Winter Olympics Betting 2010
The XXI Olympic Winter Games (or rather the 21st Winter Olympics to those of us who aren't that adept with Roman numerals) gets under starter's orders on February 12th 2010, and runs until the 28th of the same month in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. A place made famous by Bryan Adams (known as the 'Groover from Vancouver') amongst other people. It's here that sporting representatives from in excess of 80 of the planet's nations will converge so as to compete across 15 individual winter-primed sporting pursuits. Which are broken down still further to the lowest common denominator. Read on, it'll all become clear.
In terms of Winter Olympic betting 2010 (and the main reason you've joined us today) and it's all about Alpine Skiing betting. And the Biathlon. And Bobsleigh. Cross Country Skiing is pretty important too, whilst Curling figures up there with, Figure Skating. And Freestyle Skiing. And Ice Hockey. And don't forget the Luge, Short Track Speed Skating betting, Nordic Combined, Skeleton and Ski Jumping. Or Speed Skating. Or Snowboarding. That's right, 15 individual Winter Olympic betting 2010 markets from which to get stuck into between now and then.
Winter Olympics Betting 2010 Markets Will Be Dominated By Medal Table Predictions
The biggest Winter Olympic betting 2010 market draw has to be the Medal Table. It's the one that we understand most that's for sure as we don't need any degree of insider information or established knowledge. Simply think which country has the most snow (ideal for practising) and couple this with which countries are notoriously competitive, and lo and behold, Germany comes out on top. Well, according to SkyBet anyhow, who've made them favourites to grab more Winter Olympics medals than any other competing country, with Russia and the USA tucked in closely behind in the snow+sport=world order scheme of things. Host nation Canada are up there too, mixing it with the movers and shakers, whilst Austria (another country universally recognised for its snow) joins the Winter Olympics betting 2010 Medal Table top, erm, table as it were. Norway, Italy, Sweden, France and Switzerland are also in the running if you fancy a punt.
But then perversely, if you glance at the Winter Olympics Betting 2010 Gold Medal probability table (I.e, who SkyBet think will bag the most Gold medals), and all the above is turned on its head. Austria, followed by the USA, Switzerland, Canada and Italy are the front-runners in this more specific online Sports Betting category, with Germany, Norway and Sweden further down the pecking order. For argument's sake though, those of you considering having a flutter in the Winter Olympics betting 2010 markets can rest assured that any country that possess' an ice cap in one of its more distant corners will be in with a chance and probably worth an outside punt on in one event or another.
Internet Betting On Both Mens And Womens Winter Olympics 2010 Events Will Prove Popular With Virtual Bookies
Within each Winter Olympics betting 2010 section as posted by a growing number of our online bookmaking friends as the games are picked up on their virtual radars, there's further breakdowns. Take for example Alpine Skiing. This is split into another nine subject areas such as Mens Downhill, Mens Super Combined, Womens Downhill, Mens Super-G, Womens Super-G, Mens Giant Slalom, Womens Giant Slalom, Womens Slalom and Mens Slalom. At this juncture Ladbrokes and SkyBet are featuring heavily with reference to Outright Win odds.
Looking at the Biathlon discipline, and Winter Olympics betting 2010 punters can opt for naming the Top 3 Finishers in either the Mens 10km Sprint or 12.5km Pursuit event and Womens 7.5km Sprint and Womens 10km Pursuit, or bet on Winning Margins or Leader After 1st Shoot. The Cross Country Skiing section is split between the Womens 10km Sprint and 15km Pursuit, the Mens 15km Sprint and 30km Pursuit and the Mens and Womens Individual Sprint. In the Mens Curling is one of the rare instances whereby Great Britain have a realistic chance of bagging a Winter Olympics betting 2010 medal. Ladbrokes and SkyBet currently make them second favourite behind Canada for this event, ahead of Norway, the USA and Switzerland no less. Unfortunately we don't fare quite so impressively in the Womens Curling markets, trading as sixth in the list beneath Canada, China, Sweden, Switzerland and Denmark.
