Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

[Eastdog]

The Winter Olympics are fast approaching. It all starts on February 7. Anyone looking forward to it.

[Bornadog]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

Love the Winter Olympics, can't wait.

[SonofScray]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

Will be getting around Finland in hockey. Should be a terrific tournament.

Aussie in the luge for the first time in 20yrs as well.

[Eastdog]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-23/australia-names-largest-ever-winter-olympic-games-squad-for-soc/5215008

Australia names largest ever Winter Olympic Games squad for Sochi

Updated Thu 23 Jan 2014, 12:57pm AEDT

Gold medallists Lydia Lassila, Torah Bright and Dale Begg-Smith headline Australia's largest ever squad for next month's Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.

And two-time world 400 metres hurdles champion Jana Pittman has also been named amongst the squad of 56, having been selected in the two-woman bobsleigh event.

Pittman, who finished fifth in the 400m hurdles final at the Athens Olympics in 2004, becomes the first Australian female athlete to compete in both the Summer and Winter Games.

Lassila (aerials) and Bright (snowboard) will be defending the Olympic crowns they won four years ago in Vancouver, while Begg-Smith (moguls) is looking to add to his medal tally, having already collected a gold (Turin, 2006) and a silver (Vancouver).

Australia will be represented in 10 of the 15 sports on show in Sochi and the size of the squad will increase closer to the commencement of the Games on February 7.

Two-time world snowboard cross champion Alex Pullin is among those named and he admits to feeling excited about competing at his second Olympics.

"The Olympics are that truly unique event that you get to feel the whole country behind you," he told olympics.com.au.

"It's really special and we don't usually get that in our sport.

"Snowboarding is an individual sport but at the Olympics we each get to be a part of something so huge. You get to be part of the team.

"There is a lot of energy to feed off in that team and good results inspire everyone else to have good results and I know that will happen in Sochi.

"The Aussie spirit is so great and you can feed off that."

Seventy per cent of Australia's squad will be making their Olympic debut in Sochi.

[Eastdog]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

Didn't watch it but what did people make of the opening ceremony for those that watched it.

[Bornadog]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

Torah wins Silver., missed gold by a narrow margin.

[SonofScray]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

Finland flogged Austria and USA are giving Slovakia a hiding. Business as usual I suppose, I was hoping Slovakia could be more competitive.

[bulldogtragic]

Re: Official Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics Thread

I was going through the medal tally reading thinking why do those countries with a stupidly bad tally bother and I hope those governments aren't pumping in any money... Then I saw Australia and kept scrolling down.