The Salt Lake City Olympic Winter Games was larger than all previous Games with 77 nations, 78 events, and a record 18 nations earning gold medals.

2,399 (1,513 men, 886 women) competitors from 77 nations participated in 7 sports and 78 events over a fortnight. Norway won the gold medal tally with 13, Germany 2nd with 12, UISA 3rd with 10, Canada 4th with 7, Russian Federation 5th with 5 gold medals also. Norway’s hero was Ole Einar Bjoerndalen, who won all four men’s biathlon events, the first biathlete to win four gold medals at a single Games. Samppa Lajunen of Finland won three gold medals in Nordic combined. coque samsung Switzerland’s Simon Ammann won both the normal hill and large hill ski jumping events, becoming only the second athlete after Finland’s Matti Nykanen to complete the double. German speed skater Claudia Pechstein won two gold medals, including her third consecutive gold medal in the women’s 5000m. By taking the silver medal in singles luge, Georg Hackl of Germany became the first person in Olympic history to earn a medal in the same individual event five times in a row. Australia, which had never won a Winter Games gold medal before, won 2 gold medals in Salt Lake: aerial skier Alisa Camplin and short track speed skater Steven Bradbury in the men’s 1000m. Both would emerge as two of the most popular champions of the Games. China won its first and second Winter Olympic gold medals, both by women’s short-track speed skater Yang Yang (A). Coque huawei Outlet Norway tied the Soviet Union at the 1976 Winter Olympics for most gold medals at a Winter Olympics, with 13. Coque huawei Germany set a record for most total medals at a Winter Olympics, with 36. The Salt Lake Games faced a bribery scandal and some local opposition during the bid, as well as some sporting and refereeing controversies during the competitions. Nevertheless, from sporting and business standpoints, they were among the most successful Winter Olympiads in history; records were set in both the broadcasting and marketing programs – and the Games made a $40m surplus. The Olympic Cauldron was designed with the official motto Light the Fire Within and the Fire and Ice theme in mind. It was designed to look like an icicle, and was made of glass which allowed the fire to be seen burning within. Small jets send water down the glass sides of the cauldron, both to keep the glass and metal cooled (so they would not crack or melt), and to give the effect of melting ice. A second Olympic cauldron burned at the Awards Plaza in downtown Salt Lake City during the games. It was known as the Hero’s Cauldron and was in the backdrop of every awards ceremony. Coque huawei pas cher This was the first time two cauldrons were used during the same Olympic Games. Interesting Points:

Australia’s Steven Bradbury won an unforgettable gold in the men’s 1000m speed skating. Competing at his fourth Olympics, Bradbury had overcome some horrific injuries in the years leading up to the Olympics while a number of crashes, mistakes and disqualifications had helped him quietly reach the five-man final. In the final, Bradbury intentionally dropped behind early and trailed the rest of the field by almost a half lap as the four men in front of him bunched around the last turn. But a massive collision sent all four skaters flying, careening into the side of the rink and sliding across the ice. As the only skater left standing, Bradbury crossed the finish line first and was awarded the gold medal.

Salt Lake City became the most populous area ever to have hosted the Winter Olympics but was surpassed by Turin in the 2006 Winter Olympics four years later, which itself was surpassed by Vancouver in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Over 2 billion viewers watched more than 13 billion viewer hours.

These were the first Games to be held under IOC president Jacques Rogge.

The closing ceremonies marked the final live performance of legendary rock band KISS.

There was a Canadian dollar underneath the ice in support of the Canadian men’s team, supposedly placed there at the request of Wayne Gretzky, who knew the man responsible for ice upkeep.

While there was a lot of international sympathy for the US in the wake of the 9/11 attacks the previous year, there were complaints that the Games were being conducted in an overtly patriotic manner. President Bush received criticism for departing from the Olympic charter by extending the declaration to open the Games, saying “On behalf of a proud, determined and grateful nation” before the traditional formula, “I declare open the Games of Salt Lake City”. In addition, the President opened the games standing among the US athletes, while previous heads of state opened the games from an official box.

The 2002 Olympic Torch was modeled after an icicle.

This was the first time two cauldrons were used during the same Olympic Games.

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