THE BRIGHT SIDE
The 2022 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games or Beijing 2022, has ceremoniously started.
Opening ceremonies were held on Friday, February 4th, with ninety-one nations represented by 2,871 (1,581 men and 1,290 women) athletes. Events are taking place in Beijing, China with some events in Yanqing and Chongli, located right outside the city. The main stadium, National Stadium or ‘the bird’s nest,’ can hold 80,000 attendees and was originally designed for the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. Beijing is making history as the first city to host both summer and winter games. With the stadium located at the Olympic Green and with a retractable roof, it’s a great setting for this year’s winter games, except for the fact that there’s no snow.
All snow is being manufactured for all the winter sports. The 2022 games feature seven sports with 109 events across 15 disciplines. The sports include biathlon, bobsledding, curling, ice hockey, luge, skating, and skiing. Seven new events have also been added bringing more excitement to the games. Team USA has two hundred twenty-five athletes (representing thirty-one states) competing for medals. This includes Shawn White, returning for his fifth Winter Olympic Games competing in snowboarding for the last time, as he is retiring after the Beijing games. The opening ceremonies are traditionally a chance for the hosting country to showcase its culture and traditions. This year’s theme is ‘Together for a Shared Future,’ representing the idea of the world working together for a brighter future. Team USA scored its first medal of the games on the second day of the games. Julia Marino won the silver in women’s snowboard ‘slopestyle’. She was followed by Jaelin Kauf winning silver in the women’s moguls, a skiing event making its debut in Beijing. There’s plenty of time to catch favorite events so make sure to tune in and keep tabs on the Team USA’s medal count.
The Lake Geneva Public Library has been under construction for some time, making some big changes and some much-needed renovation.
The library has temporarily been running as best they can out of the lobby of Lake Geneva City Hall. Emily Kornak, the Lake Geneva Library Director, shared an update on the library renovations and a timeline on what to expect as reopening is fast approaching. By the end of February, the bulk of the construction is expected to be done. The work does not end there, as with most construction jobs the unexpected is always a concern, but if all goes smoothly the finishing touches will be completed and the placement of shelving and furniture will be ready to move forward at beginning of March. The daunting task of moving in, including technical setup and placing the overwhelming number of books back on the shelves, will go on during the month of March. Emily’s plan is to have the place open to the public by late March or early April. This spring the library will be open and that means a grand reopening celebration will be scheduled, as well.
Business of the Week
Sammy’s On The Square restaurant in Walworth has the biggest and best burger around the lake for only seven bucks!
