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From: rs55611@ihuxk.UUCP (Robert E. Schleicher)
Newsgroups: net.sport
Subject: Re: USSR - Alpine Skiing
Message-ID: <563@ihuxk.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 20-Feb-84 14:48:32 EST
Article-I.D.: ihuxk.563
Posted: Mon Feb 20 14:48:32 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 21-Feb-84 04:18:16 EST
References: <574@pyuxa.UUCP> <6779@unc.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, IL
Lines: 19

The other side of the coin is that some of the entrants from some
of the smaller countries (especially from those that aren't winter
sports capitals) don't really train that hard, and are just there
for a neat experience/vacation.  There was one guy in the giant
slalom (not the Costa Rican; he did pretty good) who basically
snow-plowed down.  It was like they asked for volunteers to go,
and only got a couple of applicants.

(There were also a fair amount of Americans on other teams,
through various vague connections.  The Puerto Rican luger
wasn't really from Puerto Rico, as I recall.  Also, how about
the Egyptian skiier who was born in Egypt, but had lived in
Lake Placid, NY since he was about three months old.  He
wasn't any good, but got a free trip to Yugoslavia as
a member of the Egyptian ski team.  His father is an
Egyptian govt. official of some kind, and he had his son
train by staying in a completely dark cavern for 40 days,
for spiritual cleansing and concentration.  ABC did a short
feature on him.)