Sports Infomation

German drivers Nico Rosberg (L) and seven time World Champion Michael Schumacher (R) pose next to a Mercedes GP Formula One race car during the team presentation at the Mercedes museum in Stuttgart, January 25, 2010. [Photo/Agencies]

Mercedes GP launched their new Silver Arrow car on Monday but the real fire power in the German team's camp is set to be the renewed partnership between Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn.

Brawn was in Schumacher's pits for all seven of his world title wins - two at Benetton and five at Ferrari - and Brawn's involvement at Mercedes was a significant factor in enticing Schumacher back to Formula One.

Having retired in 2006, the 41-year-old Schumacher has broken his three-year hiatus to sign a three-year contract to race for Mercedes which will reunite him with Brawn ahead of the new season which starts in Bahrain on March 14.

Schumacher has made no secret of his desire to win an eighth world drivers' championship title with Brawn as team principal at Mercedes and Nico Rosberg as his teammate.

"We have everything it takes to succeed but it is one thing to have the correct ingredients and another to manage them," he said.

"With the experience of Ross and with all the know-how of Mercedes: I am sorry, but there can only be one target for us to achieve."

Even though Schumacher retired after the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2006, he stayed in touch with Brawn and the chance to work together again proved too strong.

"We have been in contact almost every year, when Ross went to Honda (in 2007 as team principal), he sort of suggested there was an option but I wasn't ready for it," said Schumacher. "We always kept in contact: sometimes he asked serious questions (about working together), sometimes it was a joke.

"When he called me at the end of last year, I knew why."

Brawn will be responsible for making sure the Silver Arrow car is in perfect condition when the season starts and the 55-year-old Briton said he is excited about the chance to work with Schumacher again.

"Working with Michael again is a treat, it is something I didn't think would happen again and it is something I am excited about," said Brawn.

"Nico is an exciting prospect and I think he will be good for Michael - it will also help him to see how a world champion operates."

Mercedes face stiff opposition in their assault on the world drivers' championship from McClaren's Lewis Hamilton and current champion Jenson Button, as well as Red Bull pair Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber.

"We are looking forward to closing the gap behind the other teams and we hope to have success in our cars, that is the aim," said Schumacher.

"It is rare to have two or three teams in close competition like last year but this year might also be an exception again.

"It doesn't really matter honestly: we are there to win whoever we are up against."

And in terms of his advancing years, Schumacher says he has nothing to prove.

"I just want to prove to myself that I am still able to do it," said the German. "The main reason I am doing it is because of the thrill.

"I feel a huge sense of excitement just to drive and compete at the highest level."

USA Luge's Lake Placid Fantasy Camp allows dauntless fans of the sport to test their mettle.

Imagine sitting on a sled the size of a bath mat while wearing head-to-toe spandex. Your eyes lock on the long, curvy track of ice that lies straight ahead. You grip the metal handle on either side of you just a bit tighter. Your heart thumps as you envision a series of grisly crashes. But eventually you push off the handles, lie back and succumb to the forces of physics.

Within seconds you hit 50mph and flop around like a rag doll through each sharp bend. A straightaway turns out to be a deceptive jaunt that you bump with both sides of your body, but the battering goes barely noticed because of the huge curve visible beyond. It slingshots the sled farther down the track.

By the time you get to the finish and come to a stop, less than a minute after the start, you remember very little of this. You only know that it has occurred because you're at the bottom of the track, still alive, still wearing the silly, skintight outfit. You have bruises and scrapes. Your heart is pounding even faster than it did at the start.

You can't wait to go back up and do it again.

That's just a few hours into the two-day spring Fantasy Camp held over a couple of weekends in Lake Placid, N.Y. by USA Luge, the sport's American governing body. Here attendees experience an otherwise inaccessible sport--and its adrenaline-fueled thrill.

For $2,000 (of which 50% is typically tax deductible as a charitable contribution; USA Luge has an annual operating budget of $2 million, much of that from private and corporate sponsors) participants get hands-on instruction from former pros. They eat in the same dining hall next to Olympic hopefuls and sleep in the same dorms. They also get a dozen or more runs a day on the $30 million, mile-long track that the athletes race on. Roughly one in five Fantasy Campers sticks with the sport, typically by joining local clubs, says Gordon (Gordy) Sheer, marketing director for USA Luge, a 1998 silver medalist in doubles luge in Nagano and administrator of the Fantasy Camp. The program takes up to ten participants at a time, once or twice per year. They need to pass a basic physical to participate.

