GAMES FROM THE HEART WITH LOVE

The opening ceremonies had particular drama because of a disaster I had seen on Japanese television, where a massive log with humans attached went careening down a hill, taking many to their deaths. I first thought it was a tug-of-war game gone awry, until opening ceremonies revealed that it was supposed to be a ceremonial raising of two gateposts to let God through.

At the Olympics eight huge roughly hewn tree trunks were raised with human power alone -- one gateway for each cardinal direction. A half-dozen athletic Japanese men in headbands sat straddling each log while four teams heaved rhythmically on ropes attached to the top of the post, raising the heavy thing inch by inch until it stood vertically. While the teams kept tension on the ropes, the men clinging to the gatepost began performing acrobatics, lifting arms and legs while balancing precariously. The most daring stood on the tippy top before all slid down the ropes, each with their own individual style.

The ceremonies were a showcase of kids and of things traditionally Japanese. Dancers wore straw clothes with woven cones attached resembling eyes at chest level, nostrils even with bellies, and lips at the hips. Each movement animated the fanciful grass faces.

Japan's best Sumo wrestlers gave a ritual display of dignified might, slapping fish-fed thighs with open hands, then pounding their feet to stamp out evil spirits. Every wrestler wore an elaborately embroidered silk loincloth, each with its own unique design. "One family car price," my slap-skate friend Mr. Komatsu pointed out.

In the parade of athletes, Hawaiian-American grand champion sumo wrestler Akebono led out the US Olympic team delegation in the parade of athletes. He got the normally reserved crowd going by spontaneously scooping up a Japanese kid carrying country sign into his arms the kid with the "Etats-Unis" (U.S.) sign.

The games were officially rung in on a 331 year old bell at Nagano's oldest Buddhist temple. A monk used a battering ram to sound a sonorous note and the games were declared officially open. At the same instant as the giant torch was ignited, five fighter jets out of nowhere screamed overhead streaming the colors of the Olympic rings. "Let the skating begin," the seemed to roar.

The opening ceremonies were low-key and lacked the Hollywood pizazz we're accustomed in American football. Not to worry, though the true spectacle was to come. There were moments that were as fit for the big screen as the disaster I had seen on TV, like Herman Maier's terrifying Friday the 13th crash, or Erben Wennemaar's writhing agony in the men's 500 meters. The real fireworks of the Olympic Games were the performances of the athletes though, and if you ask me, speedskating took the cake.

RODRIGUEZ ON HEELS OF MEDAL IN WOMEN'S 3000

Nagano, Japan. February 11, 1998. German skaters swept the top three spots today's 3000 meter women's event, hardly a suprise. The real attention grabber, however, was inline and ice speedster Jennifer Rodriguez, who nearly medaled by finishing an astonishing 4th, a mere three seconds away from gold medalist Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann's Olympic record 4:07.29. Rodriguez skated in the eleventh pair with Japan's Noriko Munekata and impressed fans with her technique and strength.

"Nice skater," commented Mr. Komatsu, an ice coach and slap-skate seller who rarely pays compliments (mostly the best he has to say is "more training please"). The scoreboard was her friend. Jennifer was posting gorgeously steady splits that refused to creep upwards. In the final laps, where most skaters lock up and make their coaches frantically wave their hands and yell, Jennifer skated evenly and won time on the competition. Most impressive were her turns, in which her upper body remained rock steady above flying legs.

Kristin Holum looked tough in the 16th and last pair against overwhelming favorite Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann. She came up to the line throwing punches and wore an full face mask. Her 4:12.24 was nearly five seconds off of Niemann-Stirnemann's sizzling world record, but a junior world record nonetheless, and a gutsy performance for a skater battling asthma and the pressure of trying to follow in the footsteps of her mother Dianne.

Mother and daughter shared an emotional moment together after the race on the bench by the start line, directly in front of my where I was seated. Kirstin's mask was off and her face buried in her mom's neck. I ached to yell out something in encouragement but left them alone, or as alone as they could be the way all the cameras were shooting them.


POSTMA SEES 1500 METER GOLD SLIP AWAY TO SONDRAL

Nagano, Japan. February 12, 1998. After finishing dead last in a disastrous 500, Dutch Skater Ids Postma resurrected himself and nearly pocketed gold in the 1500. Were it not for a momentary stumble in the last inner turn, Postma would have had the perfect race and a world record to boot.

Postma was paired against Norwegian Aadne Sondral in what became an epic see-saw battle. Postma had the inital lead, but heading into the final lap, Sondral had fought back to parity, clocking an identical 1:19.08. Postma regained the advantage by being able to skate into Sondral's slipstream down the back straight, but lost his balance at the apex of the last inner and briefly stood up. Although he exited the turn still ahead of Sondral, his speed had faltered, resulting in a gutsy drag race to the line. Postma came up just short in 1:48.13 as opposed to Sondral's 1:47.87.

In the 23rd and final pair, Dutch diesel Rintje Ritsma shot out of the gate as the favorite, but he bowed to pressure and came up short with a lackluster final lap that yielded "only" bronze. His body language conveyed obvious dejection.

