Among the many other disappointments at the current Olympics, Jay Hakkinen (USA), has been the only American to even post (10th - Individual) and that with 6 penalties!



Although the US team only placed 17th (yes, seventeenth) in the Men's Nation Cup Rankings; I had higher hopes. The United States, on the other hand, has never won an Olympic medal in biathlon.

While Jay Hakkinen's 13th place finish in the pursuit competition at Salt Lake City ranks as the team's best ever placement, the United States Olympic Committee had stated that it was confident that its athletes had improved enough in the past four years to challenge for a medal in Torino.

Hakkinen, 28, the first American to win a world championship in biathlon, is back for his third Olympics. Among his teammates on the men's team are fellow Alaskan Jeremy Teela, a specialist in the U.S. Army who placed 14th in the individual competition at Salt Lake.

Still, the pursuit, mass start, and relay are still coming up - lets hope for better.

I am really rooting for two young kids from upstate NY named Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, New York), and Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, New York).

I have met them training not far from my farm (inherited from my grandfather) near Lake Placid. Both are excellent shots, and very nice kids. Bailey also attends UVM, and plays great guitar, truly one of the 'Sonnenkinder'.



Tim Burke is in the Army serving at Ft Kent, MN.



Lets root for these two great kids and hope they do better!!!

Rob

PS - Kudos and accolades to Todd Lodwick for doing so well on the Individual Gundersen last weekend, and Johnny Spillane, Carl Van Loan, Bill Demong, and Todd Lodwick for their effort at the Team on Thursday - Good effort guys!

Ed for PS

[ February 17, 2006, 11:10 PM: Message edited by: ITJock ]

Reuters Television -

The Italian police raided the Austrian biathlon and cross-country teams' housing at the Winter Olympics on Saturday night, looking for evidence of doping and for a former coach who had been barred from the Games for his involvement in a 2002 blood-doping scandal.

International Olympic Committee officials, who had tipped off the police, confirmed that as many as 15 Austrian biathletes and cross-country skiers had been taken from their housing in the mountain towns of Pragelato and San Sicario to the nearby village of Sestriere for urine and blood tests.

"The tests went very smoothly, and there were no complaints," said the I.O.C. spokeswoman Giselle Davies, who added that there had been more than 200 pre-competition tests and 500 total doping tests conducted at the Olympics.

The raid occurred after the I.O.C. received information from the World Anti-Doping Agency that Walter Mayer, the former Nordic coach of the Austrian team, was staying with Austrian athletes. Mayer had been barred from these Games and the 2010 Winter Olympics for performing blood transfusions on his athletes, including his son, in 2002.

Around midnight, a Reuters Television crew recorded the police leading two men from a building in San Sicario. The men, one carrying Olympic accreditation, the other with a jacket over his head, were then driven away in a police car.

Pragelato, the site for the Cross-County events, and San Sicario, the site for the Biathlon, were reportedly in turmoil last night and this morning.

Rob

PS - Hey Nat - Any perspective on these issues/problems ?

Ed for PS

[ February 19, 2006, 09:29 AM: Message edited by: ITJock ]

I agree ITJock. I saw Hakkinen during the 10km Sprint and his performance was dismal. In the prone he missed all five targets which completely put him out of the competition. I was rooting for Teela but he didn't seem to have it together either.

I'm hoping Burke and Bailey do well in the coming events.

Until I talked to a co-worker I didn't have a full appreciation of biathlon. Best way to look at it - try running a 5K fully clothed then drop into the prone position and hit 5 targets the size of silver dollar with your heart racing and your adrenalin pumping. These guys are amazing.

Thanks for posting on another overlooked Olympic sport.

2 Austrian biathlon athletes Wolfgang Perner e Wolfgang Rottmann are reported to have left Turin today.
It seems strange considering there's the relay still to run and both were qualified for the mass start

Coach Mayar tried to run a police blockade. Lots of possible doping equipment found.

Globe & Mail

That coach is now in an Italian psychciatric ward. What the hell is the story there?

Exciting biathlon relay today... Even though it was no surprise that the Germans got gold and the Russians getting silver, the fight for bronze was basically determined by a slipped ski by Sweden as France got one ski ahead. The photo finish clearly showed France getting the bronze. As for the Americans, they had a very good showing and finished in ninth. The US actually had the lead after the first exchange until the Germans took control. One has to wonder what could have been if the Americans would have made more of their shots. Nevertheless, this was their best showing in 34 years. It's been a surpisingly tough Olympics for the stud Norwegians and their beloved cross-country skiing events. Incidentally, the Austrians finished dead last.

I taped the biathlon and it was awesome, mainly because it was shown live and we saw the whole event start to finish, just like a REAL sporting event. Not chopped up into tiny segments. What an ending, the best I've seen in the Olympics.

I have been pretty critical of the Olympic coverage (particularly the USA Network and curling), but I agree that this was really well-done. I taped it, too, and watched it later at my own leisure. I was afraid that the controversy that surrounded the Austrian team was going to be the focus of the commentators. Rather, they didn't even bring the Austrians up until they were seen coming in last place. The race between France and Sweden for bronze showed exactly why I still love watching cross-country skiing events.

Spoiler alert if you haven't seen the female relay yet!


The Russia team dominated it. First from the beginning to the end.
Wilhem could have tried to catch the not so fast Akathova in the last leg, but Appel's mistakes finished the race.
Bailly made a comeback for France to win the bronze (Peretto was a disaster in the first leg).
Poor Zubrilova (and her Belarus teammates) was left with the 4th place.

An appreciation of the biathlon appeared in this morning's WaPo "Style" section. I wish I were in 1/100th that condition.

This Athlete Skis, Shoots and Heaves

Bonus pic for GatorJamie for surviving Virginia bar exam:

Carolyn Treacy lies exhausted after the women's biathlon relay

Hmmm. Not bad.

Rob -

"PS - Hey Nat - Any perspective on these issues/problems ?"

Sorry to take forever; I've been on the road (currently in Newcastle, UK) and out of touch...

The whole thing really puzzles me. I used to know Walter Meier a bit; did you know he won the Vasa way back when? We used to train with the Euros at Dachstein every year, and Meier was unfailingly helpful - let Justin Wadsworth -then about 14 - ski with him, etc. I expect the drugging stuff was going on, but the psycho stuff is weird.

Going roller skiing in Hyde |Park next week, with part of the British women's military biathlon team. Now that's bizarre!


Nat