By Charles Pan ’18, Middle School Editor

As February fades away, the Sochi Winter Olympics closes with a bang. Occurring every four years, the Winter Olympics hosts athletes from all over the world to compete against each other many different winter sports, such as hockey or snowboarding. A host for the Olympics is chosen every few years by the International Olympic Committee. Sochi, Russia, was chosen to host the Winter Olympics this year. In the months leading up to the opening ceremony, there have been several bomb threats from terrorist groups within Russia to try to stop the Winter Olympics from occurring, but with strict security measures adopted by Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, and the cooperation with countries worldwide, Russia was able to effectively open and close the Olympics safely.

The Opening Ceremony, always one of the most important highlights of the Winter Olympics, was the best in the history. Russia, known for its fantastic culture in art, combined technology with its art skill to create the most colorful, beautiful, and culture-rich presentation in history. This year has been a disappointing year for the U.S. Winter Olympic team. This includes Shaun White’s (two time snowboard half-pipe gold medalist) 4^th place performance this year and Shani Davis’ non-podium finish. However, there have been a few new additions to the Olympic squad that were able to bring the USA some medals, including. They came in second in the medal count to Russia.

Members of the Newark Academy Middle School have been very engaged in the Winter Olympics. Dean Tan, an 8^th graders, said that “The Olympics is a great opportunity for nations to get together in a friendly environment.” When asked about the aversion of the bomb threats, Dean commented that “I think harm has been prevented, but the fact that there was a bomb threat is an infraction of insecurity.” Other students have taken a more positive view, however. “I think that Vladimir Putin has done a good job in preventing the bomb threats,” says John Funda, 8^th grader at Newark Academy. “I love Vladimir Putin personally, he’s a very nice individual.” Siddarth Tumu, another 8^th grader, agrees. “I think that the Winter Olympics went very smoothly, considering a hitch in the security concerns. I think that the prevention of the bomb threat was a collective effort of the entire community.”

When asked whether they preferred the Summer or Winter Olympics, there were mixed answers. Dean Tan, Siddarth Tumu, and Young Se Choi agreed that Summer Olympics was better. “Summer has better sports in general,” says Young Se Choi. However, John Funda prefers the Winter Olympics. “I like all the snow, and I want to live in an eskimo with penguins when I grow up.” John Funda and Young Se Choi, said that men’s snowboard slopestyle and hockey were their favorite events, respectively.

The four were also asked what they thought of USA’s performance this year. “I wasn’t surprised that USA lost to Russia in the medal count this year,” says Dean Tan. “Russia was always good at winter sports.” John Funda, Sid Tumu, and Young Se Choi agree. “They got a lot more training in the actual facilities,” adds John Funda. Finally, when asked what they thought of USA’s under-average performance this year, there were conflicting opinions. “I think they could have done better, but I’m sure they tried their best,” Dean Tan says. However, Young Se says that “I’m not disappointed, because we still came in second.”

Overall, the opinions were summed up by Tess Ostroff, 8^th grader at Newark Academy, who said that “The Winter Olympics were good.” The Olympics are a spectacle that only happen every four years. Although USA was slightly disappointing this year, we still support them wherever they go. As the Winter Olympics close, the attention is now focused on the next Summer Olympics in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.