TURIN, Italy – The name Bjoernar Haakensmoen won't appear on any list of medalists or even among the participating athletes, but he should get some sort of medal, because the Norwegian nordic team official personally rekindled the flame that is the true Olympic fire.
K.C. ALFRED / Union-Tribune
Fireworks light the sky as the Closing Ceremonies turn Turin's Olympic Stadium into the scene of a circus-like Carnevale, full of clowns and acrobats.
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It's fueled not by nationalism, materialism or athleticism, but by acts of pure sportsmanship.
Haakensmoen was merely watching the cross country team sprint along the course at Pragelato Plan, where the Canadians held the lead until one of Sara Renner's ski poles snapped on a steep uphill grade, effectively leaving her and her team dead in the frozen water.
“All of a sudden, I was kind of flapping one arm,” Renner said. “The next thing I knew, there were three racers in front of me.”
With Renner going nowhere, Canada was out of the medals. Suddenly, out of the crowd came a hand holding a ski pole, offering it to Renner. She didn't stop to ask questions, not knowing until after the race that her “mystery man's” name was Bjoernar Haakensmoen.
Despite using poles of two different sizes, Renner surged back to help save a silver for Canada. The irony is, Norway finished fourth, meaning Haakensmoen's kindness probably cost his own team a medal. And he'd do it again.
He could move to Canada and never have to pay for anything for the rest of his life. Indeed, Haakensmoen has been inundated with gifts of gratitude and admiration from people all across the Great White North. His own countrymen have been remarkably understanding as well. They get it.
K.C. ALFRED / Union-Tribune
Joey Cheek, a double medalist for the U.S. in speed skating who donated his bonuses to charity, carries the flag into the stadium.
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“Nobody in Norway has said anything bad to me,” he said. “The equipment shouldn't determine the winner. The heart and talent should determine the winner.”
He gets it. Haakensmoen's act came from the heart. He said he gave Renner a hand because that's what anyone would do. His sense of sportsmanship obviously is greater than his sense of reality.
Citius, altius, fortius? You betcha. When done with honor.
Alas, while the Olympic Games still produce moments of inspiration and exhilaration, all too often the good ones mixed with memorable moments that are entirely forgettable. So it was again in Turin '06, which came to an end with yesterday's Closing Ceremonies.
Most memorably:
American Idols
The biggest U.S. winners in Turin.
1. SHAUN WHITE, SNOWBOARD HALFPIPE. Il Pomodoro Volante (that's Italian for “The Flying Tomato”) won his gold on Day 2, then milked it for the rest of the Games while his U.S. teammates flailed in the rinks and on the slopes. A Jay Leno appearance and two Sports Illustrated covers later, the kid from Carlsbad is no longer just somebody your 12-year-old son has heard of. White disproved the too-popular notion that dedication, competition and a desire to be the best are antithetical to the boarder mentality. He's made the uncool very cool. Madison Avenue talks about breakout stars. White is one.
2. JOEY CHEEK, SPEED SKATING. He won a gold and silver, then donated his $40,000 in U.S. Olympic Committee bonuses to Right to Play, a charitable organizer that provides athletic opportunities for underprivileged youths across the world. Right to Play should give the $40,000 to Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick, whose petty feud helped make Cheek's act of generosity seem that much more genuine. Already, the publicity from Cheek has generated $400,000 in donations.
3. TED LIGETY, ALPINE SKIING. With all the focus on Bode Miller and Daron Rahlves and their monumental shortcomings, little attention was paid to the 21-year-old from Salt Lake City who had fast developed into a World Cup contender but had never actually won a race before getting gold in the combined in Turin. He might have had a second medal, too, if not for an almost indiscernible mistake on a gate that got him disqualified from the slalom.
4. SNOWBOARD CROSS. Banzai, baby! Nothing in the Winter Games elicited quite the “wow” factor as this new event, a stock-car race on boards, with its jaw-dropping maneuvers, mid-air bumping, close calls and all-out wipeouts.
