XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Good!)

Good! Not that it changes much at the HP. But, still, good!

Medals table:

1. Norway 12 gold, 6 silver, 12 bronze
2. Canada 11, 10, 7
3. United States 10, 11, 10
4. Germany 10, 5, 7
5. Netherlands 9, 8, 8
6. Switzerland 8, 1, 2
7. Belarus 5, 1, 1
8. Austria 4, 10, 5
9. China 4, 6, 4
10. France 4, 5, 9
11. Poland 4, 1, 1
12. South Korea 4, 2, 2
13. Slovenia 3, 2, 3
14. Sweden 2, 8, 5
15. Czech Republic 2, 4, 3
16. Latvia 2, 1, 3
17. Japan 1, 4, 4
18. Finland 1, 3, 1
19. Great Britain 1, 1, 3
20. Ukraine 1, 1, 0
21. Slovakia 1, 0, 0
22. Italy 0, 4, 7
23. Australia 0, 2, 1
24. Croatia 0, 1, 0
25. Kazakhstan 0, 0, 1
T26. Bulgaria and 62 others 0, 0, 0

Previous reports:

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924
-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928
-- VIII Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley 1960
-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976 
-- XVII Olympic Winter Games, Lillehammer 1994

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day a)
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 0)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 1)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 2)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 3)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 4)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 5)
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 6)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 7)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 8)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 9)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 10)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 11)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 12)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 13)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 14)

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 15)

-- XXII Olympics Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Good!)

-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018

XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 5)

Gold for Shaun White!

Now, look, I confess that I'm like probably 98 or 99 percent of the rest of the people who geek out for the Olympics in that I hardly ever watch these sports except for two weeks every four years. And if I saw more of Shaun White's low moments or mediocre moments, or if better understood the intricacies of what I was watching, I might feel differently. But I don't know that I have ever genuinely rooted for an athlete who delivers more consistently in high-pressure, high-profile moments than Shaun White. With his victory in men's halfpipe snowboarding Wednesday morning in South Korea/Tuesday night on Channel 6, he's three for four all-time on my radar: gold medals at Turin 2006, Vancouver 2010 and now Pyeongchang 2018 and no medal at Sochi 2014. In my world, he has never competed in anything but the Olympics, and he has come through 75 percent of the time. That's stunning.

Here are the medal standings after White's halfpipe gold got the Day 5 party started in Pyeongchang about an hour ago:

1. Germany 5 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze
2. Netherlands 4, 4, 2
3. United States 4, 1, 2
4. Norway 3, 5, 3
5. Canada 3, 4, 3
6. France 2, 1, 2
7. Sweden 2, 1, 0
8. Austria 2, 0, 0
9. Italy 1, 1, 1
10. South Korea 1, 0, 1
11. Japan 0, 2, 2
12. Czech Republic 0, 1, 1
T13. Australia 0, 1, 0
T13. China 0, 1, 0
T13. Slovakia 0, 1, 0
T13. Switzerland 0, 1, 0
T17. Finland 0, 0, 2
T17. Kazakhstan 0, 0, 2

Previous reports:

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924
-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928
-- VIII Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley 1960
-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976 
-- XVII Olympic Winter Games, Lillehammer 1994
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Preface)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Introduction/Day 0)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 1)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 2)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 3)

-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 4)

XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 3)

Maybe what I need to do is just switch myself to the Pyeongchang clock for the next couple of weeks, because only now am I getting to the Monday/Day 3 post and it's already just a couple, three hours from dawn on Tuesday/Day 4 in South Korea.  

Previous reports:

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924
-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928
-- VIII Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley 1960
-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976 
-- XVII Olympic Winter Games, Lillehammer 1994
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Preface)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Introduction/Day 0)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 1)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 2)

Comments flow ...

XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 2)

So we've got a Team USA guy in contention in some live luging going on a little after 10 Sunday night in Pyeongchang County, but I've got to finish up getting ready for Sunday school here in a couple hours this morning in Madisonville. Hmmm ... challenging ...

Previous reports:

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924
-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928
-- VIII Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley 1960
-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976 
-- XVII Olympic Winter Games, Lillehammer 1994
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Preface)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Introduction/Day 0)
-- XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Day 1)

XXIII Olympic Winter Games, Pyeongchang 2018 (Preface)

Fifteen "disciplines" across seven "sports," are scheduled to award medals across an still-to-be-determined number of "events" at the XXIII Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Feb. 9-25, 2018:

-- alpine skiing,
-- cross-country skiing,
-- ski jumping,
-- Nordic combined skiing,
-- freestyle skiing,
-- snowboard,
-- biathlon,
-- bobsleigh,
-- skeleton,
-- luge,
-- speed skating,
-- figure skating,
-- short-track skating,
-- ice hockey and
-- curling.

Comments flow!

Previous reports:

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924
-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928
-- VIII Olympic Winter Games, Squaw Valley 1960
-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976
-- XVII Olympic Winter Games, Lillehammer 1994
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014

British Open; Rest in Peace, Casey Kasem (1932-2014)

This is just like when Bob Costas got pink-eye at the Olympics. 

Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars, Go Heath; this thread on the British Open is a long-distance dedication to you!

Tiger tees off his second round in about half an hour, and here are the current scores:

1. Rory "Rors" McIlroy, age 25, of Hollywood, County Down, Northern Island, 6-under through 18 holes 

T2. George "The Bionic Hand" Coetzee, 28, Pretoria, South Africa, -5 through 36

T2. Matteo "Manny" Manassero, 21, Negrar, Italy, -5 through 18

T4. Jim "West Chester Jim" Furyk, 44, West Chester, Pa., United States of America (USA), -4 through 18

T4. Sergio "El Niño" Garcia, 34, Borriol, Castellón, Spain, -4 through 18

T4. Brooks "Brooksy" Koepka, 24, Wellington, Fla., USA, -4 through 21

T4. Edoardo "Dodo" Molinari, 33, Turin, Italy, -4 through 21

T8. Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods, 38, Cypress, Calif., and a bunch of other guys, -3

Comments flow!

HP Special Report: Congratulations, Oksana Masters! And Hooray for Sports!

This is an HP Special Report ... Sometimes, Earth is so bizarre. 

Oksana Masters, a 24-year-old Louisville Atherton High School grad who was adopted from a Ukrainian (!) orphanage when she was 7, has won a silver medal in 12-kilometer sitting cross-country skiing in the XI Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia (!). (This actually happened on Sunday, but I'm catching up only now, watching videotape of NBC Sports Network's wee-hours live coverage of events.) 

1 yr of skiing later @oksanamasters won #TeamUSA's 1st cross-country #Paralympic medal since '94 #MotivationMonday pic.twitter.com/cF0NF2O0CH
— US Olympic Team (@USOlympic) March 10, 2014

"Oksana skiied an amazing race, earning silver!" her mom reported from Sochi back to her colleagues at UofL Physicians. "She (earned) ... the first woman's cross-country medal in 20 years! The medal ceremony is tomorrow night, but the flower ceremony is today at the venue."

Dr. M. Gay Masters, a speech pathologist, adopted Oksana in 1997 from the orphanage. Per a release from UofL Physicians:

Oksana had been abandoned there by her parents after she was born with tibial hemimelia, which left her with different leg lengths; an absence of weight-bearing shinbones; five webbed fingers instead of four fingers and a thumb; six toes on each foot; and just one kidney. Both of her legs eventually had to be amputated above the knee. To compete in skiing, she has a special sled and her ski poles have to be taped to her hands. ... 

Oskana’s condition is believed to be a result of her birth mother’s exposure to radiation from a nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Her birthplace of Khmelnitskyy is just a few hours from Chernobyl.

Yes, they said, Chernobyl (!).

Here's a picture of #oksanamasters and mom Dr. Gay Masters after the cross-country medal ceremony today in Sochi! pic.twitter.com/NDR9QWhzE4
— UofL Physicians (@UofLPhysicians) March 10, 2014

XI Paralympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014

Back to Sochi, baby!

Oh, Kentucky

From Russia with love ...

pic.twitter.com/NakGoj2jgD
— Dallas Robinson (@DRobUSA) February 23, 2014

To Morganfield with hardware ...

STATE CHAMPS! @UC_Wrestling @UnionCountyHS @UCHSathletics pic.twitter.com/9ntDepSLbn
— Mr. Evan Jackson (@MrJacksonUCHS) February 23, 2014

To Lexington for horses.

To Owensboro for hockey.

The district tournaments for KHSAA basketball (both boys and girls) have gotten going this week around Kentucky, so we're going to read a lot of good, fun stuff over the next few weeks about hoops in Kentucky--but nothing is going to be any better or more fun than this Park City Daily News story by Chad Bishop about Darel Carrier.

The gov is feeling his oats.

The conversation in the comments about finding a good steak in Muhlenberg County is intriguing--with a hint of romance.

"The building at the corner of 4th and Main streets saw businesses come and go amidst one of Murray’s most commercially rich districts before it suddenly collapsed in the night Saturday, sending little pieces of history careening into the streets."

"I’d like to see East Kentucky give some thought to a strategy that makes the most of our native population, our fascinating and eclectic heritage, and the natural areas that have facilitated both."

Rest in peace, U.S. Marine Master Sgt Aaron Torian, originally of Paducah.

XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 16)

Last-day thoughts, comments flow ...

