Coaches and fans worldwide reward competitors who push beyond their limits, who achieve new highs, who give 110%. But not Laughton.org.
In our latest contest, we ask you to predict which countries will win medals in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. We tell you how many medals, you tell us which countries. When your countries win medals, your score goes up. But your medals are stacked on a slippery slope; if you win too many, they slide off and you lose them! Play carefully.

Overachievers beware!


February 27, 2006

1   
  148
2   
  147
3   
  142
4   
  131
5   
  115
6   
  113
7   
  112
8   
  108
9   
  98
10   
  90
11   
  88
12   
  85
13   
  76
14   
  54
15   
  3

 

The Contest Manager always enters his own contests, but he doesn't expect to win them. Who would have guessed that so many medals would tumble from so many slopes? He is ineligible to receive any prizes, so they will be awarded to the second-, third-, and fourth-place finishers.

 

02:14:49
SLOPE 5: 3
POL:2 BLR:1 MAR SLO
 
SLOPE 10: 5
BUL:1 EST:3 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 25: 31   0
RUS:22 NED:9 ICE
 
SLOPE 50: 55   0
PRK KOR:11 NOR:19 SUI:14 CHN:11
 
SLOPE 100: 82
USA:25 GER:29 CAN:24 CZE:4
  Why isn't Jamaica on the list? I wanted to include them in my 5 pile. Go Jamaican Bob Sledders!!
 
02:04:58
SLOPE 5: 2
BUL:1 BLR:1
 
SLOPE 10: 15   0
SWE:14 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 25: 36   0
RUS:22 SUI:14
 
SLOPE 50: 46
NOR:19 CAN:24 CRO:3
 
SLOPE 100: 67
GER:29 AUS:2 USA:25 ITA:11
  Note: You need a space where we can complain bitterly about our selections and why we didn't do better. :)
 
02:14:52
SLOPE 5: 2
POL:2 ALB MAR SLO
 
SLOPE 10: 5
BUL:1 EST:3 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 25: 31   0
RUS:22 NED:9 ICE
 
SLOPE 50: 55   0
PRK ITA:11 FRA:9 FIN:9 GBR:1 SUI:14 CHN:11
 
SLOPE 100: 81
USA:25 GER:29 AUT:23 CZE:4
 
 
02:05:55
SLOPE 5: 2
POL:2
 
SLOPE 10: 7
JPN:1 EST:3 BLR:1 AUS:2
 
SLOPE 25: 27   0
GBR:1 BUL:1 SLO KOR:11 SUI:14
 
SLOPE 50: 45
NOR:19 FRA:9 CRO:3 SWE:14
 
SLOPE 100: 109   0
RUS:22 ITA:11 AUT:23 CAN:24 GER:29
 
 
02:04:25
SLOPE 5: 9   0
NED:9
 
SLOPE 10: 15   0
KOR:11 CZE:4
 
SLOPE 25: 38   0
CAN:24 SWE:14
 
SLOPE 50: 56   0
AUT:23 RUS:22 ITA:11
 
SLOPE 100: 76
GER:29 USA:25 NOR:19 CRO:3 BIH
 
 
02:10:48
SLOPE 5: 3
POL:2 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 10: 11   0
CHN:11
 
SLOPE 25: 32   0
AUT:23 FIN:9
 
SLOPE 50: 52   0
NOR:19 RUS:22 ITA:11
 
SLOPE 100: 101   0
USA:25 CAN:24 FRA:9 SUI:14 GER:29
  Da ski run is so fun! :)
 
02:05:10.3
SLOPE 5: 3
GBR:1 AUS:2
 
SLOPE 10: 6
CZE:4 BUL:1 JPN:1 SLO
 
SLOPE 25: 32   0
AUT:23 FIN:9
 
SLOPE 50: 39
USA:25 SUI:14
 
SLOPE 100: 83
GER:29 NOR:19 CAN:24 ITA:11
  Go with the green. The pickle knows.
 
02:15:00
SLOPE 5: 3
CRO:3
 
SLOPE 10: 9
SPA FIN:9
 
SLOPE 25: 32   0
CHN:11 SWE:14 POL:2 JPN:1 CZE:4
 
SLOPE 50: 69   0
RUS:22 AUT:23 CAN:24
 
SLOPE 100: 73
USA:25 GER:29 NOR:19 SEN
 
 
02:10:00
SLOPE 5: 4
EST:3 GBR:1
 
SLOPE 10: 10
FRA:9 LAT:1
 
SLOPE 25: 38   0
SWE:14 CAN:24 ESP
 
SLOPE 50: 55   0
AUT:23 RUS:22 FIN:9 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 100: 84
NOR:19 USA:25 GER:29 KOR:11
 