5. U.S. MEN'S CURLERS. Their bronze medal, the first by a U.S. curling team, might have the same effect that the Miracle on Ice did in 1980, compelling young boys to rush to their nearest frozen lake with a 44-pound stone and a broom. Naaaah.
Tin medals
Americans who rode the elevator in the other direction:
1. BODE MILLER, ALPINE SKIING AND PARTYING. A fifth, a sixth, DNF, DNF and DQ. And DNC: Did not care.
2. MICHELLE KWAN, FIGURE SKATING. She went to great lengths and endured much criticism to get a medical waiver on to the Olympic team after skipping the U.S. championships with a groin injury. She said she was fine and ready to go, then she got here, skated half a practice and withdrew with a groin injury. Thanks for stopping by, Michelle.
3. NBC. Despite the fine work of the network's spin doctors, it came down to this: More people were interested in watching the early rounds of the umpteenth edition of “American Idol” than NBC's delayed telecasts of the Winter Games. Is there such a thing as too-real reality television?
4. HOCKEY. The U.S. men go 1-4-1, including a 3-3 tie against Latvia, and don't seem the least bit disappointed. The U.S. women can't stop talking about a gold-medal rematch against Canada in the pre-Games run-up, then blow a 2-0 lead and lose to Sweden in the semis. Their all-time record against Sweden entering the game: 25-0.
5. A BIG, FAT TIE. Todd Hays, bobsled; Daron Rahlves, alpine skiing; Johnny Weir, figure skating; U.S. women's curlers; Jeremy Bloom, moguls; Brian Martin and Mark Grimmette, luge doubles; and don't forget about Nike, which sank a whole lot of money into Miller, Shani Davis and Chad Hedrick.
Ugly Americans
Gotta represent.
Getty Images
Incredibly, Bode Miller got control of both skis after hitting a gate during the Super-G. Incredibly, that control and strength didn't even get him to the finish in three races.
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1. BODE MILLER, ALPINE SKIING. His best moves are in the disco and pickup basketball. And when he doesn't win a medal, he says: “At least I don't have to go all the way down to (the medal ceremony in) Torino.”
2. JARET PETERSON, FREESTYLE AERIALS AND BOXING. Peterson would've been among the more admired athletes in Turin '06 with his decision to attempt the insane – a triple-flip, quintuple-spin jump that reaches a height of 50 feet off the ground – when he could've changed to an easier jump after moving into medal position. But then he got into a fight at a bus stop and was sent home.
3. SHANI DAVIS/CHAD HEDRICK, SPEED SKATING. The poster boys for team unity and sportsmanship. Davis storms out of a news conference saying, “Only shakes my hand after I lose. Typical Chad.” To which Hedrick says: “Typical Shani.”
4. CHERIE DAVIS. Shani's mother wears an orange coat and orange hat and sits with the orange-clad Dutch fans. She insists it was merely a disguise so she wouldn't be pestered by TV or print media.
5. MEN'S HOCKEY TEAM. At least the guys didn't trash their rooms. The only thing ugly about them in Turin was how they played.
HONORARY CITIZENSHIP. Irina Slutskaya, Russia: The favorite in ladies figure skating falls and finishes third, then gives the cameras two thumbs down after receiving her marks. After the medal ceremony, she returns to the dressing room and throws her bronze medal down.
World stars
Reuters
If Cindy Klassen were a country, she would have finished 15th in the medals table with two golds, a silver and two bronzes.
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1. CINDY KLASSEN (CANADA), SPEED SKATING. If she were a country – the People's Democratic Republic of Klassen – she would have finished 15th in the medals table with two golds, a silver and two bronzes. IOC President Jacques Rogge called her “definitely the woman of the Olympic Games.”
2. AUSTRIAN ALPINE SKIERS. While their cross-country and biathlon counterparts were having their apartments, and lives, turned upside down by Italian police, the alpine team was winning 14 medals on the slopes, including a sweep of the men's slalom. To their credit and amusement, the Austrians mostly smiled that smile whenever someone quoted U.S. ski officials' prediction of eight medals in alpine. Austria finished with 23 medals, all of them won in the mountains.
