With the Olympics coming to an end and the Summer Olympics just a few months away, we would like to talk about the drama happening and also things you may not have known about the OlympicsWith the Olympics coming to an end and the Summer Olympics, we would like to talk about the drama happening and things you may not have known about the Olympics.
To start this off, we need to talk about Kamila Valieva, the 15-year-old Olympic figure skater for Russia. Kamila dominated in the Olympics and was the first woman to execute a quad; this is a jump with no more than five rotations. But, weeks before the Olympics, the athletes have to complete a drug test. Unfortunately, Kamila did not pass this drug test, and it came out that she had not only one drug in her system but three. Two of those drugs are not banned, but one is trimetazidine. Athletes use trimetazidine to improve endurance; this helps with endurance because it helps the heart work better. Because this drug helps with endurance is the reason for it becoming banned. This is not the first time Russia has been involved in drug scandals; athletes from Russia athletes aren’t allowed to compete in global events. Kamila could still compete, but an investigation is underway to decide if she will keep her medal. Kamila’s defense has stated that she came in contact with the banned drug through cross-contamination from a relative.
Next, we have to talk about former Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. She has recently gotten engaged on Valentine’s Day to her boyfriend, NFL player Jonathan Owens. The proposal was a surprise to Simone, and of course, she said yes. The couple has been talking about having a wedding out of the States, but it has not been confirmed where they will have the wedding. The ring was a three-carat oval diamond with F color and VVS2 clarity that was designed by jeweler ZoFrost. Simone did expect Jonathan to propose, but she had no idea that it was happening on Valentine’s Day. The couple is making wedding plans, and nothing is confirmed yet.
Now, we will be talking about how to try out for the Olympics and things you may not know about the Olympics. To compete in the Olympics, you first must comply with the Olympic Charter and the International Federation. To compete for Team USA, athletes must earn national quota spots to compete at each of these international, multi-sport events, which are then allocated to individual athletes and teams. Athletes are selected to fill these quota spots and represent Team USA at the Games based on a set of criteria and standards specific to their sport. Before competing, athletes must get a drug test done; if any drugs in their system are banned due to the drug improving their performance, they could get taken out of the Olympics.
Suppose you didn’t know this before the Olympics are expensive to produce. To produce the Olympics, it’ll cost billions of dollars. The host city uses public money to cover two kinds of expenses. The first is infrastructure, and this is to improve subway lines, building stadiums, and other facilities like the village. The second is operational cost, for example, immigration and customs, security, medical services, and sanitation. The Winter Olympics that just happened cost $3.9 billion. This cost of production may seem like a lot but compared to other Olympics like the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which cost $15.4 billion. Which is nothing compared to the 2014 Winter Olympics with a $51 billion cost of production. The Olympics also have a profit or loss, this is huge for the host city, which hopes to make a profit instead of a loss.
The Winter Olympics in Beijing has been a letdown. It is better than the Tokyo Summer Olympics because the athlete’s village is better. The problem with the Beijing Olympics is that the location and facilities are not the best. The facilities for the athletes are great and better than the Tokyo Olympics, but the facilities for the athletes that test positive for COVID are not great. With very little space to do anything and terrible meals, many athletes have taken to social media to voice their opinions. The athletes that test positive are supposed to get tested every day, but they did not get tested as often as they were expecting. Some of the athletes were stuck in quarantine even after the date they were supposed to be negative, only because they had not been tested yet. The location is even worse. Out of all of the places the Olympics could have been at, the producers or directors chose a location that could be taken as a nuclear power plant. Let’s hope that the next Olympics are better than this past one.
