The Olympics are the chance for all of us who stayed indoors reading books and practicing piano or violin to see what everyone ELSE was practicing. Unless you’re Britain’s Vanessa Mae. She is a violin virtuoso. She is a global star. She has sold 10 million albums. She’s a millionaire. And today, she competed in the Giant Slalom in Sochi.
Vanessa-Mae Vanakorn Nicholson (she competes as Vanessa Vanakorn) was born in Singapore to a Chinese mother and a Thai father. She was raised in Great Britain as a British citizen with a Thai passport. She has always been an avid skier, and took a year off from music to compete enough to earn a place in the Olympics. Olympic rules allow countries with no athlete in the top 500 to send one male and one female athlete if they meet certain criteria — Vanessa-Mae had to produce an average of 140 points or fewer over five recognised races. She is the lowest-ranked skier in the field, at 2,253rd, but she is only Thailand’s second-ever representative at the Winter Olympics.
"If I end up last I have no problem with that," she told the BBC. "I know that I spent six months training. Other athletes have been training since they were six years old so that's something you can't compare… I just want to have a good time. I want to have two fun runs that I can say I'll remember for the rest of my life… To be here at the Olympics is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I feel so blessed to have this chance to go from artist to athlete, to just experience this is surreal almost.”
It was a rain-slicked course, and a wet and challenging day. Vanakorn did finish dead-last this morning, a full 50 seconds off the winning time, and _ as promised — is quite pleased with the experience. However, out of 90 competitors, she was 67th — she took the safe and slow route down, but several others who skied aggressively went off the track and earned a DNF.
She told The Telegraph after the race, "You can insure yourself up to your eyeballs, but if you don't take risks, what's the point? You have to enjoy life.”
The winner of the race, Tina Maze, earned her second Gold of the Sochi games (this time without a tie). Maze is a pianist who often plays on the road, and released a pop single in 2012 that was very successful in Slovenia. Giant Slalom, the most musical of the Alpine sports...
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Monday, February 17, 2014
Olympic Spirit 5
Forty-three
year old Peruvian cross-country skier Roberto Carcelen broke ribs
during training two weeks earlier, but still completed a painful 15k
Classic Style competition on Friday. He came in 87th - dead last.
When he crossed the finish line, dejected and in pain, he was proudly holding up his flag (he is Peru's first Winter Olympian). He was given a standing ovation by the crowd, and was greeted by two fellow competitors.
The first was Dachhiri Sherpa of Nepal, who finished 86th, a full 11 minutes earlier. The next was Dario Cologna. Cologna skied for Switzerland and won the competition in 39 minutes. The gold medalist, who himself had completed a grueling race with a close finish, waited around the finish line for another half hour so that the last finisher would have someone to greet him.
When he crossed the finish line, dejected and in pain, he was proudly holding up his flag (he is Peru's first Winter Olympian). He was given a standing ovation by the crowd, and was greeted by two fellow competitors.
The first was Dachhiri Sherpa of Nepal, who finished 86th, a full 11 minutes earlier. The next was Dario Cologna. Cologna skied for Switzerland and won the competition in 39 minutes. The gold medalist, who himself had completed a grueling race with a close finish, waited around the finish line for another half hour so that the last finisher would have someone to greet him.
Olympic Spirit 4 - Lucky Loonie!
When
he was a baby, Jan Hudec’s parents made a decision. They ordered a kit, a
kit to make a Fireball. That’s not cinnamon whiskey. That’s a 2-person
dinghy, and Jan Sr. built it in secret in his mother’s garage. They
practised on a lake. Then they left communist Czechoslovakia to go on
vacation in Yugoslavia, where they were allowed to travel then. Two days
before they were to return, they put
the boat in the water and set off across the Adriatic Sea to freedom.
The trip was risky, but so was remaining in Czechoslovakia. They bailed
the boat out the whole way and they barely made the beach, but with a
little luck and a lot of toughness, they made it to Italy, and freedom.
From Italy, they made their way to Canada, the country Hudec skied for in the Super-G at the Sochi Olympics. He wanted a little Canadian luck on his side. After a couple of warm-up runs, he “as sneakily as possible… in Russia” buried a Loonie at the finish line, “hoping not to get dragged off by the security guards.” This is a Canadian tradition that started with the Loonie buried at center ice at the Salt Lake City Olympics for the hockey teams, and soon crossed over to skiing when officials buried a Loonie at the finish line at the Lake Louise World Cup.
