Sleeveless (and Shirtless) in Sochi
Warm front means Olympic athletes are shedding layers.
Feb. 13, 2014 — -- Turns out if you wanted to enjoy some sunshine in February, you should have headed to Sochi. A warm front in southern Russia has threatened to melt the Winter Games with temperatures hitting the 60s and sunshine making it feel even warmer.
To fend off the effects of warm weather, officials tapping into snow reserves and athletes along with spectators are finding ways to keep cool.
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In the Women's 10km classical cross-country race, skiers shed sleeves in an effort to stay cool as they trudged through mushy snow to the finish line. At the time of the start the temperature was practically tropical (by cross-country standards, that is) at a balmy 54 degrees.
By the end of the race plenty of overheated and exhausted skiers collapsed at the finish line and Justyna Kowalczyk of Poland won the race.
Even Olympic staff decided that winter gear wasn't for them. To clear the Russian slopes, course workers went shirtless on skis to stay cool even as they worked in the snow and ice.
Some Olympic competitors kept the shirt but lost the sleeves to stay cool in competition.
U.S. slopestyle skier Bobby Brown made it to the finals after shedding his jacket and performing flips and jumps in a T-shirt.
In the Olympic village, where the temperature has been rising to the mid 60s, athletes took advantage of the sunshine to exercise outdoors.
A Canadian athlete even donned sunglasses for a quick workout on his balcony.
And even in the mountains, Canadian mogul skiers weren't deterred by the snow. They decided to cheer on teammates in competition with little more than a hat, scarf and sunglasses.
Unfortunately for plenty of people on the East Coast of the U.S., a sunny warm day in the outdoors can currently only be enjoyed on television. In New York commuters slogged through a foot of snow just to make it to work.