Their stint begins in a training room attached to USA Luge headquarters, where Sheer explains each part of the sled and its function. "The more [they] understand the off-track stuff, the better they understand on the track," he says.

He then gets on a practice sled and demonstrates the "block" (pulling the sled forward by the mounted handles on the track), the "compression" (pushing back) and the "release" (by again pulling the sled forward), then moves into the set (lying back into racing position).

Most campers require a couple of hours of practice, much of it taking place on an indoor, 100-foot-long ice track with video cameras that allow for instant replay of start techniques.

On the real track a few miles outside town, Sheer indicates the starting points that feed into the icy chute. Fantasy Campers, outfitted in standard gear, start halfway up and reach speeds of 50mph to 60mph. It takes Olympic hopefuls seven or eight years of training, starting at age 11, before they slide from the main start at the top.

It's easy to sense the speed and force involved. At curve 14 (of 20) a bobsled--carrying United States Olympic Committee executives, in town for a pre-Vancouver 2010 visit--zooms by and slides halfway up the wall before instantly disappearing. Sheer explains that on a supine luge sled, taking a curve like this results in what's called "losing your head"--essentially, the g-force pushing your head toward the ice. Professionals exceed 90mph and hit 4 GS, at which point holding up a 10-pound head feels like holding up a 40-pound head. That can't be avoided, but how high up the wall and how fast the sled goes are largely under the slider's control with slight shifts and body movements. "We help people understand that physics is the big challenge--a lot of action and reaction. What you do in one part of the curve impacts the rest of the curve," says Sheer.

Such mental and physical gymnastics entice some Fantasy Campers to stick with it. Luge starts out a contact sport and eventually becomes a control sport; as sliders get better, at the finish they remember each curve, what adjustments or movements they made and how those decisions changed the time of the run. No matter how good one gets at luge, that heart-pounding rush--the escape from the boring life of the cubicle--is felt on every trip down the track.

The worst that happens? "Bumps and bruises," says Sheer. "The ego is the most common injury."

It feels as though all too often the Super Bowl is a forgettable affair, a complete blowout following weeks of hype. Fortunately, it's been the opposite the past two years running, with football fans served up game-sealing plays that will be remembered forever.

"There's so much pressure, so much attention on the game," says Jim Nantz, the CBS play-by-play man who will call the game on Feb. 7. "I think we all appreciate someone doing something incredible under that kind of scrutiny."

History does, too.

Some of the biggest names in the sport have helped burnish their legacy with a single spectacular play in the Super Bowl. Joe Montana made a game-winning pass to John Taylor in the 1989 Super Bowl; John Riggins bulled through the line for a 43-yard touchdown in the 1983 game. Other lesser-known players have made a career with just one play: New York Giants receiver David Tyree's incredible catch in the 2008 Super Bowl will never be forgotten. Neither will the game-winning reception made by Pittsburgh Steelers' Santonio Holmes in last year's game.

Best of the Best

What are the single best plays in Super Bowl history? We chose 10 with a few criteria in mind: importance to the outcome of the game; excitement; and how they've stood the test of time. Then we asked Nantz to chime in on our picks.

First up is David Tyree's miraculous catch in the 2008 Super Bowl. The underdog New York Giants were playing the undefeated New England Patriots, a team many believed to be the best of all time. With 59 seconds left in the game, the Giants were trailing 14-10. On a critical third-down play, Giants quarterback Eli Manning dropped back to pass and somehow avoided a sack, despite the fact that a Patriots defender had hold of his jersey. Manning heaved the ball 32 yards downfield. Tyree, a seldom-used receiver, leaped up and pinned the ball to his helmet with his right hand, holding it there despite Patriots' safety Rodney Harrison's best efforts to dislodge it. The game-winning score came on another play 20 seconds later.

An unlikely player made an unlikely play that helped knock off perhaps the greatest team in the history of the game.

"It just doesn't make any sense," says Nantz. "It's one of the greatest catches in NFL history. You never see it in practice, much less in an actual game, much less in a Super Bowl on a game-winning drive."

