Cosmic medals, unconventional bobsledding teams and scandals that shocked the world. These are the things that continue to lock viewers into the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
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JEFFREY WINSTON JONES, Staff Writer
Just over one year ago on Feb. 15, a meteor glowing 30 times brighter than the sun entered Earth’s atmosphere and exploded 20 miles over Chelyabinsk, Russia.
The explosion resulted in a 500-kiloton sonic blast, injuring over 1,200 people, according to The New York Times.
Local citizens suffered injuries from blown shards glass, temporary eye pain and ultra-violet burns.
During the ongoing Winter Olympics Sochi, Russia, turned this tragedy into a triumph.
The 2014 Winter Olympics, being held in Sochi, is remembering the one-year anniversary of the meteor event, with commemorative gold medals from literally out of this world.
According to BBC News Europe, 50 commemorative gold medals made for the 22nd Winter Olympics are embedded with fragments from the 10-ton space rock.
Ten of these celestial medals will be given to Olympians who win gold in addition to their official medal and the other 40 will be sold to private collectors.
The Russian News and Information Agency RIA Novosti, reported that Chelyabinsk Region Culture Minister Alexei Betekhtin said, “We will hand out our medals to all the athletes who will win gold on that day, because both the meteorite strike and the Olympic Games are the global events.”
The 10 Olympians who received these one-of-a-kind creations competed in seven events on Feb. 15, according the Sochi 2014 daily schedule.
No matter how cold or warm the conditions may be, the cosmic medals around the necks of these up-and-coming Olympic champions will have them walking on sunshine.
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STUART SLATES, Staff Writer
Many people know and have seen the 1993 movie, “Cool Runnings,” based loosely on the 1988 Jamaican Olympic bobsled team.
It is a heart-warming story of strife, hardship and perseverance with a heroic ending.
Today in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, there is a similar story developing.
The two-man Jamaican bobsled team set to compete in Sochi has run into a few issues.
The team first ran into a funding issue. Soon, though, the team raised $178,000 in an online plea for funding before telling fans and friends to stop donating.
As the team arrived in Sochi to compete their luggage and equipment did not.
The Jamaicans’ equipment has been found and was in the team’s hands in time for them to participate in the second day of practices.
Only time will tell if the 2014 team with suffer the same fate as the 1988 cool runnings team, which unfortunately crashed on the first day of its competition, pushing the sled across the finish line in defeat but going down in history.
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JERASON GINES, Managing Editor
With the Sochi Winter Olympics now in full speed, many viewers are watching and waiting for the next big Olympic scandal.
Throughout the history of the Olympics, we have seen our fellow humans accomplish incredible acts of physical ability, artistic creativity and raw ingenuity.
Unfortunately, many times the Olympians’ hard work is shadowed by a few more shocking moments.
Every now and then an Olympic Games is subject to a scandal that rocks and shocks the world.
Who can forget the Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan incident, which took place in the 1994 Winter Olympics and shook the figure skating world.
Harding was banned from figure skating for life after Jeff Gillooly took a lead pipe to Kerrigan’s knee just weeks before the 1994 Winter Olympics.
Despite Harding’s act of sabotage, Kerrigan managed to bring home the silver medal.
Even games as recent as the 2012 Summer Games have been subject to scandal.
In 2012, eight badminton teams were disqualified for throwing their matches to sandbag their way into an easier pool, reportedly giving the sport of badminton its “darkest moment.”
Many other scandals have presented themselves throughout history, but will Sochi 2014 be the first to keep it clean?
Here’s to playing it fair in Sochi and to a great Winter Games.
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Emma Tihen 
Madison Coumerilh 
Kaylee Ascher