TFSS
Your School
Newspaper
TURNEROUND
We Are Winter
by: Arri Ye
SOCHI, RUSSIA - The spirit. The glory. The honour. The pride. The joy, tears, laughs, and heartbreak. All on display in Russia, as the first week of competition at the XXII Winter Olympic Games has already been quite a memorable one.
Like opening ceremonies past, it was only fitting to open with a dazzling spectacle of lights, fireworks and dance, as viewers were taken through a journey of Russia's rich history and culture. Aside from a glitch with one of the Olympic rings at the beginning, the show went on to amaze, taking viewers through iconic Russian events, landscapes, people and work, such as the Industrial Revolution, a rendition of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, and the famous composer Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. The spectacular night capped off with Irina Rodnina, a figure skater, and Vladislav Tretiak‒a hockey legend whom Canadians might remember from the '72 Summit Series‒ lighting the torch, officially opening the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Back to the competition, Canada jumped out to a lead in the world medal standings, amassing an impressive 10 medals‒4 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze as of Wednesday.
Mark McMorris, of Regina, Saskatchewan set the table for Canada, earning the first medal, a bronze, in Men's Slopestyle Snowboarding. A heavy medal favourite for Canada, McMorris did his best, dealing with a recent cracked rib, and did Canada proud.
pastweek, as Justin Wadsworth, Canada's cross-country ski coach lent a hand to Russian skier Anton Gafarov, after a crash left him in last place, with one of his skis broken. With true Olympic spirit on display, Wadsworth supplied the Russian skier with a new ski, so that he could finish the race.
Also notable, the first ever shared gold was awarded to Slovenia's Tina Maze and Switzerland's Dominique Gisin, the first of its kind in Olympic alpine skiing history. Matching times to the hundredth of a second, they were equally deserving of the medal.
Looking ahead, some exciting events still await Canada, most notably in Men's Hockey. Coming off a gold in Vancouver 2010, and Sidney Crosby's "golden goal," can they repeat as champions once more? Canada is also without Steven Stamkos this year, due to an ankle injury he suffered; however his Tampa Bay Lightning teammate Martin St. Louis, who was snubbed at first, replaces him.
Also worth watching, Toronto's Patrick Chan looks to defend his title in Men's Figure Skating, and Calgary's Christine Nesbitt hopes to defend her title in Long Track Speed Skating.
Definitely an exciting Olympics, even if the weather over in Sochi isn't.
In a warm tale of familial support, sisters Justine and Chloé Dufour-Lapointe then took the gold and silver, respectively, in Ladies' Moguls, showcasing some Québec pride.
Canada's figure skating team then took home the silver in the Team Figure Skating event, the first of its kind at the Olympics. "The great thing about the team is that everyone pulled their weight," Scott Moir tells us. Only bested by Russia, Canada now has motivation for the future.
Charles Hamelin, another medal favourite, won the 1500m in Short Track Speed Skating to earn Canada another gold, collecting his 4th on his way to becoming the most decorated olympian ever.
In another show of Canada's moguls strength, Canada nearly swept the podium in Men's Moguls in freestyle skiing, as Alex Bilodeau repeated as champion, with Mikael Kingsbury behind him taking the silver. Fellow Canadian Marc-Antoine Gagnon finished fourth.
With some Ontario talent, Dara Howell then preceded to take the gold in the Ski Slopestyle Free, with Kim Lamarre finishing atop the podium as well with bronze.
Then, a show of true Olympic spirit, as Gilmore Junio gave up his spot in the 1000m Long Track Speed Skating, in order to give Canada a better chance to win a medal. His sacrifice worked out, allowing teammate Denny Morrison to take the bronze.
A truly heartwarming tale of the Canadian spirit also transpired this