By Joe Vigil
Today marks the opening ceremonies for the 22nd Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia.
The United States, which took home an American-record 37 medals in the 2010 games, is looking to avoid a poor showing at a ceremony already marked by unusual occurrences.
Misfortune for the United States began last year at the Alpine World Ski Championships in Schladming, Austira, when star skier Lindsey Vonn tore both her MCL and ACL and fractured her tibial plateau in her right knee during the super-G. Vonn was optimistic that she could recover in time for the Olympics, but she experienced several setbacks in World competition in late 2013 and withdrew from Olympic consideration officially in Jan. 2014.
Vonn is not the only star that has been slowed down by injury. Snowboarding superstar Shaun White has been dealing with a few nagging injuries and jammed his wrist while practicing on Sochi’s unusual slopestyle course this week. However, White—who is looking to become the first American to medal in an event at three consecutive winter games with a gold medal in the halfpipe—will likely be able to compete at the games on Thursday but bowed out of slopestyle competition on Feb. 5. Additionally, White is one of three athletes who have sustained an injury on this course while practicing.
Political tension and warm temperatures have also contributed to an unusual atmosphere for the winter games. The Russian government has taken criticism for its stance on homosexuality stemming from their law prohibiting its presence in art and advertising. The location of the games at Sochi has caused trepidation among participants both for its relatively warm temperatures that have led to the city’s manufacturing of snow to accommodate the events and for its proximity to Chechnya, a known terrorism center.
However, there are several positive aspects to the upcoming competition as well. Vonn’s absence leaves a hole in the U.S. ski team, but it also provides an opportunity for male skiers, such as Ted Lighty—a medalist at the 2006 games and a 2013 World Champion—and first-timers, such as Colorado native Mikaela Shiffrin—a favorite to win the slalom, which she has a world cup title and world championship gold in—to make a major international impression.
Additionally, this version of the Olympics will include twelve new events in eight disciplines. The events, which include ski and snowboard slopestyle, ski halfpipe, snowboard parallel slalom and women’s ski jumping, were added to create more appeal for the games for younger viewers and are modeled after many Winter X-Games events.
These Olympics, despite unusual circumstances, have a good chance of being a success. The United States, which is traditionally not as strong at the winter games as opposed to those of summer, likely will not top its record performance at the 2010 games but will still be a strong competitor.
