2006 Winter Olympics--Torino, Italy

Have you been watching the Olympics? We have been watching some of the events on TV. We watched the snowboarding competitions, and they were incredible! My brother is an avid snowboarder, but I have never tried it. We aren't going skiing with our youth group this year, so I missed my chance.

My mother and I watched the ice skating competition, too. My aunt knows a lot about ice skating. My cousin Laura is a terrific skater. She practices hours every day and competes all over New England. I was amazed to learn that my cousin's skates cost over a thousand dollars, and she only wears them for a few months before she needs new ones. She and my aunt drive 4 hours back and forth to a rink every day. It takes a lot of commitment to be an outstanding athlete.

My aunt gave us her critique of the Olympic skating programs via telephone. It was fun to hear her comments since my Mom and I don't know much about the technical aspects of ice skating. She is sending us a DVD of my cousin skating. I am looking forward to receiving it.

I also learned that the last Olympic gold medals that were made entirely out of gold were awarded in 1912. The Olympic medals are designed especially for each individual Olympic Games by the host city's organizing committee. Each medal must be at least three millimeters thick and 60 millimeters in diameter. Also, the gold and silver Olympic medals must be made out of 92.5 percent silver, with the gold medal covered in six grams of gold.

Go USA!