry into the 2018 Winter Olympics.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Olympic officials did not act in a “discriminatory, arbitrary or unfair manner” when they declined to invite the athletes.

“We welcome this decision which supports the fight against doping and brings clarity for all athletes,” the International Olympic Committee said in a statement.

U.S. speedskater Shani Davis tweeted that he has “no problem” that a coin toss determined that he won’t get to carry the American flag into the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Games.

Other parts of his tweet, however, suggested otherwise.

“@TeamUSA dishonorably tossed a coin to decide its 2018 flag bearer. No problem. I can wait until 2022,” tweeted Davis, who added a Black History Month hashtag.

Thursday’s Winter Olympics TV schedule. All times Pacific

6 a.m.: Ski jumping, NBC Sports Network

3:30 p.m.: Curling (mixed doubles), U.S. vs. Switzerland, China vs. Canada, NBCSN

If you want to watch the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics live as it happens, you will have to get up pretty early in the morning.

The ceremony, held in Pyeongchang, South Korea, will begin at 3 a.m. Pacific time and you can livestream it at NBCOlympics.com. 

But for those of us who actually enjoy sleeping, you can wait until Friday night to watch a taped version beginning at 5 p.m. Pacific on NBC. It will be repeated on NBC starting at 8 p.m. Pacific.

The Main Press Center 3 is a giant tent-like structure that contains 47 makeshift offices, most of them occupied by news organizations. One of the rooms in the temporary buildings belongs to Olympic Athletes from Russia.

Olympic Athletes from Russia, or OAR, is the designation under which eligible athletes from Russia are competing, as the country was banned from these Games because of a state-sanctioned doping program.

The OAR’s office in the press center has been a curiosity for passersby, who have looked inside to see a few people quietly seated at desks.

A day before the opening ceremony for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, officials in Salt Lake City announced plans to bid for the Winter Games in 2030.

In the byzantine world of the Olympic movement, Los Angeles figures into that decision. In a big way.

Salt Lake City had previously expressed interest in 2026, but then L.A. was selected to host the Summer Games in 2028.

At least 86 staff members and volunteers at the Pyeongchang Olympics have contracted norovirus, the organizing committee said Thursday.

That’s more than double the number of confirmed cases announced earlier this week.

Of the 86 cases, 58 are security staff members, 12 are police officers, seven work for the organizing committee, four are press support staff, and five fill other roles.

Two-time U.S. men’s champion Nathan Chen will perform his short program in the first phase of the Olympic team figure skating event, to be held on Friday at Gangneung Ice Arena. The husband-and-wife duo of Alexa Scimeca-Knierim and Chris Knierim will represent the U.S. in the pairs short program on Friday.

Since the Knierims are the only U.S. pairs entry, they will also be the U.S representatives in the pairs free skate portion of the team event, on Monday.

Chen, a master of the quadruple jump, won his second straight U.S. men’s title last month at San Jose. He’s expected to contend for a medal in the men’s singles competition, which will be held Feb. 16-17.

Four-time Olympian Erin Hamlin will carry the U.S. flag during the opening ceremony at Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium, the U.S. Olympic Committee announced Thursday.

Hamlin, who won a bronze medal in the luge at the Sochi Games in 2014, was selected by a vote of U.S. Olympians.

“Being named to an Olympic team is an amazing accomplishment and making four teams and the bronze medal is so much more than I could have imagined I would accomplish,” Hamlin said in a statement. “Now being voted flag bearer is a whole new level.”