Thank you, Team USA

With the completion of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, America says thank you to Team USA. Thanks for the hours of training, dedication, and sacrifice. Great job ... we salute you.

To the best fans in the world: Thank you. You lifted us up, cheered us on, and showed the world what it means to wear the red, white, and blue. As the Sochi Games come to a close, let's join together for one more cheer—for our athletes and for every member of the Team Behind the Team.

ESPN should thank Team USA, not bash them

Did you see the ESPN article by Jim Caple, "Team USA Disappoints in Sochi"? It basically bashed the American athletes for winning less medals than four years ago and was all-around rude toward American Olympians.

My son wrote a response that I totally agree with:

What the hell? Don't get me wrong, I like winning as much as anyone, but there is no way these Olympics can be called 'disappointing' for the US. Sure, we didn't win as many medals as Vancouver, but that was a RECORD SETTING PERFORMANCE in Vancouver. We have the second most medals this go around, behind only Russia, the host nation. Yes, the men's hockey team floundered at the wrong time, Shaun White failed to medal for the first time ever, and the speed skating team consistently under performed.

But Meryl Davis and Charlie White won the first gold for the US in ice dancing EVER. Mikaela Shiffrin won a gold in slalom at the age of 18. Erin Hamlin got the US's first ever medal - men's or women's - in luge. So screw you, Jim Caple and every other reporter calling Team USA a disappointment. I'm proud of our athletes.

Well said. All I can add is great Olympics, Team USA. Thanks for the memories.

World Cup: The USA dream is still alive ...

... although there was controversy when a point was denied to Team USA.

Team USA thanks America

The just-completed Winter Olympics are a memory and Team USA thanked everyone for their support and viewership during two weeks of action and excitement. From Team USA:

It is with great appreciation that we send you our biggest Thank You for your support of Team USA during these unforgettable XXI Olympic Winter Games. We recognize you, our loyal supporters, who passionately cheered, applauded and followed Team USA during their Vancouver 2010 journey. With the Closing Ceremony yesterday evening, the XXI Olympic Winter Games have ended. We thank Vancouver for the warm welcome and well-run games.

We are very proud of our Team USA athletes. They represented the United States with pride both on and off the field of play.

Team USA brought home the first U.S. overall medal victory since 1932 and the most overall medals ever won by any nation in the Olympic Winter Games - and Team USA athletes showed dignity, fair play and respect during their competitions. Team USA's success is a demonstration of the commitment of our athletes, to the excellence of the National Governing Bodies who support them, and above all, to loyal supporters like you. We are grateful to you for providing the resources and encouragement that allowed our athletes to achieve their dreams and inspire a nation. You were truly part of this success. Thank you for your loyal support.

Here are a few examples of the successes you contributed to:

- Team USA’s 37 total medals is an all-time Olympic Winter Games record; the medals breakdown for the U.S. was nine gold, 15 silver and 13 bronze
- Apolo Anton Ohno won his eighth career short track speedskating medal, becoming the most decorated U.S. Winter Olympian ever
- Team USA won three medals in Nordic combined; their first in the sport
- Johnny Spillane became the first American (and fourth athlete all-time) to win medals in all three Nordic combined events in the same Olympic Winter Games
- Speedskater Katherine Reutter set an Olympic record in the 1000m (1:30.508)
- Bode Miller won gold, silver and bronze medals, becoming the first American to win three Alpine medals in the same Olympic Winter Games
- Shani Davis became the first U.S. Olympian to win a 1500m speedskating medal in two consecutive Olympic Winter Games
- Chad Hedrick won his fifth career medal, tying him with Eric Heiden for most by an American in men's speedskating

Find more highlights from the Olympic Winter Games, Click Here.

More Action Still to Come
On Saturday, the U.S. Olympic Committee announced the 50 athletes who will compete for Team USA at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver on March 12-21, 2010.

The U.S. Team, made up of athletes from 20 states, will compete in five sports (alpine skiing, biathlon, cross country skiing, sled hockey and wheelchair curling). A projected 600 elite athletes with a physical disability from more than 40 countries are expected to compete at the Paralympic Winter Games.

Click here to view the roster.

Winter Olympics end tonight

Gold medal ice hockey game at 3:00 between Team USA & Team Canada

The 2010 Olympic Winter Games come to an end tonight. Nordic combined gold medalist Billy Demong (Vermontville, N.Y.) will lead Team USA into the stadium for the Closing Ceremony, and the flame will be passed to Sochi, host city for the 2014 Games.

The latest updates on Team USA
USA I with Steven Holcomb (Park City, Utah), Steve Mesler (Buffalo, N.Y.), Curt Tomasevicz (Shelby, Neb.) and Justin Olsen (San Antonio, Texas) captured the gold medal in four-man bobsled - the USA’s first four-man gold since the 1948 St. Moritz Games.

The U.S. added to its record medal haul when the U.S. team of Brian Hansen (Glenview, Ill.), Chad Hedrick (Spring, Texas) and Jonathan Kuck (Champaign, Ill.) won silver in the men’s team pursuit in long track speedskating.

With the medal count for Team USA standing at 36 for the 2010 Games, the team is poised to add record medal No. 37 today as the U.S. Men’s Hockey Team faces Canada in the gold medal game.

To catch up on all the action from Vancouver click here .

What’s in store today for Team USA
Amidst the final action of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the U.S. Men’s Olympic Hockey Team will meet Canada in the gold medal game Sunday afternoon. The match-up comes on the 50th anniversary of the gold medal win by the 1960 U.S. team.

Kris Freeman (Andover, N.H.) and James Southam (Anchorage, Alaska) will wrap up competition in Whistler with the men’s cross country 50k.

Look out today for a look back at the milestones and achievements Team USA reached during the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, plus a look ahead at the athletes on the 2010 U.S. Paralympic Team arriving in Vancouver in a couple weeks.

To find out about upcoming events and results click here.

Blogosphere roundup in Virginia and beyond....

My fellow SWAC bloggers have been busy. Fishersville Mike has his Sunday roundup of interesting reads in the blogosphere ... thanks for the link, Mike! Yankee Phil has some smelly statistics ... LOL. Let's hope this stays in Vegas! Bob took The Journey to Elliott's Knob for a gorgeous snowy winter view of that part of the Appalachian Mountains in western Augusta County.

Michael at The Write Side of My Brain is off on a mission trip adventure ... it's good to see Carl Kilo who came out of his winter's nap to Spark It Up with a flurry of posts ... DJ Spiker at Bearing Drift discusses how the GOP can attract youthful voters, something we have stressed in the SWAC area over the years as we mentored future Party leaders and worked with TARs and CRs.

Norm Leahy at Tertium Quids testified before the Senate Finance Committee on behalf of the HB 570 that would put the burden of proof of real estate assessments on the assessor and not the citizen, and revealed that public servants used taxpayer time to testify against the very taxpayers they are supposed to represent. Someone from Augusta County was there ... hope we can find out who it was.

Pat over at her blog, ... and so it goes in Shrevesport, got a head start yesterday rounding up the blogosphere. My thanks to her for the link.

Even rain couldn't keep Donald Douglas and his American Power camera away from the anniversary tea party in Temecula Valley in California where he ran into the Tax Zombie and the Political Pistachio.

The Other McCain starts the day off mixing some light-hearted humor and spelling bees. I know ... you're thinking, "What's humorous about spelling bees?" Trust me ... the connection was made.

El Marko has a new photo essay reflecting on the tea party movement as it passes it's first birthday and enters its second year.

Congrats to my boss Jim Riley over at Virginia Virtucon for his #1 ranking on BNN/Virginia this week.

And, finally, congratulations to Team USA who entertained us for two weeks with the Winter Olympics from Vancouver, Canada, sent daily email updates, and made America proud, making the record books with the most medals in a winter Olympics. The championship gold medal ice hockey game is today between Team USA and Team Canada ... if Team USA wins, it will be the first gold since the Miracle on Ice in 1980, a game my friends and I watched in my Richmond apartment that year. Wouldn't it be something if Team USA did it again....