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Swiss free ski team is having the most fun at the Winter Olympics

By Noah Frank

WASHINGTON — The Olympics can be a stressful affair for the athletes involved. Most have trained the better parts of their lives, possibly for one single shot at glory on the world’s biggest stage. So it’s nice to see that some of them are finding time to have fun at the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang. Specifically, we’re talking about the Swiss Free Ski Team.  

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Yes, that’s two Olympians bobsledding a pallet jack down some sort of … I don’t know, parking lot? That’s good push, solid form, and surprisingly effective steering of a hydraulic storage tool. But that’s not the only thing in South Korea that the Swiss are turning into a ride.  

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A low-key aspect that puts of both of these videos over the top is the innocent bystanders’ reactions. The group in the jack-sledding video seem entirely non-plussed, while the guy passing on the descending escalator does the full, dramatic wait-what-is-happening-here head turn upon seeing nothing but an arm and a beanie on the far side of the glass. Now, remember that while these may look simple, and definitely fun, that they probably aren’t the smartest idea. It’s a minor miracle that barreling down a ramp on an oversized Battlebot didn’t result in some kind of serious injury, and that second little stunt requires a good amount of upper body strength. That’s a world-class athlete riding the, uh, handrail up that escalator. So, you know, don’t try this at the mall. Or IKEA.[related_gallery align=”none”]

Transgender women athletes banned from female Olympic events by new IOC policy

By The Associated Press
GENEVA (AP) — Transgender women athletes are now excluded from women's events at the Olympics after the IOC agreed to a new eligibility policy on Thursday which aligns with U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order on sports ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Games. “Eligibility for any female category event at the Olympic Games or any other IOC event, including individual and team sports, is now limited to biological females,” the International Olympic Committee said, to be determined by a mandatory gene test once in an athlete's career. It is unclear how many, if any, transgender women are competing at an Olympic level. No woman who transitioned from being born male competed at the 2024 Paris Summer Games, though weightlifter Laurel Hubbard did at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 without winning a medal. The eligibility policy that will apply from the L.A. Olympics in July 2028 “protects fairness, safety and integrity in the female category,” the IOC said.
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