* News/ Controversies* News/ Controversies
1. Figure skating: Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. 'Nuff said.
2. The whole Russian team threatening to pull out.
3. The cross-country skiing drug scandals... and the Russians thought they were the victims. Ha. Check this out. It's funny... BAD WILL GAMES OR WHAT ABOUT YOUR HAEMOGLOBIN?
4. The South Korean speedskater was disqualified after pushing American speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno out of the way (which is a big no-no in short track sppedskating)... the S. Korean Olympic Committee was going to take this to the federal courts... btw, Ohno's cute.
5. Both the Canadian women's and men's team won the gold medals in ice hockey!!!
Go Team Canada Go!
* Biggest upsets at the Games
1. Belarus beating Sweden: When Tommy Salo gave up a goal to Belarus with 2 minutes left to the game... the puck was shot from centre ice by Vladimir Kopat and bounced off Salo's mask and into the net. Poor Salo's family is getting harassed back in Sweden.
2. Germany qualifying for the quarter finals in ice hockey. They weren't expected to make it this far.
3. Jeremy Wotherspoon falling in the 500m race and then ending up 13th in the 1000m even tho he's supposed to win medals for both. Poor guy.
4. Canada losing to Sweden in the round robin... stupid Mats Sundin (Captain of Team Sweden and the Toronto Maple Leafs) scored on his Toronto teammate Curtis Joseph twice in the game. That was the last game Cujo played at the Olympics...
5. Kelley Law's rink and Kevin Martin's rink not bringing home the gold. Also weird to note a Carter Rycroft, who's at least 10 years younger than your average curler, amongst a bunch of these old curlers. "He's good looking." says Icieey.
6. Simon Ammann of Switzerland, not even a medal contender coming into the Games, won 2 golds in ski jumping. Apparently people think he looks like Harry Potter... hmm...
7. Aussie Turtle: Steven Bradbury was behind everyone in the finals, but he won gold anyway... why? Cos all the faster guys collided with each other right before they got to the finish line. Good ol' turtle was so far behind that he missed the whole collision and was the only guy to cross the line standing up.
9. Becky Scott winning bronze in women's cross-country... it's the first time any North American has won a medal in this sport! And now with the gold and silver medalists testing positive for doping... so she's technically won gold! Go Canada!
10. Catriona Le May Doan missing the podium in the 1000m speed skating race.. Oh well, at least she won gold in the 500m race.
11. Shae-Lynn Bourne and Victor Kraatz crashed at literally the last second of their program... no podium for them.
* And now some quotes...
"It's good. But it's no match for the International Skating Union meetings." - CBC's Ron MacLean, on the Olympic Games closing ceremony fireworks display.
"It's been a crazy last few days. This morning when I woke up I was ready to go down the skeleton ride without a helmet on... And now I think I will put my helmet on." - David Pelletier, after hearing that the IOC/ISU will award him and Jamie Sale the gold medals.
"I do hope we get the bronze, too, so we can get the entire collection." - David Pelletier again
"I figured I'd not watch it. But then I was up on Cypress Bowl and they had loudspeakers going and I still couldn't get away from it. Then on the way home I got stuck behind cars with Canadian flags." - Team Sweden winger Markus Naslund (also plays for Vancouver Canucks) talks about how he was trying to avoid watching Canadian men's gold-winning game against the US.
"I just swallowed a lot of cork to plug me up... They don't test for cork." - While battling a stomach virus, defenseman Gary Suter (aka the guy who gave Paul Kariya a concussion right before the 1998 Nagano Olympics) has to be careful what medication he takes- since he will be subjected to Olympic drug testing during the Winter games.
Someone's gonna eat his words: Accordign to Don Cherry, for Canada to win gold it will need Joe Thornton, the Boston Bruin forward who's second in the NHL scoring. But Thornton wasn't picked in December and won't be in the lineup unless somebody is injured:
"... if you see Wayne Gretzky walking around with a hammer in his hand, you'll know why."
The lineups outside the E Center security stops for the media were tough to get through yesterday because a lot of people showed up early. Team Canada assistants Wayne Fleming and Ken Hitchcock were among those who had to wait 30 minutes to get into the rink. Referee Bill McCreary and linesman Mike Cvik had to get permission from the rest of the crowd to bypass the lines.
"We've got to get in there," McCreary told organizers before they asked the crowd if they would mind the officials going ahead.
Another person who has to take back what he said... Bruce Dowbiggin said:
"Critics of women's hockey at the Olympics say it doesn't qualify as a medal sport, because only two teams in the world stand any chance at the gold: Canada and the United States.
"If the events of the past eight weeks are any barometer, you can amend that criticism to say only one team in the world has a shot at the gold in Salt Lake City next month: the U.S."
"The Americans had our flag on their floor in the dressing room and now I want to know if they want us to sign it." - Hayley Wickenheiser after winning the gold medal game.
"You're so damn cute." - What Rosie O'Donnell said to Apolo Anton Ohno (short track speedskater) at an interview. She also gave him a Pontiac.
During the skate where everyone collapsed (see above) Apolo Anton Ohno cut himself on the thigh with his skates. The cut required stitches... "They're making new suits... I think out of kevlar or something." - Icieey and me paraphrasing what Ohno said when he was asked about possible improvements in speedskating suits.
CBC's Olympics Coverage | TSN's Olympics Coverage | Canoe's Olympics Coverage | Salt Lake Tribune Coverage | NBC's Olympics Coverage