XIII Winter Olympics — Roleplay thread

[Barisea]

Barisean News Station

February 20th-Interview with Daniel Brown, Jack Davis, Samuel Martin, and Thomas Ahohen


Speed Skater Samuel Martin, who will be performing in the Olympics tomorrow.

Reporter-"I'm here today, the second day of the Olympics, in the Olympic Village, with Barisean Athletes Daniel Brown, Jack Davis, Samuel Martin, and Thomas Ahohen, all of whom will be participating tomorrow in the men's 500m speed skate."

R-"These men will be the first of any Bariseans to compete, and we are all very excited for them. They are from all over Barisea, being from Finland, Sweden, and Norway. Why don't you introduce yourselves?"

Ahohen-"Alright. I'm Thomas Ahohen, and this is my only event." *Hands the mike to Samuel Martin*

Martin-" I'm Samuel Martin, sam for short, and I am excited. This is also my only event." *Hands the mike to Jack Davis*

Davis-"I am Jack Davis, and I will also be competing in the men's individual figure skating." *Hands the mike to Daniel Brown*

Brown-"Daniel here, like all but Jack, this is my only event." *Returns mike to reporter*

R- "So, what is it like to be here at the Olympics?"

A-"Kinda exciting"

M-"Yeah, but also nerve racking. I mean, we are here, at THE Olympics!"

D-"Hey, Barisean Pride, right? let's go out there and win!"

B-"After we have a good night's sleep, that is"

R-"Alright! I won't take up any more of your time."

M-"It was nice talking to you!"

*Reporter waves and walks through the village*

R-"Martin has had the best record so far, 1st on the national level, and Ahohen is second best. We should have a good show tomorrow. And good night from the Olympic Village."

[Liventia]

Charles Hewitt looked across the table. His protégé, Caleb Stevens, sat across from him, poking at his food, nerves having gotten the better of him.

Tomorrow was the big day. Caleb Stevens, 23 years old, unfancied newcomer to the sport of luge. Second—yes, second—in the Olympic Winter Games after two runs, behind GoldBot from Kriegiersen. (Hewitt wondered, with some incredulity, whether this was the same GoldBot entered in other sports at the Games, or if those were different male Kriegiersen robots also named 'Gold'.)

"You should probably try to get some of that down you," nodded the 40-year-old Hewitt, the Liventian luge head coach.

Stevens shouldn't have been here though. Two years earlier, during Liventia's unfortunate absence from the 12th Games in Prescott, he'd watched the luge on TV and been hooked. The youngster, in his final year of university in Neverend, went to the city's Olympic sliding centre for an open trial. He crashed, badly, suffering a broken neck. Studies put on hold, sporting career seemingly dead in the water.

Two months later, he was back at school. Four months further removed, he was back at the track—and showing raw speed that put him on Hewitt's radar almost immediately. Hewitt had fond memories of the National Sled Centre, and for good reason. At the Eighth Games (hosted by City Centre but with the sliding events at the existing Neverend track), the then-30-year-old became the first Liventian athlete to win a medal in luge. Not just that, but it was gold in the singles. Which he then backed up by winning the doubles competition with Michael Staines.

Fast-forward a year and a half, and now Stevens was the Olympian. He'd done well enough in national competitions to be fast-tracked into the elite performance squad, and although he was nowhere near the finished article, Hewitt knew it was time for the big test. "Come on, lad, eat up, you'll need it for tomorrow."

**
Mount Buckley Sliding Centre, after Stevens' third run

"Okay, Cal. That was a fifty-one-seven. Not bad, but we know you can do better. It's close, and we've seen everyone make mistakes over their runs yesterday and it'll happen again today. We really need to push next run, okay mate?"

Stevens got off the luge and caught his breath. "Fifty-one-seven? What did that stupid thing," he asked, referring to the robot, "manage?"

"Fifty-one-seven as well. It's close, as I said. He's still ahead by that one-tenth or so. Come, get off the track."

The youngster, with his shock of short light brown hair, clambered into the holding zone, refusing to acknowledge the robot in the waiting area for the competition leader as he passed.

"I still don't get how they allow these… things… to compete," Stevens complained. "Oh shit." He'd clocked the Vilitan Osterrazi Onalinto doing his third run on one of the TVs. "That guy's fast. Think he's on for sub-point-five here."

He was right. Onalinto clocked 51.499 to move into the lead, with his second sub-51.5-second run of the competition. It meant, at best, Stevens could only expect to take to the track third-from-last in the final run.

**
"Okay, Caleb. You've worked so hard for this. It's not in your hands, we know. Just put together a solid run, yeah? Good luck, buddy."

Stevens nodded. The current leader was Caeso North, who'd totalled 3:26.699 from his four runs. Mattijana's Matej Zadinov was in silver medal position, on .758. 51.931—which would be his slowest run of the four, if he clocked that—would put Stevens into provisional second. Anything better than 51.872 would move him into the winner's circle, at least temporarily.

He sat down on his sled and took a deep breath. This is it. He dug his spiked gloves into the ice and began his start procedure. From here, for the next 52 seconds, it would all be down to him.

51.674 seconds later, he'd crossed the finish line. Provisional first, with just two athletes left. A bronze medal guaranteed.

Hewitt met him at the bottom of the track, his face contorted in sheer delight. Stevens didn't have the time to get off his sled. He was engulfed in hugs from his support team, and he figured he'd done enough to beat 51.872.

GoldBot went next. If the robot could manage a 51.768, Stevens' hopes of gold would be over. He walked into the leaders' waiting area with Hewitt as they looked up at the monitors. An error at turn four. A big tap at turn six. The running clock in the lower right was red. By the time the run was over, Stevens knew he had at least silver. Barely-contained joy, not least at having beaten a fucking robot.

But there was still one obstacle—not that Stevens considered it an obstacle, he was happy to be here, let alone on the podium—in the way. Onalinto had put down the second-fastest run of the overall top five men in run three.

The Vilitan had to better 51.901 and gold would be his. Surely it was in the bag? He knew this course inside out, having been based in Prescott for two years. He'd not gone slower than 51.7 all week in training and competition.

Stevens noticed the camera was on him again. He waved, and mumbled something in its direction as a greeting to his mates watching back home. The director cut back to Onalinto, who was beginning his start.

And then…

Mayhem. Onalinto had an issue with one of his gloves. He was already past the timing marker, and slow out of the gate. Stevens couldn't believe what he was watching. But as the run wore on, the intermediates started to come down. Still red, but growing ever closer to green. +0.291 seconds. +0.201. +0.148. +0.097… then Onalinto crossed the line.

Stevens and Hewitt caught their breaths simultaneously. 51.938. +0.037. Caleb Stevens was the Olympic champion. Just like his coach, five Games previously.

[Ioudaia]

"Hi," she said, smiling. "I'm sorry, I don't think we've been introduced. Maria Schtenko..."

Kyra started beaming as soon as Maria started to speak, and as soon as she finished, Kyra replied with a fangirl's, "Oh, wow! Great to meet you! I'm Kyra Glezos." If she wasn't so conscious of being on the world stage, she would have squealed with joy. A little composure, Kyra! She's just the competition now. "These are my teammates, the Ioudaian biathlon--"

Kyra would have gladly made all the introductions, but she was cut off by a babble of voices: "Phyllis bat Ilana. You've been a great inspiration." "Amryis ben Hillel, good to meet you." "Doxiadis, Gelon Doxiadis. Hello!"

After a respectable pause, Peneleos gave Maria a formal nod. "I'm Peneleos ben Chadad. Good to meet you, Ms. Schtenko. You're a great competitor. I've studied your shooting extensively; it's good these competitions involve only shooting at targets." He smiled graciously: the way she shot, she'd make an excellent sniper, and would be a serious competitor ... or ally ... on the battlefield as well as the range.

Peneleos then made a two-handed introductory gesture towards Tomer. "And this is our coach, Tomer Simcha. We owe everything to him." Tomer gave him a doubtful sidelong glance. "OK, maybe we owe 55% to him." The Ioudaians chuckled, and Tomer started to speak while they quieted. "As they've said, you've been a big influence on our new team. It's an honor to meet you."

