The past two weeks, when not at work or sleeping or wishing that my basement were a wee bit warmer, I've been completely hypnotised by the 2006 Winter Olympics.
I check the CBC website several times per hour day while at work. I eat my dinner with the chair pushed far back from the table so I can see the short track speed skating oval. I unwittingly stroke the head of our Boxer dog with what a casual observer might mistake to be affection, so distracted am I. Something, obviously, has my attention.
"Hey Si, could you please watch Declan there? He's standing on the edge of the couch with his back to the floor. It's scaring me half to death!"
"Yeah, sure honey. Oh MAN!! Here's the shot that won it for Gushue this morning. SIX points! Who scores six points in a single end of curling?! There's only eight rocks to begin with. That is so sweet! One more gold, baby!"
"Simon!! Your son!"
I think my wife and son will be glad to have it done. My wife for sure. Evenings can return to reruns of CSI on SpikeTV.
It will all be coming to a close this Sunday, and towards the end we'll be reminded to cast our eyes, our attention and a heightened sense of anticipation west, back across the Atlantic Ocean, to Vancouver for 2010.
Before it ends though, there are some medals that won't be handed out, and they really ought to be. Considering the diverse cultural spread that's evinced at an event like this, I fall in love with some of the names that pop up on the TV screen and for which it is obvious the colour commentators have been practising. Others I don't so much fall in love with as marvel at. Still others make me laugh.
During the final weekend of the 2006 Winter Olympics, here is my small selection of Olympic names that, in some way or other, tickled me for the past couple weeks. They have been sorted into bronze, silver and gold categories.
Bronze Medal Names
Kari Traa - Norwegian women's freestyle skier
(That's just way cool.)
Irina Slutskaya - Russian women's figure skater
(Oh, no reason really...)
Jeffrey Buttle - Canadian men's figure skater
(Sorry, but 'Buttle' makes me snicker.)
Tobias Angerer - German men's cross country skier
(If he had won the silver instead of the bronze would he have just been 'Anger'?)
Magnus Moan - Norwegian men's nordic combined
(Nordic combined what?)
Roar Ljokelsoey - Norwegian men's ski jumper
(Is there a cooler first name than 'Roar'?)
Only if it's...
Duff Gibson - Canadian men's skeleton
(Named after pretend beer and Canadian rye whiskey. Totally sweet.)
Silver Medal Names
Markku Uusipaavalniemi - Finnish men's curling skip
(Name with the highest WTF?! factor. He's just showing off with the vowels.)
Anja Schneiderheinze - German women's bobsled brakeman
(Her last name has the meat... and the sauce to spice it.)
Kjersti Buaas Oe - Norwegian women's snow boarder
(Anyone daring enough to have a last name devoid of consonants is worthy of mention.)
Brad Gushue - Canadian men's curling skip
(His last name being comically topical to his sport is what bumps him from a bronze to a silver.)
Gold Medal Names
Dordi Nordby - Norwegian women's curling skip
(Her name gets funner to say the faster you say it.
It's even funner if you say Dordi Nordby of Norway. Try it.)
Arne Dankers (Are-nuh Donkers) - Canadian men's speed skater
(Even as I type this I can't stop saying it out loud to myself ad nauseum.)
Manli Wang - Chinese women's speed skater
(I would have had to come up with something better than a gold medal if she were a guy.)
Loved your take on the names. If you awarded team names, I'm sure Punsalin and Swallow would have taken top honors, even though they are no longer competing.
I would like to thank Canada for Tanith Delbin, the ice dancing Canadian-turned-American who got her citizenship just in time to help win silver. Sure, it was ice dancing, but this year the US needs all the help we can get.
I still can't believe Lindsey Jacobellis lost snowboard cross gold by showing off at the end. Sheesh.
Posted by: Mark | Saturday, 25 February 2006 at 06:23 PM
Manli Wang!!
LOL!!! Oh my God that's too funny!!
Once she get's to old for the olympics she can get together with Magnus Moan and make a porn movie. :-)
Posted by: geogirl | Saturday, 25 February 2006 at 06:47 PM