On the morning of the 2010 Winter Olympic opening ceremony, disaster struck when 21-year-old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, who would have been competing in his first Olympic games, died in a tragic training accident. Kumaritashvili lost control of his sled while traveling at over 90 miles per hour, flew over the track’s wall and hit a steel pole.

As a precaution, the luge track was temporarily closed to be inspected, but many lugers were not looking forward to racing on that track.

Many Olympic athletes and fans saw this tragic event as a bad omen for the beginning of the Olympics and looked to the opening ceremony for relief.

And all troubles aside, the opening ceremony was incredible. Canada couldn’t have done a better job at easing the sorrows and doubts.

Embracing and showcasing the large amount of diversity that the country possesses, Canada started off with a display of their native culture as the four Canadian tribes welcomed the athletes to the games in ritual style.

Following the introduction of all the Olympic athletes, Canada then really proved they could put on a show.

Tribute was paid to the Canadian’s French heritage with a great fiddler performance, and the show was finished with another tribute to Canada’s special and intimate ties to nature, specifically the bears and birds of the region.

After a quick performance by Sarah McLachlan, the torch entered the arena and was lit by four Canadian stars: Steve Nash, Nancy Greene, Catriona LeMay Doan and the great Wayne Gretzky.

Even though a mechanical malfunction delayed the torch lighting, viewers barely noticed.

Following the lighting of the torch, there was a moment of silence for the Georgian luger, whose death put a somber note on these Winter Games.

Though the Winter Olympics started off on a bad foot for all competitors, the opening ceremony cleared away any looming worries, and so far, the competition has been fierce and exciting.

As for American athletes, things seem to be just heating up.

On Feb. 13, American women’s freestyle mogul skier Hannah Kearney beat out Canada’s Jennifer Heil for the gold medal. Kearney was a favorite in Torino, but finished a disappointing 22nd.

On the short track, American speed skater Apolo Ohno got lucky in the 1500-meter race. Three Korean skaters were poised to sweep the medals. But as the finalists took the last turn of the race, Korean skaters Lee Ho-Suk and Sung Si-Bak wiped out, taking themselves out of the competition.

With second and third place up for grabs, Ohno slipped into second place and American speed skater JR Celski took third. Korean skater Jung-Su Lee won the gold medal.

With the Winter Olympics already living up to their expectations and still so many events left on the schedule, it is hard to tell how the tally will end, but there is one thing for sure: the competition is going to be fierce and entertaining to the very end.

 

The Hilltop Views’ column, ‘Courtside Chronicles,’ appears every other week in the sports section and is written by Hilltop Views contributor Nolan Green.