As some of you know, we had polls on this site at one point in time. Well, we discovered that, with they system we were using, when people went to the poll answers there were sometimes ads that we don’t want associated with our site. So, we’re looking for a new polling system, but in the meantime, I still want to hear from you! So, how many of you are planning to watch the Olympic opening ceremonies? You can just answer a yes or no, and I’ll compile the results and send them out later. Now, if you like, you can also tell why or why not or anything else about Olympic viewing.

Update: We now have an Olympic poll on the upper left sidebar. Go cast your vote now.

And my main thought is– does that give me enough time to do a writeup on the rest of the Olympic sports?

Until recently, I thought ice dancing was a slower, less exciting version of pairs skating. I mean– no lifts, no jumps, no death-defying throws. Where’s the fun in that?

In truth, ice dancing is extremely rigorous. Ice dancing competitions consist of three parts–compulsory dance, the most like the original ballroom dances that inspired ice dancing; an original set pattern dance, , with rhythms designated by the International Skating Union; and a free dance, which allows the greatest freedom of expression. Since 1998, dancers have been required to include certain elements in their free dances, including step sequences, lifts, dance spins, and multi-rotation turns called twizzles.

Originally, dancers never skated apart from another. This restriction has been relaxed in recent years.

For a good FAQ on ice dancing, or if you just have more questions, visit Care to Ice Dance.

Our fourth weekly Winter Olympics Trivia quiz is ready.

Go take our latest Winter Olympic Trivia Quiz by clicking here.

If you’re a fan of Michelle Kwan, I suggest you get prepared to be annoyed and possibly to send email. If you disagree with the decision to place Kwan on the U.S. Figure Skating Olympic Team, you’ll love this editorial. Houston Chronicle writer John Lopez essentially says that the U.S. Figure Skating Federation (well, really the whole international skating community) is a joke and crooked. While he makes some valid points, I think the overall tone of his article is a trifle unnecessary.

Yes, the figure skating community has had its problems, but I don’t think Michelle Kwan’s placement on the Olympic team is a sign of foul play. After all, she’s probably more likely than Emily Hughes to medal, even if she is injured. If Emily Hughes isn’t bothered, why should John Lopez be concerned?

I bet you thought I forgot.

Read this article on ten reasons you should watch the Turin Olympics.

Here’s the summary:

10. Women’s hockey
9. Jeremy Bloom
8. Figure skating judges
7. Snowboarding
6. Chad Hedrick
5. Bode Miller
4. Men’s hockey
3. Apolo Anton Ohno
2. Figure skating
1. Gold medalists X

To find out all the details about why these things make the Turin Olympics must-see, read the article.

Yes, you can expect to see the countdown each day. We’re close enough, I think for a daily reminder.

In Italy, sports figures found guilty of “doping” can face criminal charges. Under International Olympic Committee rules, athletes can be disqualified and stripped of their medals but cannot be criminally prosecuted. So, whose rules will Olympic athletes face?

That is still up for debate. Italian health officials and Olympic Committee members have still not arrived at an agreement.

I wonder if that applies to all doping. Remember the guy who tested positive for an anti-baldness drug? Would that mean time in the Big House?

Well, you can probably guess it has something to do with skiing. You’re right. Nordic combined is an Olympic sport that combines cross-country skiing with ski jumping. There is no women’s event in this sport in the Olympics.

There are actually three Olympic events that fall within the broader category of Nordic Combined– Individual Gundersen, Sprint, and Team.

In Individual Gundersen, each competitor first takes two jumps. The jumps are scored on distance and styles. The resulting points then determine who starts where for the 15 km cross-country skiing race that makes up the second half of the event.

In the Sprint, competitors only get one jump. This is followed by a 7.5 km cross-country race. Again, starting positions are determined by the points from the ski jumping.

In Team, there are four jumpers who each take two jumps. The team’s score in the jumping portion is the total score of the eight jumps. Then the team members compete in the 4x5km relay. The same method used in the other events is used to determine start position. The winner is the team whose final skier crosses the finish line first.

Just in case you were wondering.

Here it is mid-January, and you still haven’t gotten your Olympic tickets. You’ve meant to, but something just keeps getting in the way. Is it too late? Can you still get your coveted luge ticket?

The answer is– probably. Out of a million tickets, about 400,000 still remain. The Turin Olympic Committee is hopeful that the goal of just over 800,000 tickets will still be met. At this time tickets are still available for all sports, although if you want to see figure skating, you’ll have to shell out close to the U.S. equivalent of $120.

I think it’s really sweet that 30,000 tickets will be given to Turin area schoolchildren at a price of euro3 ($3.60) each.

Want to see the opening or closing ceremonies? About 6,000 tickets remain for the Feb. 10 opening ceremony, most of them costing between euro250 ($300) and euro500 ($600). About 10,000 tickets are unsold for the Feb. 26 closing ceremony.

For more on this, see the official Torino site: http://www.torino2006.org/

Sasha Cohen was on the Tonight Show last night. I watched a little bit, saw her talk about sitting next to George Bush at the last Olympics opening ceremony, and then I fell asleep. Anyone watch the rest? Was there anything earth-shattering to report?

Curling does not sound like it ought to be a sport. But it’s actually quite interesting to watch. I saw curling for the first time, recently, on The Amazing Race, actually.

Curling is similar to bocce balls, in that it is a precision game. Of course, it’s played on ice, so that’s a major difference.

Curling has only been a part of the Olympics since 1998 (that’s probably why I’d never heard of it until recently).

The basic jist of the sport is that you push a 44 lb. puck (called a rock or a stone) down narrow lane and try to land in one of the concentric rings. It’s more complicated than that, though, as it’s actually played in teams. There is sweeping involved. And then there’s the “hammer”, or final stone.

Here’s my best attempt at a simple summary.

There are 8 or 10 ends (like innings). Each team has four players. Curling teams are identified by the last name of the team captain (the “Skip”). The sheet of ice (playing surface) is 15’71/2″ wide and 146 feet long, set up to accommodate play in both directions. In an end each team member shoots two rocks, alternating with the team members of the competing team. So, that makes a total of 8 rocks per team per end.

Play begin with the “Lead” player. The “Second” shoots next followed by the “Vice Skip”. The Skip shoots the last rocks and directs the play of the others. The skip decides on shot selection and signals the players.

They are shooting at a 12-foot circle (the house), which is the scoring area. For each stone closer to the center of the circles than any of the opponent’s stones, one point is scored. The team that scores shoots first in the next end, giving the opponent the “hammer”, or last shot of that end.

As the stone proceeds down the ice, it curls (curves). While one player shoots, two sweep to control the curl and the speed. Why do they sweep? Sweeping melts the ice slightly, causing the stone to curl less and slide farther.

Noteable Americans are sisters Cassie and Jamie Johnson. The rest of Team Johnson consists of Jessica Schultz, Maureen Brunt and Courtney George. They are coached by Neil Doese.

If you’re interested in more specifics of how the sport is played and what different terms mean, I recommend curlingbasics.com. You can also watch some video at the site of the Kansas City Curling Club.

Yes, we know how to spell. Yes, we know that you’re seeing Torino on the NBC ads leading up to the Olympics. So, why does this site say Turin? Which one is correct?

Well, the truth is both are correct. Turin is the “translation” of Torino. If I were writing about Rome, I would say “Rome”, not “Roma”. For the same reasons, we chose to stick with Turin. Yes, it’s a bit confusing. I was confused, myself, when I started looking up information. The media is even a bit confused. But for this Olympics, if you like to say Turin, say Turin. If Torino Olympics sounds just too Italian to pass up, go ahead.