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　　What's so special about this February? As sports lovers will tell you, many things! This February you can watch someone ride a sled at 100 km per hour(62 miles per hour ). You can hold your breath while someone skies off a 90 meter-high (295 feet-high ) ramp into the air. Best of all, you can shout with excitement as heroes and champions are born.

　　Every four years, the world's best athletes join together in the spirit of competition and friendship. What is this special event? The Winter Olympics, of course. As the famous phrase goes, let the games begin! The Olympic competitors will assemble at Salt Lake City, Utah, in the U.S. Hundreds of athletes from more than 70 countries will compete in 15 winter sporting events. Thousands of fans will attend the games. And over a billion people worldwide will watch the games on TV.

　　As usual, some of the best athletes will be coming from snowy, northern countries such as Norway, Canada and Finland. But this year watch out for unlikely competitors form Bermuda, Jamaica and even Kenya! As these athletes complete, who know what dramas will unfold?

Skiers Who Can Fly

　　Would you have the courage to ski down a 90 meter-high (295 feet-high ) ramp and fly into the air? Olympic ski jumpers do. Most people think these jumpers are very brave----or very crazy!
　 　They zip down the icy ramp, reaching speeds of 100 km per hour (62 miles per hour ) or more. Then they spend five seconds soaring through the air!
　　Jumpers earn points by flying as far as possible. Judges also look for a smooth landing with no wobbling. Even if you fly the farthest, you won't win if you land on your behind!

　　Snowboarding, the hottest new winter sport, enjoyed its Olympic debut at the last Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

　　In the halfpipe competition, snowboarders slide down a snow course that looks like---well---half a pipe. They fly up over the edge of the 'pipe' and do special tricks and makes the least mistakes wins the gold medal.

Gian Simmen from Switzerland took home the gold in 1998. Let's see if he can do it again this year!



Feel The Speed

　　The Luge---meaning 'sled' in French ---tests the riders' tolerance for speed. Whoever races down the icy luge track the fastest wins.
　　To make themselves more speedy, racers first dress up in body suits. They then lie down on their backs on tiny sleds and slide down the track feet---first.
　　Nagano's gold medal winter, Georg Hackl from Germany, raced down the slippery track at over 140 km per hour (87 miles per hour ). Will anyone be fast enough to beat him this year? Tune in next Monday and find our!
　　But there's more to the Winter Olympics than competition. Don't miss the opening and closing ceremonies. Enjoy the lighting of the Olympic Flame, the singing of the Olympic anthem, and lots of spectacular entertainment.
　　The Olympics are also a great example of friendship among different countries. Everyone at the Olympics shares something in common---a love of sports. At the Games, athletes put aside their national differences and simply focus on doing their best. A world event that brings out the best in people is certainly something worth watching.