The 2002 Olympic Games
With Tracee Hamilton
Washington Post Deputy Sports Editor
Friday, Feb. 8, 2002; 1 p.m. EST

On Friday night the Olympic torch will make its way to Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City to kick off the 2002 Winter Games. How is the city coping with the extraordinary amount of security? Should the World Trade Center flag be incorporated into the opening ceremonies? What is the weather forecast?

Tracee Hamilton, Washington Post deputy sports editor, took your Olympic questions and comments live from Salt Lake City.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

Arlington, Va.: I'm curious as to how onerous the security will be for spectators. Let's say I was in downtown Salt Lake and wanted to go to see the downhill at Snowbasin. What could I expect in terms of time, traffic, parking and checkpoints?

Tracee Hamilton: Hi all! Thanks for joining me. This is my rookie chat.

I think security will be a problem for everyone. I know our reporter who tried to cover ski jumping today -- it was cancelled -- had a 40-minute wait in line because there were no metal detectors at the venue. We are telling our folks to give themselves an extra hour beyond the normal time they would leave, just to have a comfort level about security. And dress warmly; the lines are obviously out of doors.

Annandale, Va.: More of a comment than a question: We had friends who trained locally for the 1998 Winter Olympics but were representing another country. During the opening ceremonies, when that country's athletes were announced, CBS decided to switch cameras to show faces in the crowd. Of course we were very disappointed that we didn't see our friends. I'm sure the producers in the CBS control room thought no one in the US cares about this country, but the truth is many of the world's best athletes train right here in the US, and they have American friends who want to see them on TV. Do you have any clue if NBC will be more sensitive to letting us see the all athletes even if they come from remote, obscure, rarely discussed nations?

Tracee Hamilton: I wish they would not break for commercials during the parade of athletes but it's just too long. It's always been my favorite part of the ceremony; I love seeing how excited the athletes are, etc. Apparently Latvia is one of those countries that keeps getting left out, which is truly a shame given its struggles. No good solution, but I feel your pain!

Washington, D.C.: Haven't heard much about the lighting of the torch, tonight. Who's doing the honors?

Tracee Hamilton: It's a closely guarded secret, but seems at this point that it will be the 1980 U.S. hockey team. Will they choose one representative? Perhaps. Mike Eruzione? But someone from that team seems logical. We had thought perhaps the Shea family, with Jack as the lighter. Eric Heiden wanted it but was turned down. Cathy Freeman of Australia will take part in some way but not obviously light the cauldron.

Los Angeles, Calif.: Hi there.

Most people I know are pretty apathetic about the Olympics since the media (NBC) does such an awful job covering them. There are way too many commercials, way too many "human interest" stories and over emphasis on American athletes vs. those who excel in a particular sport.

Our household plans to watch close 0 percent of the games, which is sad since I believe they are a significant event, but one that's been ruined by greedy media corporations.

Comments?

Tracee Hamilton: NBC has a lot to answer for from the past few Olympics. I know what you mean about the human interest, etc., which reached a zenith in Sydney. But they SWEAR this year they'll have more live coverage and less packages. I would give it a chance, esp. the cable offerings, which will be pretty event-oriented. The skiing will be taped b/c of the time frame, but all in all, the Olympics -- especially winter -- are a great place to see athletes who are in it for the fun and the competition and not the money. I pay bills and clean house during the commercials; give that a try!

Arlington, Va.: How has the Mormon Church reacted to the games? Is their religion being highlighted? Are they being very open in their evangelism?

Thank you.

Tracee Hamilton: No, the Mormon Church decided that to push its religion during the Games would be unseemly. If you go to the Temple area (which is beautiful, by the way, and you'll see plenty of it on TV) they will talk to you and tell you the history of the church. But they are trying to stay in the background for the most part. They had a brief role in the torch relay but no more than anyone else. You will see the temple as a backdrop during the medal ceremonies -- the church donated the land -- but truly it's not been an issue.

Harrisonburg, Va.: Care to predict how many medals the U.S. will take home?

Tracee Hamilton: I think they'll beat their goal of 20 fairly easily. Our Olympic writer, Amy Shipley, plotted out the possibilities and predicts 30 but sees an opportunity for 50. I think her 30 is a pretty good guess.

Alexandria, Va.: I have heard that President Bush will be at the Games. What will his role be? Is he being incorporated into the ceremony?

Tracee Hamilton: He will give a welcome at the ceremonies tonight. It will be scripted and he will basically talk about the meaning of hosting this event for America in the wake of 9-11. Short and sweet, as I understand it.

Washington, D.C.: Do you really think D.C. can host the Olympics?

