You sometimes forget that the Atlanta Braves front office has an executive who was on the 1980 U.S. Olympic speedskating team – and who now has a complicated offseason occupation.
The U.S. effort in Sochi isn't going well, and he's catching hell. From the New York Times:
"It's a lesson learned now that we should get the athletes more comfortable with new things before we use them in competition," he said.
Plant was not convinced that it was the new skin suits that had caused the team to falter. He also denied that it was a problem that the Americans trained at a high altitude before coming to Sochi. One American skater's coach decried the high-altitude training because the ice at altitude is harder and faster than the ice in Sochi, which is at sea level.
Plant said he had a better excuse: maybe the Dutch are just better. And he had a valid point.
About the Author
