the mad sports man

Calgary hosted these games.  they were held from February 13-28.  57 nations were at these games.  highlights include:  1.  Eddie "the Eagle" Edwards in ski jumping.  although he finished last, the "heroic failure" made him a popular person.  his performance had the International Ski Federation alter the rules to set minimum standards for future events.  2.  the debut of the Jamaican bobsled team.  the two man finished 30th and the four man crash.  the team pushed their sled across the finish line to cheers from the crowd.  3.  these were the first games to be extended to 15 (eventually 16 days).  4.  Christa Rothenburger of East Germany won the 1000m in speed skating, then won a silver in the team sprint in cycling in Seoul at the summer games, making her the only athlete to win a medal at a winter and summer games in the same year.  5.  Brian Orser of Canada and Brian Boitano of the U.S. faced off in "the battle of the Brians" in figure skating.  Boitano

Sarajevo, Yugoslavia was host for these games.  they were held from February 8 - 19.  49 nations were at these games.  highlights include:   1.  the Olympic flag was raised upside down by mistake.  2.  the women's 20 km in nordic skiing was added.  3.  Jure Franko of Yugoslavia wins his nations first winter Olympic medal - a silver in the giant slalom.  4.  twin brothers Phil and Steve Mahre won gold and silver in the slalom.  5. Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean scored all perfect scores for their artistic impression in the ice dance free skate.  hasn't been matched since.  6.  Austria wins only one medal at these games - a bronze.  they are normally a winter powerhouse. 7.  disabled skiing was a demonstration sport here.  Canada won 4 medals (2g, 1s, 1b) at these games.  tomorrow - the 1988 winter games.  here is the logo for the '84 games. 

Lake Placid, New York hosted the 1980 games.  they were held from February 14 to 23.  37 nations were at the games.  highlights include:  1. the "miracle on ice" happened.  the U.S. - made up of mostly college players - beat the Soviet Union 4-3 in the medal round.  they would clinch gold against Finland in the last game.  2.  Eric Heiden wins FIVE gold in speed skating (500m, 1000m 1500m 5000m and 10000m).  Heiden became:  the first to win all five speed skating events, the first of three to win five gold in individual events at a single games (summer or winter) and the only one to win five at a winter games.  3.  Hanni Wenzel of Liechtenstein won gold in the womens slalom and giant slalom, making Liechtenstein the smallest country to produce an Olympic champion.  4. Thomas Wassburg of Sweden and Juha Mieto of Finland was in the most dramatic duel of the games with Wassburg edging Mieto by 0.01s in the 15km cross country event.  5.  the Peoples Republic of China entered for

the 1976 winter Olympics were held in Innsbruck Austria and held from February 4 - 15.  37 nations went to these games.  they were originally awarded to Denver in 1970.  voters there rejected funding for the games in 1972, so for the first and only time, a city that was awarded the games had to reject them.  Denver withrew on November 15, 1972.  the IOC offered the games to Whistler B.C., but they declined due to a change in government.  Salt Lake offered but was denied.  Innsbruck offered and accepted.  highlights include:  1. Rosi Mittermaier of West Germany came within 0.13 second of sweeping the alpine skiing golds.  she wins 2g and 1s. 2. Tatiana Averina of the Soviet Union wins four medals, while the U.S. win six medals in speed skating.  3. the East German 4 man bobsled team wins the first of three consecutive Olympic golds.  4. the Soviet Union wins its 4th straight hockey gold (matched by Canada's womens hockey team later).  Canada did not send a team for the second Olympi

the 1972 winter games were held in Sapporo Japan and were held from February 3 - 13.  35 nations went to these games.  highlights include:  1. Japan wins its first ever gold in the winter Olympics AND swept the ski jumping 70m (current K-90 normal hill).  Yukio Kasaya (gold), Akitsugu Konno (silver) and Seiji Aochi (bronze) were on the podium.  2.  Anne Henning (a gold in the 500m and bronze in the 1000m) and Dianne Holum (gold in the 1500m and silver in the 3000m) of the U.S. won half of the U.S. medals and had the best showing in speed skating to date.  3.  a gold medal winner wore wooden skis for the last time in cross country skiing.  since then they have used mostly fibreglass synthetics. 4.  luge has its only tie in the winter Olympics in the mens doubles.  5. Wojciech Fortuna won Poland's first winter games gold in ski jumping.  6.  all 9 of the Netherlands medals came in speed skating (4g 3s, 2b).  it would be another 26 years before they repeat that performance.  Canada wo

