An Experience Worth Its Weight in Gold

Steven Holcomb and his "Night Train" crew won the 4-man bobsled competition, giving the U.S. it's 36th medal. This ties the all-time mark set by Germany in 2002. Tomorrow, the U.S. is assured a 37th and record-breaking medal in the men's ice hockey final versus Canada. Win or lose in that game, these Olympic Games have been hugely successful for the Americans. The Canadians have hosted a great party. The bronze medal pictured above belongs to Elana Meyers of the third place women's bobsled team.

Tomorrow, I leave for Vancouver where I will spend the next two nights before returning to Texas. Not sure if I'll be able to catch the Closing Ceremonies or where I will be for the gold medal hockey match but I do know that I'm just about ready to head home. It will be nice to spend some more time in Vancouver and hang out with the USOC crew down there. Go USA!

Click HERE for my flash quotes from today's men's alpine slalom event.

Canadian Observation of the Month: The Olympic Games will be considered a bust for many Canadians if their men's hockey team falls to the U.S. in tomorrow's final.

Medal Count: USA 36, Germany 29, Canada 25

Winter Winding Down

Tomorrow is the last full day of competition for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Today was the second to last day for me to stand outside in the freezing cold at the alpine skiing venue. Aside from these blogs, I haven't had too much time to reflect on my month in Whistler. I fall asleep almost immediately upon hitting the pillow. My best times for meditation have been on the ski lift rides to and from the alpine venue. On the way up, I get to see ten thousand flag-waving Olympic fans gearing up to cheer for their country. On the way down, I overlook Whistler Creekside and the forest that surrounds it. Every day brings new experiences and memories. Yesterday, I was able to visit the USA House in Whistler. This was my first time at the House on the evening after an American won a medal. I got to see the athletes and their friends and family enjoy the moment together. With their own medals hanging from their neck, the athletes present a special medal to their coaches, thanking them for all their hard work. It's a pretty cool sight to see and yes I was able to touch the medal.

Click HERE for the flash quotes from the women's alpine slalom event today.

Canadian Observation of the Day: Seems like half of the staff and volunteers with the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee are American.

Medal Count: USA 32, Germany 27, Norway 20

Bringing Home the Hardware

With the women's hockey team winning the silver medal, the U.S. now tops the medal count with 31 podium finishes. Three more medals will tie the all-time best finish by the Americans at a Winter Games, set in Salt Lake City in 2002. With over two full days left of competition, Team USA has already set the record for most medals earned at a Winter Games outside of the U.S. The U.S. Nordic combined skiing team arrived in Canada having never won an Olympic medal. Today, Billy Demong and Johnny Spillane finished first and second, bring the team's medal haul to four at these Games. At the Whistler USOC Media Services Office, we've been adding the names of each medal winner to the wall on either side of the entrance. It's a simple yet impressive display that might come off as showboating. I'm not sure even we anticipating this kind of performance.

Canadian Observation of the Day: The only thing they Canadians love more than hockey is talking about how humble and polite they are.

Medal Count: USA 31, Germany 26, Norway 19

The Cultural Olympiad

After sport, the Olympic Games is a celebration of music and art. Music and sport are both universally loved and great ways to bring people together. Everyday, four free concerts are within a quick walk from my office. I've been unable to see a few of the shows I had circled on my calendar, such as jewish rapper Matisyahu and costumed deejay Deadmau5. But recently I've made up for it by catching Damian Marley (son of Bob) and Canadian indie rock group Stars. The Games are nearing their end and Whistler goes out with a bang with hip-hop artists on three straight nights: the Roots, Knaan and Usher. Oh yeah, there are some sport competitions going on as well.

Click HERE for my flash quotes from the first run of the women's alpine giant slalom event.

Canadian Observation of the Day: The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, affectionately known as Mounties, are everywhere, although not all of them wear the official red jacket, tan Stetson and boots.

Medal Count: USA 28, Germany 24, Norway 18.

