Major Change In Bobsled

FIBT logo
http://www.freelogovectors.net/wp-content/
uploads/2012/10/FIBT-Federation-Internationale
-de-Bobsleigh-et-de-Tobogganing-logo.jpg

One of the biggest changes in the history of the sport of bobsleigh occurred on Thursday. 

The FIBT announced that women are now allowed to compete in four-man bobsled events. Before this change, women only competed in the two-women bobsled races, while men competed in both two-man and four-man competitions. 

For the upcoming season, it looks like their will be only women drivers, with the pushers going to be only men.

2010 and 2014 Women's Two-Man Bobsled Gold Medalist Kaillie Humphries has expressed interesting in the past in piloting a four-man sled in the past and wants to be able to race one in the upcoming season.

In a world of growing gender equality, the fact that women are allowed to start racing in four-man competition now may seem late, but not surprising considering the sports past. Four-man bobsled has been at every Winter Olympics while the two-man was first held at the Olympics in 1932. Two-women bobsled was first held only twelve years ago in Salt Lake City.

Hopefully, this is the start of one-day having a four-man bobsled team of four women. There are many quality women bobsledders in the world who will seize this opportunity and soon be in the elite of the four-man. This announcement has been way overdue. I expect there to be teams of predominately women competing in the World Cup within the next three years. 

The next question is whether or not women will be able to compete for the four-man at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. The FIBT President Ivo Ferriani said it was "too soon" to speculate. It would be great to see a team with women competing for medal in Pyeongchang, but considering the lack of spots (Canada had onlythree teams make the 2014 Olympics) it would be surprising to see many women competing  However, a couple experienced pilots, like Humphries, could qualify in the four-man. 

2014 Winter Olympics Wrap-Up

The Most Decorated 

Ole Einar Bjoerndalen
http://img.rt.com/files/news/22/3e/d0/00/norway-holds-al
l-the-aces_-wins-4-medals-on-day-1-.si.jpg

Norway's Ole Einar Bjoerndalen became the most decorated Winter Olympian by winning two gold medals during his final Olympics. The biathlete came in first in the Men's 10 km Sprint and the Mixed Relay. The gold medal in the Sprint tied him with Bjorn Daehile (also of Norway) for most medals by a Winter Olympian with 12. The win in the mixed relay gave him the record with 13. Of Bjoerndalen's 13 medals, eight have been gold, four have been silver, and only one has been bronze. On the combined Summer/Winter Olympics medalist chart, Bjoerndalen is now fourth. Fellow Norwegian Marit Bjoergen, a Cross-Country skier, is now the most decorated female Winter Olympian with ten medals. Bjoergen won three gold medals in Sochi, the Ladies' 30 km Mass Start Sprint, Ladies' Skiathlon, and the Ladies' Team Sprint Classic. Six of her ten overall medals are gold, with the others being three silvers and one bronze. 

Netherlands and Speed Skating

The Netherlands dominated all the Speed Skating events. The Dutch won 23 of the 36 medals given out in the 12 events. Overall, the medals are broken down into eight golds, seven silvers, and eight bronze medals. Ireen Wust won five medals, the most by one Olympian at this year's Olympics. Wust medals were two gold and three silver. Sven Kramer won two golds and a silver medal. Three of the events were a Dutch sweep, while five Olympics records were set by a member of Team Netherlands. The 23 medals won by Dutch skaters is more then every country competing but four. The Netherlands ended up with 24 medals. The one medal not won by a speed skater was won by a short track skater.

Bobsleigh 

Alexander Zubkov
http://en.ria.ru/images/18724/34/187243490.jpg

The two-women bobsled competition was close. Canada 1 (Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse) defeated United States 1 (Elana Meyers and Lauryn Williams) by a tenth of a second to win gold. The bronze medalist were United States 2 (Aja Evans and Jamie Greubel). The two-men competition was won by Russia 1 (Alexey Voevoda and Alexander Zubkov), with Switzerland 1 (Alex Baumann and Beat Hefti) winning silver and United States 1 (Steve Holcomb and Steven Langton). Pilot Zubkov, the flag bearer for Canada at the Opening Ceremonies, won his first ever gold medal. But he was not done winning gold. Russia won the four-man competition as well. The United States came in third, unable to repeat as gold medalists. 

