Olympics Open With Tragedy

The 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics opened today, with the world coming together as only the Olympics can do it. But the death of a 21 yeard old luger from the Republic of Georgia scars a Games that offered so much promise for the nation of Canada and the world.

By now, you've seen the video of Nodar Kumaritashvilli crashing and going airborne at the Whistler Sliding Course. Nadar apparently did not have much experience on the sled when compared to the other Olympic competitors. Georgia's Sports Minister maintains the young man was quite capable on the track. We'll never be totally sure if a lack of experience led to Nodar's death.

But a few things will have to be investigated. The track has drawn complaints from athletes as being TOO fast. One competitor has likened it to "being used as a crash dummy." Accidents were the norm the last few days of training. Even the reigning world champion from Italy had a crash. A Romanian woman was knocked unconscious. So you have to wonder if the track was made only for the thrill of the crowd and the oohs and aahs of a world wide TV audience.

Canadian officials will certainly be blasted for the lack of practice time given to athletes on the track. As I heard about the hockey rink on WFAN today, the same may hold true for lugers and bobsledders: Canada, as the host country, may be monopolizing the training schedule to please the home team and home crowds.

If either of the above theories prove true, it damages the spirit of competition and unity that we see every 4 years. It is fun to see athletes from around the globe come together. We can use such positive attitudes in today's world. But if the Canadian Olympic Officials are proven at fault in ANY way, it may be a cold day in hell before our neighbors to the North host an internantional event.