As we wait with excitement for the opening ceremonies to begin, I am reading over the facts students have brought to me today.
1) 3 Canadian sisters qualified Thursday for the women’s mogules.  Their names are Maxime (24), Chloe (22), and Justine (19) Dufour Lapointe.  You can check out the sisters on the Sochi Olympic site. It will be great to see how they place.  This is the first time since 1976 that three siblings have competed in the same event. In 1976 three brothers from Argentina competed against each other in cross country skiing.  In 1960, three sisters from France competed against each other in the women’s slalom event.  There are 19 families that have had three or more siblings compete in the Winter Olympics.
2)Jim Thorpe who was born in Oklahoma in 1888, was paid to play professional baseball. His gold medals were taken away from him because that was against the Olympic Committee’s rules. Â Professional athletes are now able to play in the Olympics for their own country. An example of this is Sidney Crosby, who plays professionally in the NHL for the Pittsburg Penguins.
3) Â There are no longer perfect 10’s given in gymnastics routines. This was eliminated in 2006, and was replaced by open ended scoring to reward more difficult skill-packed routines.
You can watch the opening ceremonies at CBC Sports
4) Â Hayley Wickenheiser, who is on the women’s ice hockey team, is carrying the flag for Canada during the opening ceremonies.
This is a picture of the Fisht Olympic  Stadium, where the opening ceremonies are being held today.