Russian Athletes' Success and Failure

The host country's athletes represented their homeland well. They were the leaders in overall medals with 33 and gold medals with 13. Of the the 15 sports, Russia medaled in ten of them. Viktor Ahn, a South Korean born Short Track Skater who moved and became a citizen of Russia to continue his skating career, won three golds and one bronze. The figure skating team of Maxim Trankov and Tatiana Volosozhar won two gold medals. 
However, not every story had a happy ending. Famous figure skater Evgeny Plyushchenko won a gold in the team event, but withdrew from the men's short program. The Russian men's hockey team had the weight of the world on their shoulders. Before and during the Games, it was said the success of the Team Russia would be dependent on the hockey team. The only thing that mattered for many fans was a gold medal. The hockey team disappointed many fans. They lost to the US in a shootout in the group stage and then lost 3-1 to Finland in a lackluster performance. There were more successes then failures for the Russians, but the failures almost outweighed the successes.  

The Failure of the United States' Stars

Meryl Davis and Charlie White
http://img.bleacherreport.net/img/images/photos/002/701/
460/WhiteDavis_crop_north.jpg?w=630&h=420&q=75

The high-profile athletes for the US did not live up to expectations. Snowboarder Shawn White dropped out of the slopestyle event and then finished fourth in the halfpipe, which he was the two-time defending gold medalist. Alpine skiers Ted Ligety and Bode Miller won only one medal each. No American won a medal in a Speed Skating event, while the only one Short Track Skating medal was won. Figure skater Gracie Gold finished fourth in the women's free skating event. The men's hockey team were great going into the semi-finals, headlined by the heroics of TJ Oshie in a shootout win vs. Russia, but then lost 1-0 to Canada and then 5-0 to Finland in the bronze medal game. Meryl Davis and Charlie White were one of the few stars that lived up to the billing. They won gold in the ice dance and helped the US win third in the team figure skating event. 

One Medal Countries

Only two counties won only one medal in Sochi. They were Croatia and Kazakhstan. Croatia's Alpine Skier Ivica Kostelic won the countries only medal, silver, in men's super combined. In Vanocuver, Kostelic also won the silver in the men's super combined, as well as silver in the slalom. Figurer Skater Denis Ten of Kazakhstan won bronze in the men free program.

Looking Ahead to 2018

2018 Winter Olympics Logo
http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/
archives/pyeongchang_2018_logo_detail.gif

The 2018 Winter Olympics are gong to be in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Pyeongchang is 14 hours ahead of EST, which is going to make watching events live just as difficult as this Olympics. The main events occurring during prime-time Pyeongchang time at about 8pm will be on 6am. The event that start at noon Pyeongchang time is going to start at and events 10pm EST. 

The biggest question heading into the 2018 Winter Olympics is whether NHL players will participate in the Games. Since 1998, the NHL has taken a three-week hiatus to allow their top players to play for their countries at the Games. The NHL was been non committal to allowing their players to go to South Korea. The NHL has legitimate reasons for not going, which include injured players, NHL teams not getting compensated for their injuries, and the loss of revenue during the hiatus. I hope that the NHL allows its players to continue to compete in the Olympics. Hockey during the Olympics is on par or above any NHL event, including the Stanley Cup. With that being said, I don't have high hopes for NHL players to be making an appearance in Pyeongchang. 

2014 Winter Olympics Preview

Men's Ice Hockey

Semyon Varlamov
http://en.ria.ru/images/17358/32/173583263.jpg

There are three groups for men's ice hockey, Group A, Group B, and Group C. Group A features host country Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the United States. Russia and the US are the two favorites of Group A. Russia's possible front line of Pavel Datsyuk, Evegni Malkin, and Alexander Ovechkin could be deadly for defenses. A big question for Russia is who will start in goal for them, Sergei Bobrovsky or Semyon Varlamov. Varlamov has been outstanding this year, while Bobrovsky has struggled after winning the Vezima Trophy. The right choice is to go with the hot glove of Varlamov. After winning silver in 2010, the US are looking to win their first gold medal since the Miracle on Ice in 1980. The Americans are strong in net with Jimmy Howard, Ryan Miller, and Jonathan Quick. Even though all three have struggled at one point this year, the expectations for all three are high. I think Miller and Quick will both play in the first few games and whoever plays the best will be the starter for the playoffs. Slovakia is no team to sleep on. Led by Zdeno Chara and Marian Hossa, they can be a surprise team. Slovenia, which only has one NHL player (Anze Kopitar) on it's team, will have a tough time against more talented teams. 

