Alpine Skiing: By Matt A

1. Alpine Skiing: By Matt A Alpine Skiing is more than just skiing down a mountain. It is an Olympic event. Alpine skiing started in 1936. When it started in it was only a men’s sport. But now it is both a men’s and women’s sport. Alpine skiing is the sport of speeding down snow covered hills, some with turns and some with crazy run designs. The vents are the downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super g, and super combined. It’s an exciting event to watch! Alpine Skiing started in 1936. Men and women both started at the same time. Askel Lund Svindal was a alpine skier for Norway he was in the 2010 winter Olympics. Another skier was MarliesSchild for Australia. She competed in the Olympics in 2002 through 2010.

2. . Snowboarding becamean event in 1998 Winter Games. By Justin B. • Snowboarding is the fastest growing sport • It was developed in the U.S. in the 1960s, and combines elements of surfing, skateboarding and skiing. • Snowboarding will have ten events in this years 2014 Olympics: men’s and women’s half pipe, parallel giant slalom, cross, slope style, and parallel slalom. • The 2014 games will be the first for slope style and parallel slalom. • In the half pipe, individual snowboarders fly through the air as they perform high-flying jumps, twists and tricks on a U-shaped ramp. Organizers build the snowy course by digging deep into a hill. The riders are judged on the height and style of their tricks. • In the parallel slalom, two snowboarders race down parallel courses on the same slope. The course is lined with flags that the skiers must weave through. • In the cross event, four snowboarders speed down a course that has many jumps, bumps, and turns. The fastest two racers from each group advance to the next round. • In the new slope style event, athletes perform on a 2,083-foot slope with a variety of rail, quarter pipe, and jump obstacles. Athletes are scored on the best of two runs. Snowboarders use special flexible boards for this

3. Cross-Country Skiing Don’t get it confused with running! By: Sadie How old is it? Cross-Country Skiing is the oldest type of skiing. The earliest form of the sport began in Europe more than 5,000 years ago! Men started competing in 1924 and women competing in 1952. In the games there are two basic techniques: classic and free. But, in Sochi this year, there will be six different events for men and women, including sprints, relays, and freestyle races. The skier or group of skiers with the fastest time wins. The cross country skiing discipline comprises 12 events, including sprint, team sprint, individual start, pursuit, mass start, and relay events. Are the teammates the friends? Yes. The teammates are always nice and positive to each other. They usually never disagree.

4. The Rules of the Game Events are split along two basic techniques: classic and free. In classic races, skiers move their skis parallel to each other within narrow tracks on flat ground. In free events, skiers use shorter skis to push themselves forward off the ground in a similar fashion to speed skating. The free technique is also slightly faster than the classic technique and requires more strength.

5. Heather Richardson By: Sarah B. She won the gold medal in Salt Lake Ci… Oh. You don’t know Heather Richardson, world famous speed skater! Let me tell you about her. She was born on March 20, 1989 in High Point, North Carolina. She’s 5ft 9 and 149lb. Her coach is Ryan Shimabukuro. She’s competed in speed skating since 2006. When she was young, her parents competed on quad skates, so she grew up learning how to rollerblade. Her biggest challenge was changing from rollerblades to ice skates. She won 11 gold, 13 silver, and 11 bronze world cups. In Germany, she won 8th place in the 500m race. In 2011 in Inzell, Germany, she won a bronze medal in a World Single Distance Championship for 1000m. In 2013 in Salt Lake City, she won a gold medal in a World Sprint Championship. I hope she does a good job in Sochi!

6. What Is Nordic Combined? Nordic Combined was first played in 1892, in Oslo. Later it became an Olympic sport in 1924. Nordic Combined is made up of two other events, Ski jumping and Cross Country Skiing. There used to be four kinds of events, individual, sprint, and team events. The forth event is mass start; it was later interdicted at the 2009 champions. At the FIS meeting the individual and sprint events would be replaced by the compact versions of the events. There are some simple rules to these events. In the Individual normal hill event, skiers would begin with one jump on normal hill, and then it is a six mile cross country race the first one to cross the finish line wins. In the Individual large hill event, just like the Individual normal hill event the athletes would jump off of a hill, but this time they jump off of a higher hill. This jump is followed by a six mile race. In the Team event each team has 4 skiers, each skier jumps off of a high hill. In this event the 6 mile race is a relay, each person skis for a little more than a mile the team who crosses the line first wins. The team score is to determine who will head up the race. The most successful at this sport is HannuManninen. The world camps of the sport are Todd Lodwick and Bill Demong. By: Sam B.