Venturing Into Vancouver

Yesterday was my first entire day off so naturally I went to Vancouver to see experience the Olympic Games away from the mountains and in the big city. After freezing at the alpine venue the past week, I welcomed the opportunity to thaw out at some indoor sports. First off was U.S. women's hockey semifinal match against Sweden. Team USA won and go on to play Canada in the gold medal match on Thursday. Then I saw the U.S. men's curling match against China. Curling has been one of the few areas where the Americans have underperformed and yesterday resulted in another loss. Nevertheless, it was very cool to see the sport in person for the first time and to hang out with former USOC intern Maura.

In between the two competitions, I was able to walk around Vancouver, which is much more urban and diverse than I expected. It seemed like a less intense version of London or New York. It was every bit as visually stunning and hip as I expected with lots of interesting bars, restaurants and artwork. Tons of people were out on the streets, soaking in the Olympic spirit. I stopped by the USA House, where I ate a gourmet lunch and met up with former USOC intern Vanessa. It was a great day off and it has re-energized me to finish off these Olympic Games strong.

Click HERE for flash quotes from the men's alpine event today.

Canadian Observation of the Day: Tim Horton's is the Canadian Dunkin' Donuts, Blenz is the Canadian Starbucks, they also have plenty of Starbucks.

Medal Count: USA 26, Germany 23, Norway 17

Doing It His Way

Bode Miller is one of the greatest alpine skiers of all time. He is certainly the best American to strap on a pair of skis. Today, Bode won the gold medal in the super combined competition, completing his set of gold, silver and bronze for the 2010 Games. Add that to his two silver medals from 2002 and he has reached five Olympic podiums. He's now become the biggest story for two Olympic Games. Bode essentially took off the 2006 Games in Torino in a well-documented two weeks of partying and underachieving. This time around, the articles are praising Bode for returning to his old self. But through it all, Bode has maintained that he's never changed. He still gets nervous, he still loathes the media and he can still ski. I've gotten a chance to be in the presence of Bode and I truly believe that he is one of the most impressive and intriguing athletes of this generation.

In other news, the U.S. has just upset Canada in men's hockey, 5-3.

Canadian Observation of the Day: USA-Canada hockey certainly ranks as one of the top rivalries on this continent, up there with USA-Mexico soccer and Yankees-Red Sox baseball.

Click HERE for my transcript of the U.S. men's alpine super combined quotes.

Medals Count: USA 24, Germany 18, Norway 12

Alpine Aficionado

Today I attended my fourth alpine event. I have seen U.S. skiers win five medals. The U.S. alpine ski team has now won seven medals, the U.S. Ski Team 11, and the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association 16. I have been up close and personal with three of the best U.S. skiers ever: Bode Miller, Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso. After a mix of rain, snow and fog that has caused delays, the weather has been perfect. The sun is shining, just not on the print media area, where I'm stationed. The temperature drops considerably in the shade and it can make waiting for athletes to come through seem like an eternity. I suppose it's all in a day's work here in the Whistler. I'll probably never have as much fun working 12 hour days and weekends.

Click HERE for the post-alpine quotes I posted today.

Canadian Observation of the Day: The country has two languages (English and French), which seems like a huge pain in the butt, having to label everything twice.

Medal Count: USA 21, Germany 14, Norway 10.

Mixed Zone Mania

I've become very familiar with the media mixed zone at the Whistler Creekside alpine skiing venue. The mixed zone is the area reserved for the written press, which the athletes walk through after competition. It's part post-game press conference, part locker room interview. Print journalists get the athletes only after the Olympians have passed through multiple broadcast booths. By then the athletes are burnt out on answering the same questions and the reporters are antsy to file their stories by deadline. I'm in this area to assist the alpine press officer, which often involves standing amongst the journalists and recording their interviews so as to post some quotes online as quickly as possible for reporters unable to make it to the event. If the athlete is big enough, he or she will be completely surrounded by about 30 reporters. For those out of sight and earshot, they create a satellite huddle around speakers playing the informal press conference. Its crazy the lengths sports writers will go to get the quotes they need.

Click HERE for the quotes I posted from the women's alpine super combined event.

Canadian Observation of the Day: "Oh, Canada" is one of the better national anthems out there.