Austria, the defending gold medalist Canada, Finland, and Norway are the four teams in Group B. Canada has a high powered offense and defense. Their fourth line may feature Rick Nash and/or John Taveres, two former number one picks in the NHL Draft. The team has many pair of teammates who will most likely play on the same lines, which will help with chemistry. They should be favorites. Finland has outstanding net minders in Antti Nieni and Tuukka Rask. They will keep the opponents from scoring a lot of goals. The offense will need to score for them to succeed. 

Daniel Alfredsson
http://www.ottawalife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Alfie3.jpg

The final group features the Czech Republic, Latvia, Switzerland, and Sweden, the number one ranked team in the world. Sweden are one of the favorites in the tournament. Their offense is led by Daniel Alfredsson, Daniel Sedin, Alexander Steen, and Henrik Zetterberg, while the defense is headlined by Erik Karlsson. With Henrik Lundqvist in net, they are strong in every phase of the game. The Czech Republic will also have a competitive team led by New Jersey Devil teammates, Patrik Elias and Jaromir Jagr. Latvia and Switzerland will have trouble against tough competition and will be lucky to make the quarterfinals. The four favorites to win gold are Canada, Russia, Sweden, and the United States, with the Czech Republic, Finland, and Slovakia being dark horses. 

Ski Jumping

There will be four ski jumping events in Sochi. They are men's individual normal hill, men's individual large hill, men's team large hill, and women's individual normal hill. The women's event is the first time women will be competing in ski jumping. The current World Champion is 19 year old American Sarah Hendrickson. Hendrickson is coming off a knee injury suffered in August and has only returned to skiing last month. If she can place, let alone win, she may become the star of the Olympics. The favorites for the men's events are Austrian's Thomas Morgenstern and Gregor Schlierenzauer, Slovenia's Robert Kranjec and Peter Prevc, and Poland's Kamil Stoch. The favorite for the team event is Austria. They won the last two gold medals at the Olympics and the last five gold medals at the World Championships.

Curling

Norway's Curling Team showing off their uniforms
http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/52e184a6eab8eafe101b31f2/
norways-curling-team-will-once-again-be-the-best-dressed-at-the-winter-
olympics.jpg

Sweden has won the last two gold medals in the women's event, but this year, they may be able to take home their first ever men's gold. The Swedish team is being skipped by Niklas Edin and includes Sebastian Kraupp, Fredrik Lindberg, Viktor Kjaell, and Oskar Eriksson. This group have curled together for years and are the current European and World Champs. The team from Norway will be vying for the gold medal as well after winning silver in 2010. Skipped by Thomas Ulsrud and vice-skipped by Torger Nergaard, four of the five curlers have Olympic and Olympic medal game experience. Nergaard is the only member of the 2002 gold medal winning team on this year's team. It would not be surprising if these teams meet in the gold medal match. Great Britian's women's team may be young, but they are favorites for the gold medals. All team members are less the 25 years old, yet they still won the World Championships last year. Skipper Eve Muirhead is a four time World Junior champion and is the youngest skipper ever to win a world championship. Now, she hopes to become the youngest skipper to win an Olympic gold medal. 

Bobsleigh

US Driver Steven Holcomb is looking to lead his two-man and four-man team to gold medals. In Vancouver, Holcomb and his team won the gold medal in the four-man, the first for the USA in the event since 1948. Now, he leads a four-man team of himself, Curt Tomasevicz, Steve Langton, and Chris Fogt to Sochi with hopes of winning the gold medal again. Some of the top competitors for the gold medal include a German team led by Maximilian Arndt, a team from Latvia piloted by Oskars Melbardis, a team led by Beat Hefti from Switzerland, and a Canadian team driven by Lyndon Rush. For the two-women's  Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse of Canada look to repeat as gold medal winners.

