Historically, Soviet as well as post-Soviet Russia has performed better at the summer games.

This is also true of the non-Russian former Soviet republics. The top sporting countries among them being Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and the Baltics (Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia).

Of recent note, Russian prowess at the winter games has been in decline. Being rewarded the 2014 Winter Olympics can help serve to boost Russia’s performance.

The upcoming winter games in Vacouver will for the first time feature the games being played on a shorter NHL surface. Though in Canada, the 1988 Calgary games were played on a wider international ice surface which favors the European finesse game. The narrower surface benefits those favoring a more physical game. The comparatively limited skating space and greater closeness of the boards favors body checking. When featuring the best players, the wider surface makes for more exciting play. It doesn’t eliminate body checking, while encouraging creative pass plays, involving skating and stick handling skills.

This is supposedly the last Winter Olympics featuring NHL players. I hope not. Since the NHL’s involvement in 1998, every Olympic ice hockey tournament has been excellent.

Am glad to hear that Feodorov is still playing, and, to give him credit, I think Anna Kournikova would put most men off their stroke.

Go to hand it to those Commonwealth developed sports where there isn’t much protective equipment. Too much equipment might not be such a good idea. There have been some serious head injuries in American football that are related to an over reliance on the helmut as protection.

Concerning the mentioned 2002 US-Russia game, the Russians were asleep for 2/3 of the game. You don’t typically win when playing like that. Questionable calls happen. The bottom line is that the Russians should’ve played a more complete game in that contest.

Russia did have legitimate gripes with the awarding of a double gold in pairs figure skating. Given that precedent, it wasn’t unrealistic for Irina Slutskaya to be awarded a double gold as well. The figure skating situation at SLC was indicative of partisan grounds influencing things in an overly subjective manner.

Offhand, I don’t think that Sergei Fedorov was captain of that ’02 team. I think it might’ve been either Pavel Bure or Alexi Yashin. In his prime, Fedorov was a great player. He could do it all. Skate, shoot and play defense. He should’ve had a much better career. Now in his late thirties, he plays with Alexander Ovechkin in Washington. Some say that Fedorov’s relationship with Anna Kournikova had a negative effect on his play.

What made Wayne Gretzky a great player is that he wasn’t big, fast or possessing of a hard shot. He had a knack of knowing to be in the right place at the right time. A classic example of instinct and heart excelling over raw talent. His number 99 is officially retired throughout the ice hockey world.

Now a coach and owner of the Phoenix Coyotes, Gretzky’s current team has unis patterned along the lines of the Soviet national teams. Gretzky was a respectful admirer of the ice hockey that was played in the USSR. The sport has since become more hybrid. North Americans mixing finesse with brawn and Europeans exhibiting great skills with an increased penchant for physical play.

That is true, and they wanted to use a round ball like Gaelic football but didnt have any so used rugby balls instead. Its a mad game though!

”Actually, I’d love to see Fiji take on Russia one day on a snow-covered Siberian pitch… )”
Fiji would lose in Krasnoyarsk I think! Islanders are a bit lazy sometimes and they hate the cold! Great fun though. And enormous people -Tongans are the biggest on earth. You’d see them fighting in New Zealand and they’d need five or six cops just to hold them down.

(Actually, I’d love to see Fiji take on Russia one day on a snow-covered Siberian pitch… )

By the way, didn’t Aussie Rules develop as a way to use cricket grounds during the winter off-season?

I seem to recall that was one of the arguments put forward when they tried to popularise the game in England a decade or so back.

You do have the name right Mike, but it isnt popular in the UK, though highlights are watched in Ireland, cos its related to one of our sports here, Gaelic Football. Funny enough until recently Aussia Rules was only popular in some parts of Australia, in particular Victoria (Melbourne) until a huge marketing drive put it nationwide. I think its probably watched in Australia as much as rugby union, but rugby union is played by a lot more people. But soccer is making the biggest inroads there now, after the exploits of their mediocre band of mercenaries at the last World Cup under Gus Hiddink (now Russia’s coach). The immigrant groups there from Greece and Croatia gave soccer its foothold, and all the kids of these ethnic groups play soccer.

”If I’m not mistaken, rugby is the more popular of the two sports in New Zealand. The Kiwis haver had some top rated rugby teams.”

New Zealand is just rugby mad. I spent a year there and they never stop talking about it, and when the team makes their usual World Cup exit, its a national disaster. One morning I went to a friend’s farm about 40 miles from Wellington and on the way passed kids training. There must have been twenty fields full of kids playing rugby matches. I thought to myself ”how are we ever going to beat this crowd in the future”?
Actually Russia won a trophy at last years HK 7s, not the big prize but one of the smaller ones. Looking at the build of many Russian men, they look like natural 2nd row forwards. Good luck to Russia against Romania, it’d be great for them to win a trophy and maybe earn the right to get a few test matches against 6 Nations teams.

”If they don’t win gold at the Vancouver Olympics, Russia’s mens’ ice hockey team is in a good position to be the most exciting of squads.”

Ice hockey is just brilliant I agree. I dunno a thing about it but its great to watch. I was in Moscow when they lost controversially to the USA at Salt Lake City, watching in a packed niteclub. I can tell you what happened did not go down well with the locals. I remember the disconsolate look on the face of Sergei Feodorov(?)(the captain?) when the match ended, shaking his head in anger and disbelief, a real defiant hero. Seems to me they are due a gold medal soon. At any rate everyone got drunk as a skunk (by no means a rarity in Moscow) and the party went on.

Does anyone know of the popularity competition wise (between those two sports) in Australia?

If I’m not mistaken, rugby is the more popular of the two sports in New Zealand. The Kiwis haver had some top rated rugby teams.

On Russian related sports news, the NHL season is seeing some great individual statistical performances from top Russian players. A number of them are either young, or at the peak of their career. They play with great natural ability.

If they don’t win gold at the Vancouver Olympics, Russia’s mens’ ice hockey team is in a good position to be the most exciting of squads.

In other mens’ team sports, Russia appears among the best in basketball, volleyball and water polo. All of them great games IMO. Offhand, I’m not sure how Russia’s mens’ team handball squad has been doing. Not to be overlooked are the Russian ladies in those sports.