Medal Count: United States 17, Germany 11, Norway 8

Another Successful Day at the Office

By 7pm Pacific, the United States has already won four medals on the day: two golds, a silver and bronze. I was working at the women's alpine skiing (downhill) event in which Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso took the gold and silver medals, respectively. Vonn came into the Olympic Games heavily favored in multiple events before a shin injury left her participation in doubt until a few days ago. Mancuso has been happily hiding in Vonn's shadow and surprised many by her performance today. This kind of dominance by one country does not happen very often in alpine skiing. I was a witness to a small part of U.S. Olympic history today. The award-winning day is not over yet, with men's halfpipe snowboarding still to go and the U.S. having four guys capable of reaching the podium. There's a chance I could be venturing outside of my Whistler bubble to Cypress Mountain, the site of the women's snowboard finals tomorrow night.

Click HERE for my post-competition quotes from the women's alpine event.

Canadian Observation of the Day: Thermal underwear are a must if you plan on standing outside for an extended period of time.

Medal Count: USA 12, Germany 9, France 7

The Other Side of the Fence

Today, I was able to take in some women's luge action. It was the first time I saw a competition and I wasn't working. When I'm working, I'm usually in the press area, which is not necessarily the best viewing spot. Yesterday, I watched men's alpine crammed amongst a hundred journalists. I was more interested in keeping my prime spot so that I could record Bode Miller's soundbites than I was in watching the action. When working at the Whistler Sliding Centre, I am stationed at the finish line, far from any of the hairpin turns that make luge, skeleton and bobsled so exciting and dangerous. Today I was amongst the fans, enjoying the spectacle of it all. Fans are allowed to line the track with about eight feet between themselves and the sliders going over 80 miles an hour. It's amazing to watch gravity hold a slider to the wall as he or she is perpendicular with the ground (pictured above). I'm hoping to see each Whistler venue from both the fan and press perspective.

Click HERE for my personal Twitter with 73 followers and HERE for the USOC Twitter site I help maintain with over 6,800 followers.

Canadian Observation of the Day: Canada's $100 million "Own the Podium" initiative has drawn criticism for being wasteful, unsuccessful and un-Olympic

Medal Count: Germany 9, USA 8, France 7, Canada 5

Catching All the Action

Two days ago, I got to watch my first Olympic event: men's luge. Today, I watched my first Olympic event finals: men's alpine skiing - downhill. American Bode Miller earned the bronze medal in the event after not finishing in the top ten all year. Yesterday, Johnny Spillane became the first American to win a medal in Nordic combined skiing. These two were the first Americans to win medals from the Whistler venues, which makes for a busy night for me and my co-workers.

Since the opening ceremonies, I've been able to watch parts of three live concerts: Matisyahu, Estelle and Valerie Sajdik. I'm still hoping to see one of the nightly DJ shows at the end of the Whistler ski slope.

Click HERE and HERE for the last two transcripts I've posted.

Canadian observation: beanie (US) = toque (Canadian, pronounced "took")

Medal Count: USA 8, France, Germany and Canada have 4

The Games Must Go On

Last night I stood around in the rain-snow-rain as the men's singles luge athletes took their first and second runs of the competition. The day before, an Olympic luge slider from the Republic of Georgia died on the same course when his sled careened off the track and he hit a metal poll going 90 miles an hour. The men's starting area was lowered to reduce speeds, padding was placed on certain poles and the competition continued as scheduled. The Olympic world was shaken, but only momentarily I'm afraid. I hope that this tragic death is not forgotten amid the excitement of the Olympic Games.

In the first full day of competition, the United States surged to the front of the medals race with four podium finishes: one gold, one silver and two bronze. Freestyle moguls skier Hannah Kearney stole gold from the grip of Canadian favorite Jenn Heil. Speedskater Apolo Ohno finished second in the 1500m to earn the silver medal, his sixth career Olympic medal, which ties him for first all-time for an American winter sport athlete and the most among U.S. men. Right behind Apolo in the 1500m was J.R. Celski, who returned to the ice after a lengthy recovery from a leg injury.

Click HERE for quotes from the U.S. luge athletes that I posted.