the 1968 winter games were held in Grenoble France and were held from February 6 - 18.   37 nations took part in these games.  highlights include: 1. Peggy Fleming wins the U.S. only gold medal in figure skating.  2.  Jean-Claude Killy sweeps the alpine events, one of which had one of the most great controversies of all time.  Karl Schranz of Austria claimed a mysterious man crossed paths with him, causing Schranz to stop.  he was given a restart, to which Schranz beat Killy's time.  a jury of appeals threw out Shranz time to give Killy a gold.  3.  the first mascot appears here - although unofficially. Schuss was a styled skier. 4.  bobsled had to be held before sunrise and end after dawn because the track had insufficient cooling systems and the ice could not hold in sunlight.  5. the Bugler's Dream was used for the television coverage for ABC and was also shown in color.  6.  first games to have doping control tests.  Canada won 3 medals (1g, 1s, 1b) at these games.  tomorro

the 1964 games were in Innsbruck Austria and were held from January 29 - February 9.  36 nations were at these games.  highlights include: 1. Lidia Skoblikova won all the women's speed skating events (500m, 1000m, 1500m, 3000m).   first male to do this comes in 1980 when Eric Heiden does it.  2.  Canada wins a gold in 4 man bobsled.  3.  Euginio Monti of Italy becomes the first recepient of the Pierre de Coubertin award for sportsmanship.  he had loaned Britains Tony Nash and Robin Dixon an axle bolt to replace the one that had been broken.  the Brits end up winning gold and Monti took bronze. 4.  Knut Johannesen of Norway wins the 5000m speedskating event in a then world record time of 7:38.40.  5.  ski jumping added a second event while luge makes its debut at these games.  Canada wins 3 medals (1g, 1s, 1b) at these games.  tomorrow - the 1968 games.  here is the logo for the 1964 games. 

the 1960 winter Olympics were held in Squaw Valley California and were held from February 18 - 28.  30 nations were at these games.  Squaw Valley was a tiny ski resort with very minimal resourses (it had one chair lift, two rope tows and a fifty room lodge) when it was chosen.  highlights include:  1.  biathlon and women's speed skating debuts here.  2.  the U.S. wins gold in hockey, beating Canada (silver) and the Soviet Union (bronze)  in the process. 3. speed skating, while still being held outdoors, featured artificial ice, a first here. 4.  figure skating held indoors at the Olympics for the first time.   Canada won four medals (2g, 1s, 1b) at these games.  tomorrow - the 1964 games.  here is the logo for these games. 

the 1956 winter Olympics were in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy and were held from Janyary 26 - February 5.  32 nations were at these games.  these games were the first to be televised.  other highlights has 1.  Toni Sailer of Austria became the first person to sweep all three alpine skiing events in a single games. 2.  figure skating was held outdoors for the last time. 3.  the Soviet Union took hockey gold for the first time, having to beat the U.S. (silver) and Canada (bronze) in the final round to claim it. (there was no playoff round as of yet).  Canada won 3 medals (1s, 2b). tomorrow - the 1960 games.  here is the logo for these ones.

the 1952 winter Olympics were held in Oslo, Norway and were held from February 14 - 25.  30 nations attended these games.  highlights include: 1. Canada winning hockey gold.  this would be the last one until 2002.  2. a woman declared the games open for the first time.  3. Wim van der Voort and Kees Broekman won the Netherlands first ever speed skating medals.  van der Voort won silver in the 1500, while Broekman won silver in the 5000m and 10000m events.  Hjalmar Andersen of Norway won gold in all three of those events.  4.  womens 10k was added to the cross country skiing program.  5.  bandy was a demostration sport here.  Canada won 2 medals (1g, 1b) at these games.  tomorrow - the 1956 games.  here is the logo for the '52 games. 

