Starting February 6th and ending February 22nd the Winter Olympics were played out in Milan Italy, with roughly 2900 athletes competing this year. Many observers of the Winter Olympics had an exciting experience watching these athletes compete, but what made Colorado stand out in this year’s Winter Olympics?
This year Colorado sent 30 Olympians to the Winter Olympics, which happens to be the most out of any state in the US. This raises the question as to why so many Olympic athletes come from Colorado, and whether the Olympic Center located in Colorado Springs has anything to contribute to that fact.
Out of the 30 Colorado Olympians sent this year, 5 came home with a gold medal. This is nearly half of the total gold medals won by the US this year, totaling 11. An element that might contribute to this matter is the fact that the official website for the Olympic Center located in Colorado Springs states that “More than two dozen National Governing Bodies and Paralympic Sport organizations are headquartered in Colorado Springs. For perspective, the next largest concentration of NGB headquarters is in Indianapolis, which has three.” Because of the Olympic Center being located in Colorado Springs, a large number of Olympic event headquarters are based in this city. This draws athletes who are interested in winter Olympic events to live in Colorado.
The chart shows how Colorado compared to other states that sent a substantial number of Olympians. The main finding from this chart is that Colorado sent the most Olympians out of any other state in the US in this year’s Winter Olympics. Colorado sent 30 Olympians while the next closest state is Minnesota with 24. This is important because it could relate to the Olympic Center being located in Colorado Springs, as well as the fact that Colorado Olympians won 5 golds which is nearly half of the total gold medals won by the US.
Colorado is also known for its snowy conditions, Copper Mountain in particular which includes Olympic level half pipes, ramps, and parks for athletes to practice on. Additionally, with the countless ski resorts as well as the strong skiing community, Colorado makes for an ideal place to practice for winter athletes.
Another factor that contributes towards excessive amounts of Colorado Olympians is the fact that many Coloradans are winter sport enthusiasts and watching athletes like them perform inspires them to do similar.
The five events in which these Coloradan athletes took gold are Freestyle skiing, Alpine skiing, Freestyle skiing halfpipe, Figure Skating and Hockey. All these athletes come from towns scattered throughout Colorado, and had a common theme of being mountainous towns.
Many Coloradans watching these athletes compete have been astonished by their performance. Landon Rooke, dedicated snowboarder and regular watcher of the Winter Olympics, mentions that “Watching these athletes perform makes you realize how astonishingly capable humans are.”
Additionally, Lochlan Mcintosh, avid skier and Winter Olympics enthusiast, adds, “It is very cool to watch the athletes perform, and with experience as a skier it makes you appreciate what they do even more.”
Through both Landon and Lochlans’ words, it is evident that watching these athletes perform has an impact on them and their winter sport activities, and may even inspire them to push their skill level like those who compete in the Winter Olympics.
