TO THE EDITOR:
This week, many Tar Heels lament the end of the 2014 Olympic Games. For 16 days, we cheered for our fellow Americans and were thrilled by great moments such as the men’s hockey team’s shootout victory over Russia and the American sweep of the ski slopestyle medals. I would like to remind us all that a new team of American olympians will be competing in Sochi this March, and that they too are deserving of our cheers.
The 2014 U.S. Paralympic Team will compete in the upcoming Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games from March 7 through March 16. The 74-member team is sure to impress, as it includes 32 returning paralympians who have won a combined total of 50 paralympic medals. Many of the team’s top athletes are veterans who were disabled defending our country.
These games will receive an unprecedented 50 hours of television coverage on NBC and NBCSN, affording us plenty of opportunities to watch America compete in alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, sled hockey and wheelchair curling. As UNC students pride themselves on their patriotism and North Carolina has long held the reputation as America’s most military-friendly state, I hope we will give these athletes a level support and recognition that parallels the enthusiasm received by any other olympic event. Go Heels! Go America!
Kathleen Ughetta ’15 Global Studies