The sun rising in Sochi for the last day of the 2014 Winter Olympics. pic.twitter.com/NryOmDEnuW
— хумаираа. (@savedbyreimer) February 23, 2014

Medals table:

1. Russia 11 gold, 10 silver, 8 bronze
2. Norway 11, 5, 10
3. Canada 9, 10, 5
4. United States 9, 7, 11
5. Netherlands 8, 7, 9
6. Germany 8, 6, 5
7. Switzerland 6, 3, 2
8. Belarus 5, 0, 1
9. Austria 4, 8, 5
10. France 4, 4, 7
11. Poland 4, 1, 1
12. China 3, 4, 2
13. South Korea 3, 3, 2
14. Sweden 2, 6, 6
15. Czech Republic 2, 4, 2
16. Slovenia 2, 2, 4
17. Japan 1, 4, 3
18. Finland 1, 3, 1
19. Great Britain 1, 1, 2
20. Ukraine 1, 0, 1
21. Slovakia 1, 0, 0
22. Italy 0, 2, 6
23. Australia 0, 2, 1
24. Latvia 0, 1, 2
25. Croatia 0, 1, 0
26. Kazakhstan 0, 0, 1
27. Albania 0, 0, 0
27. Andorra 0, 0, 0
27. Argentina 0, 0, 0
27. Armenia 0, 0, 0
27. Azerbaijan 0, 0, 0
27. Belgium 0, 0, 0
27. Bermuda 0, 0, 0
27. Bosnia and Herzegovina 0, 0, 0
27. Brazil 0, 0, 0
27. Bulgaria 0, 0, 0
27. Cayman Islands  0, 0, 0
27. Chile 0, 0, 0
27. Chinese Taipei 0, 0, 0
27. Cyprus 0, 0, 0
27. Denmark 0, 0, 0
27. Dominica 0, 0, 0
27. Estonia 0, 0, 0
27. Georgia 0, 0, 0
27. Greece 0, 0, 0
27. Hong Kong 0, 0, 0
27. Hungary 0, 0, 0
27. Iceland 0, 0, 0
27. Independent Olympic Participant 0, 0, 0
27. India 0, 0, 0
27. Iran 0, 0, 0
27. Ireland 0, 0, 0
27. Israel 0, 0, 0
27. Jamaica 0, 0, 0
27. Kyrgyzstan
27. Lebanon 0, 0, 0
27. Liechtenstein 0, 0, 0
27. Lithuania 0, 0, 0
27. Luxembourg 0, 0, 0
27. Malta 0, 0, 0
27. Mexico 0, 0, 0
27. Monaco 0, 0, 0
27. Mongolia 0, 0, 0
27. Montenegro 0, 0, 0
27. Morocco 0, 0, 0
27. Nepal 0, 0, 0
27. New Zealand 0, 0, 0
27. Pakistan 0, 0, 0
27. Paraguay 0, 0, 0
27. Peru 0, 0, 0
27. Philippines 0, 0, 0
27. Portugal 0, 0, 0
27. Republic of Moldova 0, 0, 0
27. Romania 0, 0, 0
27. San Marino 0, 0, 0
27. Serbia 0, 0, 0
27. Spain 0, 0, 0
27. Tajikistan 0, 0, 0
27. Thailand 0, 0, 0
27. The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 0, 0, 0
27. Timor-Leste 0, 0, 0
27. Togo 0, 0, 0
27. Tonga 0, 0, 0
27. Turkey 0, 0, 0
27. Uzbekistan 0, 0, 0
27. Venezuela 0, 0, 0
27. Virgin Islands, British 0, 0, 0
27. Virgin Islands, U.S. 0, 0, 0
27. Zimbabwe 0, 0, 0

Previous reports:

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 15);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 14);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 13);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 12);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 11);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 10);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 9);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 8);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 7);
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 6);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 5);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 4);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 3);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 2);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 1);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 0);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day a);

-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976;

-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928, and

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924.

XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 15)

Medals table at the start of today's competition in Sochi:

1. Norway 10 gold, 4 silver, 8 bronze
2. Russia 9, 10, 7
3. Canada 9, 10, 5
4. United States 9, 7, 11
5. Germany 8, 4, 4
6. Netherlands 6, 7, 9
7. Switzerland 6, 3, 2
8. Belarus 5, 0, 1
9. France 4, 4, 7
10. Poland 4, 0, 0
11. China 3, 4, 2
12. Korea 3, 2, 2
13. Austria 2, 7, 3
14. Sweden 2, 6, 6
15. Czech Republic 2, 4, 2
16. Slovenia 2, 1, 4
17. Japan 1, 4, 3
18. Finland 1, 3, 0
19. Great Britain 1, 1, 2
20. Ukraine 1, 0, 1
21. Slovakia 1, 0, 0
22. Italy 0, 2, 6
23. Australia 0, 2, 1
24. Latvia 0, 1, 2
25. Croatia 0, 1, 0
26. Kazakhstan 0, 0, 1

Spoilers (maybe) are coming in the comments.

Previous reports:

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 14);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 13);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 12);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 11);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 10);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 9);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 8);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 7);
-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 6);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 5);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 4);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 3);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 2);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 1);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day 0);

-- XXII Olympic Winter Games, Sochi 2014 (Day a);

-- XII Olympic Winter Games, Innsbruck 1976;

-- II Olympic Winter Games, Saint Moritz 1928, and

-- I Olympic Winter Games, Chamonix 1924.