Luge

Felix Loch
http://static.foxsports.com/content/fscom/img/2014/01/06/010513-30-
OLY-Felix-Loch-OB-PI_20140106023226538_660_320.JPG

German Felix Loch is the favorite for the gold medal in men's singles event. Loch won the gold medal in Vancouver with a time of 3:13.085. He also won the men's singles gold medals in 2008, 2009, 2012, and 2013. His gold medal win in 2008 at the age of 18 made him the youngest winner in history. He also won the gold in the team relay in 2008, 2009, 2012, and 2013. If Loch does not win the men's singles, it would be one of the biggest shocks of the Olympics. The defending gold medalist in women's singles is Tatjana Hufner. The German won gold in Vancouver and bronze in Torino. She won gold at the 2012 World Championships and silver in 2013. The current World Champ is fellow German Natalie Geisenberger. The two countrywomen should be the two main competitors for gold. 

There is a new event in luge this year, the Team Relay and an updated event, the doubles. The doubles is now only a men's event. It was a mixed event from 1964 to 2010. The Team Relay involves a men's luger, a women's luger, and a doubles team. All the sleds start at the beginning of the course. When one luger finishes, he or she will hit a touch pad that will inform the next luger to go. It is a relay race. In both events, Germany are the favorites and it will be shocking if they don't win.

Countries with One Athlete

Hubbertus von Hohenlohe
http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Hubertus%2BVon%2BHohenlohe
%2BApline%2BSkiing%2BDay%2B12%2B1tIcvyNgNgOl.jpg

There are seventeen countries that will be sending one athlete to compete in Sochi. They are Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, Kyrgyzstan, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Nepal, Pakistan, Paraguay, Philippines, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Tongo, Venezuela, US Virgin Islands, and Zimbabwe. Malta, Paraguay, Timor-Leste, Tongo, and Zimbabwe will be competing at their first Winter Olympics. The one Mexican athlete is alpine skier Hubbertus von Hohenlohe, the second oldest Olympian ever at 55. Hohenlohe is competing in his sixth Winter Olympics, his first being the 1984 Winter Olympics at Sarajevo. He is not only a skier, he is also a descendant of German royalty and a singer. He has never won a medal at a Winter Olympics and finished 78th in the men's giant slalom and 46th in the men's slalom in Vancouver. Tonga's only Winter Olympian this year is Bruno Banani. Banani's born name is Fuahea Semi, but he changed his name in 2008. He originally did not give a reason why he changed his name, which happens to be the same name as a German underwear company. However, it was later revealed to be a marketing ploy. Banani took up luge in 2008 when he was asked by the government to start competing in an attempt to send an Olympian to the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Independent Olympic Athletes

The three Indian athletes who qualified for the Winter Olympics will not compete under India's flag. Instead, they compete under the Olympic flag and be Independent Olympic Participants. The Indian Olympic Association is currently suspended by the International Olympic Committee due to hiring tainted officials. The suspension is to be lifted when new elections are held on February 9th. Since the Olympics start on the 7th, India will still be suspended when the Games begin meaning they will be ineligible when the Olympics start. The athletes who qualified are still allowed to participate. The athletes are Luger Shiva Keshavan, Alpine Skier Himanshu Thakur, and Cross Country Skier Nadeem Iqbal.

Mascots

The 2014 Winter Olympics Mascots
http://images.sports.cn/Image/2013/12/03/0935032147.jpg

There are three mascots for the 2014 Winter Olympics. They are the Hare, the Leopard, and the Polar Bear. The Ray of Light and the Snowflake are the Paralympic Mascots. With all the controversy surrounding the games, it is not surprising that there is controversy with the mascots as well. When the mascots were first announced, there were charges of vote-rigging. The Leopard, a favorite of then Russian Prime Minister (now President) Vladimir Putin, was said to have gotten more votes because of Putin's approval. Also, the Polar Bear was accused of being the same as the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics mascot. The mascots should not have a big part of the Olympics, so there should be no more controversy surrounding them.