7. Curling by Gregory Curling How Far Can You Push it! Curling is a fascinating winter event that is all about accuracy in your strength. Curling goes way back to 1541 from Scotland. It’s kind of like shuffleboard on ice. Curling was featured in the first Olympic Games held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. But Curling was not played again in the Olympic until it became an official Winter Olympic sport in the 1998 Nagano games. Both men and women’s curling tournaments are in the Olympic events. • The rules Of Awesomeness • The amazing curling tournaments each begin with 10 teams. Four people make up each team; two teams compete against each other for the win. The game is played with 16 large granite stones where 8 are provided to each team. Each stone weighs 42 pounds. The object for each team is to put a spin or a curl, on their stones to get them to land as close to the center of the target, called a “house” as possible. Players take turns pushing on the stones across the ice with a curling broom (each player controls two stones). Team members sweep the ice in front of each stone to control its direction.

8. Ashley Wagner Figure Skating • BY Sophia • SWISH! Did you see her? Who?!...That girl, Ashley Wagner! Who is that? Well she is a really good ice skater. She was born May 16 1991 in Germany because her dad is a US army man but she is a sitensen for the USA. she started in 1996. 2002 2003 she qualified in US JR figure skating champions she placed 17th. “That’s stinks!” “I know right. But She won a silver medal in 2009, 2010 that’s was her first medal.“Oh good!” And she is now 22! I HAVE REALLY GOOD NEWS!” “What!” she won gold in 2012 AND 2013 “Well she must be really good!” Now she is 22! That’s it?!” “yea” She is the best at ice skating !” “ I cant wait to watch her in Sochi!”

9. BY: Ryan Filoramo Max Aaron Figure Skater Max Aaron had the most disappointing start of winning a gold medal in the Olympics. Max Aaron was born February, 25 1992 and was raised in Scottsdale, Arizona. Max has not participated in the Olympics before. Now Max lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado. As a little boy Max played hockey at age 4 and started figure skating at the age of 9. Max was so inspired by the Jewish Olympians because there were not many on the list. Max’s best scores are 78.20 in the short program 2013 worlds, 162.19 free skate 2013 4cc’s, and total 238.36 2013 worlds. This is Max’s first year participating in the Olympics. Max skates 3 sessions a day, works out at the gym, and relentlessly practices for gold. Max had the greatest upset at the tryouts. He placed fourth and failed to make the US team. Better luck next time.

10. Biathlon have you heard it? By : Katie History What is Biathlon you ask? Well it started over 4,000 years ago, two men were on skies stalking animals and they came up with the name Biathlon. It was demonstrated in 1928, 1936, and 1948. Everything was going well with making Biathlon a winter sport. However countries disagree on the rules. But in 1960 it became a sport in the winter Olympics. But only boys could compete not girls. However in the mid-1950s biathlon was instructed Soviet and the Swedish winter sport circuits widely enjoyed by the public. In 1992 women’s were allowed to go compete in the Biathlon. Fun facts Did you “Biathlon” mean the duel event or two events? Also Biathlon took role in the Swedish military it was an exercise for shooting and skiing. The athlete’s skies more than 12 miles in a race!

11. Sarah Hendrickson By: Coop Is that a bird or plane in the sky? No, it’s Sarah Hendrickson, one of the first female Olympic Ski Jumpers participating in the Olympics this year. Sarah Hendrickson was born on August 1, 1994. She is going to be one of the first female ski jumpers in the upcoming Winter Olympics. She took first place in 2013 December 3. She had an injury in August 21, 2013, she suffered a traumatic injury to herknee. The cup she won was in 2011. The medal she won in her junior year, in 2010, was a Bronze. In 2013, she won a Gold medal before getting ready to compete at Sochi.

