Your guide to the Turin Games
When does figure skating air, how fast do bobsleighs really go, what exactly is curling? The 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, boasts competitions in 15 different sports disciplines over 16 days of competition. More than 2,500 athletes from 85 countries will compete for 84 prized gold medals. The following is a viewing guide compiled by Silver Chips Online to help sort out details of the competitions, providing descriptions of each discipline along with viewing window times and American athletes to look out for.
Index of disciplines:
Alpine Skiing: Divided into five categories, alpine skiing is one of the most popular sports in the world and a classic Olympic event. In downhill, skiers launch themselves down slopes ranging from 800-1100m (men's) and 500-800m (women's) achieving speeds in excess of 120 km/h. Slalom and giant slalom courses are shorter but require greater control as skiers execute sharp turns. The super-G course is a combination of the giant slalom and downhill courses, while combined is simply a cross between a downhill and a slalom run. Ten gold medals will be awarded in alpine skiing.
Biathlon: Certainly one of the more interesting Olympic sports, the biathlon combines cross-country skiing with target shooting. As athletes race around a looped track, they must periodically stop at a shooting range. Using small-caliber rifles, athletes are given five shots to hit a target from a distance of 50m (targets range in size from 45mm to 115mm). For each missed shot, a penalty is issued.
Bobsleigh: Athletes in the two- and four-man bobsleigh race against time as they hurdle down a 1,435-meter long tubular track and navigate 19 banked turns. Teams start by pushing their sled for approximately 50 meters before jumping in and shortly thereafter reaching maximum speeds in excess of 130 km/h. Teams are given four runs with the team clocking the fasted overall time going home with the gold. Three gold medals will be awarded in bobsleigh.
Cross-Country Skiing: Set on picturesque, snowy landscapes, cross-country skiing demands both endurance and technique. The course consists of ten loops varying in length from 1.2 to 10km with a 76m climb in the 10km loop. The sprint competition is comprised of elimination rounds held on a 1,200km track. In addition to mass-start and individual events held in both classical and freestyle, pursuit requires athletes to use both techniques in succession. Twelve gold medals will be awarded in cross-country skiing.
Curling: Curling, another eclectic Olympic sport, courtesy of our Canadian neighbors, is played on a smooth ice rink. Teams of four athletes each attempt to push a granite stone into a target painted at the center of the rink. Two sweepers on each team attempt to direct the stone by warming the ice ahead of it with brooms. The sport is played in ten rounds, and a point is awarded for each stone placed closer to the center of the target than the opponents' stone. Two gold medals will be awarded in the men's and ladies' tournaments (four total).
Figure Skating: Quite possibly the most famous and loved of the Winter Olympic sports is figure skating. Athletes compete in individual and couples tournaments, skating and dancing to a pre-selected musical score. Routines, lasting from two minutes, 40 seconds to four minutes are evaluated on a 10-point scale by a panel of international judges. Points are awarded by judges based on creativity, technique and artistic values of the performance. Ice dancing, unlike individual and pairs skating, does not allow jumps or overhead lifts. Four gold medals will be awarded in figure skating.
Freestyle Skiing: Similar to figure skating, freestyle skiing is evaluated on a point scale by seven judges. The mogul competition is held on a 220-250m long course covered with bumps and two ramps from which skiers perform acrobatic moves. The aerials course, however, includes a single jump from one of three ramps of differing length and steepness placed at the bottom of a slope. Four gold medals will be awarded in freestyle skiing.
Ice Hockey: Two teams of six players each compete in three 20-minute rounds on a 60x30m ice rink. Players attempt to guide a small puck into the goal of the opposing team using "L" shaped sticks. Two teams will be awarded gold medals in Ice Hokey.
Luge: Similar to the bobsleigh competition; athletes launch themselves down 1,233m of icy track at a 100m gradient. The track includes 17 banked curves. After a running start, athletes lay face-up on small sleds with two metal blades. Individuals (or teams of two) are given four runs. The athlete that records the fastest overall time wins. Three gold medals will be awarded in luge.
Nordic Combined: The Nordic combined discipline tests mastery of both cross-county skiing and ski jumping. It is also one of two Winter Olympic sports in which only men compete. Athletes first complete a single jump off a long hill. Points gained from this portion of the competition are converted to minutes and seconds. The second half of the event is a 15km cross-country ski race. Athletes must wait a certain time (determined by the previous round's results) before beginning the cross-country portion. The first athlete to cross the finish line wins. Three gold medals will be awarded in Nordic combined.
Short Track Speed Skating: Athletes start in a line and compete in groups of four-to-six in a run against the clock. While athletes regularly fall and collide during races, pushing and obstructing are grounds for disqualification. Three gold medals will be awarded in short track speed skating.
Skeleton: Athletes competing in the skeleton barrel headfirst down an icy track. Athletes run 25 to 40m before jumping onto their sleds and starting their decent. Steering is accomplished by the athlete's body movements alone. Skeleton is held on the same track as the luge and bobsleigh competitions. Two gold medals will be awarded in skeleton.
Ski Jumping: During a 107m vertical drop, athletes competing in the ski jumping discipline hurdle through the air using their skis as wings. Jumpers are evaluated on a point scale by a panel of judges. Points are awarded based on distance covered by the jump and technical style. The long hill this year, with a 140m vertical drop, is the largest jumping hill in the history of the Winter Olympics. Only men are permitted to compete in ski jumping. Three gold medals will be awarded in ski jumping.
Snowboarding: Originally conceived by a group of American surfers and named an Olympic sport in 1998, the snowboarding competition is divided into three sub-disciplines: Parallel giant slalom (PGS), halfpipe and snowboard cross. In PGS, two snowboarders race against each other, rather than time, on two parallel tracks. More widely recognized, those competing in the halfpipe discipline are evaluated on a point scale similar to that used in figure skating. Finally, and new to the 2006 games, snowboard cross is run over a course divided into loops, banks, spines and kickers. Six gold medals will be awarded in snowboarding.
Speed Skating:(See short track speed skating). Speed skaters compete in pairs, racing against time in races of various lengths. Athletes maintain a crouched position as they speed around the oval track. Top speeds may exceed 60 km/h. Twelve gold medals will be awarded in speed skating.
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