But Tyree's catch was equaled in last year's Super Bowl. Late in the fourth quarter the Pittsburgh Steelers were down 23-20 after a scintillating touchdown catch by the Arizona Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Behind Steelers' quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Santonio Holmes, the Steelers drove to the Cardinals' six-yard line with just over 40 seconds left on the clock. On the game-winning play, Roethlisberger double-clutched, then threw the ball over three Cardinals defenders to find Holmes, who tiptoed in the back right of the end zone.

"The pass was pure perfection," says Nantz. "So was the catch."

Big D

But not all great plays are on the offensive side of the ball. The 2000 Super Bowl ended on a fantastic defensive play. Down by seven points with just six seconds left to play, the Tennessee Titans had the ball at the St. Louis Rams' 10-yard line. On the final play of the game Titans quarterback Steve McNair hit receiver Kevin Dyson in stride at the five-yard line. Rams linebacker Mike Jones had been covering the Titans' tight end and, at the last possible moment, he shifted and tackled Dyson, who attempted to reach the ball over the goal line. He was just short as time expired.

"A great defensive play. And for just for a minute, it appeared that Dyson was going to get it across," says Nantz.

One of the most memorable plays for Nantz happened in the 1971 Super Bowl game between the Baltimore Colts and the Dallas Cowboys--the first championship played after the merger between the NFL and the AFL. The game wasn't a pretty affair--it's referred to as the "Blunder Bowl" for its numerous mistakes and turnovers.

One play epitomized it: In the first quarter, Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas threw a high, off-target pass to receiver Eddie Hinton. The ball bounced off Hinton's hands and then glanced off Cowboy defender Mel Renfro. It ended up in the hands of Colts tight end John Mackay, who scored a 75-yard touchdown. True to the nature of that game, Colts kicker Jim O'Brien's extra-point attempt was blocked (though he later redeemed himself with the game-winning field goal).

In the first Super Bowl Nantz covered, the 2007 clash between the Indianapolis Colts and the Chicago Bears, he witnessed a play that didn't make our list, but it was memorable nonetheless. On the opening play of that game, Bears' return man Devin Hester took the kickoff 93 yards for a score, the first time that had ever happened in a Super Bowl.

"It was breathtaking," Nantz says. "I was as excited as the viewer at home."

Here's hoping he gets to call another great play this year

Hardly a surprise, Lindsey Vonn and Bode Miller lead a list of U.S. skiers earning spots for the Vancouver Games.

The announcement of the team was delayed until Tuesday to see if any extra spots opened up.

Some did and the Americans received four extra spots, bringing the total on the men's and women's teams to 22 skiers.

Vonn is rolling into Vancouver having won five straight World Cup downhill events this season. She also leads the overall standings.

The way she's been storming down the mountain, the 25-year-old Vonn could be a five-medal threat in Vancouver.

Miller made his fourth Olympics team. He captured two silver medals at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City but got shut out in Turin.

Reigning Olympic champions Julia Mancuso and Ted Ligety also made the team. Mancuso won the giant slalom at the Turin Games in 2006 and Ligety captured gold in the combined.

The squad features nine skiers with Olympic experience and 13 newcomers. The list wasn't broken down into what events each would ski.

Like Miller, Sarah Schleper will be competing in her fourth Olympics.

For Vonn, Vancouver could be a chance at redemption. She crashed during a training run at the 2006 Games, slamming her right knee, back and head into the snow at nearly 50 mph.

Although she climbed into the starting gate soon after that harrowing fall, she didn't win any medals.

Since then, Vonn has captured just about everything there is to win, including two overall World Cup titles.

"I would predict she would win a gold medal or two or three or four or five in Vancouver," said Billy Kidd, who won silver in the slalom at the 1964 Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria. "This is not another Olympics. This is her Olympics. This is her chance to show what she could've done in Torino."

Vonn insists she's not thinking about winning five golds.

"Honestly, the toughest thing about ski racing is all the variables involved in our sport," she said recently. "I'm skiing really well right now, but anything can happen on race day in Whistler. I can get a gust of wind or the weather could change, so all I'm doing is preparing myself as best I can going forward. I hope all the pieces come together for the race days in Whistler."

The pieces have been falling into place for Vonn all season. She also leads the points standings in the downhill, super-G and super combined.

"With Lindsey, there's potential in every event," U.S. women's coach Jim Tracy said. "She's put in the hard work to make it happen and has proven she can, but the cream of the crop will be there and they all have the same goal. She's said it better than anyone: if she wins one medal of any color, she'll be happy. Everything else will be a bonus."

Miller had a rather forgetful performance four years ago, his socializing pretty much overshadowing his skiing. He came into Turin about the same way Vonn is entering Vancouver — as the cover story — but failed to land on the podium.

Now the father of a little girl and back with the U.S. Ski Team after two years of training and racing on his own, the 32-year-old Miller may be showing signs of mellowing. But he sprained his right ankle playing volleyball in December, forcing him to miss some competitions.

With his aggressive, hold nothing-back style, Miller is a factor in any race he enters.

He recently captured a World Cup super combined event in Wengen, Switzerland, for his first victory in nearly two years.

Ligety and Mancuso carry the weight of being reigning Olympic champions. This time, the two Americans won't enter as unknowns.

"I'm in a really good place with my skiing," Ligety said in a recent telephone call from Kitzbuehel, Austria.

One of the names not on the list is two-time Olympian Scott Macartney, who finished 15th in Turin in the downhill. But that's just how deep the men's downhill is these days.

The glare of the Olympic spotlight will shine brightly on Vonn, overshadowing Mancuso and Co.

That's just fine with Mancuso.

These two teammates have a healthy rivalry, pushing each other in training and hoping it spills into competitions.

While Vonn has been a podium fixture this season, Mancuso has yet to land in the top three.

"I've had good training runs," Mancuso said. "I just have to have everything come together for the race."

A total of 175 athletes have been named for the Russian delegation for the Vancouver Olympic Games, Vladimir Vasin, vice president of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), said on Tuesday.

Vasin was appointed as the head of the Russian delegation at a ROC meeting on Tuesday.

Russia dispatched 178 athletes to the 2006 Turin Games, but selection standards are much stricter this time, Vasin told reporters after the meeting.

He added that there might be changes in the list and a final one would be announced on Feb. 1.

Also on Tuesday, Sport Minister Vitaly Mutko said Russian athletes will participate in 75 of the 86 events at the Vancouver Games. But he stressed that the Russian delegation made no special plan to claim gold medals.

The Russian government will award 100,000 euros (about 140,000 U.S. dollars) to gold medalists, 60,000 euros (84,000 dollars) to silver and 40,000 euros (56,000 dollars) to bronze, Mutko said.

Russia won 22 medals, including eight gold, to rank fourth in the medals table four year ago in Turin.

The Vancouver Winter Olympics is slated for Feb. 12-28.

With 15 days to go before the opening ceremony, International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said Thursday that the weather is the only unresolved issue hanging over the Winter Games in Vancouver.

"I'm very optimistic for the staging of these games," Rogge said. "We're ready. I think that Vancouver can say that everything is ready now."

Rogge said his remaining concern is the possibility of weather problems affecting the outdoor events during the Feb. 12-28 Olympics.

"That's the only question mark," he said in a teleconference. "The rest, I'm very optimistic."

Rogge said that, as with all Winter Games, contingency plans are in place to deal with too much or too little snow.

Unseasonably warm and wet weather in the Vancouver area has been a worry for Canadian organizers in recent weeks. Cypress Mountain, the venue for snowboarding and freestyle skiing events, was closed to the public 2 1/2 weeks earlier than planned to protect the snow conditions.

No such problems have been reported in the Whistler resort area, where the Alpine and Nordic ski events will be held.

Rogge said he received encouraging weather news Thursday from VANOC, the local organizing committee.

"Whistler is absolutely fine," he said. "Cypress Mountain is absolutely fine on the playing field. On the track itself, there is no problem. There is a little bit of an adjustment of snow here and there but there is absolutely no problem. The competition will take place as scheduled."

Vancouver is hosting the first Olympics since the global recession, which has forced VANOC to make budget cuts. But Rogge said there would be no impact on the competitions or the athletes.

"Savings were chosen very carefully so as not to impact on the quality of the games and the quality of the experience of the athletes," he said. "The athletes won't feel anything about the financial crisis and they will have very good games."

Rogge also said he wasn't concerned that the Whistler resort could be auctioned off in the middle of the games after creditors moved to auction off the assets of Intrawest LLC.

"We've received comforting words from VANOC," he said. "VANOC is not preoccupied by that, and I trust that they have found good solutions. I don't think this will affect the games."

The IOC will conduct 2,000 doping tests during the Vancouver Games, a record number for a Winter Olympics. Asked how many positive cases he expected, Rogge noted there were seven in Salt Lake City in 2002 and seven in Turin in 2006.

"Something around that (number) would not be surprising," he said. "But hopefully we will have less than that."

Rogge said athletes could be caught without a positive test as happened to German speedskater Claudia Pechstein, a five-time Olympic champion who will miss the Vancouver Games after receiving a two-year ban for blood doping. She was sanctioned by the international skating federation based on irregularities in her blood samples.

"I cannot rule that out," Rogge said. "It is a possibility."

The IOC will carry out 450 blood tests in Vancouver. If any abnormalities are detected, the IOC will pass on the information to the relevant sports federations to compare with their own athlete blood profiles.

"If there is an indication of doping, a disciplinary hearing will be opened," Rogge said.

In Turin, Italian police raided the lodgings of the Austrian cross-country and biathlon team and seized blood doping equipment. Six Austrian athletes were later banned for life from the Olympics by the IOC.

Unlike Italy, Canada has no anti-doping laws. Rogge said it will be up to Canadian authorities to decide whether to conduct any raids during the games.

Russia's cross-country skier Alena Sidko has been banned two years for doping, the country's skiing federation (FLGR) said on Wednesday.

Sidko was tested positive for the blood-booster EPO at a home ski race last month, therefore the 30-year-old had already been kicked out of the Russian Olympic team.

"She waived the right to test the B sample, so we had no choice but to ban her for two years," said FLGR president Vladimir Loginov in reference to Sidko.

Sidko had been considered a contender for medals in the sprint events next month in Vancouver after winning several World Cup races and finishing third at the 2006 Turin Olympics and at the world championships the previous year.

Last month, three other leading Russian skiers had been banned for positive test of EPO including triple Olympic champion Julija Tchepalova, 2006 Olympic gold medallist in the men's 30-km pursuit Yevgeny Dementiev and national champion Nina Rysina.

World No. 13 Ding Junhui from China was knocked out of the Welsh Open snooker 5-3 in the first round by Enland's qualifier Jamie Cope here on Wednesday.

Ding amazingly collected a 134 break in the sixth frame to draw 3-3 with his opponent, but the UK championships title holder couldn't stop Cope, dubbed "shotgun" to take the following two frames.

"I felt uncomfortable during the match because I caught cold two days ago," said Ding, who practiced six to seven hours every day recently to prepare for the ranking tournament. "I couldn't say I played badly, but I failed to concentrate sometimes and made some poor safety."

Ding and Cope equalized at 2-2 before the interval and Cope took the lead for the first time by winning frame five in 78-23. Although Ding came back strongly with a break of 134, Cope wrapped up the match after the eighth frame.

"He played quite well today," Ding commented on his rival. "He got few mistakes and could always collect the points whenever he can."

Although Ding could not avoid feeling disappointed for his loss, he said he was really satisfied with his mentality on Wednesday.

"I was least nervous today. Even I was 3-2 behind or trailed at 4-3, I still thought I got the chance to win," said Ding.

Ahead of the China Open from March 29 to April 4, Ding's only plan is to go back China to enjoy the Chinese traditional Spring Festival.

In the first competition day on Monday, Chinese qualifier Liu Song and World No

Four-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson crashed during practice Thursday for this weekend's 24-hour race at Daytona International Speedway.

Johnson is feeling fine and hoping to get back behind the wheel for another practice on Friday, driver spokeswoman Kristine Curley said. Johnson is still planning to drive in the 24 Hours of Daytona on Daytona's 3.56-mile road course.

"I put myself in a position with a GT car that I shouldn't and paid the price," Johnson said in a statement. "I hate it that I tore up equipment and put the guys in this spot. It looks like we will get this fixed and hopefully everything will be good for tomorrow."

Johnson damaged the rear end of his No. 99 Chevrolet Riley Daytona Prototype trying to avoid a slower car. He hit the brakes, turned sideways, slid backward and slammed into the wall.

Johnson's team is planning to rush parts to Daytona and work through the night in hopes of getting the car back on the track by Friday.

The Snow Leopard of Ghana is going to race in Alpine skiing at the Winter Olympics. Seriously.

Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, the self-taught, self-funded, one-man team from West Africa has made it to Vancouver at age 35 after years of dedication to an improbable dream.

"It's like crossing the Sahara desert and getting to the end and getting a very cold drink and a lovely cold shower," he told The Associated Press.

"You think about, 'Wow, did I make that journey?' Man, how did I make it?"

Kwame faithfully proved his skill and determination in a true embodiment of Olympic ideals, said the International Ski Federation, which confirmed his starting spot this week.

First, by learning to ski on artificial snow at an indoor dome in England, then by earning race points in little-known events from Iceland to Iran, and Argentina to Bosnia.

He came back for more after failing on the brink of qualifying for the 2006 Turin Olympics.

Now, Kwame will race in slalom and giant slalom on the same Whistler Mountain slope as Bode, Benni, Aksel and the rest. His story will likely become one of the best-known and most-told at the Vancouver Games.

However, the first Ghanaian Olympic skier insists he is not the second coming of Michael "Eddie" Edwards, the hapless British ski-jumper and comical cult hero at the 1988 Calgary Games.

"I am not, and will not end up being, an 'Eddie the Eagle' at the end of the day," Kwame said, "because to me sports is a serious thing."

Kwame persuaded his wife Sena to share a dream that took six years to realize.

"I am kind of bullheaded," he said in a telephone interview from his training base at Pampeago, Italy. "When I focus on something and calculate it can be done, even if I don't have the resources or people tell me it can't be done, I want to find out for myself."

Kwame pursued his pro ski career while Sena stayed at home in Milton Keynes, England, working as a college administrator and bringing up their 6-year-old daughter Ellice and 1-year-old boy Jason with the help of extended family.

"Right now, she thinks it is really fantastic," the Snow Leopard said of his mate. "Now she knows it was possible."

What would have been impossible was gatecrashing the Olympics on enthusiasm alone.

The International Olympic Committee tightened qualification rules after Edwards landed on Calgary's big show, so Kwame plowed on through skiing's minor leagues.

Kwame planted his skis on race snow at Vol Thorens, France, in February 2005. Last to start in a blizzard wearing bib No. 111, he was last of 68 finishers in a two-run giant slalom, trailing by more than a minute.

He was last one week later in Shemshak, Iran, and in nine more races — always finishing both runs, never crashing out — before placing 74th of 81 at Courchevel, France.

His routine became summers of odd jobs in England and winters in Pampeago, where the tourist office took up his cause. Four years after his Turin near-miss, Kwame has "my band of merry men" — including a coach, manager, physiotherapist and Web guru — for the final push to Whistler.

"There is no funding to pay anyone," he said. "These guys have left their day jobs and are pursuing the Olympic dream with me."

Coach Denis Grigorev teaches at the Dubai ski dome and is a friend from the racing circuit, and Kwame concedes to having "some really bad habits. I don't think there's enough time for my coach to rectify them."

After daily double-duty in training, Kwame's work continues in dealing with sponsors, suppliers and contacts in Canada.

He needs a four-bedroom apartment in Whistler to house his support team and family, including his parents, Peter, a university professor, and Gladys from Cape Coast, Ghana.

"I think I owe these few people," said Kwame, who will have Grigorev and manager Richard Harpham with him in the Olympic athletes' village.

The Ghana ski team is scheduled to leave Saturday and begin 10 days of training at Vancouver Island — funded by his fans there and, notably, not the Ghanaian Olympic Committee.

Kwame, the president of Ghana's ski federation, is diplomatically silent about his country's sports officialdom. At least until he is assured of being flag-bearer at the opening ceremony.

"What I know from the Olympics is that the athlete carries the flag — unless the representative from the Ghana Olympic Committee decides to fight over the flag with me," he said.

The IOC did help Kwame, awarding him a grant as part of its solidarity program to help developing nations and underfunded athletes.

"We are proud of him and look forward to following him in Vancouver," the IOC said in a statement. "It is a real reward for this gifted Alpine skier who had to overcome a lot of challenges."

Kwame's charismatic story suggests a movie treatment, and comparisons with the Jamaica bobsled team immortalized in "Cool Runnings" are welcomed.

"I totally respect what they did," the Snow Leopard said. "They were making the effort to show people that, sorry, we didn't come here to joke."

He is a serious man, and a film of his life also would be a love story.

"It's clean, it's pure," Kwame says of skiing. "You go up on the mountain, everything is white. You're not going to get dirty. You've got vistas and peaks rolling in front of you.

"Let's face facts: I'm not the best skier in the world. But every day I step on to the mountain I can do something better to go faster."