[Kalosia]

Kalosia u l'Olimpiade d'Invernu
Official coverage of the XIII Winter Olympic Games by Lë Punto Kotidianu

Lë soñu Kalosianu naviga traversu l'akwe žatšate / The Kalosian Dream Sails through Frozen Waters

Alešandru Kaľari had lead the contingent of Kalosian athletes as they walked into the Opening Ceremony on Sunday night, but together with fellow figure skater Mišela Kote, the two lead the Short Program segment of Ice Dancing. They walked off the ice carrying an impressive 78.99 points from the judges, bringing the nation 3rd in the team progressive temporary standings. The two have now become household names in the island nation, with high hopes that they can place a podium finish in any of the events that they grace with their presence.

Individually, Alešandru finished 3rd in the Men's Individual Short Program, with a stunning score of 82.68. Mišela, meanwhile, came 14th in the Women's Individual Short Program, with 62.55 points. Despite that, Kalosia still stands 4th in the team trophy standings. Speaking for Lë Punto Kotidianu, Alešandru stated that they (i.e. the Kalosian Olympic Team in Figure Skating) will do anything to maintain high standings throughout the Games.

La Kalosia sul žatšu, el disku ula porta dël rival / Kalosia on Ice, and the Puck in the Rival's Goal

While some athletes have the chance to win multiple medals in different events, almost two-thirds of the Kalosian Olympic Team will only have the chance to win one medal to be shared among 19 teammates. The Kalosian Men's and Women's Ice Hockey Teams consist of 20 players each and make up 40 of the 67 athletes competing for us at the Winter Games this year. Although the qualification stage has only just begun, the results so far look promising. The Men's team has defeated the team from North Prairie 1-0, while the Women's have beat Taeshan by 2-0. Although nothing is set in stone yet, if this keeps up then we can see ourselves well off to the knockout phase.

La Kalosia në es ul Alpi / Kalosia is not in the Alps

The two Kalosians competing in Alpine Skiing, Ǧosef Alfonsu and Luiži Kruž, did not finish in the Men's Downhill race. More details to come as the updates rush in.

Avre diventatu lë bërsaľu u 0,2 sekondi / I Would Have Become the Target in 0.2 Seconds

In Biathlon, Ignaziu Dalmani came 59th in the Men's 10km Sprint. Had he been 0.2 seconds slower or more, he would have not qualified to the next round of the event.

Tropu šivolosu / Too Slippery

In the Short Track Speed Skating event, Stefan Garfalu slipped and fell during the qualifying round for the men's 500m event, leading to his disqualification. He later competed in the 1500m heats, but came 5th out of 6th participants in a race where only the top 3 qualified to the next round.

His sister Silvia, meanwhile, came 23rd in the 3000m Speed Skating race. It was, however, a final event. While the medals have been distributed, we will see her again in the 1500m and 5000m races later on.

6 sekondi tropu lungo / 6 Seconds too Long

Felišia Sitšilianu finished 46th in Cross Country Skiing, 16 places below and 5.8 seconds after the 30th place finisher, in an race where the top 30 qualified to the next round.

[Greater vakolicci haven]

Maria Schtenko

Great. Fucking great. Hero worshippers were not what she wanted here, when she was trying to improve on her terrible skiing technique; what she'd really like, if their had to be company at all would be the sort of company that stayed out of her way, did as she told them, and did not squel. In short, she wanted somebody like her ever-reliable and useful brother Veldomir.
Their was something that these people could help with though, if they felt like it. She didn't know if they would, after all she was an 'enemy combatant...' but the hero worship might just help them get over that particular problem.
"I was actually looking for someone to train with," she announced to the group, from some country she'd never heard of as she expected.
"I've actually been thinking of practising my relay skills," she stated. "The others have it down to a te but because I'm hardly ever involved in Biathlon...I do about 7 different sports and it's growing...I'm seriously the weak link in the relay. I just take too long with the handover and by the time I'm done we're always well behind. Care for some quick practise? I'm happy to show you some shooting technique as well if you'd like to make up for it."

[Southern Yugoslavia]

Day 2 Highlights - Two more for Laiatan!

TRETYAKOVA: "Good afternoon everyone, I'm Karolina Tretyakova."

DOROKHOV: "And I'm Eugeni Dorokhov. We're live from Prescott, Electrum bringing you all the things you might've missed today with these rather exciting Winter Olympics."

TRETYAKOVA: "The biggest news of the day is that the Laiatanese Federation has moved into eleventh place in the total medal tally! This of course is all thanks to Anastasia Grachyov and Natascha Manyakin. Both women won their first medal today, both of which were silver! Gold still eludes our athletes, but hopefully we'll see a first place finish soon."

DOROKHOV: "The Olympians the Federation has sent seem to be doing very well for themselves, we're getting ready to welcome Day 3 with three medals already!"

TRETYAKOVA: "Yes, they've already bypassed the team sent to the 11th Winter Olympics, who finished with only two silver medals total. No matter what, I think it's safe to say the entire country is proud of these young men and women."

DOROKHOV: He laughs, nodding in agreement. "Grachyov finished her run in the 3,000 meter event with a total time of 4:03.24, beating the bronze by a mere 0.04 seconds. The bronze was won by Martina Sabikova of Kosovakia. Things were a little iffy at the start for Grachyov though, and she voiced concern after a training run in which she fell."

TRETYAKOVA: "Thankfully she was unhurt in the fall, and was able to come back from it quite strongly. Here's what she had to say after her silver medal was guaranteed."

The video cuts to the earlier interview with Grachyov.

GRACHYOV: "I can't freakin' believe it. I was hoping to at least win a bronze - so I'm very excited to get the silver. Hi mom!"

TRETYAKOVA: She laughs. "You mentioned you were concerned when you fell at training today - did that affect you at all during your run?"

GRACHYOV: "It was definitely in the back of my mind - I was really hoping that I wasn't going blow it completely. Obviously I didn't! Which is very good - that's actually my new personal record, so I'm wearing it proudly."

TRETYAKOVA: "That's incredible - thanks for your time, Anastasia. Good luck to you in the later events."

GRACHYOV: "Thank you!"

The video cuts back to Tretyakova and Dorokhov.

DOROKHOV: "That's great, good for her. Hopefully she'll get another medal to take home. Now we're going to focus on Natascha Manyakin, who tied for silver with Grace Hanlon of Melbergia."

TRETYAKOVA: "With a total score of 272, the two women took a silver medal home to their respective countries. Teammate Nadezhda Maskhmudov just barely missed out on a medal of her own, coming in fourth place with a score of 267.5. This was Manyakin's first medal ever from an Olympic competition."

DOROKHOV: "We're going to cut to a commercial break, and when we come back we'll speak to Natascha and Nadezhda."

[Mercedini]

Olympic Happenings: Day 2
@ Olympic Village - Prescott, Electrum

Oh my god i only have an hour to write something my boss is going to kill me okay let's go through these sports super quick because I'm freezing my tits off and I need to get my publisher's bonus from my boss because he loves it when we just put any old shit out. Hopefully, we will win 'Best Sports Publisher' as the upcoming multiverse publisher awards, we only need to beat Kalactin so if i write ten words in legible English then we should have it in the bag. I joke, but let's get these sports covered.

---

Men's Hockey

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Mercedini 3-0 Natanians and Nosts
(0-0) (3-0) (0-0)

Yeah so we won our first match of the hockey against a Natanians and Nosts team who look to be going into the World Cup of Harmony with us, which is set to begin after the conclusion of the Olympic event. Hopefully we get them in that tournament aswell wink wink, easy points boys. A hat trick from Max Morton in the second period meant Mercedini ran away with the match and comfortably saw out their 3-0 lead. They go top of the group on goal difference after Vangaziland beat the Peoples Republic of Xabia by four goals to two.

Luge Men's Individual

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127 Rick Leg (EDO)                      52.170  1:10.674    52.845    52.804    3:48.493

WOAH, what the hell is this guy doing here? I thought this guy sing for Missus X, not a luger. Anyway he was crap and not very good. Which makes me sad.

