SKELETON Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics – February

What is the Skeleton?

What is the Skeleton?  The skeleton is a fast sliding winter sport, in which an individual person lies face down and rides a small sled down a frozen track. A strong start is very critical to having a successful skeleton run and wearing a pair of spiked shoes is recommended because skeleton athletes typically sprint alongside their sled for the first few seconds of a run, holding onto the sled with one hand before diving headfirst onto the sled.

What is the Skeleton?  Sled frames are required to be made of steel and can not include any type of steering or braking mechanisms. The base plate, however, may be made of plastics.  The handles and bumpers found along the sides of the sled are there to help secure the athlete during a run. Riders can reach up to 120km/h.

History of the Skeleton

 The skeleton can be traced all the way back to 1882 when it first originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland as a spinoff of the popular British sport called Cresta sledding.  While toboggan tracks were not uncommon at the time, the Swiss track had added the challenge of curves and bends which distinguished it from the typically known tracks anywhere else. Also, the skeleton is run on the same track used by bobsleds and luge, while Cresta is run on Cresta-specific sledding tracks only.

History of the Skeleton  Just like the Skeleton, the Cresta toboggan does not have any steering or braking mechanism, but Cresta riders are allowed use rakes on their boots in addition to shifting body weight to help steer and brake.  When the Olympics were held at St. Moritz, the Cresta Run was included, making it the only two times skeleton like events were included as an event in the Olympics before the permanent addition of the skeleton at the Salt Lake City Olympics in Bob Bogie riding the first Cresta sled on Mt. Pisgah, c

Competing Countries

 There were 47 athletes coming from 17 nations participating in the skeleton event, with number of athletes in parentheses.

Competing Countries  Australia (3) Austria (3) Canada (4) Germany (5) Great Britain (4) Greece (1) Ireland (1) Italy (1) Japan (3) Latvia (3) New Zealand (2) Romania (2) Russia (6) South Korea (2) Spain (1) Switzerland (1) United States (5)

Skeleton Results

Women  1-Elizabeth Yarnold (GBR)  2 Noelle Pikus-Pace (USA)  3 Elena Nikitina (RUS)  4 Katie Uhlaender (USA)  5 Olga Potylitsina (RUS) In the women's skeleton event, Sarah Reid came 7 th. Elizabeth Yarnold winning gold at the Sochi 2014 Olympics.

Skeleton Results Men  1 Alexander Tretiakov (RUS)  2 Martins Dukurs (LAT)  3 John Daly (USA)  4 Matt Antoine (USA)  5 Sergei Chudinov (RUS) In the men’s skeleton event, John Fairbairn tied for 7 th. Alexander Tretiakov celebrating his win.

Canadian Medalists

 At the Turin 2006 Olympics in Italy, Canada won a total of 3 medals from competing in the skeleton. We received a bronze medal from Mellisa Hollingsworth, a silver medal from Jeff Pain, and a gold medal from Duff Gibson. Jeff Pain interacting with Canadian fans after his run in Vancouver.

Canadian Medalists  Canada’s most recent win was from Jon Montgomery at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics where he won a gold medal. Jon Montgomery became one of the best-known Canadian athletes of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games when after winning gold, he made a triumphant walk through Whistler Village with a pitcher of beer.

Canadian Medalists  Montgomery decided to take the season away from competing to focus on his sled development and techniques. Jon then returned in with the ultimate goal of defending his Olympic title in Sochi. Jon competing at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

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Morgan Cornwall History 421 Mr. MacClure March 3 rd 2014 Skeleton Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics