2002 Winter Olympics

Highlights

Prior to these Olympics, a number of I.O.C members were forced to resign after it was uncovered that they had accepted inappropriately valuable gifts in return for voting for Salt Lake City to hold the Games. New IOC president Jacques Rogge and new CEO of the Salt Lake City games Mitt Romney[?] then had to stage the Games and contend with the public opinion backlash due to the scandal. The September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack also required a higher level of security than ever before provided for an Olympiad.

Controversies continued into the Games. In the first week the pairs figure skating competition resulted in the French judge's scores being thrown out and the Canadian team being awarded a second gold medal. Athletes in short-track speed skating and cross-country skiing were disqualified for various reasons as well, leading Russia and South Korea to file protests and threaten to withdraw from competition.

Competition highlights were biathlete Ole Einar Bjørndalen, winning gold in all four men's events (10 k, 12.5 k, 20 k, 4 x 7.5 relay), Simon Ammann[?] taking the double in ski jumping, Johan Muehlegg skiing towards three golds for Spain (though one was stripped after testing positive for darbepoetin), and skier Janica Kostelic[?] winning three golds and a silver (the first Winter Olympic medals ever for an athlete from Croatia).

Skeleton returned as a medal sport in these Olympics for the first time since 1948.

A feature of this Olympics has been the emergence of the so-called "extreme" sports, such as snowboarding, moguls and aerials, which appeared in previous Olympics but have captured greater public attention this year.

One of the most memorable stories of the event occurred at the short-track speed skating. Australian skater Steven Bradbury[?], an honest competitor who had previously won a bronze as part of a relay team but well off the pace of the medal favourites, cruised off the pace in his semifinal only to see his competitors crash into each other, allowing him through to the final. Bradbury was again well off the pace, but lightning struck again and all four other competitors crashed out in the final, leaving a jubilant Bradbury to take the most unlikely of gold medals, Australia's first in a Winter Olympic event.

Medals Awarded

Medal Standings (gold/silver/bronze total)

Germany (12/16/7 35)
United States of America (10/13/11 34)
Norway (11/7/6 24)
Canada (6/3/8 17)
Austria (2/4/10 16)
Russia (6/6/4 16)
Italy (4/4/4 12)
France (4/5/2 11)
Switzerland (3/2/6 11)
China (2/2/4 8)
Netherlands (3/5/0 8)
Finland (4/2/1 7)
Sweden (0/2/4 6)
Croatia (3/1/0 4)
Korea (2/2/0 4)
Bulgaria (0/1/2 3)
Estonia (1/1/1 3)
Great Britain (1/0/2 3)
Australia (2/0/0 2)
Czech Republic (1/0/1 2)
Japan (0/1/1 2)
Poland (0/1/1 2)
Spain (2/0/0 2)
Belarus (0/0/1 1)
Slovenia (0/0/1 1)

External links and references

The official website: http://www.saltlake2002.com

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