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What's its Gold Medal secret?
- 2022-02-17 13:35:21
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Norway is dominating the Winter Olympics. What's its Gold Medal secret?
BEIJING — When Tore Ovrebo, head of Norway's vaunted national athlete development program known as Olympia toppen, arrived in Beijing, he predicted exactly how many Medals his country would win."The Medal aim is 32 — three, two," Ovrebo said at a press conference, making the number crystal clear for anyone not listening closely.That is an astonishingly high bar, sort of like a Major League Baseball manager promising his pitcher will throw a no-hitter.Ovrebo proceeded to map out his game plan, predicting Norway would Medal repeatedly in three core disciplines: alpine skiing, biathlon and cross-country skiing.
With the Winter Olympics entering the final days of competition, his country's athletes are actually well ahead of schedule. The U.S. with its vastly larger population lags by half a dozen Medals.Norway's athletes are outpacing the U.S. even though its team is less than half the size, with 99 Norwegians competing in Beijing compared to 223 Americans.So how does a nation with so few people do it? The Norwegians have been asked this a lot in Beijing.
"It's a good question," said Birk Ruud, a member of Norway's freestyle ski team, who won a Gold Medal in the Olympic big air competition. "We're a country with a lot of good genes and we work hard." He and his teammate Ferdinand Dahl told reporters that winter sport is a big part of life in their northern country. It's something just about everyone does from the time they're little kids. "We have this term, that we're born with skis on our feet," Dahl said. "Fun is the fundamental drive. A lot of hard work, I think and a lot of fun and dedication — and skiing."That national sports culture has created a pipeline of skiing superstars that other countries, so far, can only aspire to match. Young people compete against each other, growing stronger before they ever reach the international level.
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