The Student Newspaper of Saint Peter's Prep

The Petroc

The Student Newspaper of Saint Peter's Prep

The Petroc

The Student Newspaper of Saint Peter's Prep

The Petroc

Sochi Olympics in Review

Sochi Olympics in Review

The 2014 Winter Olympic Games were held in Sochi. This was the first time that the United States competed in the Olympics in Russia. The 1980 Summer Games were held in Moscow, but the United States did not participate due to the U.S. boycott of the games.

According to CNN, the cost of construction and updates to Sochi and the surrounding area, the cost was approximately $50 billion and the most expensive Olympics yet. The following are some additional facts also provided by CNN:

  • 17 days of competitions in addition to the Opening Ceremonies.
  • 98 different events (12 new ones)
  • 15 different sports
  • 40,000 km (approx. 25,000 mi) distance that Olympic Torch traveled to the games (including outer space)
  • Approximately 3 billion television viewers.
  • 7,000 chefs, sous chefs, waiters, waitresses, bartenders, cashiers working at the games.
  • 2,850 athletes representing 88 countries
  • 75,000 capacity of Olympic Park
  • 265,000 liters of borsht (beet soup) expected to be served at the games.
  • 37,000 security officers deployed
  • 25,000 volunteers
  • $15 average price for lunch at Olympic Park.

The U.S. Athletes made a formidable showing in Sochi. For a while it looked like the U.S. Hockey Team was headed for gold after the T.J. Oshie shootout goal in overtime against Russia. Sadly, three tough losses kept them from making it to the medal podium. There was no “three-peat for Shaun White or Shani Davis. Lindsey Vonn was forced to withdraw due to a knee injury. Overall, the United States performed well finishing in 2nd place to Russia in the total medal count with 28 including 9 gold medals. With a lot of young athletes making their first appearances at the games along with the veterans to guide them, the American team found a lot of greatness over the month of February.

The following is a compilation of medals awarded at the games:

Rank

Country

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Total

1

Russian Fed.

13

11

9

33

2

Norway

11

5

10

26

3

Canada

10

10

5

25

4

United States

9

7

12

28

5

Netherlands

8

7

9

24

6

Germany

8

6

5

19

7

Switzerland

6

3

2

11

8

Belarus

5

0

1

6

9

Austria

4

8

5

17

10

France

4

4

7

15

11

Poland

4

1

1

6

12

China

3

4

2

9

13

Korea

3

3

2

8

14

Sweden

2

7

6

15

15

Czech Republic

2

4

2

8

16

Slovenia

2

2

4

8

17

Japan

1

4

3

8

18

Finland

1

3

1

5

19

Great Britain

1

1

2

4

20

Ukraine

1

0

1

2

21

Slovakia

1

0

0

1

22

Italy

0

2

6

8

23

Latvia

0

2

2

4

24

Australia

0

2

1

3

25

Croatia

0

1

0

1

26

Kazakhstan

0

0

1

1

 

 

2014 was also the first time that Russia hosted the Paralympics Games. In 2008 Russia adopted the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities. It seems that some advances have been made in this area since 1980. The 1980 Summer Games were hosted in Moscow. At the time, the Soviet Union refused to host the Paralympic Games, claiming that they did not have any citizens with disabilities. Interestingly enough, Russia was the overall medals leader in both the 2014 Winter Olympic Games as well as the 2014 Winter Paralympics Games. The following is a look at the medals awarded at the Paralympics Games in Sochi:

Rank

Country

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Total

1

Russian Fed.

11

14

9

34

2

Germany

4

0

0

4

3

Ukraine

3

3

5

11

4

Austria

2

2

0

4

5

Japan

2

1

2

5

6

France

2

1

1

4

7

Slovakia

2

1

0

3

8

Canada

1

2

4

7

9

Great Britain

1

1

1

3

10

Sweden

1

0

1

2

11

Spain

1

0

0

1

12

United States

0

3

4

7

13

Finland

0

1

0

1

13

Norway

0

1

0

1

15

Belarus

0

0

3

3

 

 

 

Sources:

 

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/02/04/sport/sochi-winter-olympics-by-the-numbers/

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralympic_Games

 

http://humanrightshouse.org/Articles/8873.html