Figure skating, the Olympics and whatever else

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Comments by: YACCS

 

The Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics is filled with pageantry and patriotism, especially an American one. Some of the highest honors bestowed on Olympic athletes, though, are not won by seconds or points. They're won through heart and awarded with respect by their fellow athletes.

Each country's delegation is lead into the Olympic arena by a flagbearer, usually selected by their peers. These are their country's heroes and their hopes. Or they symbolize the perseverence and longevity. Or just getting to the Olympics through the years of adversity.

The American flagbearer is Amy Peterson, a short-track speedskater who has been to *five* Olympics, since Calgary. She has won three Olympic medals. She also suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome.

Another honor bestowed upon an athlete is the the Olympic oath. At the start of every Olympics, an athlete from the host country takes the oath to play fairly and obey all the Olympic rules. A similar oath is taken by an official.

The oath reads: "In the name of all competitors, I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games, respecting and abiding by the rules that govern them, in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honor of our teams."

Jim Shea Jr. has been elected by the athletes to recite the Olympic oath at the opening ceremony. His late grandfather, Jack Shea, gave the same oath at the Lake Placid Winter Olympics in 1932. Carol Heiss took the oath at the Squaw Valley Olympics.

Some honors, however, no one could have predicted needing, even Baron Coubertin, who wrote that oath. After the events of September 11th, American officials wanted some tangible way of marking the event. A torn American flag, found at Ground Zero in New York, was displayed at the World Series and Super Bowl. The USOC wanted to have that flag brought into the Olympic arena.

The IOC balked, stating firmly that political statements have no place in an Olympic ceremony. The American response was irate, prompting a hasty compromise. The flag will brought in during a seperate ceremony after the main processions, led by an honor guard of Olympic athletes and firefighters and police officers. The Olympic honor guard is made up of athletes from every event, including Todd Eldredge as the figure skating representative.

I'm of two minds about this whole issue. In some ways, I'm relieved that the flag has been deemed too delicate to fly as our official flag of the Games. The American flag is our greatest symbol, our pride and joy. There's just something about seeing an entire stadium filled with American flags waving. But we also treat our flag with respect. To have that ragged flag as our symbol during the Olympics is both inspiring and disturbing. What message are we sending? Maybe that we're torn and bruised but we're still here, flying high.


posted by Julia at 11:40 PM

 
Baby it's cold outside! Winter returned with a vengeance to our corner of the world. Our temperatures had been in the 70s, almost spring-like, and then over the weekend, the temperature plummeted about forty degrees, plus wind chill for our amusement. We haven't had a major snowstorm yet, just the one brief storm that disappeared in about two days. Obviously Mother Nature knows we can't concentrate on skiing and bobsled and figure skating and hockey if it feels like spring outside.

The Olympics start in four days. Athletes are already arriving in Salt Lake City, checking into the Olympic Village. Even the new IOC President will be taking up residence at the Village. Some athletes are opting to stay away from the Village. In some cases, they prefer to prepare for the Olympics just as they would any other competition, albeit on a larger scale. Michelle Kwan was criticized mightily in Nagano for not getting the whole Olympic experience. Of course, half of the Village also wound up with a nasty strain of the Nagano flu.

Some of the skaters are already in Utah getting acclimated to the high altitude, training at local rinks two weeks beforehand. Skating is an endurance sport, believe it or not, and no one wants to run out of gas in the middle of a four minute program. I'm curious to see whether there really is a division between the North American and Russian approaches to practicing. The North American school seems to run through their programs all the way through. The Russian school prefer to keep elements fresh, so they perform their programs in sections. It could also explain why their choreography seems disjointed at times with long rest periods.

One pairs team will not be at the Olympics. The French team of Abitbol and Bernadis pulled out of the Games, when Abitbol tore her Achilles tendon. Their ex-teammate Surya Bonaly had a similar injury and had to have surgery to even walk, much less skate. That will be a terrible blow to the French team, leaving their dance team as the only major medal contenders.

The American media has started the inevitable stretch run of articles before the Opening Ceremonies. The Washington Post had a long article on Sasha Cohen in today's paper. Time magazine featured Sarah Hughes on the cover of their preview. TV Guide gave Michelle Kwan the Olympic cover. But the cover jinx on Sports Illustrated was given to a speedskater, Apolo Ohno.

Meanwhile, ESPN Classic has started showing all these Olympic programs. Guess whose cable system moved ESPN Classic to their digital lineup? Every time ESPN shows a promo for their lineup, I grumble loudly. They're even showing "the Miracle" game.

And oh yes, to prove that even women are not immune to Superbowl Sunday, congratulations to the New England Patriots! The game was one of the best that I could remember in my long years. When the Patriots were introduced in the opening as a team, not just the starting offense or defense, that spoke more volumes than anything. A fitting team for the times.


posted by Julia at 7:50 PM