More importantly, he has his parents’ toughness. He has been plagued by injury for years, and still competes. He has had seven knee surgeries. One knee surgery, and I’d be whining about it the rest of my life. Seven, and he still skis. Back problems left him bedridden just last month. “His back is really, really gimpy, and he took a bunch of days off and he missed some races, and his knees are a mess — other than that, he’s great,” said Steve Podborski, Canada’s chef de mission in Sochi and former alpine competitor. But Hudec toughed it out and competed in the Olympics this week.
His teammate Erik Guay, fellow member of the “Canadian Cowboys," was honest, “I don’t know if I would have bet on him, pre-race.” Dude, did you not hear about the dinghy? And the Loonie? Hudec not only competed, he nailed the Bronze, giving Canada its first medal in alpine skiing since Lillehammer. Lil-le-ham-mer. The drought has plagued Alpine Canada for so long, the VP of sports himself took on the task of digging out the lucky Loonie (it took about 45 minutes to find it). Maybe he was worried that Hudec's back couldn't take on one more task after the competition. Hudec credits the Loonie, but told the press, “Worst-case scenario if it’s not good luck, it will be worth more than a dollar now."
From Italy, they made their way to Canada, the country Hudec skied for in the Super-G at the Sochi Olympics. He wanted a little Canadian luck on his side. After a couple of warm-up runs, he “as sneakily as possible… in Russia” buried a Loonie at the finish line, “hoping not to get dragged off by the security guards.” This is a Canadian tradition that started with the Loonie buried at center ice at the Salt Lake City Olympics for the hockey teams, and soon crossed over to skiing when officials buried a Loonie at the finish line at the Lake Louise World Cup.
More importantly, he has his parents’ toughness. He has been plagued by injury for years, and still competes. He has had seven knee surgeries. One knee surgery, and I’d be whining about it the rest of my life. Seven, and he still skis. Back problems left him bedridden just last month. “His back is really, really gimpy, and he took a bunch of days off and he missed some races, and his knees are a mess — other than that, he’s great,” said Steve Podborski, Canada’s chef de mission in Sochi and former alpine competitor. But Hudec toughed it out and competed in the Olympics this week.
His teammate Erik Guay, fellow member of the “Canadian Cowboys," was honest, “I don’t know if I would have bet on him, pre-race.” Dude, did you not hear about the dinghy? And the Loonie? Hudec not only competed, he nailed the Bronze, giving Canada its first medal in alpine skiing since Lillehammer. Lil-le-ham-mer. The drought has plagued Alpine Canada for so long, the VP of sports himself took on the task of digging out the lucky Loonie (it took about 45 minutes to find it). Maybe he was worried that Hudec's back couldn't take on one more task after the competition. Hudec credits the Loonie, but told the press, “Worst-case scenario if it’s not good luck, it will be worth more than a dollar now."
Saturday, February 15, 2014
Olympic Spirit 3
One
thing that always impresses me at each Olympics is the way sports change
and adapt in the four years in between. In the early 1990s, Japanese
ski jumpers were successful because their small size helped them go
farther. But rule changes were implemented to deter other jumpers from
unhealthy weight losses. Equipment changes also give some nations
advantages over others (although the US speed skaters
were touting a new high-tech suit that got none of them to the podium,
and now they're returning to their old suits for the relay event). Think
of all the changes in your life since 1992, the year that Albertville,
France hosted the Winter Olympics. Now, consider the fact that you may
have watched someone compete at those Olympics who competed in Sochi
today. AND at every Winter Olympics in between.
Noriaki Kasai is Japan's top ski jumper, and has been off and on for decades. He has grown and adapted with the ski program, the equipment changes, the fitness challenge, the jumping styles — every change in his sport in the last 22 years. Not just 4 years: 22.
In all of this time, he has only won one Olympic medal, and he came to Sochi because he is still in pursuit of a Gold. It's not completely out of the question - it was just a month ago that he became the oldest jumper to win a World Cup event. He is 41 years old, and appears to be in the best shape for an Olympics yet.
