The four year wait is finally coming to and end, and the 2014 Winter Olympics are about to begin in Sochi, Russia!
February 6th kickoffs the 2014 Winter Olympics, continuing through Sunday February 23rd. Catch snowboarding, freestyle skiing, figure skating that first Thursday, followed by the Opening Ceremony on Friday the 7th, where you’ll see some of the World’s greatest athletes gathered together to light the Olympic torch in Sochi. During the two week-long event we will see over 80 different countries compete in seven different winter sports, including bobsled, cross-country skiing, curling, hockey, and more.
Sending 230 athletes over to Sochi to compete, the United States will have the most athletes in attendance, making it the largest delegation to be sent in Winter Olympic history. The 105 women and 125 men, including 49 Olympic medalists, 13 of which have earned gold medals, will compete in all 15 disciplines in all seven sports. Todd Lodwick, a Nordic combined skier, will be competing in his sixth Olympic Winter Games, and Bode Miller and Billy Demong will each be making their fifth appearance. Miller only needs three medals to tie Apolo Ohno as the most decorated U.S. Olympian in the Winter Games.
In 2010 the U.S. took home a combined total of 37 medals, seven more than Germany, earning them the top spot in the Vancouver Olympics. Canada however, took home the most gold medals, with 14, but finished with a combined total of 26 medals, placing them in third place overall. The U.S. looks to make a strong appearance again this time around, returning 99 Olympians to Sochi.
We encourage you to take some time to watch all these amazing athletes as they take center stage to represent the United States!
You can catch all the action from all 98 events courtesy of NBCOlympics.com.