Canadian observation of the day: they have a chain restaurant called White Spot that I imagine is the Canadian equivalent to Chilis

Medal Count: USA 4, Korea 2, nine others tied with 1

One Big Canadian Party

Last night I attended the Opening Ceremonies for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. We got there just in the nick of time and had great seats on the floor. We got to see performances by Canada's best: Nelly Furtado, Sarah McLaughlin and K.D. Lang. My favorite singers were the one's I had never heard of who sang the Canadian national anthem and the official Olympic anthem, which was more like an opera. I could have done without the fiddles and tapdancing but the Cirque du Soleil-type acrobatics that followed were great. The highlights were watching the U.S. and Canadian teams process around the stadium and meeting up with my Vancouver USOC buddies that I hadn't seen since December: Vanessa, Lisa, Nicole, Maureen, Lindsay, Bob, Peggy. I hope to see them again before I leave Canada.

Click HERE to read my former fellow intern Vanessa's blog.

Canadian observation of the day: parking garages are called "parkades"

Whistler forecast (Celsius): High 3, Low 2, rain

Today It Begins

The first ski jumpers are catching air as I type. The first event of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games has begun. Tonight is the Opening Ceremonies. I'm waiting to find out if I will be going. Yesterday, I sat in on two U.S. press conferences: biathlon and doubles luge. It's amazing to interact with these athletes. Some of them are larger than life like Bode Miller. Most are very down to earth people that were as excited to receive their free U.S. Olympic apparel as anyone else would be. Except for a select few, winter sport athletes do not make much money. They spent a lot of time marketing themselves so as to get sponsorships. The sponsorships are usually just enough to pay the bills and allow themselves to keep doing what they love for a living. They are very grateful for everything they have and they are all ecstatic to be at the Olympic Games. As am I.

Click HERE and HERE for the press conference transcripts I posted.

Canadian observation of the day: They love the Maple Leaf. With the Olympic Games in town, the leaf is more prevalent than all the Nike swooshes and McDonald's arches combined.

Whistler forecast (Celsius): High 4, Low 1, rain

Nick Olivier, Press Attache

That bright orange armband transformed me from just another U.S. Olympic Press Officer, to a full blown Press Attache. What does that mean? It means that when I wear that armband, I can open the gate, walk past the throngs of journalists and escort an Olympian through the mixed zone, an area where athletes conduct informal interviews right after competition. I was able to escort alpine skier Bode Miller, perhaps the most famous male U.S. Olympian at this Winter Games. The eccentric two-time silver medalist is notorious for avoiding media. With me by his side, he walked right by reporters yelling his name. As we left the mixed zone, I asked him how the run went. He gave me a straight answer, something he wouldn't do for anyone else at that moment. That's what a press attache is.

Click HERE for my transcript of the men's alpine team press conference.

Canadian observation of the day: Molson Canadian is the number one beer in Canada, followed by Kokanee. Labatt Blue seems to be more popular in America.

Whistler forecast (Celsius): High 4, Low 3, rain

Poutine: Canadian Junk Food

Today started at 9am and ended at 10pm. After a day like that, I deserved to eat something grossly delicious. Poutine is a Canadian delicacy: fries, cheese curds and gravy. I imagine something this fattening and gluttonous is best eaten after a few beers or the morning after a late night. For me, it didn't live up to my high expectations. There are many ways to eat Poutine. I got the "classic" version. Maybe I'll have to try a different version before writing off one of the pillars of Canadian cuisine.

Including poutine, today was a day of many firsts. I sat in on my first Olympic press conference, this one for the 2010 U.S. Luge Team. Before that, I interacted with my first Olympian since landing in Canada, this one alpine skier Erik Fisher. The highlight of my day might have been trading my first pin. Trading pins is a major Olympic tradition. I traded with a manager at the McDonalds, who was a serious trader and wasn't just giving his away. The trade: one of my USOC pins for one of his McDonalds pins with a Vancouver 2010 mascot on it.

