This Friday is the start of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Each day this week, Double G Sports will give a quick preview of three events in this years olympics. There are 15 events in total, so by Friday all the events will be covered.
The first three events I will preview are Ski Jumping, Alpine Skiing, and Biathlon.
Ski Jumping
Ski Jumping will be the first event in this years olympic games. This event has been part of the Olympics since the original Olympic games in 1924. There are three seperate competitions in Ski Jumping. The Normal Hill Individual, Large Hill Individual, and Team competitions.
Normal Hill qualifying takes place the day before competition. The top 10 ranked ski jumpers during the World Cup Circuit are selected into the competition without having to go through qualifying. The remaining jumpers go through the qualification round with the top 40 advancing. After the first round of 50 participants, only 30 advance to the final round.
The Large Hill event is done the same way as the Normal Hill except the competition takes place on a larger hill.
In the team event, each team has four athletes. In the first round, each member gets one jump. The top eight teams advance to the second round. When its all said and done, the team with the highest score after all eight jumps wins.
This years ski jumping events will take place at Whistler Olympic Park.
In the 2006 Torino games, Norway ended up with the most medals (4) while Austria had the most golds (2). Norway is the All-Time leader in medals for this event with 28. The United States has just one medal in Ski Jumping, that was a bronze won by Anders Haugen in 1924.
Alpine Skiing
Alpine Skiing consists of 10 events. Men's & Ladies Downhill, Men's & Ladies Super-G, Men's & Ladies Giant Slalom, Men's & Ladies Slalom, and Men's & Ladies Super Combined. Alpine skiing has been a part of the Olympic games since 1936. Alpine Skiing events are downhill skiing events in which athletes must pass through gates. The distance of the course depends on the event.
Downhill has the longest course. It's also the event which skiers reach the fastest speeds. Each skier makes one run down the course and the fastest time wins.
The Giant Slalom is also a timed event in which skiers travel on a course with more turns. This event consists of two runs down two different courses on the same ski slope. The times of each run are combined.
The Slalom is basically done the same way as the Giant Slalom but on a much shorter course with quicker turns. It is the shortest course of all Alpine Skiing events.
The Super-G is an event that combines the speed of downhill with the turning precision of the Giant Slalom. The course is shorter then downhill but longer then the Giant Slalmo. Each skier takes one run on the course and the fastest time wins.
The Super Combined event is one downhill run followed by one slalom run. The times are added together with the fastest total time being named the winner.
This years competitions in Alpine Skiing take place at Whistler Creekside. In 2006, Austria was the easy leader with 14 total medals in Alpine Skiing. United States received two gold medals that year. Austria holds the all time lead with 101 medals. The United States is fourth with 31.
Biathlon
The Biathlon is a combination of cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. The Men's competition became an Olympic event in 1960 while the Women's event started as an Olympic event in 1992. There are five different events on each side, Men's and Women's. Individual start, Sprint, Pursuit, Relay, and Mass Start. Men's races are generally longer distances then Women.
In the Individual Start, athletes start one at a time in 30 second intervals. They ski a loop five times. Each competitor stops four times at the shooting area and takes five shots at a target. If an athlete misses a shot, one minutes is added to his or her race time. The athlete with the lowest time is the winner.
In the Sprint race, athletes once again start one at a time every 30 seconds. During the Sprint, each competitor stops twice to take five shots at a target. If they miss a shot in this event, they must take a lap around a 150 meter penalty loop. The athlete with the lowest time wins.
The top 60 finishers in the Sprint event qualify for the Pursuit competition. Each person in this event is chasing the Sprint race winner. Participants start in intervals according to their Spring race finish. Skiers must stop four times and take five shots at a target. For each missed shot, they must take a penalty lap around the 150 meter penalty loop. The first athlete to cross the finish line wins.
The relay is a team event. Each team member skis a leg and tags their teammate at the end. Each person skis three legs and must stop twice at the shooting range. Each athlete takes the normal five shots but also has three extra bullets. If an athlete still misses a target, they must ski the 150 meter penalty lap. First team to finish wins.
The Mass Start consists of the 30 highest ranked skiers. Everyone starts together in this event, similar to a marathon. They must each stop at the shooting range four times and take five shots at a target. If they miss, they must take a lap around the 150 meter penalty lap. During the competition, if a participant is lapped, they must withdraw from the event immediately. The winner is the first athlete to cross the finish line.
This event will take place at the Whistler Olympic Park. Germany led the medal count for this event in the 2006 Olympics while the USA did not qualify for a medal. In fact, the United States has never won a medal in the Biathlon. Germany is the all time leader with 38.