Let’s Talk Winter Olympics.
The next major sports event coming up is not the Super Bowl and not March Madness. It is the Winter Olympics. Beijing will host the XXIV Olympic Winter Games, Feb. 4-20.
Sometimes thought of as “the Summer Olympics’ little brother or sister,” to those of us who prefer cold-weather sports or who applaud and embrace the athleticism on skates or skis, the artistry of dancers and gymnasts on ice, the elegance of skating in pairs, the speed of skaters, the excitement of downhill, the precision of bobsled (OK, they call it “bobsleigh”) steering and the fierce national competition in the hockey arena, the Winter Olympics stand on their own as a must-see event for true sports fans.
There are some great winter moments that transcend all sports. Some thrilling or memorable moments of Winter Olympics past include:
1. The original Miracle on Ice – At Lake Placid, N.Y., the 1960 U.S. Olympic hockey team won the gold medal after beating Canada, the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia.
2. The second Miracle on Ice – Again at Lake Placid, the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey team won the gold medal after taking down the Soviets and the Czechs. Few remember that the U.S. beat Finland in the gold-medal match.
3. Eric Heiden winning five speed-skating gold medals in 1980
4. Shaun White winning the first ski board half-pipe competition in 2006 and reclaiming the title dramatically in 2010.
5. And one of my favorites, Franz Klammer winning the final run downhill in his home Austria in 1976. And let’s not forget Lindsey Vonn winning women’s downhill in 2010.
And there is athletic artistry: Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean Ice dancing in the 1984 Olympics, the figure skating athleticism of Katarina Witt in 1984 and 1988; the artistry of Michelle Kwan (silvers in 1998 and 2002), the elegance of Peggy Fleming in 1968, the beauty on ice of Dorothy Hamill in 1976, the skating-performance-of-her-life by Sarah Hughes in 2002 and the behind-the-scenes drama of Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding in 1994.
And the fun moments: the Jamaican bobsled team even making the Olympics (in 1988). They are in the Cool Running again this year. And “Eddie the Eagle” Edwards invited to compete for England in 1988, finishing last but gaining cult status.
Excitement, athleticism, artistry galore, but some of the sports just don’t seem like “Olympic” sports to me.
Skeleton? The competitor lies face down, head-forward and prone, on a sled. Cool, just like when we were kids.
Luge? Athletes ride a flat sled through a course face up and feet first. Wow, and how weird does doubles luge look?
Curling? This is shuffleboard on ice. There is a huge curling following in Canada. In this sport, two teams take turns sliding granite stones (or “rocks”) across a 150-foot long, 15-foot-7-inch wide sheet of ice toward a target, which is known as the house. And sweepers use a brush (looks like a broom) to sweep in front of the moving stone to guide its path. I once told my son to practice for the Olympics by sweeping out the garage. He was NOT amused.
Biathlon? A sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. First, you speed up your heart rate as much as possible by ski-skating long distances as fast as you can, then slow your heartbeat down to hold a rifle still and hit a target..
Well, if you have those, I think these are Winter Olympic “musts”:
Sledding with a dog – One competition with the canine pulling the sled and the other with your pet running alongside.
Kid snowsuit dressing – You must be quick and thorough. Points awarded for style and squirming.
Team Snowblowing: Clear the Olympic driveway and yard through various snow-ice obstacles. One athlete, one snow thrower, taps a team-member’s gloves, and he or she takes the course, four-person relays. Also individual events downhill and uphill.
Shoveling and scooping medley: Same as above, but un-mechanized
Synchronized snow angel-ing: the rhythm and patterns must be identical for best points.
Full-contact curling: Now we’re talking. Hockey-check the sweepers and rock gliders as they operate.
Ice fishing: Maybe full-contact ice fishing as above.
Biathlon with moving targets … say like laser-tagging opponents as they laser-tag you.
Can you think of any others? Olympic snowman building? Let me know at mike.blake@mountvernonnews.com
See you, next time.
