Following some of the links off GD's link, I ran across this tidbit:
Canada Protects Home Advantage at Olympics
Quote:
At the Whistler downhill course, unfamiliar to most of the world’s best skiers, several medal contenders were left watching over a fence as the Canadian team trained.
“Everybody was pushing to get on that downhill,” said Max Gartner, Alpine Canada’s chief athletic officer. “That’s an advantage we cannot give away.”
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The same is true at the sliding center. Only Canadian sliders have had access for training on what is generally regarded as the most difficult track in the sport. You have to think that played a role in today's tragic death.