Sondral was so ecstatic leapt up onto the podium in a single bound jumped up and down as if it were pliometric training. Postma and Ritsma looked on glumly, and barely draped their hands around the winner for the obligatory photographs.

KC Boutiette heard some of the loudest cheers of the day during his race against Japan's Toru Aoyangi in the 18th pair. Unlike 4 years ago when I witnessed his stumbling 1500 in Lillehamar, this race was a squeaky clean Olympic record, a thing of beauty in 150.04. Were it not for a tiny bobble in a turn and seven infinitesimally stonger skaters today, KC would have been the human pogo-stick, not Sondral.

Sondral skated his lap of honor after the medal ceremony with particular zest. Because I was wearing a hand-knitted sweater from his own country, he took extra time to wave and make eye contact with me as he went by.

UNHERALDED TIMMER HAMMERS FAVORITES IN WOMEN'S 1500

Nagano, Japan. February 16, 1998 Underdog Dutch skater Marianne Timmer exceeded everybody's expectations, including her own, by nailing a new world record in a gold medal winning 157.58. Gunda Niemann Stirnemann and Chris Witty also skated smashingly, yet lagged behind just barely with finishing times of 158.66 and 158.97 respectively.

Timmer skated the 12th of 18 pairs and was not even considered a medal contender, but she put together the race of her life. Timmer's skating style, typically Dutch, does not give the appearance of great speed or effort, but her strokes are long and powerful and confined to a narrow lane. After her final turn Timmer dropped both arms and flew a beeline to the finish.

Her own delayed reaction of joyful disbelief had to be one of the purest sporting moments ever. She graciously raised her hands, palms skyward, and wobbled into the arms of her coach, whereupon the two of them collapsed into a heap on the ice. Timmer looked like a cooked noodle but firmly in possession of a new world record. Her scorching-hot time early on put heavy pressure on the sixteen skaters that followed.

Witty was the first to approach Timmer's time in the 15th pair, skating an impressive duel against the Netherland's Annemarie Thomas, but came up a little over a second short. Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann snuck in between Witty and Timmer in the 18th pair and Timmer again had to pinch herself to verify her good luck.

POSTMA EXACTS REVENGE IN 1000

Nagano, Japan. February 15, 1998.

Down-on-his-luck skater Ids Postma struck gold in the men's 1000, profiting from a perfect pairing with KC Boutiette. Postma reaped the benefit of Boutie's draft down a whole straightaway and finished in an Olympic record 1:10.64. Talk about the luck of the Dutch, riding to glory on an American's coattails.

Jan Bos had to settle with silver after post a time just five hundredths slower than his own countryman. Bos cursed his luck after crossing the line, and hung down his head, refusing to acknowledge the crowd's adulation.

500 meter gold medalist Hiroyasu Shimizu was clearly pleased to accept his bronze. He looked like a high-revving sports car out there and put up an unexpectedly strong time of 1:11.00 in his pair against Casey Fitzrandolph, who appeared to be lugging in comparison.


WITTY LEFT WONDERING AFTER TIMMER REPEATS IN 1000.

Nagano, Japan. February 19, 1998. Going to the line in the 20th and last pair, Chris Witty knew the time to beat. Marianne Timmer had just skated an Olympic record 1:16.51 in the previous pair. One false start later, Witty was on the verge of elimination, so she readied herself cautiously.

Nevertheless, Witty attacked the track like no other. She built up a huge head of steam and carried her speed through the crucial last two turns, but crossed the line in 1:16,79, .28 shy of Timmer. After seeing her race many times from many angles, it's still difficult to tell where it could have gone any better except the start.

500 meter gold medalist Catriona Le May-Doan's surging power was tempered by the pain of anaerobia, but she held on to finish in 1:17.37. Her blistering start and creeping finale didn't look pretty (unlike Catriona), but it worked for a medal she had no intention of winning.

The U.S. had three women in the top 10. Both Becky Sundstrom at 1:18.23 and Moira D'Andrea at 1:18.38 were blazing saddles in 6th and 9th place respectively. Both skated personal bests and had to be happy with their solid times.

ROMME RULES IN DUTCH SWEEP OF MEN'S 10,000

Nagano, Japan. February 19, 1998. It was a day for the Dutch. The Netherlands swept all three medals in such a strong show of skating strength that everybody was left shaking their heads.

Gianni Romme lopped 15 seconds off of Johann Olav Koss's four year old world record to establish a new clap-standard of 13:15.33. Both Dutchmen Bob De Jong and Rintje Ritsma finished under the old record as well, with huge efforts of 13:25.76 and 13:28.19 respectively.

Silver medalist De Jong skated the second to last pair on fresh ice with Romme, while Ritsma battled it out with former countryman Bart Veldkamp of Belgium. Ritsma's medal was a clutch performance in the most evenly matched pair of the day. Behind most of the way and goaded by his coaches to catch up, Rintje responded each time to Bart's accelerations with one of his own. Behind with one lap to go, Rintje answered again by pressing out a huge back straight and final inner to secure the necessary cushion for bronze.