Winter Olympics Ice Hockey Betting Generates Much Online Bookmaker Interest
Historically, and Winter Olympics Ice Hockey is always about Canada, Russia, the USA and the Czech Republic. Which is why it's odd to see Sweden wedged betwixt them all. Ministering strong domestic and fiercely competitive professional Ice Hockey leagues makes them almost dead certs to be in the reckoning at times like this, with the Top 3 Finish Ice Hockey betting market favouring Canada, Russia and Sweden as we write. Interactive bookmaker-speaking, and Bet365, SportingBet, Paddy Power and Coral are joining SkyBet and Ladbrokes in showing some Winter Olympic betting 2010 interest across the Ice Hockey betting pages too. The general consensus is that both Belarus and Latvia are the outsiders in this discipline.
Elsewhere, and Bet365 are going to town with their Nordic Combined – Mens Individual Normal Hill Outright Win market coverage, whilst SkyBet offer a fulsome Speed Skating index should you wish to determine/predict/guess the outcome of the Womens 3000m, Mens 500m, Womens 500m, Mens 1000m, Womens 1000m, Mens 1500m, Womens 1500m, Mens 10000m or Mens and Womens 5000m Speed Skating tests.
Bobsleigh, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing, Luge, Short Track Speed Skating, Skeleton, Ski Jumping and Snowboarding aren't in the online Winter Olympics betting 2010 bookmaker's sights just yet, however it will only be a matter of time before they're prices, odds, markets and specials will be paraded in front of all of us Winter Olympic betting 2010 fans itching to make a killing. And don't forget, Winter Olympics betting 2010 markets present the perfect opportunity to take advantage of the virtual bookies' bespoke free bets offers. Most of the leading sites will direct you through the effortless process of turning your initial investment into some free bets tokens to spunk on any sporting or entertainment betting discipline of your choice in an on-screen flash.
Torville And Dean's Ice Dance At Sarajevo Winter Olympics In 1984 A Golden Memory
To many of us a skiing sojourn is something that the bourgeois like to do so as to trim their post-Christmas excess; and bore everyone else talking about for the rest of the year, banging on about ski school, apres ski and dishy instructors until the alpine cattle return to their homestead. But away from the irrepressible middle classes, winter sports are big business and many dedicate their career to the cause, making a handsome living off the fat of the snowy/icy land found beneath their skis, bobsleigh, luge, et al. And it's these committed individuals and teams of professional sportsmen and women who gather once every four years (between Summer Olympics) in winter outposts to contest a whole serious of challenging events.
Also very close to British betting hearts with regard the Winter Olympics, are two very vivid (polar opposite) memories. Casting your mind back to the Sarajevo Winter Olympics in 1984 for the stunning spectacle that was ice-skating innovators Torville and Dean gliding their way to amazing Winter Olympic Gold medal victories in the ice-dance (becoming the highest scoring figure skaters ever) to the aural backdrop of composer Ravel's epic Bolero, or recalling Britain's most courageous skier, who unceremoniously leapt a few feet down a ski slope once his bi-focal glasses had de-misted, the legend that was, Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards. Of course we salute both for wildly differing reasons.
Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards' Participation In 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics A Not So Golden Flashback
It was the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada that provided the platform for Eddie 'The Eagle' to soar into the public's conscience with his gallant efforts in the Ski Jumping arena. At the time of the Games he held the world record for stunt jumping (10 cars/6 buses) and was world number nine in amateur speed skating circles (106.8mph). Whilst the purists believed he was dumbing down the high profile Winter Olympics sport, many more cheered on his resilient and refreshingly simple approach to the jumps, when everyone knew he hadn't quite got what it took in his kit bag to compete with the competition in a notoriously tough field. He finished in last place in both the 70m and 90m events that year, not a complete disaster given that he was thwarted by no financial support in which to train, being roughly 20lb heavier than his rival jumpers and the underlying fact he was registered as short-sighted. Brilliant.
Edwards was not alone in creating a legend in the face of extreme adversity, as that same year the famous Jamaican Bobsled Team were catapulted to super-stardom, and found themselves the inspiration for a Hollywood movie some five years later. Although failing to finish the Bobsled run in 1988, they were known for their very fast starts as well as getting out of their sled and walking it to the finishing line after crashing it. After some poor follow-up performances in the subsequent Winter Olympics, the Jamaicans stunned everyone by taking 14th spot at Lillehammer in Norway in 1994, usurping the USA, Russia, France and Italy in the process. Jamaica plan to send a Bobsled team to Vancouver to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics.