31 Days

I love it! Homer and Marge Simpson will be going for the gold in curling on a Simpson's episode that will air sometime in February, around the time of the Winter Olympics. I'm not really a fan of the Simpson's but I think it's great that the Olympics is popular enough to be the theme of a television show on a rival network. (The Olympics will air on NBC while the Simpson's airs on FOX.)

Ursula "Uschi" Disl from Germany is the most decorated athlete in biathlon, with 9 Olympic medals to her name. She competed and medalled in the past five Winter Olympic Games: in 1992 (silver), 1994 (silver, bronze), 1998 (gold, silver, bronze), 2002 (gold, silver) and 2006 (bronze). The 2002 Games in Salt Lake City was particularly special because she became the oldest female biathlete to win gold at the age of 31. Disl has retired and will not be competing in Vancouver.

The Olympic torch relay brings the Olympic flame from Olympia, Greece to the site of the upcoming Olympics, in this case, Vancouver. It is timed perfectly to arrive for the Opening Ceremonies, where the Olympic torch is lit and remains lit until the Closing Ceremonies at which point it is extinguished. This year's torch relay cost an estimated $31 million, which many feel is a bit much for a tradition that doesn't have much to do with the Olympics themselves.