De Jong's performance wasn't seen in the most favorable light because Romme was far and away the strongest skater today. To be quite honest, I only watched De Jong's smooth trajectory around the track for a lap or two because my eyes were drawn like a magnet to Romme's inimitable style.

Like Koss, Romme gives the appearance of effortless power. His skating is so direct and forward yet never forced, always relaxed, with a style all his own. Romme's trademarks are his sprinter's turn (start wide, cut the apex, exit wide), his split-second stall to carry speed while gliding, the fact that he takes two less straightaway strokes than most, only 8, and huge twitching frog thighs.

Unbelieveably, Romme's lap times in his race of dreams stayed below 32 seconds until 7200 meters, and then only barely started creeping upwards. Most skaters looked as if they had hit a wall by 7200 meters, creeping around on shattered legs, but not Romme.

I burst into the M-Wave on another miracle ticket in time to see KC's last lap of a national record shattering 13:44.03 in the first pair. KC got the gold medal at the Olympics for warming up during events -- he was always seen turning laps in the practice lane -- and obviously it all paid off with a new epic time.

On this day though, everybody left the M-Wave wanting to skate like Romme.

U.S. INDIVIDUALS OUTSKATED, MEN'S 5000m RELAY CHANCES TRIPPED

Nagano, Japan. February 19, 1998. In an evening of pyrotechnics at the White Ring, American short track hopes fizzled when Erin Porter, Erin Gleason, and Amy Peterson for the women, and Rusty Smith, Daniel Weinstein, and Andy Gabel for the men, all failed to advance to the finals of the Individual 500 meter event.

In the men's 5000 relay semi-final, South Korea, Italy, Australia, and the USA stayed clustered until the USA's Tommy O'Hare slipped on a cup with 28 laps to go and slammed headfirst into the boards. Although his tag team was there to make a quick substitution, the fives seconds of damage that had been done proved insurmountable.

Amy Peterson got off to a slow start in her 500 heat and almost made up for it with a late rush that fell short. In the 7th 500m men's heat, youngster Daniel Weinstein nearly managed a pass on final lap but drew back a hawking skate upon realizing it wasn't going to work.

Overall, it was a night of crashes. Even world record holder Isabelle Charest, was not immune. Alone out in front, she tripped on a block and augured into the boards in her 500 final, allowing her teammate Annie Perrault to capture gold.


KLEINTJE PILS BAND BREAKS THE ICE AT THE M-WAVE

After initially being treated as a nuisance and having their playing regulated to the minute by Japanese security forces, Dutch band "Kleintje Pils" (a "little beer") became the main entertainment attraction at the M-Wave by popular demand.

Sitting in a different section every day, the band pumped out toe-tapping favorites courtesy of a drummer and a complete horn section (trumpets, trombones and a tuba). They wore wooden shoes and barbershop jackets, and could always be seen surrounded by merrily-bobbing fans in orange clothes.

Initially, the crowd at the M-Wave -- typically 80% Japanese -- was quieter and more reserved than your average US sports audience, but Kleintje Pils changed all that. Their playing got the whole stadium hopping with the Olympic spirit, something costumed dance leaders and the cheesy Olympic song "Let's Dance in a Circle" couldn't do.

At first, during breaks for resurfacing, the was played on the loudspeakers in an attempt to drown out the oom-pah-pahs of the band. Costumed kids led the stadium in a confused dance. After only a few days, the piped-in music was ditched in favor of the band. They were invited onto center ice to perform while the kids worked the crowd with gusto. The Japanese announcer even learned how to pronounce the band's name and thanked them with "Dank je wel" after every interlude.

Kleintje Pils had to leave Japan before the conclusion of the skating events, but their sound was bottled and played back on the huge TV screens during intermissions at the 1000 meter women's race and the men's 10,000. Their music, not the official Olympic music, was all the kids in the funny metallic costumes needed to work the crowd.

VELKAMP'S INTERNATONAL HAND SIGNALS

Hand signals cross international boundaries, as demonstrated by Bart Veldkamp's Dutch father and coach. Mr. Veldkamp wore a Belgian jacket on the ice and spurred-on both his Belgian son and Austrian Marnix Ten Kortenaar with wild gesticulations on the back straightaway. Both skaters traded in their Dutch passports in order to fulfill their dreams of skating in the Olympics.

Mr. Veldkamp would skate into Bart's or Marnix's field of vision and hold fingers up or down to indicate under-pacing or over-pacing. He'd flash a "safe" sign like a baseball umpire when everything was on schedule, or he'd swing his arms back and forth like an orchestra conductor to increase flagging tempo. Late in the race Mr. Veldkamp frequently bent over and slapped his rump to remind his skaters to sit deeply.

It was a tad confusing seeing a Dutch father in a foreign jacket coaching his Belgian son, who for all intents and purposes is still Dutch. Imagine my confusion at witnessing a Dutch skater in an Austrian skinsuit coached by a Dutchman in a Belgian jacket. At least his hand signals were clear.