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Winter Olympics Betting Odds: The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, or the 22nd Winter Olympics, are scheduled to take place from 6 to 23 February 2014, in Sochi, Russia, with some events held in the resort town of Krasnaya Polyana. Ninety-eight events in fifteen winter sports will be held. Both the Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics are being organized by the Sochi Organizing Committee (SOC).
Fisht Olympic Stadium
There aren't many venues in the world like the ones which host the opening ceremonies and the closing ceremonies of the Olympics, regardless of whether we are talking about the Summer Olympics or the Winter Olympics. What is odd though, is that here in Sochi, the venue in which the opening and closing ceremonies will take place will actually not be hosting any of the actual venues for the sporting events on the Olympics betting odds.
That doesn't make the Fisht Olympic Stadium any less important. This is the newest of the venues and the most important of the venues here in Sochi, and it is going to end up being important for a number of different reasons here in the next several years. The Fisht Olympic Stadium is right in the heart of the Coastal Cluster, where all of the indoor events will be held in the 2014 Winter Olympics, and it cost over $600M just to get this stadium set for what should be one of the best spectacles you have ever seen.
Before anyone beats the Olympics gambling odds, Fisht Olympic Stadium will be on display, and if you haven't seen the pictures of this venue, you definitely need to take a peek. There will be 40,000 in attendance at both the opening ceremonies and the closing ceremonies in Fisht Olympic Stadium, and if you look closely, you'll see a bit of a resemblance to the Sydney Opera House in Australia. Though this stadium complex is closed, it has a glass surface which will reflect light right off of the sea during the day. Those in attendance can see Mount Fisht in the backdrop outside of the glass roof, one of the more stunning views in Sochi and in all of Russia.
Perhaps even more notable is what is going to be happening with Fisht Olympic Stadium when the competition on the Olympics wagering odds is said and done with. This stadium will become the home to the Russian soccer team, and it will be used for the first time in major competition during the qualification for Euro 2016. The Russians have one of the up and coming soccer teams in the world, and they are going to be in the World Cup this year as well. Once the World Cup is over with though, qualifying for the Euros will begin, and that could give the Red Army a huge advantage when it comes time to host some of the comparable nations trying to get into the biggest event throughout Europe.
The Winter Paralympics will also be held here in Sochi, and the Fisht Olympic Stadium is also going to host the opening and closing ceremonies for that event. Finally, the 2018 World Cup, which will also be taking place in Russia, will have at least some matches held here in Sochi at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, and the argument might be made when it is all said and done with, to have this be the secondary venue outside of Moscow when the world's biggest soccer competition comes to the country.
Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort
The Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort is one of the older venues here for the Sochi Winter Olympics, as its construction began in 2003 and ran through 2011 before it was finally ready for competitive use. The majority of the slopes face to the Northeast, while the backside slopes face to the Southwest, which isn't anything out of the ordinary for downhill skiing at this level.
Do keep an eye on the elevation for all of these skiers. The lowest base of the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort is still a very high 1,837 feet above sea level, and it climbs up as high as 7,612 feet above sea level. The skiers who are used to skiing in added altitude, such as in the Rocky Mountains in the United States, will be at a distinct advantage here in Sochi, something to consider when making your Olympics betting picks.
The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup was held in 2012 here in Sochi, and the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort was the venue for the event. Lindsey Vonn won the overall competition for the women, just as she did at the Winter Olympics in 2010 for the United States in Vancouver. However, with Vonn, a four-time winner of the FIS Alpine Sky World Cup out of the equation, that could open the door for Maria Riesch and Tina Maze, both of which have also won this event at other times in their careers.
On the men's side of things, Marcel Hischer has been the dominant star, as he has taken the Austrians to the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup each of the last two years, including here in Sochi in 2012. The 2012 downhill was won by Switzerland's Beat Feuz, who figures to be a factor here on the Olympics betting odds in February in his event.
The men's downhill is actually the first event which will be held here at the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort on Sunday, February 9th, so figure to see Feuz collect one of the few medals for Switzerland in the Olympics right off the bat. There are a total of 10 days of alpine skiing scheduled at this resort, and there will be medals handed out in each of those days of competition. Unlike some of the other sports where there are time trials and other qualification trials, alpine skiing is just one event for the most part - winner take all!
Iceberg Skating Palace
Save for Fisht Olympic Stadium, which will only house the opening and closing ceremonies, there isn't a venue at the 2014 Winter Olympics which will invite in more fans from around the world than the Iceberg Skating Palace, also known as the Olympic Skating Center. There are 12,000 fans which can cram into this venue, and for many of the events in which there will be competition on the Olympics betting lines this year, the Iceberg Skating Palace will end up being filled to capacity.
What makes the Iceberg Skating Palace unique is that it is actually a moveable venue. It is located on the far east side of the Coastal Cluster in Sochi, and the argument could be made that it is the most important of all of the venues in the Olympic Park.
It takes roughly two hours to convert this venue from a short speed track to an ice skating rink, a flip which will be made a number of times over the course of the 2014 Winter Olympics. This venue has been used once before at the 2012-2013 Grand Prix of Figure Skating. This was more or less an event that was used as a test for the mobile venue, and it was held in Sochi where it will be resting in the Olympic Village.