3. SKIZUKA ARAKAWA (JAPAN), FIGURE SKATING. Shi-chan, as she's called, upset Sasha Cohen and Irina Slutskaya to become the first woman from Asia to win the Winter Games' marquee event and at age 24 the oldest ladies champion since 1920. Overnight she became arguably Japan's most famous female athlete.
4. SOUTH KOREAN SHORT TRACK. South Korea won 11 medals here – one in long track speed skating and 10 in short track speed skating. It medaled in every short track race, winning three of the four men's events and three of the four women's events.
5. SWEDISH HOCKEY. The men beat Finland in yesterday's final. The women upset the Americans in the semifinals to become the first women's team other than the U.S. or Canada to reach the final of an Olympics or World Championships.
Sounds of the Games:
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Turin report card
TRANSPORTATION (B): It could have been a lot worse, really. There were the obligatory instances of lost drivers, and sometimes you had to ride four different buses to get to mountain venues. But considering that this is transportation and this is Italy, it was a small miracle things ran as smoothly as they did. It wasn't Japan. It wasn't Atlanta, either.
VENUES (B): Landscaping outside consisted of mud and construction debris, and the buildings themselves won't be winning any architectural awards. They also were too spread out and too far from downtown Turin, never giving one the feel of an Olympics. But the insides were finished on time and worked, and the Alps provided a spectacular backdrop for mountain events.
ORGANIZATION (C): The volunteers were friendly and there were no major competition glitches. The reality, though, is that other than the insides of actual venues, most things were unfinished – media villages, parking lots, landscaping, train stations, bus depots. Then again, we've been spoiled by supreme organization at the last three Winter Games in Norway, Japan and Salt Lake City.
ATMOSPHERE (D): Despite the insistence of organizers that more than 80 percent of tickets were sold, many venues were half full. In retrospect, the Games' motto of “Passion lives here” seemed more like a ploy to fire up apathetic residents than a reflection of their true interest. Other than the Dutch fans rocking the Oval Lingotto for speed skating and the snowboard in Bardonecchia, these were a relatively dead Olympics.
OVERALL (B-): Turin wasn't originally supposed to get these Games. Sion, Switzerland, was. Then Swiss IOC member Marc Hodler exposed the Salt Lake City bid scandal, and the backlash likely cost Switzerland the '06 Games. They had to go somewhere, and Turin was just over the Alps in Italy. Never mind that Turin was bidding for the first time, presumably setting itself up for 2010 or 2014. The result: an average Olympics that never seemed to capture the imagination of Turin, let alone the American viewing public.
– MARK ZEIGLER
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1. SILENCE. The sound of empty seats.
2. “I'M SO STOKED.” From the snowboarders who stoked the U.S. medal count with three golds, three silvers and a bronze.
3. “I'M JUST HERE TO ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE.” Invariably spoken by somebody who didn't medal.
4. “NEED TICKETS? YOU CAN HAVE 'EM FOR HALF-PRICE.”
5. JACKHAMMERS. At its current pace Turin should have all its 2006 facilities done and Games-ready by, oh, 2016.
Sights of the Games:
1. THE SNOW-CAPPED ITALIAN ALPS. From any angle.
2. THE SMOG. Over the city of Turin.
3. THE FINISH OF SEEMINGLY EVERY CROSS COUNTRY SKIING RACE. The gold and silver medalists usually both sprawled in total exhaustion in the snow, too busy trying not to die to care about who won.
4. A RED FERRARI FORMULA ONE RACE CAR. At Opening Ceremonies.
5. SOPHIA LOREN AT OPENING CEREMONIES. Can a septuagenarian be a hottie?
Biggest crashes
1. LINDSEY JACOBELLIS, SNOWBOARD CROSS. Self-inflicted. Stupefying.
2. ZHANG DAN, PAIRS FIGURE SKATING. Crashed, took four-minute break, won silver medal. (Welcome to figure skating.)
3. BRAZILIAN BOBSLED TEAM. These guys made the Jamaicans look like Germans. Brazil 1 (please let there never be a Brazil 2) flipped over twice in consecutive days on the same turn. The team's bobsled shook and bounced around so much, it looked like a float at a Carnival in Rio. The Brazilians ended up walking down the rest of the track to the finish line.