The Eagles are Super Bowl bound after blowing out The Vikings 38-7.  They will face The Patriots in two weeks from tonight in Minnesota.

The Patriots are going to The Super Bowl after coming from behind to beating Jacksonville 24-20.  They get either Minny or Philly.  That game starts in half an hour.

St. Moritz, Switzerland hosted for the second time.  they were held from January 30 - February 8. 28 nations participated here.  they were chosen because:  1. they were a neutral nation during the war and 2.  they still had the facilities from the 1928 games.  they were chosen to host in 1946.  barely enough time to get organized.  highlights include:  Canada winning hockey gold (again), Barbara Ann Scott becoming the first - and only - Canadian to win women's figure skating gold.  hockey and figure skating had shared the same outdoor ice.  there had been two hockey games the day before, so the ice was pretty beat up (there was no zambonis as of yet), so Barbara's routine had to be altered. Norway and Sweden dominated speed skating, winning 9 out of 12 medals.  they had done poor in speed skating prior to these games, but with Europe at a stand still during the war, they had the resourses to be able to fine tune their skating. military patrol and winter pentathalon were demonst

the 1936 winter games were held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.  they were held from February 6-16.  28 nations took part here.  highlights include:  1. alpine skiing makes it's first appearance as the combined (the downhill and slalom that year).  2.  Ivan Ballangrud won three of four speedskating races (500m, 5000m and 10000m.  got a silver in the 1500m). 3.  Sonja Henie wins her third straight gold in figure skating.  4.  Switzerland wins the four man bobsled in a time of 5:19.85.  5 Great Britain upsets Canada in hockey.  Canada won one medal at these games - the silver in hockey.  WWII postpones the games in 1940 and 1944.  tomorrow will be the 1948 games.  below is the logo for these games. 

today marks the 60th anniversary of the formation of the Canadian Football League.  the IRFU (Interprovincial Rugby Football Union) became the eastern conference (1960) then the east division in and the WIFU (Western Interprovinial Football Union, became western conference in 1960) became the west division after both conferences merged in 1981.   here is the first CFL logo.

the 1932 winter games were held in Lake Placid, New York and were held from February 4-15.  17 nations participated in these games.  highlights include:  Governer Franklin Roosevelt opened the games.  he becomes president a few months later.  Sonja Henie wins her second of three straight Olympic golds in figure skating, Eddie Eagan became the only Olympian to win a gold in both the winter and summer games (bobsled and boxing).  oddly enough the bobsledding was held after the games due to unseasonably warm weather the week before.  Canada won 7 medals (1g, 1s, 5b) at these games.  tomorrow - the 1936 winter games.  below is the logo for the 1932 games.

the 1928 winter Olympics were in St. Moritz, Switzerland and were held from February 11 to 19th.  25 nations participated in these games.  the weather was a big highlight here. the opening ceremonies were held in a blizzard. the rest of the Olympics were held in warmer weather.  it led to a cancellation of one event when temperatures got as high as 25c.  eep.  other highlights has Sonja Henie winning her first gold and host Switzerland won a medal - a bronze.  that is the lowest output by a host nation.  Canada won one medal - a hockey gold - at these games.  tomorrow will be the 1932 winter olympics.  below is the poster for these games.

the countdown to PyeongChang is on.  today is the 1924 winter olympics.  the first winter olympics were held in Chamonix France from January 25 to February 5.  it was originally called "international week of winter sport."  16 nations participated in these games.  highlights include:  the first gold won by Charles Jewtraw of the United States in speedskating, winning the 500m event, Canada winning gold in hockey.  they were the second to "defend" their 1920 summer games gold (who knew eh).  Gillis Grafstrom of Sweden was the first winning gold in figure skating.  Sonja Henie was in her first Olympics at 11 years old.  although she finished last, she was popular with the fans and wins gold in the next three games she is in.  Canada finished with one medal - the gold in hockey.  here is the poster for the games.

