For the last couple of weeks, I have spent much of my free time watching the Winter Olympic Games. I enjoy both the Winter and the Summer Games, following the competition and excitement and drama for a solid two weeks, but the Winter Games are by far my favorite. (Since I had TiVo this year, I watched more of the games than I did four years ago.)

• Short track speed skating is definitely my favorite winter sport. The speed with which the skaters skate is amazing! The strategy involved, the qualifying races, and the head-to-head competition make short track a more exciting sport to watch than long track. This year for the USA, Apolo Anton Ohno won two medals including the gold for the 500 meters and the USA team won bronze in the 5000 meters relay.
• I do not usually get too excited about the figure skating or ice dancing events, but this year was different. The new scoring system in these events brought more of a “sport” aspect to these events and made them more entertaining for me. The ice dancers Belbin and Agosto brought the USA its first-ever silver medal in the event.
• I first discovered ice hockey when I watched the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville. (I absolutely loved it, and for years after that I followed NHL hockey very closely.) I watched quite a few games this year. The USA hockey teams had a disappointing season: the women’s team received bronze after being upset by Sweden and the men’s team was eliminated in the quarterfinals.
• I enjoy watching the bobsled events. NBC ran a special during the events this year on Eugenio Monti, one of the most successful athletes in bobsled history. An Olympic gold medal eluded him for nearly two decades until he won gold in the two-man and the four-man in the 1968 Winter Games at the age of forty. (This year, Andre Lange of Germany became only the third man to win the gold medal in the two-man and the four-man in the same games.)