Well, his jump tonight (or, last night in Sochi) was incredible. I can't begin to understand the variables that go into the ski jumping score, but you knew from the look on everyone's faces that he had done something special. He was immediately surrounded by the other jumpers, who were all excited for him because he is so beloved by all of them. Imagine that. Imagine how long this guy has been on the tour! He's old enough to have his own children on the tour. His Olympic career is older than his colleagues. He has seen the successes and failures of a full generation of ski jumpers, and has probably mentored more than a few. He has finished as low as 49th in Salt Lake, and says his own regrets are his motivation. And with only one medal in all of those Olympics, maybe the adoration and respect of his own competitors is his reward.
And the Silver Medal he just won in Sochi. I think that Silver Medal he just won is a pretty good reward. He's still planning on getting that Gold in Korea, though.
Noriaki Kasai is Japan's top ski jumper, and has been off and on for decades. He has grown and adapted with the ski program, the equipment changes, the fitness challenge, the jumping styles — every change in his sport in the last 22 years. Not just 4 years: 22.
In all of this time, he has only won one Olympic medal, and he came to Sochi because he is still in pursuit of a Gold. It's not completely out of the question - it was just a month ago that he became the oldest jumper to win a World Cup event. He is 41 years old, and appears to be in the best shape for an Olympics yet.
Well, his jump tonight (or, last night in Sochi) was incredible. I can't begin to understand the variables that go into the ski jumping score, but you knew from the look on everyone's faces that he had done something special. He was immediately surrounded by the other jumpers, who were all excited for him because he is so beloved by all of them. Imagine that. Imagine how long this guy has been on the tour! He's old enough to have his own children on the tour. His Olympic career is older than his colleagues. He has seen the successes and failures of a full generation of ski jumpers, and has probably mentored more than a few. He has finished as low as 49th in Salt Lake, and says his own regrets are his motivation. And with only one medal in all of those Olympics, maybe the adoration and respect of his own competitors is his reward.
And the Silver Medal he just won in Sochi. I think that Silver Medal he just won is a pretty good reward. He's still planning on getting that Gold in Korea, though.
Hockey Breakfast 2: USA vs. Russia
Another early morning at Cole's. I was at the door at 6.45 am. Others were waiting in their cars, but they weren't at the door, were they? Watched the night guy finish cleaning, put the bar stools down, and then... nothing. Fortunately, one of the bartenders was coming to watch, and he let us in. Within three minutes, only four barstools were empty. I was saving five seats, then gave one of them up so a couple could sit together, hoping they'd help me defend. By game time, I couldn't get to the breakfast buffet. Good thing Amy brought donuts.
* * * * *
Just showed Sidney Crosby in the crowd. Guy behind me asked why he's not playing.
*sigh*
* * * * *
As I posted already, NBC showed Sidney Crosby in the crowd, and a guy behind me asked why Crosby wasn't playing today. In the USA vs Russia game. Ask Cole Harbour, NS. They have a clue.
During the shootout, a DIFFERENT guy asked why the coach wasn't putting Sidney Crosby in for the shootout. Presumably for the USA. The guy was drunk, but he was also sincere.
That's the answer. The question was, "Why don't you meet guys when you go to bars to watch hockey?" For fuck's sake, men of Buffalo...
* * * * *
Any flick of a stick could have solved it. Even a net that hadn’t bent off its peg would’ve sent Russia off with the win. That would have been too easy, and anitclimatic. After all, NBC had been showing clips from the 1980 MIracle game, the semifinal game that left the Russians scrambling for Bronze while TEAM USA played for gold. We were in the mood for drama. If we played them ten times, they might win nine. But not this game. Not tonight.
I was in Coles on Elmwood Avenue. I got in line at 6.45 am to get a seat at the bar - the bar was SRO by 7.15 am. Every time Putin was shown, the crowd erupted in boos. We had our own goal light and a “U-S-A” chant for when the US scored twice. The bar’s owner was in Moscow on his way to Sochi, watching the game in a bar and doing shots of vodka across the world with us to celebrate USA goals. The two Russian goals brought chants of “Mil-ler, Mil-ler,” as we lobbied for our hometown favourite to take his rightful place in the net.
It goes to overtime, where Patrick Kane is stopped on a breakaway that would have made for a storybook ending, at least for Buffalo residents and/or Chicago Blackhawk fans. Neither team manages to solve it in extra time.