Tracee Hamilton: Yes, I do think it could happen, which sets my retirement date at 2011. :) Seriously, most of the major IOC sponsors are U.S. companies. The IOC would not at all mind seeing shots of the Olympic rings with a backdrop of the Capitol, the White House, the Washington Monument, etc. If they can accept the idea of a "spread-out" Olympics, then yes, I think D.C. has as good a shot as the other U.S. candidates (San Fran, Houston, NYC).

Reston, Va. -- Former Utah resident : How's the inversion doing? I can remember tasting the air in Salt Lake City in the winter. D.C. air at its worst wasn't that bad.

Tracee Hamilton: We had snow overnight and the air felt better this morning. I was really surprised by the air quality when I got here. I had a low-grade headache every day and finally decided that must be why (couldn't be the workload!). :) The air at the mountain venues is, of course, clear and clean. But Salt Lake without the mountains in the background is not the backdrop NBC was hoping for, I'm sure.

Delray, Va.: How are the Salt Lake City residents taking the Games and the high security? I can only imagine that running to the grocery store for milk would be a nightmare.

Tracee Hamilton: If you get outside the downtown area you can't tell anything is going on. I have friends who are living in a house in the 'burbs and they say it's like being home. If you have to come in to work downtown, it can't be fun, but Salt Lake is small -- I was surprised how small -- and it hasn't had the problems that D.C. would have. A lot of businesses changed their hours or even shut down to avoid having employees go through. I did read about one person living near a venue whose house was surrounded by parking lots and they posted a sign that said "WE HATE WHAT THE OLYMPICS HAS DONE TO US" or something similar. But that is the exception to the rule. These people seem almost unnaturally thrilled about this.

Arlington, Va.: Dear Ms. Hamilton:

This is more a request that a question, but my plea is that Post completely avoids the "nobody knows or cares about Olympic or Winter Sports" stories and columns. These appear to be a specialty of middle-aged (often male) sportswriters who think its funny to be ignorant of many of the sports large portions of the rest of the world enjoy. It makes the U.S. look even more arrogant and ignorant to the rest of the world.

I have enjoyed the Post's short articles on athletes in the various different winter sports.

Tracee Hamilton: Deal. I hate those, too. As a HUGE fan of the biathlon, I get pretty resentful of that attitude. We don't plan to do explainers like that, although if we write a story about, say, Nordic combined, we will mention in the story that it is a combination of cross-country and ski jumping for those who aren't familiar. I really hate the stories and columns making fun of the winter sports, which draw unbelievable crowds in Europe. Biathlon can draw 50,000 or more. If you don't like it, don't watch, but what show your own ignorance like that?

Ellicott City, Md.: What events will NBC broadcast in HDTV?

Tracee Hamilton: I don't know off the top of my head, but I believe their website, www.nbcolympics.com, has a schedule of HDTV. I thought I saw one somewhere.

Austin, Tex.: Honestly, I am not that excited about the games this year. I can't put a finger on why, but I really could care less. In your opinion what sports and/or events, if any, should I make myself watch?

Tracee Hamilton: I don't know how to get you interested if you're not, but I think the freestyle skiing and snowboarding are fun even if you don't like sports at all. Bright colors, loud music, and some truly amazing mid-air feats. I enjoy ski jumping a lot. I guess what I like about the Winter Games is that it doesn't involve football, basketball or baseball. I like to see something different every one in awhile. But to each his own.

Reston, Va.: Tracee,
I'm going to be in Salt Lake City next Tuesday for the Olympic Games, and am thrilled for the events. One of the events I'm most looking forward to attending is curling. What's the buzz in Salt Lake right now about curling? Is it a hot ticket? Who are the favorites? What kind of fans does it tend to draw?

Thanks and enjoy the Games!

Tracee Hamilton: OK, I admit I haven't heard any curling buzz! But it is expected to draw huge crowds. I don't pretend to be a curling expert but the U.S. women's team should be competitive. As far as the hot teams, Canada Canada Canada, plus the Scandanavians. I really like watching it and have actually "curled" once myself in Detroit. Lots of beer helps.

Harrisburg, Pa.: Have you spoken to any of the contestants recently? Is the added security a distraction, a relief, or making little difference as far as the athletes are concerned?

Tracee Hamilton: The athletes have been pretty understanding about security. You don't hear complaints. In fact, you hear them saying over and over that they appreciate it. One of the cross-country skiers was stopped and searched outside the Village after coming in late and she was happy that they were paying attention. The winter athletes are not very arrogant anyway, and I don't think we'll see any bad behavior on their part at these Games. I think they know how inappropriate it would be. But we'll see...

Somewhere, USA: You mention that Bush's speech will be short and sweet. How much of the Olympic ceremony ISN'T scripted? Doesn't the fact that we all know where and when certain things will happen take away from the event and spectacle itself?