Keep an eye on a few of the Russian names which succeeded and took gold medals at the Grand Prix of Figure Skating. Maxim Kovtun, Elena Radionova, Lina Fedorova, Maxim Miroshkin, Alexandra Stepanova, and Ivan Bukin all took gold medals at that event, and though most of what we saw in the Grand Prix of Figure Skating a year and a half ago were Russians, that doesn't discount the efforts. Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov won the top overall pair in the senior division, and they will surely have the hometown crowd on their side in their efforts to beat the Olympics gambling lines in Sochi.
Though the opening ceremonies of the Olympics don't formally start until Friday, February 7th, the qualifying for the men's and women's short programs take place on Thursday, February 6th. There are six days of competition at the Iceberg Skating Palace and five days of handing out medals in figure skating, capped by the men's free skating final on the first Friday of the Olympic and the women's free skating final on the final Thursday, the last event held with the ice skating rink down.
Bolshoy Ice Dome
The Bolshoy Ice Dome is going to be the site of the individual event that garners more attention than perhaps the rest of the Olympic Games combined: The finale of the men's ice hockey tournament.
The Russians are hoping that this year's Olympics ends the exact same way that the 2010 Winter Games did in Vancouver with the host nation winning the gold medals in the biggest of the Olympic events. Of course, it was C Sidney Crosby at GM Place, who scored the game-winning goal in overtime for Team Canada to beat the United States and claim the gold medals. Crosby will forever live in lore for what he accomplished in front of his fellow Canadian fans. Could RW Alexander Ovechkin be the next to take home glory for his homeland? If it happens for those making their Olympics betting picks, it is going to happen right here at the Bolshoy Ice Dome.
The Bolshoy Ice Dome and the Shayba Arena are only separated by just a few steps, and they are going to be the two venues which host the entire hockey tournament for both the men's and women's hockey disciplines. To beat the Olympics betting lines in this tournament, teams are going to have to play fixtures at both venues, but the Bolshoy Ice Dome is the bigger of the two, seating right at 12,000.
Though the Bolshoy Ice Dome is traditionally a bit smaller than some of the venues for hockey we are used to seeing in the United States and in Canada, that isn't going to make this any less intimidating of a place to play, especially when the Russians are on the ice. This is a state of the art venue which was only completed in 2012, and you can bet that the hometown builders have made it so the Red Army will have a maximum level of support in the 2014 Olympics Games. This home ice advantage in the enclosed Bolshoy Ice Dome is definitely something to consider when playing the Olympics betting odds.
When it isn't used for the Olympics, the Bolshoy Ice Dome is going to be serving as a multipurpose facility. Local hockey teams will inevitably use the venue, and there is a good chance that some of the big KHL games might be moved to the Bolshoy Ice Dome, knowing that it is one of the truly elite buildings in the entire country of Russia.
The Bolshoy Ice Dome was designed to look like a frozen rain drop. The word "Bolshoy" translates into "Major" in English, thus making its naming understandable. Russians will know that Bolshoy Theatre as their main school for ballet and figure skating, disciplines which require skill, talent, and finesse. The Bolshoy Theatre is one of the most notable fixtures in Russia.
The Bolshoy Ice Dome is a part of the Coastal Cluster at Sochi Olympic Park, where six different venues will house all of the indoor events of these Winter Olympics.
Adler Arena Skating Center
Sochi has been preparing for the Winter Olympics for the last several years, but in 2012, it opened up a slew of arenas and other venues which are designed to house some of the biggest events on the Olympics betting lines this year. The Adler Arena Skating Center is a part of the Olympic Park in Sochi, putting it right on the coastline of Russia and making it a part of the Coastal Cluster of venues. The venue is one of the farthest to the north, and it is the first venue which you reach upon leaving the Olympic Village this year.
Unlike some of the other venues here in Sochi though, the Adler Arena Skating Center has already been the home for a number of illustrious events, more or less as a tune-up for the Winter Games. In December 2012, this brand new venue hosted the Russian Speed Skating Championships, and just three months later, it hosted the 2013 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships.
Though not all of the best speed skaters in the world made their way to the World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships, it could provide a good indication of which skaters are going to have better success on the Olympics gambling lines this year.
Jan Smeekens of the Netherlands scored the fastest time on this track at the 500 meters, doing so in 34.8 seconds, while fellow Dutch skaters Sven Kramer and Jorrit Bergsma hold the track records for the fastest times in the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters, doing so in 6:14.41 and 12:57.69 respectively.
The Dutch also broke the record for the fastest Team Pursuit in both the men and women's speed skating races. The men completed their 2,500 meters in 3:42.03, while the Dutch women finished 2,000 meters in 3:00.02.
The construction of the Adler Arena Skating Center is phenomenal, as it looks a bit like an iceberg from the outside. Nature is on full display, as the windows are stained-glass, and they offer a view of the mountains to the outside for those within. All of the walls are angular, and there are carefully designed triangular cutouts as well to help show off the natural beauty around Sochi. The maximum attendance is just 8,000 which, though small in comparison to some of the other venues which these speed skaters have run in throughout their careers, is still a healthy size in relation to some of the other venues around Sochi.
Competition on the Olympics wagering lines for speed skating gets started on Saturday, February 8th. The Adler Arena Skating Center is the only venue to have medals awarded on 11 different days over the course of the Olympics, and there are 12 days over the course of the fortnight where there will be racing in some respect. The final event will be held on Saturday, February 22nd, as the men and the ladies will go at it in Team Pursuit competition.
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