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir.  they are the first duo to carry the Canadian flag at an opening ceremonies.  they will be formally announced live shortly.  now i can't wait for the Olympics to start..

The Vikings just scored a last second touchdown as they beat The Saints 29-24.  They will be heading to Philly next Sunday to play The Eagles for The NFC championship.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are making their first trip to The AFC championship game since 1999 after beating Pittsburgh 45-42.  They will go to New England to face The Patriots next Sunday afternoon.

This wasnt much of a game.  New Enfland just beat Tennessee 35-14 and will host the AFC Championship game against either Pittsburgh or Jacksonville. That game is tomorrow.

Game just ended.  Philadelphia will host the NFC Championship Game after barely beating Atlanta 15-10.  They host either New Orleans or Minnesota.  That Game is tomorrow.  Coming up has Tennessee at New England.

we are a month to the Olympic games.  damn a month away already.  looking forward to them.  time difference is going to hurt though.  16 hours between PyeongChang and here.  loads of medals to be handed out, world records - and Olympic records - could fall, and some wonderful moments  to be had.   Opening ceremonies will start after 8pm PyeongChang time, which will be 4am Edmonton time.

The Saints are heading to Minnesota after hanging on to beat The Panthers 31-26.  That game is next weekend along with Atlanta at Philly.

Kaitlyn Lawes and John Morris will be representing Canada at the winter Olympics next month in mixed curling. Mixed curling is a New sport. Woohoo.

In a low scoring game, Jacksonville beats Buffalo 10-3.  Jacksonville will go to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers while Tennessee goes to New England.  Both game are next weekend.  Coming up has Carolina at New Orleans.

The Falcons goes to L.A. and beats the Rams 26-13.  They will go to Philadelphia to play the Eagles next weekend.  Tomorrow has Jacksonville vs Buffalo and Carolina at New Orleans.

The Titans were trailing 21-3 and came back to beat The Chiefs 22-21 in this wild card.  They will go to either Pittsburgh or New England, depending on The Jaguars vs Bills game tomorrow.  Coming up has Atlanta at L.A.

Canada just beat Sweden 3-1 to win their 17th world junior championship and their 6th in 9 years. Their first championship since 2015.

This one wasn't in doubt as the U.S. blew out the Czechs.  They win their 6th Bronze.  Coming up - Canada vs Sweden.

The Czechs had a 1-0 lead.  Canada then scores 3 straight power play goals en route to a 7-2 win.  They play Sweden for gold tomorrow night.  Last time They played for gold was 2009.  Last time both group winners played for gold was also 2009.  The Czechs play the U.S. for bronze tomorrow.   Wow this tournament is almost done.

Sweden wins this Semi final 4-2 over the U.S.  3 goals in 2:08 did it - including the last two shorthanded on the same power play.  The U. S. got two late but not enough.  Sweden play for gold tomorrow, the  U.S. for bronze.

This went to a shootout.  Denmaek wins the shootout and the game 3-2 and avoids Relegation.   They finish 9th.  Belarus gets relegated to division 1A.  Kazakhstan is up from there and is in next years tournament.

The U.S. beat Russia 4-2 and will face Sweden in the  semis. Oilers draft pick Kailer Yamamoto scored one of the U.S. goals.  Semi final are Thursday.

Sweden beay Slovakia in a good one 3-2.  They will face either the U.S. or Russia in the semis.

This one ended not that long ago and Canada beating Switzerland 8-2.  They wikl play the Czech Rep. on Thursday.

Game one of this had Denmark beating Belarus 5-4.  Game two is Thursday.

This went to a shootouy and the Czechs pull it out, beating Finland 4-3.  They will face either Canada oe Switzerland in the semis on Thursday.

happy new year to all.  a chilly beginning to 2018 here.  i heard it's supposed to get to -9.  yippee heat wave.  was in the mid -20s the past week. and extreme wind chills (-40s).  ouch.  hopefully 2018 is prosperous.