Also, how many speeches will there be tonight?

Tracee Hamilton: Most of the ceremony goes along what the IOC calls Olympic Protocol. They are pretty pleased with their protocol and don't plan to change it. I suppose in the two-hour ceremony at least an hour is scripted -- the oath, the welcome, the parade of athletes. Sadly, the part that ISN'T scripted is always the frightening dance number/regional presentation, which tonight will include hundreds of skating children and clean Western settlers square dancing and wearing big grins. My ancestors were Western settlers and I wonder if they ever looked that happy about it, but whatever. As for speeches, Bush's remarks will be just that -- remarks. I'd be surprised if it was more than 2-3 minutes. The new IOC President declares the games open. There really won't be a long boring speech.

Somewhere, USA: How is the commercialism of the Winter Games as compared to the Atlanta Games? I hope it is not a tenth or a percent as bad. Thanks.

Tracee Hamilton: Nowhere near Atlanta. Not even in the ballpark. They've hung big banners of athletes in the different disciplines off the buildings, but they aren't corporate. It's been fairly tastefully done.

Washington, D.C.: Why did the Olympic torch only travel through 46 states?

Tracee Hamilton: I don't know what the official answer to that question is. I know the folks in Minnesota were mad, and I don't blame them. Not sure why, if you're going to 46 states, you can't stretch yourself to do the 48 contiguous states. How much harder could it be? Easy for me to say, though.

Washington, D.C.: I confess. I love figure skating but I am totally out of the loop, as it were. Who is this Sasha Cohen pixie?

Tracee Hamilton: She had a hot U.S. Nationals a couple of years ago, and then had a back injury and so has never been on a world team, and that's why she was sort of out of the spotlight for awhile. Michelle Kwan should be a gold-medal favorite, but either of the other American women could get on the podium.

Alexandria, Va.: I missed a lot of the initial news about the World Trade Center flag. Why was it not initially allowed in the ceremony? Who reversed the decision and why?

Tracee Hamilton: It was going to be allowed, but not to be brought into the stadium b/c that is not part of the Protocol (with a capital P). The USOC really wanted it to be carried in with the U.S. athletes. They reached the compromise where it will be carried in, not with the U.S. athletes, but will have a "moment" of its own.

Vermont: What is it like working at the Olympics? Do you have anytime to go to the events just for fun or are you working all the time? Also, do you ever feel the excitement that comes with such a big event or does it seem like just another day at the office?

Tracee Hamilton: It sure doesn't feel like a day in MY office. I love being here. No, I never get to go to events! I try but usually fail. But it's fun just being here. And yes, everyone works pretty much all the time. You can't cover an Olympics if you don't enjoy it; it's too hard.

New York City: I thought Rudy Giuliani might light the flame!

Tracee Hamilton: I thought that myself a while back but I decided I was wrong. Then Mitt Romney said they had picked the torchlighter in August so that sort of leaves Rudy out.

Washington, D.C.: I must disagree with your response to the question about the role of the Mormon Church (former Utahn). I think it is silly to believe that the Mormon church will be staying the background and there is not a better example than the Mormon temple being the background for the medal ceremonies. There are so many beautiful sweeping vistas that could have been used for the backdrop. Salt Lake's scenery is really quite dramatic. That the church "donated" the site is hardly a good explanation for why the temple must be highlighted.

Tracee Hamilton: All I can tell you is they are not stopping people on the street and preaching at them. Of course they donated the site so that the temple would be in the background.

Williamsburg, Va.: Why don't U.S. TV commentators bother to pronounce athletes' names correctly? (the Athlete Bios section of the Olympics Web site offered a phonetic pronunciation guide to many athletes' names -- quite a few were very different from what I've been hearing for years on TV.) Don't you think it would defuse a little of our perceived national 'arrogance' if our broadcast people showed these athletes the courtesy, at the very least, of pronouncing their names correctly -- especially at this time and on this world stage?

Tracee Hamilton: You'd have to ask NBC that one. Seems pretty easy. I know I butcher their names in conversation but I do my best to spell them correctly. Part of the problem is that there is so little coverage of these folks other than once every four years that no one becomes familiar with the names. And part of the problem is just sloppiness. NBC has thousands of people here; this shouldn't happen.

Washington, D.C.: What grade thermal wear is de rigeur? Light, Medium or HEAVY DUTY!

Tracee Hamilton: Mitt Romney says two pair. I think he specified light underneath, then a heavier pair. That is one of the advantages of being in the office; I don't have to wear about this! :)

Bethesda, Md.: So, which sports columnist will write making fun of all the skating children and the dancing and prancing in the ceremonies tonight. And are the mascots cute or ridiculous? And are there good souvenirs? And hey, while I'm at it, can you pick me up a T-Shirt?

