chevy@ihuxq.UUCP (Kris Sherwin) (02/17/84)
Idle thoughts: I've been watching ABC's coverage of the Winter Olympics and noticed something. How come the USSR doesn't compete in Alpine skiing. I haven't seen a Russian in any of the events, womens or mens. I know they do Nordic skiing and there are Russian biathletes, but what's going on here. Either they don't compete in them or ABC doesn't show them when it's the Russians turn to slide down the hill. Does anybody know anything regarding this?? They couldn't have beaten Bill Johnson anyway!! -- Kris Sherwin AT&T Bell Laboratories - IW
wetcw@pyuxa.UUCP (T C Wheeler) (02/17/84)
I don't recall too well, but, I think I remember seeing USSR skiers listed in the complete rundown of the Giant Slalom. They were pretty far down the list. The saddest thing to see was a short bit about "the other skiers". The scene was at the bottom of the run, only about 20 or 30 people standing around. The winners had already departed along with the crowd. There was a woman and her daughter waiting for her son to come down the slope. He was a Costa Rican and his mother was his coach. He finally came into sight through the fog and the two began cheering. No one was there to slap him on the back or give him a thumbs up for competing in the Olympics. He had finished somewhere in the 35th to 40th range. I for one felt a lump in my throat. Here was a young 19 year old kid who had just competed in the greatest winter athletic event in the world, and no one cared enough to to stick around and tell him "nice going kid, you'll nail it next time." He finished his race ahead of some 30 other contestants. But, the only recognition he got was a well deserved hug from his mother and sister, and a one line mention in a list of also-rans. I know that ABC can't show us the whole thing. But, because I am a sentimental fool, I wish there were some way we could see the also-rans short of going to the Olympics. Just being in the Olympics has got to be a lifetime triumph. I don't care if the person is from Britian or Botswainia, it's the kind of experience that will last a lifetime. The Yugoslavian skier who won the Silver medal in the same event is now a national hero. I think that the kid from Costa Rica is too. Training for the GS can't be easy if you live in Costa Rica. T. C. Wheeler
bch@unc.UUCP (Byron Howes ) (02/18/84)
Cheers to T.C. Wheeler. I agree completely. Just being in the Olympics and finishing your event has got to be one of the great thrills of a lifetime. The also-rans put as much work, and heart, into what they do as those 6 guys who get to come down the slope first and they deserve as much, maybe more, for just doing it -- not for the medals, not for the glory, but just for doing it. One of the great stories ABC *did* cover was that of the Puerto Rican Luger who had *never* made it completely down a luge run without wiping out -- until the Olympics when he made through all four of his runs. True, he came in dead last among those who finished, but he *did* finish. Rocky Balboa couldn't have done it better. Despite the hype and the excesses of the press and fans, the Olympics really do represent the best of what we humans are. You watch these kids competing and you realize that they're not doing it for G-d and country, but just for the competition and themselves. Those of use sitting in our living rooms with our beer and pretzels may get a stir of national pride during the medal ceremonies, but it seems to me the joy those athletes feel is an intensely personal one. I guess I'm glad for the opportunity to share it even a little. -- "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!" Byron Howes UNC - Chapel Hill (decvax!mcnc!unc!bch)
rkp@drufl.UUCP (Pierce) (02/19/84)
Byron: I beg to differ. That guy (can't remember his name) from Puerto Rico came in NEXT to last, not in last. Three cheers for him. Russ Pierce Denver
rs55611@ihuxk.UUCP (Robert E. Schleicher) (02/20/84)
The other side of the coin is that some of the entrants from some of the smaller countries (especially from those that aren't winter sports capitals) don't really train that hard, and are just there for a neat experience/vacation. There was one guy in the giant slalom (not the Costa Rican; he did pretty good) who basically snow-plowed down. It was like they asked for volunteers to go, and only got a couple of applicants. (There were also a fair amount of Americans on other teams, through various vague connections. The Puerto Rican luger wasn't really from Puerto Rico, as I recall. Also, how about the Egyptian skiier who was born in Egypt, but had lived in Lake Placid, NY since he was about three months old. He wasn't any good, but got a free trip to Yugoslavia as a member of the Egyptian ski team. His father is an Egyptian govt. official of some kind, and he had his son train by staying in a completely dark cavern for 40 days, for spiritual cleansing and concentration. ABC did a short feature on him.)