International shootouts have three different shooters on the first three shots, and then you have only those three shooters to choose from for the remainder of the shootout until it’s decided. “You’ve got to use TJ Oshie, who has 7 shootout goals this season,” says one NBC announcer, as they muse that perhaps some players had been chosen for the team based upon their shootout performance in the NHL. Little-known TJ Oshie plays for the NHL’s St. Louis Blues. We Google him. We didn’t know.
Indeed, Oshie goes first for USA, and scores easily five-hole. Evgeni Malkin is next for Russia, stopped by Quick. Maple Leaf Van Riemsdyk is next, with a shot that Columbus Bluejacket Bobrovsky deflects away. Datsyuk next moves in on Quick, who catches the puck in his glove. Round 3, Pavelski, who has already scored for the US, tries three different moves on Bobrovsky, ovrecomplicating his shot into no shot at all. Ilya Kovalchuk needs to score for RUS to tie up the shootout or the game is over. His shot indeed speeds past Quick into the net, causing the crowd at Coles to wonder what the heck happens next in international shootouts.
Now the Russians get the first shot for the remaining rounds, but both teams have to use the same three players again, in any rotation. Round 4. Kovalchuk gets his chance again, to no avail. TJ Oshie lines up again — a goal would win it — and the shot goes beyond the net. Round 5. Datsyuk tries to redeem Russia, and gets a quick goal, causing the fans to salute him, the lone goal-scorrer for the Russians during regulation, for a hat trick.
Van Riemsdyk and Pavelski settle into the bench. Oshie is the man for the US. There’s a twinkle in his eye as he takes the line every time, staring the goalie down. This is a head game between Oshie and Bobrovsky, and goalies rarely win head games once they’re down. This round, Oshie has to score to avoid the loss. He fakes Bobrovsky out and sends it over his left pad. The Olympic game is tied again. The head game? Advantage Oshie.
Sixth Round. Russia sends out Kovalchuk again, with an easy goal over Quick’s glove hand. Oshie again must score or go home. His shot goes up over Bobrovsky, off the post and in. A little puck, a little luck. Datsyuk takes his turn in Russia’s obvious rotation, shoots right into Quick who stops it. In the bottom of Round 7, the US has a chance to win it. “TJ Oshie, against the Russian Federation,” the announcer dramatically intones. The drama is misplaced, as Bobrovsky stops the shot to his right with the blade of his stick.
Eighth round, Kovalchuk’s turn. He is stopped on the next try by Quick and the post. A chink in the armor? No time to find out. This time the USA can win if they score. It’s Oshie. For the win. A wrist shot that gets past Bobrovsky five-hole. We never saw another shot of Putin after that.
From unknown to household name, Oshie had 40,000 new followers on Twitter within 40 minutes (I’m one of them). #Soshie was trending. Oshie tried to give credit to his teammates in a post-game interview, but was told he had to take credit: it was a shootout, after all. He couldn’t do it: taking credit for no more than his half of the performance, he called Quick his “partner" out there. When he was told he was a hero, he said, “Real heroes wear camo.” Well, shucks, kid…
* * * * *
"Hockey fans everywhere needing a cigarette when this game was over."
- Elliotte Friedman, CBC Sports
* * * * *
Just showed Sidney Crosby in the crowd. Guy behind me asked why he's not playing.
*sigh*
* * * * *
As I posted already, NBC showed Sidney Crosby in the crowd, and a guy behind me asked why Crosby wasn't playing today. In the USA vs Russia game. Ask Cole Harbour, NS. They have a clue.
During the shootout, a DIFFERENT guy asked why the coach wasn't putting Sidney Crosby in for the shootout. Presumably for the USA. The guy was drunk, but he was also sincere.
That's the answer. The question was, "Why don't you meet guys when you go to bars to watch hockey?" For fuck's sake, men of Buffalo...
* * * * *
Any flick of a stick could have solved it. Even a net that hadn’t bent off its peg would’ve sent Russia off with the win. That would have been too easy, and anitclimatic. After all, NBC had been showing clips from the 1980 MIracle game, the semifinal game that left the Russians scrambling for Bronze while TEAM USA played for gold. We were in the mood for drama. If we played them ten times, they might win nine. But not this game. Not tonight.