Canadian observation of the day: Canadians have there own sports (hockey and curling) but they also follow many American (football and basketball) and British (soccer) sports

Whistler weather (Celsius): High 3, Low 0, rain

Behind the Scenes

There are three competition venues in the Whistler area. The Whistler Sliding Centre is home to luge, bobsled and skeleton competitions. Alpine skiing resides at Whistler Creekside. I didn't get to see the Whistler Olympic Park but I will eventually when helping out at the Nordic skiing disciplines: cross country, ski jumping, biathlon and Nordic combined. I was a pre-teen the only time I have skied. I have never been to a competitive skiing venue, much less seen a luge track. This is all new to me. I try to keep my ears and eyes open and soak it all in, hoping that it will start to make sense to me.

Canadian observation of the day: approximate Celsius to Fahrenheit conversion can be done by doubling the temperature and adding 30

Whistler forecast (Celsius): High 6, Low 0, partly cloudy

Whistler: More Than Just Marmots and Moose

I'm starting get to know Whistler, the ski town at the foot of the Whistler and Blackcomb mountains. The town has enough bars and restaurants to accommodate the hordes of winter sport enthusiasts that are about to descend on British Columbia. Along with sports, the Olympic Games feature lots of live music. There are three outdoor stages along the Village Stroll, including one at the Medals Plaza for post-Victory Ceremony concerts and one at Skiers Plaza at the foot of the slopes where DJs will play each night during the Games. Matisyahu and Damian Marley hightlight the lineup for me. I'll be happy to catch any amount of live music as I'm sure anything will sound good when standing among thousands of people from around the globe.

Canadian observation of the day: I've heard very few "ehs" and "aboots"

Whistler forecast (celcius): High 8, Low -1, partly cloudy

Calm Before the Storm

Today was a day for getting acclimatized. We walked around Whistler Resort and the Whistler Media Centre, becoming familiar with our surroundings. I spent much of the day in the U.S. Media Services Office in the Whistler Media Centre. I will devote many more hours in the room. The Media Centre contains large rooms divided into smaller, temporary offices. We share a wall with some Canadian journalists and another group of guys speaking a language I don't understand. Work is sure to increase with the Opening Ceremonies looming.

Tomorrow is the Super Bowl, the biggest American sports event. Rather than watch it at a noisy bar, we will be watching the game from comfort of our Whistler condominium. Included among the amenities are a 42" flatscreen, small grill for cooking and a balcony looking out at Blackcomb and Whistler mountains (pictured above). I'm hoping for a good game but it would be nice to see the Saints win.

Canadian observation of the day: Hockey and curling are the two biggest sports and there's not a close third.

Whistler forecast (celcius): High 7, Low 0

On the Ground: Whistler

I'm here. Whistler is pretty amazing, although I've only seen it at night. My condo is really nice, apparently way fancier than most media housing at Olympic Games. Gotta get some sleep as work starts early tomorrow. I think we're going to check out some competition venues to get a lay of the land. That's my credential in the photo. It's supposed to be worth it's weight in gold. I'm hoping to get some USA pins so I can start trading with foreigners.

Canadian observation of the day: restrooms are labeled washrooms

Whistler weather forecast (celsius): high of 8, low of 1, partly cloudy

Next Stop: Vancouver

That guy in the photo is none other than Bob Harper, one of the two trainers on NBC's The Biggest Loser. Jillian was less willing to take photos with fans. The show came to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs to film an episode back in November. That episode will air next Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 7pm CST.

I leave Friday for Vancouver, British Columbia, where I will be serving as a U.S. Olympic Committee Press Officer at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Actually, I will be stationed in Whistler, a ski resort 70 miles north of Vancouver. I will be in Canada for 26 days, from Feb. 5 to March 2. I'm very excited about it although I'm still not quite sure what my job duties will be. And I definitely have no idea what to expect when it comes to the craziness of an Olympic Winter Games.

The Opening Ceremonies are Friday, Feb. 12 and the closing ceremonies are Sunday, Feb. 28. Today's weather in Whistler: High 40, Low 33, scattered snow.

Click HERE for the 2010 U.S. Olympic Team announcement release I helped put out.

Click HERE for the 2009 USOC Awards release I wrote.

Follow me on Twitter @NickOlivier.