A Triumph on Thin Ice

Was the nightmare real? Last Thursday evening, Japan was facing a shutout in Torinozero medals, compared to China's nine and South Korea's eightafter predicting at least a five-medal harvest. It was shaping up to be the country's worst Winter Olympics since 1976's Innsbruck Games. Heavily hyped athletes like speedskater Joji Kato and snowboarder Kazuhiro Kokubo had fizzled early, forcing the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) to field dozens of calls each day from irate Japanese decrying the nation's disgraceful performance. "We tell the callers that we will reflect on the results and that we must refocus on our improvement plans for the...

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