This article first appeared in the Chinese New Year 2010 special issue of World Gaming magazine.
The Winter Olympics have just begun in Vancouver, Canada. The Games are a showcase of crazy snow and ice sports featuring some of the bravest athletes from all over the world. For those who are unfamiliar with these sports World Gaming guides you through the best of the bunch.
The Olympic Games usually conjures images of the relatively tame summer events that feature running, swimming and hitting balls. But if you’re looking for something a little more thrilling make sure you catch the lesser known, but no less important Winter Olympic Games. These games are on right now in Vancouver, Canada and the world’s best are going head-to-head for Olympic gold and national pride.
These winter sports aren’t your everyday sports; the majority of these athletes put their bodies on the line in events where one wrong move could literally mean the difference between life and death. In fact many of these sports are labelled ‘extreme sports’. What makes ‘extreme sports’ exciting is that they pit man against the elements in a life or death struggle and that is what the Winter Olympic Games is all about.
Let’s have a look at the top five ‘extreme sports’ on offer at the Winter Olympic Games.
Ski jump
Imagine standing on top of a tower 90 metres high with two planks of wood strapped only to your toes. You then crouch down and begin hurtling down the hill before launching yourself into the air like a bird as the mountain falls away beneath you. You glide through the frosty air for around 100 metres before bracing for a body jarring landing. To most this sounds like the beginning of a nightmare, to others it’s their sport of choice.
Medal chances: The Scandinavians are kings of the ski jump especially the Finns. Some of the former Eastern Bloc countries have decent competitors and keep an eye out for the Japanese who have tasted gold on the ski jump before.
Downhill skiing
If the 100 metres dash is the premier event in the Summer Olympic Games then the Downhill is the same for the Winter Olympics. To hang the gold around your neck in this sport you must plunge down an icy peak and reach speeds of over 100 kilometres an hour while trying to shave hundreds of a second off your time. For around two minutes your thighs burn with lactic acid, your back cramps in pain and your whole body shakes as it is pushed to the limit. To be the best in the world you need to teeter on the point of being totally out of control so this is not an event for the faint of heart.
Fastest way down the hill
Medal chances: The Austrians and the Swiss are the best in the business. Other European countries like the French, Italians and Scandinavians are always competitive. Also look out for the Canadians and the Americans.
Speed skating
Travelling at breakneck speed on the edge of a razor blade – that is basically what speed skating is all about. The long track version of this sport is a great test of endurance but it’s on the short course where the pace and excitement reaches its pinnacle. Skaters fly around a short, tight course and the team events are some of the most breathtaking of all winter sports. They slipstream each other with their long blade skates but one little mistake will see them hurtle out of control on the ice and see their bodies smashed up against the barricades. You really need to be fearless to take this sport on.
Speed Skater Yang Yang
Medal chances: This sport is one of the most hotly contested at the Olympics. The Chinese and the South Koreans will start most of the events as favourites and will be proudly flying the flag for Asia. They will be pushed to the limit however by the Europeans and North Americans.
Freestyle skiing
In the Summer Olympics we watch divers perform incredible twists and summersaults before diving softly into a deep pool of water. The Winter Olympic version sees skiers perform the same tricks but they have to land on hard packed snow and ice. You need to have the agility of a gymnast, the strength of weightlifter, the technique of ballet dancer and the heart of a lion.
Medal chances: This is another of the truly international sports at the Winter Games. The Chinese, Europeans, North Americans and even the Australians are among the gold medal contenders
Bobsled, Luge and Skeleton
Zooming down the side of a steep mountain in a tube of ice; if that sounds like fun to you then make sure you tune in to these events. The bobsled sees teams of either two or four compete and this is a sport where serious injury or even death is part of the thrill. The competitors come surging out of the gate pushing a wobbly steel coffin which appears to have as much stability as a shopping trolley. They all scramble in, put their heads down and leave their safety in the hands of the driver. The sled shakes around as the driver struggles to find the fastest line in a sport where a thousandth of a second can mean the difference between a medal and heartbreak.
Bobsled: Are these guys crazy?
The luge (feet first) and the skeleton (head first) appear even crazier. These athletes lie on contraptions that resemble small trays wearing only a helmet and body fitting suit as their bodies are flung down a slippery ice tube. They use minute movements from their shoulders and knees to direct the tray but if they lose control at all then they are at the mercy of the ice. The idea is to move as little as possible because most of the speed comes from reducing the amount of airflow over the body. This is not a sport for the timid and only a few hardy souls in the world compete at this level.
Medal chances: The medals are usually fought out between the Russians, Swiss, Germans and Americans. The only real dark horse this time round might be the Latvians in the bobsled.
Chinese medal opportunities
You mightn’t think that the Chinese were huge medal chances in the Winter Olympics but it has been proven time and again that the Chinese are competitive in nearly all sports around the world.
The short track speed skating is definitely an event where the Chinese will be looking for plenty of gold. These athletes are fast and sleek and will be hard to beat. Yang Yang who won two gold medals at the Salt Lake Olympics is one of the sport’s greatest stars and was given the honour of joining 14 other world stars as international torch bearers for the Vancouver Games.
In the figure skating, China has already achieved an Olympic silver medal in the past with the duo Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao demonstrating that they were among the world’s best. Don’t be surprised if the Chinese do one better in Vancouver.
Freestyle skiing is an area that should see China win at least one gold medal. 19 year old sensation Xu Mengtao will start as a strong favourite in the womens event and teammate Jai Zongyang will be very hard to beat in the mens. Both came away with victories in December 2009 at the Changchun leg of the World Aerials. The Chinese team has incredible depth so expect plenty of medals from them.
Other sports such as the cross country skiing will see the Chinese compete and show their best. They may not be realistic medal chances this time round but the Chinese team will be looking for improved results which will see them moving toward more golden Winter Olympic Games success in the future.
