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This Week’s By Neil S. Friedman Despite Olympic Rifts, Even The Gods Must Be Smiling The 2002 Winter Olympics ended Sunday evening with a colorful parade of giddy athletes and an eclectic closing ceremony that was more entertaining, but just as emotional as the more formal opening night hoopla sixteen days earlier. These games had many exciting and poignant moments, especially for the homegrown American athletes who earned a record number of Winter Games medals (34). However, in retrospect, the 19th Winter Olympics may unfortunately be overshadowed by its scattered incidents of controversy and bellyaching. While there may have been many dazzling highlights, especially Sarah Hughes’ effervescent, flawless, four-minute performance, the Salt Lake City Games could just as well be christened the Crying Games for all the whining and complaining that took place. Competition is healthy and rivalry is expected, but some of the kvetching was excessive and unwarranted. Controversy erupted in the first week when the comely Canadian duo of David Pelletier and Jamie Sale, following a sterling presentation, were awarded second place behind their Russian opponents, whose performance included a minor slip. No sooner did a heated debate arise over the results when it was learned that French judge Marie-Reine Le Gougne — a name that will live in infamy in Olympic history — was allegedly coerced by her Russian counterpart to influence her decision. (And it’s said politics makes strange bedfellows?) In the touchy aftermath, all four athletes displayed good sportsmanship and respect for each other, while everyone else acted as if a major tragedy had transpired. When all was said and done, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) acquiesced and awarded the Canadians gold, too. A pleasant fairy tale ending, but, dammit, there can’t be two winners! The entire matter endeared the north-of-the-border couple to most of the world. The situation, nevertheless, evolved into a press agent’s dream as it reaped a heckuva lot more publicity for Sale and Pelletier than if the judging had not been tainted. A few days later, after placing second in women’s figure skating behind America’s 16-year-old sweetheart skating sensation, annoyed Russian officials maintained their 23-year-old premier skater, Irina Slutskaya, should have been awarded the gold medal. Maybe the Russkies didn’t watch Hughes’ unblemished performance, apparently blinded by the theory they could get judges to amend another decision, this time in their favor. They may have had a point. Even though Sarah Hughes skated a spotless final performance, it’s still baffling how she jumped from fourth to first place. There was no alleged pressure in the figure skating competition, just bewildering scoring. Even after reading a coherent explanation of how scores are tabulated, it’s still extremely confusing. I doubt there’s another athletic competition with rules so damn complicated — except perhaps for NFL replay. One lesson learned from these games was that the IOC and International Skating Union scoring and judging formats should be streamlined and revamped before the 2006 Winter Games in Turin, Italy. And while they’re at it, IOC officials should scrutinize what passes for a ‘sport’ before adding events that merely increase its audience, but do little to enhance the Olympic tradition. What could possibly be the motive behind approving snowboarding—duh, surfing on snow—and other extreme events other than to attract a younger crowd? They may be "cool" sports, but they’re hardly Olympic-worthy and distort the intention of the games beyond recognition. I envision American television executives influencing those embellishments in a similar fashion that the Russians got to that French woman. Winter Games events should not be added just because they’re snow-or ice-related. If that’s the case, we’re likely to see such future challenges as One-Handed Snowman Building, Team Snowball Fighting and Slush Skiing. And they may as well consider eliminating curling — c’mon, it’s shuffleboard with brooms on ice. Though it’s an Olympic tradition, what makes it a sport? I don’t see any athleticism in sweeping a smooth path for a 40-pound stone sliding along the ice. Despite controversies and a few disgraceful instances, the 19th Winter Olympic Games, which were almost relocated from Salt Lake City a few years ago due to scandal and dire finances, ended on a high note and, thankfully, without any terrorist threat. Like the satisfying smiles on the faces of the winners and losers Sunday evening, the spirit of these Winter Olympics went beyond competition and mere entertainment to help raise all our spirits at a time when it was particularly needed. Yet, despite the scandals and the squabbling, I wouldn’t be surprised if the mythological gods on Olympus were looking down and smiling, too.
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