Short Track Men's 1500m

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4 Henrik Brækken (PSC)         2:15.260  ADV
— Ryan Moore (KAN)                 DSQ
  Claude Lupitza (MRC)             DSQ

Bloody hell, Claude. Don't quit your day job, and if it is your day job then find something else. Lupitza made the octofinals but fell over during the race and took out one of the other races which made it a lot more entertaining than simply slipping and sliding your way round the track. Unfortunately Lupitza was disqualified after eventually finishing in fourth with the athlete he steamrolled advancing via pity vote. All for nothing.

That's all for today, let's hope for more success tomorrow as we enter day three on the 13th Winter Olympics.

[Ioudaia]

Ioudaian Biathlon Team

"I've actually been thinking of practising my relay skills," she stated. [...] Care for some quick practise? I'm happy to show you some shooting technique as well if you'd like to make up for it."

The team glanced back and forth at each other; some nodded while others quietly indicated assent. Kyra was pleased by the opportunity, but kept her voice under control. "That sounds fair enough."

They looked to Peneleos, who nodded thoughtfully: She's the competition, but we could use the training... and perhaps learn from her. "Yes, I think that will work", he started. "Mixed relay practice, then? Which leg would you like to ski?"

[Melbergia]

Amazing Grace!

First Melbergian Medal as Hanlon Bags Silver

Consistency and excellence on behalf of Ski Jumper Grace Hanlon have seen to it that Melbergia will finish up with at least one medal to it's name at the end of these games. Two jumps of exceptional quality, both identically scored 136.0, were enough to see Hanlon take a rare joint-silver with Laiatanese Natascha Manyakin.

Hanlon, who hails from Winter Sports hub Hálsrath in her homeland, first learnt to ski aged four years old, aided by her father Terry Hanlon, himself a keen Ski Jumper competing at domestic level. Her performance here today, whilst largely unforeseen by the experts, was no surprise to her father.

Through tears of elation he explained, "this is second nature for Grace. She's been doing it her whole life. She lives and breathes skiing and ski jumping. I'm just so, so proud of her to come here and show the whole world what she can do."

"The next few months are going to be a whirlwind for Grace. There's going to be a lot of attention, and a lot of opportunity. But once that's all died down, and in years and decades yet to come, Grace will always have this. She will always, always be an Olympic medalist."

[Savojarna]

SavojarSports.sj - inside reports from all Savojarna
Day Three: Savojarna's Greatest Day?

Day Three of the Olympics could be the biggest day for Savojarna so far, when four different events with good Savojar chances are contested. With the Men's Slopestyle and the Women's Super Combined, two events feature Savojar top favourites, while there are also outsider chances in the Cross-Country Sprint and the Biathlon Pursuit of the men. In these two, we would have to hope for a surprise, but shocks are part of the Olympic Winter Games like snow and ice are a part of it.

Laura Mikan has already proven her form in the qualification. The young cross-country skier came sixth in qualifying to the great surprise of most Savojar observers, who expected sprint specialist Greta Halldorsdottir to be stronger. The Ejanan and serial Savojar sprint champion also made the cut to the heats, and the odds for her seem better there. If Mikan can get a similar exploit as in the qualifiers, or Halldorsdottir uses her experience in the sprint to her advantage, this fast-paced version of cross-country skiing could get more than enjoyable for Savojarna. The odds are worse for another form of explosive cross-country skiing, the men's biathlon pursuit. As the Savojar team leader Anders Bergman came only 21st in the sprint, he'll have a tough race in front of him. However, the differences were extremely close with Bergman waiting only 1:20 behind leader Saleh al-Homsi, in a strong pack that knows they are only a few shooting mistakes away from a shot at the medals. Bergman stated before the race that he is very optimistic for a good result and looks forward to his second Olympic race, looking to improve on his slightly disappointing rank. The service team also seems to have struggled with the conditions on the first day, but today the weather forecast is much better for them as there shouldn't be any of the light snowfall that marked Day 1.

No light snowfall is also good news for the skiers, as Marcus Rynneberg had been slowed down by conditions in the downhill race. Today, the women take the stage to continue the duel against Dunnes on the slopes, where Savojarna currently leads with one bronze to nothing. Helga Birkasdotter will try to lead the Savojar team to another medal, but in the Dunian Duel, she'll face strong opposition by dominatrix Janis Wallace. Behind her, Delia Arselius is Savojarna's number 2, scouting out the hill for the Super-G which is her strongest discipline. If she can stay on track in the slalom, Delia is a force to be reckoned with in the Combined as well. With these two in the mix, another medal seems ready for the taking for Savojarna - or isn't it? Delia said: "I have a lot of respect for the field here in Prescott, and the Super Combined is very unpredictable. If you look at the World Tour, different people were winning all the time, and only Janis was really consistent. I know the media really punch this Savojarna-Dunnes thing right now, but here it's more like Dunnes against the World. I do hope that the Combi gives me an edge for the Super-G though, that's for sure".

Another big chance opens itself in the Women's Slopestyle. All three Savojar women qualified for the final round, with Ida Juttorp taking the lead among them. She improved on her run in the Savojar trials by adding two additional spins on the kickers, upgrading her backside 720 Stalefish to a 900 and the core piece of her routine, the Frontside 900 Nosegrab, to a full 1080. Team leader Sigrun Vikarby, known for her explosive jumps, only took the third spot within the Savojar squad as she showed a security run identical to the one she did in the trials. On the rails, she did the job decently as usual, which may in fact not be enough. But then, she upped her game on the kickers and showed us two overhead tricks, a Double Cork 1080 Indy and a beautiful Backside Rodeo. Both of them were landed nicely, but her coach promised us that Sigrun will put on another level for the final. Rumour has it she'll show us a double rodeo and also upgrade the third jump, a backside 900, to a full 1080. Enough for a medal? See tomorrow on STV2 and SavojarSports.sj!

[The Royal Kingdom of Quebec]

The Taegukgi - Sports Section - The Tale of Two Ahns

Ma Sang-Deok

PRESCOTT, ELECTRUM - The Quebecois Asian male identities fall into one of several predictable archetypes : the stoned intellect, the eternally-lost, depressed overachiever, divas, exiled princes from abroad. This facile parsing offers the convenience of manageable stereotypes and feigned knowledge. One of the pleasures of the athletics, especially in this olympics, has been the number of Quebecois men defying the stereotypes long limiting them from their potential, especially that of the Asian subtypes within. Among those who have already started inspiring the field are 34-year old Samuel Ethier, the ice dancer who performs to third place finish in Team Trophy event- Ice Dancing Short Program with his childhood sweetheart and wife Nora Hwang, and Jasper Ahn, the 21-year old short track speed skater who just won men's 1,500 metres event with a blazing finish in the final. On the other side, while visiting the scene, is Laurent Ahn, whose presence has been used to reinforce the old categories of Quebecois athletes : Powerful, fast and slightly awkward.

Laurent Ahn seemed to take everyone by surprise when he flew into Prescott, last Friday, on an Air Terranea flight (on a first class, on his own fare of course), a tall, pale man in a Gragnani suit and blue ties, his hair very short and what many (including myself when younger) called the face of a sculpted figure, but with awkward smile. He only stayed for four days, having to return to Koreana Complex in Montreal to be back with his volleyball team, the defending champions Montreal Koreana, but carried his presence in the Quebecois delegation and the participation in snow volleyball (his presence as a 2.06 metre man was very noticeable) with other legendary olympian volleyballers.

Positive appraisals of his "handsomeness", highlighting back to his playing days with Montreal Koreana dynasty of late 2010s, were swift and emphatic once more. He immediately celebrated the start of the Olympics by throwing a huge party in the Quebecois Complex where the throwback style to the 2010s, when he was one of the best volleyballers in the world, filled with all sorts of alcohol and food. Such display, believe it or not, may have been enough to start drawing attention to Quebec, as the foreign press would start calling Team Quebec "The Team that's back to their forever gold, filled with debauchery" and "smoke filled rooms highlighted by tradition".

If Laurent Ahn had to make a separate visit, those in Koreana organisations (and higher above) were likely gambling that the world still believes in Asian Quebecois men as that of exotic. If the olympics is meant to serve as a demonstration of how a man or woman would look like in this day and age, what is a better example to do so than a longtime coach (and he's achieved so much in just a decade of coachign volleyball) whose system and ability developing athletes have been at another level? The olympics is about a nation's prowess on international stage and this, like the previous occasions of legendary sportsmen or politicians coming to enjoy the games, may be of no difference.

