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Olympic Speed Skating

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It's been called the demolition derby of the Olympics

When it comes to generating speed without mechanical assistance, no one does it better than a speed skater.

Competitors travel in excess of 60mph as they fly around the 400m oval track on blades 1mm thick.

Aerodynamics is the name of the game, with skaters adopting a low position to keep air resistance to a minimum.

Skaters must have power, technique and supreme endurance - a men's 10,000m race lasts about 13 minutes.

Speed Skating in Sochi 2014

The Olympic Oval in Sochi will be located in the Olympic Park and will look like an iceberg or an ice fault. A crystal face theme will be supported by angular walls and triangular stained-glass windows. The gray and white color of the building will further enhance this impression.

The Olympic Oval is designed to make the utmost use of local natural features. Spectators will be able to admire scenic mountain views to the north and seascapes to the south. For this reason, the walls along the sides of the skating rink will be made as transparent as possible.

This 8,000 seat facility is to be commissioned in September 2012 for test competitions.

After the Games, the Olympic Oval will be used as an exhibition center.

Once all the skaters have raced, the one with the best time wins.

Skaters race in pairs against the clock, starting in separate lanes and on opposite sides of the track.

HOLDERS: MEN
1,000m Shani Davis (US)
2x500m Joey Cheek (US)
1,500m Enrico Fabris (Ita)
5,000m Chad Hedrick (US, above)
10,000m Bob de Jong (Ned)
Team pursuit Italy

There is an exchange zone where they switch lanes once a lap to ensure they both cover the same distance, with priority given to the skater coming from the outside lane.

Once all the skaters have raced, the one with the best time wins.

In the men's and women's 500m events, skaters complete two legs and their times are added together.

In the team pursuit, which will make its Olympic debut in Turin, two teams of three skaters each start from the opposite sides of the track.

HOLDERS: WOMEN
1,000m Marianne Timmer (Ned)
2x500m Svetlana Zhurova (Rus)
1,500m Cindy Klassen (Can)
3,000m Ireen Wust (Ned)
5,000m Clara Hughes (Can)
Team pursuit Germany

Team-mates take it in turns to lead into the corners, the others follow closely behind and the clock stops when the third team member has crossed the line.

The competition proceeds on a knock-out basis until there are two teams left to contest the final.

Skaters can be disqualified for:

%u2022 Committing the second false start of the two skaters

%u2022 Crossing the lines dividing the lanes

%u2022 Not changing lanes at the exchange zone

%u2022 Interfering during lane changes

Basic Guide to Speed Skating

Basic Guide to Speed Skating (Olympic Guides)

Amazon Price: $3.00 (as of 06/03/2012)

It is important to be as streamlined as possible

A skater can get up and continue the race if they have fallen. If they fall at the finish, the clock stops when the first skate crosses the line.

If a skater is hurt by an opponent crashing or seriously interfering with them, they can rest for 30 minutes and then race again to try to clock a better time.

Apart from the skates, all you need in speed skating is something to wear.

It is important to be as streamlined as possible, so skaters wear skin-tight suits with hoods to reduce air resistance.

These are often tested in wind tunnels, but they cannot have any special aerodynamic attachments.