I tried so hard to stay awake during the game. I woke up in OT. So bummed.
@kelsmom I need to watch the Johnny and Tara. I watched the entire event yesterday with no commentary. I really enjoy their insight.
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The age of Olympic competitors is set not by the IOC, but by the governing body of each Olympic sport. For the Biathlon the age is 22 and for alpine skiers itâs 17. The governing body of skating is the International Skating Union. In the US, itâs US Figure Skating.
I think the Russian figure skater trusted her coach and did whatever the coach told her to do.
Yes, that is true. But still does not make it right, IMO.
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I agree. I think the minimum age should be 16 for all Olympic sports.
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And that trust seems well places as she gets to skate. There are no punishments with teeth, just a scolding.
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I agree with the sentiment that Kamila shouldnât have been permitted to skate - it is outrageous. However, I did feel terrible seeing her face crumple as she skated off the ice after her performance. There is no doubt in my mind that she has been manipulated since whenever she got involved in ice skating.
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The WaPo articles I linked above about her coach paint a portrait of a manipulative monster.
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The ESPN article that I read this morning said that the US Menâs Ice Hockey team was the top seed. I wasnât aware of that, so the loss to Slovakia was an upset.
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This is exactly why they should have come down really hard on her. Theyâve basically given Russia (and other countries) the green light to force drugs on minors to win.
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You can feel heartbroken for the child and also feel that the entire skating competition, and maybe others where the ROC is involved, is a complete joke.
And itâs being reported that she tested positive for 3 heart medications. Is there no shame?
As its been written over the past few days, now Olympians who trained all their lives will receive their skating medals via UPS, FeEx or whatever means of transportation.
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The article was horrifying. I have nothing but sympathy for these young skaters.
But there should be punishment because of the integrity of the sport. Which after this debacle and the recent documentary about the pairs skating scandal (on Peacock) seems dubious as the sport is now feeling very tainted.
I do not know the solution where there are no consequences for a country that has state sponsored cheating As long as the skating union permits it and the IOC permits it, then I guess we will have to accept that itâs an unfair, corrupt sport. Beautiful corrupt and accept it at that.
Let us not forget that USA gymnastics was equally exploiting young women. And only because a few were brave enough to speak out, have they tried to change things.
The losers are these young women exploited for the glory of their country and coaches. Their health and well being is secondary. And this young girl will be thrown out just like the ones that came before her.
And I truly wonder how this girl is still in 1st place despite a fall in the short program. Itâs almost like it was decided before she stepped onto the ice.
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Not really an upset- the bracket team USA was in was a toss up because the NHL players werenât there, so any team could have been a top seed. The US just happened to win their games in the first round. Had they faced Finland or ROC in the first round, they might have lost a bunch a games. Those teams were stacked with KHL players.
US and Canada were probably the most adversely affected with the NHL not going and not surprisingly, are both out.
As an aside: Dear Team Canada, your colors for your jerseys were awful and hard to read. Next time do better!
I donât really follow hockey, but when the top seed is âstunned,â per ESPN, that sounds like an upset to me. But you can describe it how ever you want.
But what I do know is that Team USA has two players from the current Michigan hockey team:
And Michigan has two other current players playing for Team Canada.
At one point this college season, Michigan was #1 in the country, now #2, so Team USA has NHL level talent, but young.
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Valieva should NOT have been allowed to continue skating since she failed the drug test. That being said, her coaches should be punished too. I donât know if the IOC has the power to ban a coach from competitions because that is what should happen to Valievaâs coach.
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They absolutely have that power, but it only applies to coaching during the games.
As someone who works in health care, what bother me most about this situation has nothing to do with the Olympics. It has to do with doing the exact opposite of what sports should do - encourage safe, healthy management of bodies. And the media around it all which warranted - what message does this send to children/teens about medication in general and âcaring adultsâ administering something like HEART MEDICATION to someone under false pretense.
Adults can be so messed up. Itâs child abuse.
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ESPN is dramatizing a bit. Team USA did great and the college guys got a great experience. Itâs not easy to throw a team together and have them play as well as they did. The game could have gone either way. If they would have lost to China- that would have been stunning. Iâm very proud of them.
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Now hereâs some âOlympic spiritâ that even I can get behind 
:
If you havenât seen it, be sure to check out the Menâs Slopestyle event. Itâs the one I like the best of all the Free style skiing events. Worth it to watch.
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The Russian girl should not be allowed to skate. But, countries should not be allowed to force drugs on minors and they should be required to treat their athletes wellâŠ