But the Olympics are also the celebration of the superlative, the new horizons for the new man (OOC : It's a reference to the Homo Sovieticus experiment back in Soviet Union). The irony is that the Quebecois who started the olympics blazing in gold was that of another man surnamed Ahn (and they are not related). Jasper Ahn, the 19-year-old son of a miner, won his gold medal with a phenomenal, 300 metre final spurt in the Men's 1,500 metres. Like Ahn, his life story has acquired a fable-like quality, familiar now to global audience as a true Quebecois underdog story. Chris Ahn, his father, was a lifelong miner and had fought all his life long on labour unions, but had to sacrifice when Jasper was eleven, so that his only son (he has 3 more daughters, all high-profile prospects in speed skating) could go for his passion. And like new Quebecois, he is dynamic- he is fluent in five languages (the three official languages, Dutch and German); he would like to backpack across the world for a decade and then work in the national parks.

Ma Sang-Deok is a sports journalist for The Taegeukgi. A former professional volleyball player with Shawinigan Skywalkers and Winnipeg Winterhawks, the centre was named 4-time all-star and also won silver medals in 2022 and 2027 Commonwealth Games. The Taegukgi, in conjunction with the Quebec Broadcasting Corporation, are covering men's volleyball events for the Olympic Games. Mr. Ma is part of the team that covers both long and short track speed skating events in 2033 Prescott Games.

[Electrum]

This is your Day 3 cut-off.

Hey Presto, more medals are on the loose!

OOC: Liventia's advice may be useful in navigating the different formats of the Winter Olympics. Deductions will and have been given out for inaccurate roleplays.

[Anollasia]

THE ANOLLASIA NATIONAL

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English edition

Monday, February 19, 2018

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By John Henderson
Prescott, Electrum

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In Cross-Country Skiing - Women's Individual Sprint qualifications, Elena Giannopoulos placed 11th and Selin Samson placed 19th, qualifying for the finals. Meanwhile, Agnes Richmond placed 36th and was eliminated. She stated, "I am very disappointed by my poor performance out there, knowing I could've done better. Nonetheless, I'm proud of my fellow Anollasians who made it to the finals and wish them success."

In Figure Skating - Team Trophy - Women's Individual Short Program, Annie Larson placed 23rd, gaining zero points. Larson seemed distracted and could not concentrate throughout the performance, which manifested in her messy footwork. As a result, Anollasia's points in Figure Skating - Team Trophy is unchanged, but has been bumped down to 2nd place, surpassed by Electrum with 41 points. However, Anollasia has advanced to the free skate/dance round, being in the top 15. Larson later expressed her frustration, "I'm so upset that I let my country down by not getting any points and allowing Electrum to snatch the number one spot." Larson was in a relationship with an artist named Philip Saunders for 2 years, but he recently broke up with her, which she stated as the reason she lost focus during her performance.

In Freestyle Skiing - Men's Moguls Qualification 1, Cameron Donovan placed 16th, followed by Gene Karowski at 17th, and Paul Tosun at 68th, failing to qualify for the finals. However, Donovan and Karowski redeemed themselves by placing 4th and 2nd respectively in Qualification 2, qualifying for the finals, though Paul Tosun came dead last in 66th place. Tosun started off too slow both times and was not able to keep up with the other skiers. He later mentioned that "his reflexes aren't as fast as some other people's," which surely became his downfall.

In Men's Ice Hockey, Anollasia lost to Vakolicci Haven and Celeria 1-0. The Anollasian team maintained good defence, thanks in part to defencemen Caleb Joumin, James Wilt, and Marshall Lewis. Although defence was strong, they slipped up in the last 5 minutes, when Vakolicci scored a goal. Coach Bruce Nelson expressed his disappointment, as did many players from the team, though he also mentioned Jane Ellis' remarks from Day 1, that "ice hockey is not popular in Anollasia," so not many Anollasians care about succeeding in ice hockey. It is not considered the main winter sport.

In Men's Individual Luge, David Sırma placed 26th, Polat Garrison placed 67th, and Percy Villeroy placed 101st. Garrison started off fast and agile but gradually slowed down throughout the course, Villeroy was relatively slow throughout most of the course, but Sırma performed relatively well, through not well enough to get in the top 10. The athletes were disappointed but Sırma turned it around, "We didn't win any medals, but that's alright. We still did our best and that's what counts. Even being here, at the Olympic Games, is an honour in itself, an opportunity presented to very few athletes. Now that we got this over with, we're going to the Olympic Village to drink some hot chocolate." The gold medal went to Caleb Stevens of Liventia, the silver medal went to Osterrazi Onalinto of Vilitia, and the bronze medal went to Caeso North of Natanians and Nosts.

In the Short Track - Men's 1500 m heats, Haydar Ertan managed to advance to the octofinals after placing 2nd in his heat. In the octofinals, Ertan once again placed 2nd in his group, advancing to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Ertan placed 1st in his group, securing his place in the semifinals. Ertan's path to a medal ended when he placed 4th in his group at the semifinals, consequently eliminating him. Despite this, Ertan was quite happy with his performance. "I did not expect to do so well. Maybe I would have been eliminated in the heats, probably in the octofinals, definitely in the quarterfinals. But no, I made it to the semifinals. It just shows how much more we can accomplish than we expect." The gold went to Jasper Ahn of the Royal Kingdom of Quebec, the silver went to Barclays Lloyds of Britonisea, and the bronze went to John Gersh of Austenesia. Meanwhile, Liam Nasser was disqualified from the Short Track - Men's 1500 m heats, due to a lane change. Halfway through the event, Nasser swerved into another players lane, and though this did not directly affect another athlete, he was disqualified for breaking the rules.

Yasemin Dilbert advanced to the octofinals after placing 2nd in her heat in Short Track - Women's 500 m. She expressed her joy by telling us, "I am proud to be the only representative of Anollasia in this event. It may bring some extra pressure, but it also gets me excited and makes me want to perform even better."

Pauline Kernac and Courtney Berners also qualified for heats in the Short Track - Women's 1000 m qualifications, after placing 2nd and 1st in their respective heats. The two athletes congratulated each other after the event and celebrated together in the Olympic Village over some hot chocolate and cookies. Kernac wished success for Berners, with Berners reciprocating the well-wishing.

In the Ski Jumping - Women's Individual Normal Hill finals, Louise Tanner placed 19th and Aslı Tangören placed 29th. Tanner performed well, agile in her turns, speedy but careful, though she was outperformed by the other athletes. She did not appear one bit disappointed and expressed her gratitude to be able to participate in the finals. Tangören was not agile enough in her turns and could not recover from the excess time spent on the curves. She was upset at first, like other athletes, she knew she could do better. Then she sighed and accepted her placing and expressed her gratitude as well. The gold went to Miksi Inlavuflia of Vilita, the silver to Grace Hanlon of Melbergia, and the bronze to Natascha Manyakin of the Laiatanese Federation.

Rachel Lloyd failed to qualify to the finals in Snowboarding - Women's Slopestyle after placing 80th. She did not move fast enough and did not glide along the snow as most other athletes did. Lloyd stated that she "did not expect to do well anyway" and that "perhaps that's why I didn't do well."

Katelyn Stansky ranked 6th and Khadija Al-Mubarak ranked 19th in the Speed Skating - Women's 3000 m final. Stansky was extremely fast and agile, she immediately took off and maintained endurance throughout the event. She expressed absolute joy in being 6th, which was better than she expected. "I thought maybe I'd be 25th, 20th, at most 15th. This certainly is a pleasant surprise," she said. Al-Mubarak also seemed content. She claimed that she is one of the "very few Arab-descent Anollasians who partake in winter sports" and that she is grateful to be able to "participate in such an important event and do relatively well." The gold went to Fang Zhu of Laeral, the silver went to Anastasia Grachyov of the Laiatanese Federation, and the bronze went to Martina Sabikova of Kosovakia.

As it stands, Anollasia currently has not won any medals. Leading the medal scoreboard are Mattijana and Vilita, both with 1 gold medal and 1 silver medal.

Watch the XIII Olympic Games on NATV Sports, or online at http://www.natv.an.

[Teremaran Olympics Delegation]

Prescott, Electrum
Ski Jump

“141.5! Great score!” Liljan exclaimed, high-fiving her half-sister.

“Thanks Sis,” Valka said even-toned. “Just glad I survived the drop.”

Liljan shrugged. “Still afraid of heights?”

She laughed. “Of course I am. But once I get going down the slope, the only way off the ride is to land it and not die.”

“And not die… that’s the keyword!” Liljan joked.

Valka shrugged. Despite beating her nearest competitor by almost two meters, the drops always frazzled her. It was probably why she was so good. Never took anything for granted.

“Wanna go inside and warm up?” She asked, desperate to get away from the commotion.

Liljan nodded and reached down grab her half-sister’s skis. Skis to her weren’t foreign. She had grown up on them alongside her sled. Yet they still felt awkward in her arms.

Valka shrugged again and began trudging forward through a mess of spectators, all of whom were overly eager to congratulate her. She didn’t like the spotlight, Liljan concluded.

They quickly made it to the competitor warm room, adjoined to a nearby coffee shop. Liljan ordered two cups, and then sat herself next to her half-sister. She stared absently out a side window, positioned perfectly to capture a view of the team boxes behind the slope and elevator.

“What’s bothering you?” Liljan asked.

Valka turned, putting up both hands to receive her piping cup. “I’m not sure.”

“Oh really?” The Mogen slider was not convinced.

“I won last year.” The ski jumper replied. “I want to win, badly, this year… but I’m just not sure. I ahd the best jump today. And I should be excited. But I also don’t like the people. There’s people everywhere. They’re ruining it for me. It makes me feel like the ski jump is less pure. Weird, right?”

“Not really. I understand. When I would ski or slide, I’d do it through the forests without anyone around. It was just us versus nature… or in some cases, even with nature. No one was judging us. We just did it because it was fun.”

Valka took a sip of her coffee, blowing gently to cool it off. She smiled.

“You’re not wrong,” she added between sips. “I just feel like all of the eyes are distracting me from the jump. Sure, the heights terrify me. But I attack them like I do everything else. But its the spectators I don’t like. They don’t empower me like some. They drain me. And a part of me is worried that that’s not good.”

“I don’t like the spectators either. I’ve just learned to tone them out. Father always thought I was the social butterfly. But there are so few people in Ikovskaya it’s easy to forget there are really other people in the world. I just pretend they’re trees.” Liljan smiled, putting her half-finished cup down.

“Trees?” Valka asked, confused.

“Trees. Just like back home.” Liljan confirmed with a nod.

RP courtesy of Falkasia.

[West Phoenicia]

The Cats Meow

"Let me first say I am never one who believes in giving people a free ride... my 6 ex husbands can attest to that.
However there is time's when one who scratches our back will get their own back scratched in return,

Point in this case in Prince Glenton Grypon-Bush Philopator III, Crown Prince of West Phoenicia and next in line for the throne when the benevolent King Glenton Gryphon-Bush II passes.

The Crown Prince was registered for the Biathlon — Men’s 12.5 km Pursuit. Royalty aside he is one of the better athletes we have in the field of Biathlon having endless funds to hire the best trainers and coaches in skiing and shooting.
However he had a very terrible day today placing 39th. 39th out of 60 was not the best ranking and finishing time. And well I don't want to knock the medal winners, could they have at least had names the rest of us citizens of the world could pronounce. Now don't be sending in scathing hate mail calling me out as a racist, my second husband was a wealthy cotton tycoon with a name that had at least 12 letters in his first name.

In the name of diplomatic relations, one would assume that people of the nobility class would be given a little more assistance than your average athlete. Just think you scratch his back now, in the future lucrative import and export deals could have graced Electrum and the officials from the nations who observed the race making them richer. It is not bribery, purely mutual assistance. The Crown Prince is very talented, it would not be giving him a free ride. But respecting his higher position in life. Or as I like to call it, as a royal he is better than the average Joe.

Even his practise sessions he had better results and it does make me wonder if he had more on his mind. He is set to marry this year; he will be marrying the wonderful and attractive Princess Royal Arsinoe Bush II Philometar .

Yes they are full blooded siblings, but those sorts of marriages occur in West Phoenicia. Especially with royal blood, it helps to keep the royal bloodline pure even if lower class cretins will label them inbreed buffoons. The Gryphon-Bush family have been doing this on and off for 300 years. With marriage on his mind maybe he was thrown off his race today. But knowing the Crown Prince that will not stop him from representing his nation.

As for how West Phoenicia is going at the XIII Winter Olympics. There is a lot more competition this year, so some of the top dogs may start to struggle under the additional pressure to do well. I for one am hoping for at least 10 medals for West Phoenicia to take him from these games. At the last Olympics we pulled in 17 medals and 5 demonstration results, which this time around are actual medal events. But it is going to be really hard. Us reaching 17 medals these games is probably in the same league as Vangaziland winning the World Baseball Classic anytime soon.

With 2 Silver medals won ( Malachi DeWitt - Cross-Country Skiing — Men’s 30 km Skiathlon) and the amazing and really buff Auric Le in the Freestyle Skiing — Men's Moguls, who if he had skied topless would have definitely obtained a gold if all the observers were female)
We are only 8 away. And we have some good athletes and it is only day 3. With 14 days ago we should be able to average 1 medal a day. Falling short is just really telling the world we just don't care and have become too lazy and complacent. Let's prove them wrong.

[Taeshan]

A Team and a Dream: the Story of the Taeshan Olympic Team

It took two days but a second Taeshani has managed to make the podium in another event. Not a gold medal, but Silver seemed to be enough to put a smile on Natacha Fuegahita's face. The Nordic Combined is often a fan favorite of the Taeshani's with both cross country skiing, and Ski Jumping involved. After an impressive ski, and only a small penalty the lady in Purple managed to finish only .5 seconds off the pace. Honestly it was the penalty that cost her, but a first medal for her is definitely a good start for the ski jumping and nordic teams who will look to add to the impressive list of medals Taeshan has in those events.

Elsewhere Nagatomi Hashimi continued his impressive run in the Mens Moguls, including a second place finish in the second final. that said his speed seemed to ultimately lack after 4 runs on the hill and he finished last in the final 8 with his worst score of any of his runs. For her part Nahara Morgenstern continued an impressive start for the Cross Country side with a run all the way to the final of the Sprint event, she would finish 5th of 6th however as the stamina of various Taeshani athletes has let them down near the end of their specific tournaments. That wraps up much of the event of the day with some lackluster Alpine Skiing and the Women's Hockey team not needing to embarrass themselves with a bye day.

[The Holy Principality of Saint Mark]

Marcarius was silent and his characteristic smile absent as he walked away from the slopes followed by his coach, trainer and valet.

His coach placed his hand on his back and Marcarius turned to face him as they continued to walk.

These are your first Olympics, Your Royal Highness, and they have only just begun. Remember, the Regional Games didn't start out very strong either and you ended up with two silver medals.

Yes, I understand, Oleg.
I can't say that I'm not concerned about my performance so far, I am ... but I'm more upset that the whole team hasn't done very well yet.
For Amagitora to have gone through so much and come so far and not to have anything to show for it would be a real tragedy.

Oleg smiled to himself ... Amagitora again. It appears that our prince has more on his mind than these Winter Games.

[Main Nation Ministry]

Oswell Villacorta was exhausted, especially after managing to win another medal for Main Nation Ministry. Lounging in an armchair, in front of a warm fireplace, where he was craving some grilled snakefish, Oswell rubbed his chest, where he imagined his medal being. Of course, he wasn't clearly wearing it. It was in safe hands by the security team to make sure no one would steal it and sell it for millions of chips on a nation's website.

He checked to see what was on the sports edition of the Truth News, only to see his face on the headlines. A man getting fame for having 2 medals in the first 3 days of the winter games. He checked to the other news to see the bandy team is in a complete tie, though they along with the hockey team were going to be trained harder for the final rounds and matches. It was expected. Oswell knew the Leader was relaxing in his private suite surrounded by multiple bodyguards as always. Oswell got himself some hot chocolate with a little bit of vitamin powder for a bit of a boost.

Drinking it inside of the Main Nation's Ministry sector of the Olympic Village, Oswell put on some warm clothes that he saw was fine for jogging. Exiting the building, he looked around the Olympic Village before starting to jog on the snow. Meanwhile, Brendon Partistein was snapping snapshots of him from a distance, eager to get paid back home with an extra paycheck.

[Willania Imperium]

Imperial News Network: From Around the World to Home

---

The 2018 Winter Olypics - Day 3

IMPERIALOPOLIS:Now the third day has passed, and as athletes return to the village for proper rest, the results are here to show. Today, 14 tournaments have been held on the second day of the Olympics. From more alpine skiing to yet more speed skating, we see the best of the bunch do their best for pride, honor, and country. Both man and woman in the greatest of competitions today to continue the fight for the sought-after medals. Who'll win the gold? And who'll come out with nothing? Now, at the end of it all, the tension can end, for the results are here.

In alpine skiing, 96 women ski to have their scores combined and compared to have the best. For Bronze, Bethany Demirkol of Anollasia, with a total time of 2:09.43. Silver is given to Franziska Norder, an athlete from Nieubasria, who beats Demirkol by 0.06 seconds, clocking in 2:09.37. And the Gold winner and 1st rank is Mia Parker, a woman skiier from Dunnes, whose winning time was 2:08.42.

In biathlon, men once again regroup to racein 12.5 km of pursuit, including our own Imperial ladies from back here in Imperialopolis. While our women did much better than back on Day 1, the same can't be said for today. Quintus Flaccus, once again, fails to even reach the Top 10, like his sister; he instead took 33rd place, which, although a major improvement from last time, is still not impressive. But from the 60 competitors today, only 3 gained medals. Nobu Yuudai of the People's Republic of Xabia won Bronze with a time of 33:07.8. Oswell Villacorta of Main Nation Ministry won Silver with 32:40.7. And the Laitanese Federation won Gold, with Sasho Kozar as the victor by over 11 seconds.

In cross-country skiing, 30 women are routinely eliminated until only 6 remain. These 6 then race against each other for the real goal of all this: the medals. We see Justine Letallec of Kelssek win with a time of 3:39.5. Electrum wins Silver with a difference of 0.3 seconds, thanks in part to Risa Cherbourg. And Kenzie Mason, the Gold Medalist, beat the competition with 3:38.6, bringing pride to Cassadaigua.

Freestyle skating had 24 men be placed in 3 rounds, each eliminating 8 people from the round until only 8 are left. Of those 8, 3 were victors in their own right. Most interestingly, Salvie Brook, a male skater from our eastern neighbor Big Bad Badger, won the Bronze medal, with 26.42 points. Auric Le of West Phoenicia beat our West Pacifician comrade by 0.14 points. And Antoine Numbers of Britonisea won the Gold by 0.14 points!

Once again, in speed skating, we have competitors skate on the ice rink once more. The men return to the ice rink for 500 m of ice. Out of the 116 who were there to compete, an unconventional 4 people won medals. For Bronze, 2 people, Stephane Riviere of Laeral and Norbert Snoreson of South Covello, tied with 34.98. Silver had to cut close, with only 0.05 separating Pierre-Antoine Ménard from a three-way tie from the other Bronze winners. But it was Edwardo Edris of Eastfield Lodge who won Gold, reaching 34.87.

These are merely some of the tournaments enacted today. For more on the team tournaments, watch the XIII Winter Olympics on INN or visit our news website on http://www.imperialnewsnetwork/olympics.wi.

---

Quintus Flaccus took another sip of grape juice. While he wished his nation brought some of their wine here for situations like these, the delegation feared a drunken mess if their athletes ever came close to blacking out. As such, they were served non-alcoholic grape juice as a shoddy replacement. Not the childish boxes give to children, but more like jugs. Still, it was unsatisfactory to be drinking something weak as this.

"Quintus, I must ask you. Why is it that men seem to suck at this?"

Flaccus sighed as he heard Latinius slurps the last of his juice. While he did know it was not alcoholic in any way, it didn't stop a man from trying, especially a man who wants to escape his thoughts?

"Well, Justus, I suppose it's payback for the times we bullied our little sisters. They always said they'd fine something to beat us."

A boisterous laugh rang out of Latinius.

"Hilarious! What I needed."

"Glad to see that, Justus."

After a while, both parties calmed down. Latinius went back sipping his juice as if it was the last source of water, and Quintus read the reading material he brought from home. Both men were absolutely bored. The other men had decided to take a walk around the village and won't return for some time, and the women, well, aren't here as of now. Their training done, boredom permeated the place.

Let's hope something snaps it before the next day, thought Flaccus.

[Kriegiersien]

A Confessional Box.


Voice: I have to speak with you.

Pastor: Yes, my son?

Voice: Look, I was really patient with your god now, but he really didn't bring the results. I did all what your man in the sky suggested, I studied all sources faithful and translated his sometimes unclear words. So I am really a precise and focused man, I followed the advices and did anything required.
I was nice to my co-workers, these inept assholes, I did help an old woman over the street, even though she struggled and wanted back. I volunteered to feed the poor at evening with mouldy bread. I even put the trash out.
Then I read to my children a self written story, which was exquisite, Pulitzer Prize worthy and some sheets from work before bedtime. I had to wake them 7 times to get to 13 pages.

And finally I prayed for medals for our Olympic team, only for the really good ones, to be not blatant greedy. I mean, there is only one GoldBot, it should be not very hard to concentrate on him for an almighty being.

Pastor: My son, that is not how it works….

Voice: Yeah, nothing, nothing dammit. Even fourth places and missed Qualifications by the best. That's a mockery. What have I done wrong? How can I improve, have I forgotten something? New rules?”

Pastor: This is the place where you confess your sins, not to attack the lord.

Voice: Ladida. I thought that. Gregory out of business, Thor is a movie and I know from inside sources that the Almighty Overlord is just a fake story from the Kriegiersien president. So I tried it with your deity, who promised rewards for upholding his rules, but nothing. I think it has no effects at all. I even played a round Monopoly with my family to test it and had the boardwalk with 3 hotels and still lost. My conclusion is: Either god uses dice or he is dead. I just want to tell you, I am out of your club and looking for something better. Maybe Cassius or Margery. Good day to you, Sir.

The Pastor sighs when a further person comes in.

Voice: I want to pray for a good run of our Curling team. I betted much money on them.

Pastor: Oh, for Christ's sake.
He leaves the Cabin.

Voice: I also had lewd thoughts regarding the team. Especially one player. I often use photos of them in the bathroom with a brush and ice in the bathtub. What shall I do? … Reverend?….Hello?

[Liventia]

No steel for Steel as teammates claim silvers
PRESCOTT— Non Steel agonisingly missed out on a medal in the women's cross-country sprint final today after stumbling out of the starting area.

The 27-year-old from Dover had made it to the final rounds as the 30th—and last—qualifier of 64 athletes, but then won her quarter-final and posted a time quick enough in the semi-finals to advance as a lucky loser.

However, her early mistake in the final cost her a shot at the podium, although she was circumspect after the race.

"I'm disappointed, not because I didn't medal, but because I made that mistake. I would've been happy with fourth if I knew I'd gone out there and skied the perfect race, but I didn't, and that's what's so devastating. I'm going to have to look at the video and see what happened there."

James Barrett and Abigail Weekes continued their strong showing in the mixed doubles curling by finishing their pool phase with a win, to hold a 4–2 record atop Pool B. They could yet be knocked out of the tournament as they have a bye in the final draw, but are confident of progressing to the knockout rounds.

Gwenith Davis is one of four athletes within two-tenths of a second of women's luge singles leader Izcy Slidbaa of Vilita after the first two runs. Head coach Charles Hewitt, who won two Olympic golds in City Centre, has backed his charge to emulate the feat of Caleb Stevens, who came from behind to win men's singles gold yesterday.

"Gwen has got the form, she's got the talent, and she's showed it here. It's an extremely tight field," Hewitt said. "It will come down to the smallest mistake tomorrow so all Gwen needs to do is keep her head and put in a nice, clean run. It'll come together."