12. Figure Skating By: Mike J. Figure skating is more than dancing on ice. Figure skating stared in the mid 19th century from mind of Jackson Haines. Jackson Haines combined dancing and skating and got figure skating, but it did not catch on in the US right away. 50 years later it caught on so then it was in Innsbruck Austria in 1967. THE RULE OF FIGURE SKATING In single skates you need to have jumps, spins and combinations as well as longer free skates. A panel of nine judges score the dancers but only seven count . The highest overall score is the winner of the Olympic event. In a single routine they have a short routine performance and a long performance. With the male and female have to have a rhythm and a tempo and two parts; and pick a song to skate to. To be a figure skater it takes a lot of skill because you need to know how to dance and skate.

13. Meryl Davis and Charlie White by Lily • Wow! Did you know that one of the most famous couples for ice dancing is Meryl Davis and Charlie White? Even though there big competitors on the ice and long friends since life, the coolest thing is their mothers have become best friends. In figure skating, they're now simply known as "the moms." In this article you will be sure to love everything you read and learn interesting facts about Meryl Davis and Charlie White. Meryl Davis was born in West Bloomfield, Mississippi on January 1ST, 1987. Her hobbies are traveling and reading. Meryl started skating at the age of 5, because she lived right off the lake and she wanted to skate in the winter. Her favorite colors are blue and pink. Charlie White was born in Bloomfield’s Hills, Mississippi. His hobbies are skating, reading, video games, playing the violin. Charlie started skating at the age of 3 because his parents wanted him to be able to skate with his friends when he got older. Charlie had a passion for skating and played on the skate champion team. In late fall 2004 Charlie broke his ankle playing hockey which forced Meryl and Charlie to withdraw from the 2005 U.S. National Figure skating championships in Portland, Oregon. In January 2013, Meryl and Charlie won their fifth consecutive National title tying for the US ice record. Teaming up in 1997, Meryl Davis and Charlie White have been skating together longer than any other U.S. ice dance team. Among their proudest accomplishments, they are the 2010 Olympic Silver Medalists and 2011 & 2013 World Champions. Meryl and Charlie are also six-time (2009-2014) U.S. Champions, and five-time (2009-2013) Grand Prix Final Champions. Meryl & Charlie continued their dominance of the U.S. ice dancing realm winning their sixth consecutive U.S. championship title. With their win in Boston, they pass Elizabeth Punsalan & Jerrod Swallow, Naomi Lang & Peter Tchernyshev and Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto, who each won five U.S. titles. Receiving all level 4s for their elements in their short and free dances and straight 10s for program components for their Scheherazade free dance, they finished 18.75 points ahead of silver medalists, Madison Chock & Evan Bates in the senior dance event. I hope you learned a lot about Meryl Davis and Charlie White and how they became best friends for life and competitors on ice.

14. Speed skating- Short track By: Matthew L Speed skating is the roller derby of the Olympics. They put speed skating in the Olympics 1924. At first only men were aloud but 1960 they aloud women. It’s been called the demolition derby of the Olympics. The rules of the game A ton of skater’s race around a 1312 foot oval at the same exact time. The winner is the first person who cross the finish line. Women skate 6 laps around the track. Men skate 8 laps around the track. They can reach speeds up to 40 miles an hour. The race ends when thelast skater on a team crosses the finish line.In short-track speed skating, competitors squeeze into a tight oval track measuring just 364ft around the track. Whoever has the fastest time wins the race. That’s all what you need to know about speed skating.

15. What is Biathlon? When did it start? Who is Susan Dunklee? Biathlon is an event that combines cross country skiing and rifle shooting. Men’s biathlon first became an Olympic sport in 1960, and it became a women’s sport in 1992. During a race, athletes ski for more than 12 miles of snow covered ground. When competitors reach a shooting range, they have to stop, put down their ski poles and shoot metal targets. For each range, the athletes alternate between shooting in prone (by lying down on the ground) or stand in position. Susan Dunklee is a 27 year old biathlon Olympian whose best finish at the biathlon world championship was 5th in the individual event in Rudolphing in 2012. Her best world cup was 17th in a spring event in Antholz, Italy in 2012. Her Dad inspired her because he was a two time Olympian her mom did a lot of skiing. She first started skiing when she was two and continued until she got an email from the U.S. Biathlon offering her a position with their development group. This year Susan Dunklee was going for silver but someone bumped her out and did not get a medal. Better luck next time Susan! Susan Dunklee Biathlon By: Luke M.