I was in Coles on Elmwood Avenue. I got in line at 6.45 am to get a seat at the bar - the bar was SRO by 7.15 am. Every time Putin was shown, the crowd erupted in boos. We had our own goal light and a “U-S-A” chant for when the US scored twice. The bar’s owner was in Moscow on his way to Sochi, watching the game in a bar and doing shots of vodka across the world with us to celebrate USA goals. The two Russian goals brought chants of “Mil-ler, Mil-ler,” as we lobbied for our hometown favourite to take his rightful place in the net.
It goes to overtime, where Patrick Kane is stopped on a breakaway that would have made for a storybook ending, at least for Buffalo residents and/or Chicago Blackhawk fans. Neither team manages to solve it in extra time.
International shootouts have three different shooters on the first three shots, and then you have only those three shooters to choose from for the remainder of the shootout until it’s decided. “You’ve got to use TJ Oshie, who has 7 shootout goals this season,” says one NBC announcer, as they muse that perhaps some players had been chosen for the team based upon their shootout performance in the NHL. Little-known TJ Oshie plays for the NHL’s St. Louis Blues. We Google him. We didn’t know.
Indeed, Oshie goes first for USA, and scores easily five-hole. Evgeni Malkin is next for Russia, stopped by Quick. Maple Leaf Van Riemsdyk is next, with a shot that Columbus Bluejacket Bobrovsky deflects away. Datsyuk next moves in on Quick, who catches the puck in his glove. Round 3, Pavelski, who has already scored for the US, tries three different moves on Bobrovsky, ovrecomplicating his shot into no shot at all. Ilya Kovalchuk needs to score for RUS to tie up the shootout or the game is over. His shot indeed speeds past Quick into the net, causing the crowd at Coles to wonder what the heck happens next in international shootouts.
Now the Russians get the first shot for the remaining rounds, but both teams have to use the same three players again, in any rotation. Round 4. Kovalchuk gets his chance again, to no avail. TJ Oshie lines up again — a goal would win it — and the shot goes beyond the net. Round 5. Datsyuk tries to redeem Russia, and gets a quick goal, causing the fans to salute him, the lone goal-scorrer for the Russians during regulation, for a hat trick.
Van Riemsdyk and Pavelski settle into the bench. Oshie is the man for the US. There’s a twinkle in his eye as he takes the line every time, staring the goalie down. This is a head game between Oshie and Bobrovsky, and goalies rarely win head games once they’re down. This round, Oshie has to score to avoid the loss. He fakes Bobrovsky out and sends it over his left pad. The Olympic game is tied again. The head game? Advantage Oshie.
Sixth Round. Russia sends out Kovalchuk again, with an easy goal over Quick’s glove hand. Oshie again must score or go home. His shot goes up over Bobrovsky, off the post and in. A little puck, a little luck. Datsyuk takes his turn in Russia’s obvious rotation, shoots right into Quick who stops it. In the bottom of Round 7, the US has a chance to win it. “TJ Oshie, against the Russian Federation,” the announcer dramatically intones. The drama is misplaced, as Bobrovsky stops the shot to his right with the blade of his stick.
Eighth round, Kovalchuk’s turn. He is stopped on the next try by Quick and the post. A chink in the armor? No time to find out. This time the USA can win if they score. It’s Oshie. For the win. A wrist shot that gets past Bobrovsky five-hole. We never saw another shot of Putin after that.
From unknown to household name, Oshie had 40,000 new followers on Twitter within 40 minutes (I’m one of them). #Soshie was trending. Oshie tried to give credit to his teammates in a post-game interview, but was told he had to take credit: it was a shootout, after all. He couldn’t do it: taking credit for no more than his half of the performance, he called Quick his “partner" out there. When he was told he was a hero, he said, “Real heroes wear camo.” Well, shucks, kid…
* * * * *
"Hockey fans everywhere needing a cigarette when this game was over."
- Elliotte Friedman, CBC Sports
Thursday, February 13, 2014
REAL Extreme Sports
I
hate guns — really, really hate guns — but I am hard put upon to name a
sport that wouldn't be made more entertaining if the participants had to
stop in the middle and shoot. This comes to me as I watch men's figure
skating...
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