Geoffrey Watson claimed Liventia's second medal of the Games with a silver in the men's snowboard slopestyle. With the final shortened to two runs from three due to weather, Watson was well down the field after falling on his first attempt and being scored just 28.50. However, he laid down a stunning frontside double-cork 1440 as part of his repertoire on the second run, gaining a 95.00 that was only bettered by Unified Beretania's Zachary Barr. Ivor Norris, who qualified in top spot, finished eighth in the final.

And Liventia's speed skaters reverted to type as Pierre-Antoine Ménard—third cousin of men's curling skip Denis—sealed silver by clocking 34.93 in the men's 500m. It is the first time in Olympic history the race has been held with skaters only taking to the ice once in total, instead of once in either lane. Ménard drew the outside lane in his pair, but still won it comfortably to take Liventia's total haul so far to three. The Liventian Olympic Association has set a medal target of 15, with at least four gold medals.

[Central Shaneville]

THE DAVID CROFT OLYMPIC SHOW - EPISODE 3 (PART ONE) - DAY FOUR PREVIEW
David: Welcome to the David Croft Olympic Show, its time to preview Day 4, I'm here for Part one with of course Central Shaneville's Shane Wray, Welcome back Shane.
Shane: Hello David and Hello Viewers
David: Now of course we have some special guests coming up in Part 2 when we do the review of yesterday later today.
Shane: Ah yes, I'm looking forward to that a lot, Do you know who it is? Because I don't get told much being co presenter and an athlete.
David: Yes I do know we are hosts to Frankie Bradley and Leonard Perry of Amuapyle in the studio as they are going to run through Day 3 with us as well as give us their views on their last three days as well.
Shane: It should be good, like I said I'm looking forward to this.
David: Now lets get down to previewing Day Four which is what this part of the show is about, I know we are doing things a little bit differently today but stick with us.

-A GRAPHIC COMES UP OF WHATS COMING UP FOR CENTRAL SHANEVILLE FOR DAY FOUR-

Shane: Now dont get me wrong I like that line up.
David: It is quite an interesting one isnt it, but again like yesterday, which again we will get to when Frankie and Leonard arrive later on. Not much for Central Shaneville is there?
Shane: Not today, I guess Days 1 and 2 were just so busy that now we have a quiet day or two, it affects us big time.
David: Well weve seen what we do have. We only had 2 events yesterday. Today we also have 2 events. And both of them are group stage matches, do you think that will affect our performance knowing that we arent competing for a medal today?
Shane: Not at all, I mean weve seen what we can do so the potential is there. Its just how our athletes are able to execute it.
David: Indeed, So lets talk team events. Of course someone wil have a bye today so that could be our team, which I hope it isnt because the Mens Ice Hockey team would like to make a winning streak.
Shane: Well we have proven that we are good on the Ice so that could be where our illusive debut medal comes from, you never know.
David: We also have a new event today being the Yukigassen, of course the team is made up of several athletes from several sports from our delegation, why do you think that is?
Shane: Id say its so they have something to do during these sometimes long drawn out days. -he laughs-

-GRAPHIC SHOWS YUKIGASSEN RULES, THEN SWITCHES TO THE WOMENS TEAM-

David: Being a demonstration event, do you think we will show any effort in it?
Shane: How do you mean?
David: Well its an event where no medals are won....
Shane: -interrupts- You can still win though, its not about medals sometimes. And id say we have a chance.
David: Ok Shane, lets head back to the action. We will see you later when we have Frankie Bradley and Leonard Perry of Amuapyle in the studio, but for now lets go down to the Snowboarding, heres the Slopestyle Final. Heres your commentary team.

-CAMERA FADES OUT TO THE SNOWBOARDING SLOPESTYLE FINAL-

[Savojarna]

SavojarSports.sj - inside reports from all Savojarna
Women’s Hockey Team quits Olympics after contentious decision

The Savojar women’s hockey team has already left the tournament following their second loss in the second game, eliminating them from the group stage. Following the 0-1 loss against the Big Bad Badger, a nation we never heard of before (and we would certainly have remembered them with that kind of name), they lost yet another game 0-1 against Cassadaigua. The first match was tightly contested and lost with a lack of luck, exemplified by the two crossbar shots of Väll and Jaerbyn; but the second match was simply robbed from Savojarna, according to many Savojar fans.

Cassadaigua’s goal came in the second period on a powerplay that was described as “contentious” by Savojarna’s captain Lipa Mazurov and described as “a travesty” by STV Russica commentator Viktor Jurchak. Following a long pass by Cassadaigua, their winger had been rushing down the boards together with Savojarna’s Helle Mortensen. The two were engaged in some hustling and shoving when suddenly the Casssadaiguan forward turned aside and fell to the ice together with Mortensen, throwing away the Savojar’s stick. Nobody was surprised when the referee indicated a penalty, but outrage flared up when it turned out to be a penalty against Mortensen for hooking. The replay seemed to show clearly that the Cassadaiguan had held her stick and thus provoked the hooking, but went unpenalised for the incident. Helle Mortensen had been clearly outraged, but the referee still didn’t show mercy with our defender and added a 10 minute disciplinary penalty for complaining to Mortensen’s two minutes.

Cassadaigua managed to use the powerplay to score, as they deflected a puck in the middle of the ice which was unstoppable for Terkuminnä. Savojarna wanted to strike back and did so quickly, but couldn’t get past the Cassadaiguan goalie. In the third period, they tried to attack with more drive to the goal, and this did indeed cause the Cassadaiguan defence to struggle more. The attack was indeed almost successful shortly before the end, but once again the referees did not agree. A pass by Mazurov across the slot to Sofie Väll was deflected over the Cassadaiguan goalie’s pad, but the goal did not count because Väll was in the crease.

There was clearly contact between her and a Cassadaiguan defender, and she said after the game: “I felt a stick in my back and stumbled forward. Sure, I was in the crease, but that wasn’t my fault. I can see why it may be seen as interference, but it should really have been clear in the review”. Coach Karina Jeronenko refrained from openly criticising the referee, but said that she believed her team would have deserved a victory over a not fully convincing Cassadaiguan team and was highly unlucky, something that can hardly contested after two crossbar shots and a disallowed goal. The more radical view came from captain Mazurov, who said: “I don’t want to say that the referees were favouring Cassadaigua, why would they do that. But it was clear to me that they took the easy way in contentious decisions, and Cassadaigua used that to their advantages. Pushing the opponent into the goalie and drawing hooks like that only works with somewhat lazy referees, or refs that can’t handle the speed of international hockey. It’s a pity that happens, but we have to live with it”.

More joy for Savojarna’s fans came from the slopestyle competition, where Jonas Rydmark dramatically got a bronze medal, only .25 points ahead of the tied Edil Ramyev of Mercedini and one of the spooky Kriegiersien bots. In his first run, Rydmark managed to score 93.25 points despite a somewhat underwhelming rail section. The Savojar slopestyle champion didn’t commit major mistakes on the rail, but was a bit uncreative compared to the top riders, which cost him a higher place on the podium. On the kickers, he opened his run with two run-of-the-mill jumps, nailing both the backside 1080 Indy and the frontside double cork 1260 Japan. The second landing was crucial to his run, as only a clean landing permitted him to have the speed required to do his speciality, a beautiful and stylish 1620 Tailgrab. Jonas was the only rider in the field to attempt (and stand) this trick and it convinced the judges to give him his high amount of points even though he did struggle to land it. However, Rydmark was quite far behind Barr, and in the second run he attempted to improve his run by upgrading the double cork to a triple cork 1440, a trick that would likely have scored him the gold despite his uninspired rail section. But a slight insecurity in the landing meant he didn’t have the speed for the 1620 anymore, taking off an entire spin from the trick and couldn’t improve anymore.