4. LINDSEY KILDOW, ALPINE SKIING. Showing guts galore, Kildow also showed some burned skin from the high-speed slide down the icy slope in a training-run fall before her first event. Kildow gave it a gallant go, returning to race with a re-injured hip and back, but the fall basically knocked her out of contention for the duration of the Olympics.
5. GIORGIO ROCCA, ALPINE SKIING. No athlete in the host country had more pressure on him than Rocca, a strong favorite to win the slalom, and an adoring throng showed up to see him on the final Saturday. Little more than half a minute after his start, Rocca crossed the tips of his skis badly, went head over tea kettle and slid backward in his native snow. A man and his country were devastated.
HONORABLE MENTION. Dominique Maltais (Canada) snowboarding. Mere moments before Jacobellis' spill, Maltais went flying off the course with such velocity that it took two restraining fences to stop her. Maltais had the spunk and the good sense to get back onto the course and complete the rest of her turns, not knowing until she got to the bottom that her reward would be a bronze medal.
BEST NON-CRASH. Bode Miller, again. After bludgeoning a gate in the Super-G, Miller was in a terribly difficult position, continuing to point one ski downhill while the other ski was directly behind him and perpendicular to the snow. Especially in slow motion, you can see the extraordinary control Miller has in the midst of potential disaster, the strength and calm with which he pulled himself out of it without a fall.
Olympic moments
You think this kind of stuff happens in the NFL?
K.C. ALFRED / Union-Tribune
Lindsey Jacobellis had a big lead in the snowboard cross, but fell from grace with a snowboard move.
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1. LINDSEY JACOBELLIS, SNOWBOARD CROSS. She's far too talented and far too young and far too decent to be forever remembered as the American kid who blew a gold medal by showboating, but that's the burden now borne by Jacobellis. She gave people who just can't grasp snowboarding as an Olympic sport another reason to snicker. Jacobellis was coasting to first place in the snowboard cross when she instinctively tried to throw a trick off the next-to-last jump, landed off-balance and fell on her backside as an astonished Tanja Frieden of Switzerland rode past for the golden gimme.
2. BARBARA FUSAR POLI, ICE DANCING. She and partner Maurizio Margaglio were in first place after the compulsory dance and seconds from finishing a rousing original program when Margaglio slipped and dropped her, then crashed himself. Fusar Poli got up and glared at him. For 31 seconds.
3. WALTER MAYER. Austrian Olympic officials swear he had nothing to do with its cross country and biathlon teams, except for the minor detail that he appeared in official team photos and he was staying with the athletes. Shortly after the late-night raid by the Italian police, Mayer hopped in his car and made a border run. He drove 15 miles into Austria and stopped for a nap in his car. When the police woke him up, he started the car, floored it and crashed into a parked car. He was last seen at an Austrian psychiatric ward.
4. THE KOSTELIC FAMILY. Already considered quite possibly the best woman ski racer of all time, Janica Kostelic was sick as a dog and still managed to break a record with her fourth Olympic gold medal, but the Croatian star has never seemed so happy as she was for brother Ivica's silver medal in the combined. With tears streaming down his sister's cheek as they hugged for the longest time, Ivica celebrated a day that took him 11 knee operations to reach. Not since 1980 had a brother and sister each medaled in the same Olympic alpine competition.
5. SILVIA FONTANA, FIGURE SKATING. Six months ago she decided to come out of retirement to skate in the Olympics at age 29. She did it to honor her homeland – she grew up in Italy and now lives in New Jersey – and she did it to honor her father, who built her a rink in Rome to train in and who committed suicide 11 years ago. She skated poorly in the short program and had a shaky start in the free program, then started clicking off jumps with tears streaming down her face. “This,” she said afterward, “was my Olympic moment.”
Chris Jenkins: (619) 293-1267;
chris.jenkins@uniontrib.com
Mark Zeigler: (619) 293-2205;
mark.zeigler@uniontrib.com
