Sochi 2014 Olympic Update (Day 10)
It was only a matter of time until the weather became an even bigger issue in the Olympics and in Day 10 that would happen. A weather front would move in to Sochi creating fog in many of the mountain courses. For the second time in two days the Men’s Biathlon 15km Mass Start would be postponed to the next day while the Men’s Snowboard Cross would be cancelled and moved to Day 11. It has been a big story from before the Olympics began as the warm weather of Sochi would be a concern for many. The Olympic committee would take plenty of measures in hoping to make up for any issues that may occur even storing snow just in case. Up until Day 10 the weather would not have much of an effect on the games themselves other than the fact that it has been warmer than most other Olympics. The weather would make headlines because of the temperatures being so high that even athletes would shed some layers to compete. The temperatures would give way to something worse for the games though as Day 10 would see one of the first times that the games were affected by bad weather. The temperature changes in Sochi would become a big problem in Day 10 as the fog would roll in. The fog would make visibility almost zero and the sports would suffer as a number of events would be forced to be cancelled. The mountain cluster in Sochi would be the most affected as the images from the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort would show that no events could be held. The fog would throw a wrench into the plans of the organizers as they would be forced to move a number of sports. The Men’s Biathlon 15km Mass Start would be moved for the second time to the next day as it will now be held on Day 11. The Snowboard Cross would also be moved as the qualification rounds would be held before the fog but the other rounds would be moved to Day 11 thanks to the visibility issues. It was the first time that the weather would affect the Olympics and one of the few concerns before the Olympics would make itself known. Before the Olympics many would look to Sochi as a real risk with a lot of issues to overcome to be a successful games. Before the Olympics it seemed like the organizing committee would be dealing with a number of major issues. There was the political situation in Russia, the weather, and the threat of terrorism were all weighing heavy on the games. Of course the biggest was the threat of violence on the games by a number of different terrorist organizations throughout Russia. Many would claim that they wanted to make a point to the Russian government and the world by disrupting the biggest event that Russia has ever hosted. It remains a major concern of the Olympic committee as they remain on high alert for the threat of something major happening at the Olympics. When the budget for the Olympics was announced it would raise a lot of eyebrows as it would cost $51 billion but much of that has been spent in trying to make the Olympics safe for everyone involved. It has been the most secure Olympics so far ever and the committee hopes to keep it that way. Another positive part of this security is the fact that by many accounts it has not been distracting to people who are at the Olympics. There are a number of security officials everyone around the Olympic grounds but they do not seem to be making people uncomfortable as people feel safe but not overprotected. It is one of the many issues that the Olympic committee has had to face this year while the other has already made itself known. There are always problems at the Olympics and this year is no different as the Sochi committee is more concerned with handling the issues than talking about them as they continue to do a good job in dealing with what they can control and hope that the weather will pass and the Olympics can continue on being successful as they have been so far.
Canadian Story:
World Record Not Enough
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir were in second place in the Ice Dance heading into the final program and were trying to repeat as Olympic champions and they would earn a world record score to try to do it but it was not enough to beat the Americans as they would finish with the silver
Unimpressive Path to the Gold
The Canadian Women’s Hockey Team were expected to play for gold but they would have to beat Switzerland to get there and they would do that but not easily as they won 3-1 and looked outmatched for the first time ever in the last two periods
Recovery Falls Short
Justin Kripps was looking for a medal in Men’s Aerials but it seemed to fall apart in his first jump where he would fall but his second jump would recover and make the round of 8 but would end up sixth and out of the finals
Draws are Set
The curling teams have been on fire in the last few days of the Olympics and they are both in the semi-finals for their efforts and now know who they will be facing as the men will take on China while the women will take on Great Britain for their chance to play for gold
Day 10 Medal Results:
Biathlon
Women’s 12.5km Mass Start
1. Darya Domracheva (Belarus)
2. Gabriela Soukalova (Czech Republic)
3. Tiril Eckhoff (Norway)
Bobsleigh
Two-Man Bobsleigh
1. Alexander Zubkov/Alexey Voevoda (Russia)
2. Beat Hefti/Alex Baumann (Switzerland)
3. Steven Holcomb/Steven Langton (USA)
Figure Skating
Ice Dance
1. Meryl Davis/Charlie White (USA)
2. Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir (Canada)
3. Elena Ilinykh/Nikita Katsalapov (Russia)
Freestyle Skiing
Men’s Aerials
1. Anton Kushnir (Belarus)
2. David Morris (Australia)
3. Zongyang Jia (China)
Ski Jumping
Men’s Team Finals
1. Germany
2. Austria
3. Japan
Day 11 Medal Events:
Alpine Skiing
Women’s Giant Slalom
Biathlon
Men’s 15km Mass Start
Freestyle Skiing
Men’s Halfpipe
Nordic Combined
Individual Large Hill- Cross Country (Final Event)
Short Track
Women’s 3,000m Relay
Speed Skating
Men’s 1,000m
The Sport Addiction 