16. Gracie Gold: Figure skater By: Lauren M. You want facts about Gracie Gold? Well, you have come to the right place. Here’s the inside scoop on what’s happening! Gracie Gold was born August 17, 1995 in Newton, Massachusetts. She then moved to Springfield, Illinois. Now, she lives in Los Angeles, California. She trains in El Segundo, California at her skating club the Wagon Wheel FSC coached by Frank Carroll. She got her first taste of skating when she was 5. She stopped until she was invited to a skating party when she was 8. As time went on, she began to practice skating every weekend. She also has a twin who is competing in figure skating with her in the upcoming winter Olympics. This is her first time participating in the Winter Olympics. Now, here’s the juicy stuff! When Gracie was competing in a competition for who would represent the USA figure skating team, she came in 4th and she needed to be in the top 3. But, the judges wanted Gracie to represent because she had more experience than the girl that came in 3rd. This upcoming winter Olympics, Gracie Gold is going for the gold!

17. Speed Skating, Roller Blades on Ice? By: Felicia WHOSH! The blades cut through the ice! Hordes of people on skates are flying by trying to get to the finish line first. What sport is this, you ask? It’s speed skating, one of the most exciting sports to watch. This sport first showed up in the Olympics in 1924. The first exciting thing about speed skating I will talk about events. EVENTS There are ten speed skating events at the Olympics. All speed skating events are skated once, except for the men's and women's 500 meters, which is skated twice. Men’s take part in the 10000m, 1000m, 1500m, 5000m, and 500m. The women take part in the 1000m, 1500m, 3000m, 5000m, and 500m. Women take part at all these lengths except 10,000 meter THE SUITS The suits during the Olympics weren’t good because under amour made new ones with vents in the back. The winner was supposed to win but the suits got air down the back of the suit and caused him not to. After that they switched to their old warm up suits for the Olympics because they wanted to win! THE SCORING The winner is the person with the fastest time all around after all the pairs have skated. FUN FACTS Speed skating is broken up into 12 events at the Olympics in both men and women. For the team competition, there are two teams of three athletes each. The teams skate six laps (women), and eight laps (men).

18. Nordic Skiing by Tiernan • What is Nordic Skiing, you ask? Well, it’s not just Norwegians skiing but it did begin in Norway. Norwegian soldiers have been competing since the 19th century. The first major completion was held in 1892, at the first Holmenkollen ski festival. • Nordic Combined is a game combined with cross country skiing and ski jumping. Whoever gets there first wins. Only four players can be on a team. • Now I’m going to talk about Bill Demong. He was born on March 29 1980. He is an Olympic gold medalist. He is going for the gold in Sochi one more time. If he does tat would be awesome, because I picked him. Now you know about Bill Demong and Nordic combined. If you like the sport Nordic combined practice hard like Bill • Demong and maybe you will get into the Olympics. Who knows you might be better than him!

19. . • Woah! Who’s that speeding down the ice? That’s Mikaela Shiffren only age 17. Mikaela will be in the 2014 Olympics. Her first time. And she’s ready to win the gold. Born in Colorado. Born March 13,1995. Mikaela won worlds On December 29, 2011 Shiffren made her first World Cup podium at slalom in Lienz, Austria, in 2013 which lead her to the 2014 winter Olympics. Mikaela has won seven world cups. By:Olivia Fun facts • Won the world cup at age 15. • Enjoys playing tennis and also soccer. • Began skiing down her family driveway. • She is five foot seven inches. • Age 17 • Born March 13, 1995 • Born in Colorado

20. Ski Jumping By: Julia • Only men competed in ski jumpinguntil this year • There are three events: the individual normal hill, the individual large hill and the team event on the large hill. In the individual events each athlete gets two jumps • Winter Olympics since 1924. • Larger hill was added 40 years later. • 2014 Sochi Games will kick off the first-ever women’s Olympic competition in ski jumping. There will be four events in ski jumping . • Women’s and men’s individual normal hill competitions , men’s individual large hill, and the men’s team event. Skiers launch down the long ramp at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour until they are hurled into air. Skiers can reach distances up to 115 yards on the normal hill and 153 yards on a large hill. Once airborne, athletes must hold their skies in a V-shape before landing. • Five judges rate each jump on style (distance, from, and landing). • Skiers are also given points for the distance they travel from the edge of the take-off ramp to their landing spot.