Tracee Hamilton: Without Kornheiser, I'm not sure who'll make fun of the ceremony. It's really his forte. The mascots are a bear, a rabbit and a coyote (representing Citius, Altius, Fortius, the Oly motto). They are fairly cute in stuffed form. I thought the U.S. team jackets designed by Roots were v. cool, beyond that it's the same stuff. Too late to pick you up a T-shirt; I did my shopping and mailed my gifts already! :)

Fairfax, va.: How does the U.S. Hockey team look?

Tracee Hamilton: Our hockey scribe just got here, and the U.S. team isn't really "assembled" yet since the qualifying round has to be played first. I think they'll do better than 1998 but a medal would be an upset.

Maryland: Do we know anything about tonight's Opening Ceremony besides the dancing settlers? Specifically I am worried about cartoon characters running up and down the field tossing Jell-o and Pepsi into the crowd.

Tracee Hamilton: I haven't seen anything beyond the children and the settlers. I do not think you'll see Jell-O and I KNOW you won't see Pepsi. It's not an Olympic sponsor! Seriously, I do not think you'll see stuff tossed into the crowd.

Washington, D.C.: Hi Ms. Hamilton,

Why has The Post been ignoring the specifics of the ongoing IOC & IAAF displeasure, conflict with USA Track & Field concerning drug cases involving our federation's exclusive confidentiality policies, et cetera?

Tracee Hamilton: We've had a few notes. Would like to do more but Amy Shipley, our main Olympic writer, is already doing 3-4 stories a day. We're not ignoring...

Los Angeles, Calif.: 30 medals! That seems like a huge medal count jump from past Winter Olympics. Why such a large difference? Did we just get a bumper crop of good athletes, are other countries not doing so well or is it the home turf advantage that is behind the ambitious prognostication?

Tracee Hamilton: A little home turf. Also, they've added two sports in which the U.S. will do v. well: skeleton and women's bobsled. And the U.S. has improved in luge and men's bobsled. And skiing. And the U.S. has always been good in skating. It adds up. I know you're in LA but check out our special Winter section online; there's a chart that tells you how!

Bonnots Mill, Mont.: I read Amy's article this morning about ratings. The suits at NBC just don't get it, Americans aren't uninterested in the Games, they're just sick of absolutely lousy American TV coverage. Instead of endless commercials, talking heads in the studios and banal "up close" pieces, we want to see sports amd competition. I mean no one watches football for the commercials or the "infotainment" items on the players. The best Olympics I saw was in Lillehammer because I was in Italy at the time and could watch uncluttered DAYTIME LIVE coverage on Eurosport. Nothing like that here. Why don't the suits at NBC figure out the best thing for ratings would be to show sports?

washingtonpsot.com: Old Glory and New Prestige (Post, Feb. 8, 2002)

Tracee Hamilton: Again, I agree with this point of view. They say they have gotten this message and are changing. The ratings for Sydney surely got their attention. I guess we'll see starting Saturday if they truly will change. Yes, European TV does it best. When I lived in Detroit I watched the CBC, which rocked. The best TV experience I ever had was being in Atlanta and sitting in the office, which the TV had a channel running feeds from every venue, every sport. You cold see EVERYTHING. I was in heaven.

Washignton, D.C.: Could you describe skeleton racing? Is it like the luge only face first? And why was it dropped from the Winter Olympics 40+ yrs ago and added back this year?

Tracee Hamilton: Off the top of my head I can't tell you why it was dropped. The way they add and drop sports is so bizarre .. but no time for that. Skeleton racers have a small sled, take a running start, flop on their stomachs face first and head down the track with their chins about an inch off the ice. It's pretty cool and should be a good thing to watch. Unfortunately, the entire competition is held in one day, so don't miss that one.

Washington, D.C.: Is the IOC banking on these games to help rebuff their tarnished image? If so, how are they attempting to do this?

Tracee Hamilton: I don't think they feel they have a tarnished image. They are pretty pleased with themselves as a rule. They feel the Salt Lake scandal was caused by the people here, not the IOC members who took the bribes. They want the Games to do well, of course, but I don't honestly get the impression they care much what we think of them. Why else would they throw out the conflict of interest rules that had been in place for all of 2 days?

Arlington, Va.: So who are the cutest athletes? Some of us don't watch JUST to see who wins.

Tracee Hamilton: I never pay any attention to that kind of thing. If I did, I might mention freestyle mogulist Jeremy Bloom. But of course, I don't pay attention to that kind of thing.

OK, I'm out of time and have reporters milling around, seeking attention. Please pick up a Post today if you have access and check out our preview section; it'll help guide you through the Games. Enjoy!

Tracee