He was still on the podium, but with half the field still on top of the mountain, this place was still threatened. Right after him came the Mercedinian Ramyev, who just narrowly failed to improve over Jonas Rydmark. The Savojar boarder wanted to give his improved run another shot in the final run, but then had to settle for bronze after the third run had to be cancelled for safety reasons. However, as can be expected from an Olympic medalist, he was far from disappointed with the bronze. “I’m very happy with this run and the bronze medal, of course. It’s a dream coming true!”, an overwhelmed Rydmark said after he brought home the second bronze medal for Savojarna. “I wish that we would have had the third run, of course, because I know I could land the triple 14 better, and I don’t know if Zachary could have countered. But with the wind it was quite clear indeed that it would have been dangerous to do that many spins. I’m looking forward to the Big Air now, and you bet I wanna get another medal!”. This big air final takes place next week, with Rydmark one of the favourites to get another medal in his stronger discipline after a mighty showing on the slopestyle kickers.

[Vangaziland]

Strutton Struts His Stuff

When figure skater Ralph Strutton secured a top 10 finish in the Men's Individual Short Program of the Team Trophy, many thought he overachieved. The young skater from Blue Coast, Vangaziland wasn't expected to be as much of a cog as he has become.

"There are so many talented skaters in the pool", Strutton said about his competitors. "To stand out among them puts me among great company."

Strutton helped kick the games off on Day 0 by placing 6th. His score of 75.90 boosted the team to it's highest position of the tournament, 4th. His 6th place performance was based largely around his general flair, which almost brought things to an ice dancing level. He did complete the program's requirements, chaining sets together. He landed a clean double Lutz before a quick direction change, into some backwards skating where he rocked his shoulders to the beat and smiled.

It was that genuine enjoyment on the ice, mixed with a moderate set of tricks that helped him make an impact. In the end, he completed all the elements on time and with style.

"I knew I had to top that performance", Strutton said. "There was a lot of room to go bigger, and I think the judges saw what I was trying to do last time." Ralph would return to the ice for the Men's Individual Free Skate portion of the Figure Skating Team Trophy. The Vannish Skating Delegation had fallen to 10th.

Elsa Ahl came into the XIII Winter Olympics after a fantastic run in the domestic Imperial Skating Championships. The fact that she will be holding the flag during the closing ceremony shows how well Elsa is expected to perform. Instead Ralph Strutton has become the stalwart of the Vannish team.

With everything on the line, Ralph knew he had to perform big.

"I couldn't play it safe and use charm like last time", Ralph said. This performance would have a different feel. He chose a song called 'Dark Winds' to accompany him. It is an old classical song comprised of several instruments. The piano and clarinet featured prominently in the segment he chose. A flute darted in and out of the tune with searching, wispy notes. It was a dramatic routine with speed changes. It took athleticism to perform the way he did, pushing off in quick bursts and slowing down with strong, but still graceful braking.

His big chain was a double lutz into an axel. He landed a little roughly, but still had decent form. He just managed to get the extra half rotation. He wore lots of emotion on his face, taking the pressure of the competition and using it for fuel.

Strutton would end up outdoing his earlier performance. He placed 2nd with a score of 89.19. When combined with a good Pairs Free Skate score, Vangaziland moved to 7th in Team Trophy standings. Even if the team does not medal, they can be proud wherever they land.

Ralph has made himself a household name across Vangaziland, at least during the Olympics. He embodies the spirit of an Olympic warrior, one who fights against insurmountable odds and continues onward.

Prince Fritz Visits The Games



"I haven't had this much fun at an event since World Lacrosse Championship 28 and the Cross Bay series", said Prince Fritjof Vang, heir to the Vannish throne. The season represented Vangaziland's first international championship. Wrexwic, Vangaziland's neighbor to the East and a colony of the Empire, trounced West Phoenicia twice in the group and once more in the playoffs to dance into the finals in their first season. The Vannish Prince was on hand to see it happen. Now he finds himself at the XIII Winter Olympics.

It's never been solely about winning and loosing for us Vangazi", Fritz said for a 20 minute interview with Jana Ulster, a morning show host. He was interviewed at one of the public spaces between the Olympic venues. The camera crew found a spot with some benches, which made for a chilly, but scenic interview.

"There is still much more of the games left", Fritz said. He was fresh from watching Women's Luge Individual runs 1 and 2. "Birgitta Hansen just made me so proud", he said about the slider.

Hansen got off to a quick launch after piloting the first few turns well. This is what helped her rank 3rd after the pair of runs. She had a mostly clean run, only hitting the side of the track once. She seemed to already be compensating, making the slightest movements to sway momentum from impact. The lone impact was a big part of what kept her from placing first.

"If Birgitta can knuckle down for a clean run, anything is possible", said Fritz. The journalist agreed and showed highlights from the luge run. Next the journalist asked Fritz about his own Olympic career. Prince Fritz participated in the XII Olympiad, competing in the Sailing - One Man Dinghy event. Leading up to that, he took part in several domestic event and one international sailing series.

"It's about the struggle and about those who rise to the top", Fritz said about the games. "Take Ralph Strutton. Nobody has ever said he was one of the world's best. He's played second fiddle to Elsa Ahl and third fiddle to just about everyone else. But it's what he did with that feeling. Of course the team was still far from a medal, with two more events remaining in the Team Trophy. "He's there for the team. He emerged as a leader. This is what sports is about."

He was asked what advice he had for current Olympic athletes. "Enjoy it while you can. The Games will be over before you know it."

Fritz is a fan of skiing and skating. He'll hit the hill to watch the conclusion of the luge event. He'll also catch Elsa Ahl in her skating Team trophy event. If he can he'll try to also catch some of the snowboard action on the halfpipe. He'll be in town for the remainder of the games.

[Britonisea]

Britannual News

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GOLDEN DAY: SHOCK VICTORY FOR ANTOINE NUMBERS IN THE MEN'S MOGULS!

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Location: Prescott, Electrum

Gold!: Britonisea has won their first Winter Olympic Gold Medal ever!

The nation is in shock after Antoine Numbers wins in the Men's Moguls - Freestyle skiing which despite the big Britonish favourite for the event being Arnulfo Fortenberry, who crashed out of the first of three finals after coming 20th on a field of 24th.

Although the thrill of winning a gold medal is wonderful for a nation, instead of happiness, the Britonish seems to be in shock that Antoine Numbers, an unheard of name has won a gold medal at the Olympic Games, and did it with quite some style. As previously said, the Britonish favourite going in to this event was Arnulfo Fortenberry, who was expected to at least go to the Final 2. He didn't, but Antoine Numbers did. Interestingly, in the Final 2, Antoine Numbers actually came joint 8th, and it was only the top 8 to qualify for the next round of the sport. Not only were commentators writing him off, but it seemed like the nation did too with many people saying on twitter that he wouldn't even reach the top 5 in the finals...but indeed he won.

In all fairness, the Britonish are not grand fans of this sport, Freestyle skiing, and that's not because there is a vendetta against the sport, but because it doesn't get any airtime whatsoever in the nation, and people - if they were asked - probably wouldn't even know what Freestyle Skiing is never mind the Men's Moguls are. It is expected that the average amount of people watching the Olympic broadcast was around 4.06 million (15.6, 100%) with Antoine's win seeing a spike in viewership to 6.12 million - the second highest peak viewership of the evening after BVC's Fame Academy. Exploding online straight after it was clear he won, many branded this news as fake news and a desperate attempt to get the Britonish public hyped. But this news was simply too big, making national news bulletins across the country.

The coverage, some nations might say, is over-hyped. But that simply isn't the case in our own eyes because not only is this the first gold medal that has been won by a Briton in these Games, but this gold medal is the first of it's kind to ever be a Briton's. We received our first ever bronze medal during the XI Winter Games, and our silver earlier these Games. But for us to win our first Winter gold medal shocked the nation - especially from someone like...Antoine. In total, Britonisea has now won 14 gold medals at the Olympics.

Nevertheless, we are so happy that we finally have a Winter Games gold - and it's great to see Britonisea is tied 6th placed on that medal table. Hopefully, Britonisea will be able to stay that high up on the table.

In other news, the Women's Ice Hockey team won against Ethane and seals their second win in their group of three meaning that the Britons are going to qualify to the crucial knock out stage. Can they repeat the success they had during the XI Winter Games? Also, James Hile from Britonisea comes first in the qualification of the Snowboarding Men's Halfpipe - he says that he is "going to have a goodnight sleep before reinstating a winner's mentality for tomorrow".