21. Skeleton By: Peter Is that a skeleton in your closet? No, it’s actually a sled. • Skeleton first became a sport in 1892. It first entered the Olympics in 1928 at St.Moritz and again in 1948. But the sport was removed from the Olympics and did not return until 2002 as both a men’s and women’s sport. • Skeleton is a sport that one person per each team goes on a skeleton sled and sled races down an icy hill. The sport is similar to the sport of luge but the difference is in luge you sled feet first on your back down the hill, but in skeleton you sled face first down the hill on your stomach. • Skeleton sleds got there name because the fiber glass sled’s parts look like a skeleton. Some types of equipment you use in skeleton are helmets; special shoes that help you push off the ice, and a racing suit. Over time the top Olympic teams in men skeleton are one the United States with two gold medals, two silver, and one bronze. In second is Canada with two gold medals, one silver, and no bronze. And in third Russia with one gold, no silver, and one bronze. • Now you know why skeleton is an amazingsport. So switch on the TV and watch the race!

22. Luge By: Brendan Luge, no it is not a fruit it is a Olympic sport. Luge first went into the Olympic sport in 1870. A luge is a small one or two person sled. Steering in luge you have to move your body right to left. Luge is a French word for sled. Out of the three sliding sports Luge is the most fast and dangerous. The lugers speed can get up to 87 mph. But the one time Manuel Pfister reached up to 95 miles per hour. It first started in 1870’s. Luge is timed by a thousandth of a second. The rules in Luge are: • Racers sit on the sled and push off the two handles fixed into the ice • Racers wear a spiked gloves, which they use on the surface of ice to gain acceleration • The athletes use their legs on shoulders to steer them in the right direction This is how you score in Luge: • The singles event goes on for two days and four races. • The luger with the fastest time combined time over the four runs wins • the doubles event is held in one day with two races • the fastest time combined both races wins

23. Tim Burke By Sarah W. If you like to watch the biathlon on you TV or in person there is one person who you should be cheering for Tim Burke. His first year in the biathlon was 1997 and he’s been a member of the national team since 2004.and this is how he got in to the sport “After competing in Nordic skiing since childhood at 13 Tim wanted to try biathlon and never looked back” Isn’t that exciting there is so much excitement going on. I bet your wondering how he qualified for the Olympics. Well he began in the 2006 games and also participated in the 2010; now he is going after the gold in 2014. And hopefully he gets the gold.

24. Ice Hockey by Jessica Thin blades ripping through the ice, massive crowd shouting, cold air pounding on you, rough stick goes up then powerfully back down, puck soars through the air, the crowd freezes, everyone is quiet. The puck hits the back of the net… the crowd goes wild! Mens Ice Hockey became a sport at the summer Olympic games moved to the winter Olympics Games in 1924. The U.S ice hockey team made history in 1960, when Czechoslovakian team to win the first U.S gold medal in ice hockey. Ice hockey is more than sticks and skates. Do you want to learn the rules of this exciting game? Well, • Teams cannot have more than six players during the game. • Skaters have to hold the positions • Similar to soccer, players must use a hockey stick and get the puck past the opposing teams goalie into the net, in order to score points Games include three 20- minute periods, with a 15-minute break after the first and second periods. Next you should know about the Gear: • Helmet- Protect your head. • Neck Guard- intended to reduce the potential for injury to the neck or throat by a puck or skate blade • Shoulder pads – shoulder pads are basically a vest. They protect the chest, ribs, solar plexus, spine, and shoulders against a flying puck. • Elbow pads – provides forearm and sometimes triceps against pucks and possibly sticks • Hockey jersey - covers the shoulder and elbow pads. Jerseys are color-coded and numbered for team and player identification. • Hockey gloves – keeps fingers from bending backwards, padding on the outside of the hands so if you get waked in the hand with a stick it wont hurt as much • Hockey pants – knee lengthed over sized shorts. Which incorporate thigh, hip and tailbone pads • Shin guards -protects your shin from being hit by a stick or puck. ( shin bone is closest to the skin. It will hurt very much if you get hit in the shin) • Mouth guards – many hockey players have missing front teeth because of the failure to protect teeth from knock downs and fights • Ice skates – helps you move faster on ice. They are like sneakers but have thin metal bar at the bottom ( known as blades) they help you glide through the ice. Imagine sliding through the ice in sneakers. It would be hard