During this time of Olympic competition, I would like to leave a message of congratulations for the many athletes who are there and competing. The Olympics are so much fun to watch, and the openings are so much fun to make fun of. As a half-Canadian, I must say I’m keeping my head down. What was going on with the First Nations dancing to the horrible Nelly Furtado song? Or the Cirque Du Soleil boy dancing on the “Prairie”. Then there were the “icebergs” and everyone was running across the “water” trying to get where they were supposed to be. Now I know that “Canada’s really Big” (thank you Arrogant Worms), but was this really the way to go? I don’t think so. I mean in such a huge!!! country, is this really all there is to show, no, no it’s not. Then on top of everything else there was the torch malfunction, and everyone was standing there waiting, which made it even more comedic. There were one or two cool things, like the very opening and the sideways skiing. Yet, all in all, I found myself laughing more than I found myself in awe of what I was watching.

Now I’d like to take a minute to be serious, most sports are dangerous, which makes them even more incredible to watch. However, when something as tragic as the death of an athlete occurs, it really makes you think. Nodar Kumaritashvili, a luger from Georgia died on a practice run, right before the opening. This is a wake up call to everyone there as well as everyone watching because, it really makes you think about how hard it is to do what they do, and how dangerous it is. The loss is heart breaking. So, I just want to take a minute to acknowledge the tragedy, and I’m sorry for the loss.

Now, back to the Olympics; for those of us in the USA, we are unfortunately forced to watch the Olympics via NBC only, they refuse to show any competitions other than ones where major U.S. competitors are performing. If you want to see great coverage of all events, try www.CTV.ca.

So just to recap what was good and bad about the opening day/ceremonies:

The Good:

• *we learned a little something about Canada
• *it was funny to watch
• *Bermuda shorts!
• *seeing our favorite athletes
• *the respectful reaction to the loss of a fellow athlete
• *the dancers were good
• *the very opening with the snowboard was cool
• *the sideways skiing thing

The Bad:

• *Tragic loss of an athlete
• *the prairie scene?
• *Nelly Furtado
• *the torch malfunction
• *only focusing on the First Nations
• *recordings instead of live musicians
• *the poet?!
• *K.D lang ruined “Hallelujah”
• *there is so much more to learn about Canada

-sophia

There is something so great about getting that adrenaline rush when you hit the top of a rock climbing wall. Yes, I rock climb. Now, you may be thinking that climbing is dangerous, but actually it’s entirely safe when you know the safety surrounding the sport. Rock walls are puzzles, and when you’re climbing up the wall it’s only you and the rocks. No matter what is going on around you, the only thing you know is the rock you’re climbing, the line you’re following, and the occasional word of advice from your belayer. When you hit that “X” at the top, something inside you starts to, well I don’t actually know how to describe it, but let’s just say it’s an amazing feeling. Then, on the way down, you can’t help but have a smile on your face, and the harder the wall, the larger the smile. When you finally reach the ground, your body starts to shake from all the adrenaline. In the end, your muscles will probably be really sore but as they say, “no pain no gain”.

There are two types of sports; team sports, and individual sports. Rock Climbing is clearly not a team sport, though you often need other people to climb with you. Can you name a famous Rock Climber…yeah, I didn’t think so. Sports that involve teams have a much larger fan-base. Think about it, what are the two largest sports in the U.S.? The answer would be football and baseball, both obvious team sports. How often do you hear about an individual sport such as speed skating, or rock climbing, or even skiing? The only time you occasionally hear about an individual sport is when a particular athlete is very famous, like Michael Phelps, or Shaun White, then there is some media coverage. The way it works in our society, when it comes to media attention, is that team sports come 1st, then famous athletes’ sports, and then other random individual sports. Not everyone is a “team sport” kind of person. I wonder why this bias is true?

The Winter Olympics are only a couple of weeks away. I hope you will watch, and take note of the media coverage. Which athletes and which sports are going to get that coverage? I bet there are tons of athletes on U.S. teams alone that you have never even heard of. The Olympics is actually a time when you can check out the unusual sports. Some are really exciting. I hope you will tune in and then post about what you see.

-sophia