 
02:08:05.2
SLOPE 5: 1
GBR:1
 
SLOPE 10: 4
SLO BLR:1 EST:3
 
SLOPE 25: 36   0
RUS:22 SWE:14
 
SLOPE 50: 45
AUT:23 NOR:19 CRO:3
 
SLOPE 100: 63
GER:29 USA:25 NED:9
 
 
02:07:04
SLOPE 5: 4
CZE:4
 
SLOPE 10: 9
FIN:9
 
SLOPE 25: 28   0
CAN:24 CRO:3 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 50: 47
USA:25 KOR:11 CHN:11
 
SLOPE 100: 82
GER:29 NED:9 SUI:14 NOR:19 ITA:11
 
 
02:08:08
SLOPE 5: 3
AUS:2 BLR:1
 
SLOPE 10: 9
NED:9
 
SLOPE 25: 23
FRA:9 SUI:14
 
SLOPE 50: 58   0
CAN:24 AUT:23 ITA:11
 
SLOPE 100: 73
USA:25 GER:29 NOR:19
 
 
02:09:05
SLOPE 5: 2
AUS:2 SLO
 
SLOPE 10: 10
FIN:9 BLR:1
 
SLOPE 25: 29   0
CAN:24 CZE:4 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 50: 45
NOR:19 AUT:23 EST:3
 
SLOPE 100: 90
GER:29 USA:25 RUS:22 SUI:14
 
 
02:01:00
SLOPE 5: 4
CZE:4
 
SLOPE 10: 14   0
SUI:14
 
SLOPE 25: 31   0
RUS:22 FIN:9
 
SLOPE 50: 36
USA:25 KOR:11
 
SLOPE 100: 72
GER:29 NOR:19 CAN:24
 
 
02:06:56
SLOPE 5: 3
GBR:1 AUS:2
 
SLOPE 10: 10
NED:9 JPN:1
 
SLOPE 25: 36   0
RUS:22 FIN:9 EST:3 POL:2
 
SLOPE 50: 36
USA:25 ITA:11
 
SLOPE 100: 99
GER:29 NOR:19 AUT:23 SUI:14 SWE:14
  This entry comes from Laughton.org and is not eligible to win a prize.

 

gold silver bronze total
AUS 1 0 1 2
AUT 9 7 7 23
BLR 0 1 0 1
BUL 0 1 0 1
CAN 7 10 7 24
CHN 2 4 5 11
CRO 1 2 0 3
CZE 1 2 1 4
EST 3 0 0 3
gold silver bronze total
FIN 0 6 3 9
FRA 3 2 4 9
GBR 0 1 0 1
GER 11 12 6 29
ITA 5 0 6 11
JPN 1 0 0 1
KOR 6 3 2 11
LAT 0 0 1 1
NED 3 2 4 9
gold silver bronze total
NOR 2 8 9 19
POL 0 1 1 2
RUS 8 6 8 22
SUI 5 4 5 14
SVK 0 1 0 1
SWE 7 2 5 14
UKR 0 0 2 2
USA 9 9 7 25

Giorgio di Centa of Italy won the 50-kilometer cross-country ski race in 02:06:11.8.

 

Laughton.org is pleased to award three prizes in the Olympic-medal colors of gold, silver, and bronze (or as close to bronze as possible), and in keeping with the international spirit of the Games, the prizes come from three different countries:

  Hamley's Swimming Fish is battery operated (not suitable for children under 3 years of age).

receives a toy goldfish. This battery-operated "swimming fish" (as opposed to the kind that ski-jumps or rides the luge) comes from Hamley's Toy Store on London's famous Regent Street.
 
 
These rubles are not legal tender (not suitable for children under 3 years of age).
receives a decorative plastic garland that looks like a string of silver 1-ruble coins from Saint Petersburg, Russia.
  This drinking chocolate is suitable for children under 3 years of age with appropriate adult supervision.
receives a 200-gram plastic container of Raha Drinking Chocolate from Nairobi, Kenya.

 


 

The Slippery Slopes come in five sizes - 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 - which represent the maximum number of medals that each can hold. You will pick countries that you think will win medals in the 2006 Olympics and assign one or more to each slope. Your score is the number of medals won by all the countries you pick; all medals count the same regardless of whether they're gold, silver, or bronze. You can put as many countries on each slope as you like, but you can't pick the same country twice. Most importantly, if you accumulate more medals on any slope than it can hold, you lose all medals for that slope. If you lose the medals on a slope, that slope cannot accumulate any more medals.

For tiebreaking purposes, you'll also predict the winning time of the men's 50-kilometer cross-country ski competition that is scheduled to start on February 26 at 10:00am Torino time.

Send your entry by e-mail to contest@laughton.org. We'll do the scoring and post the results on this webpage, which will be updated regularly during the course of the Olympic games. The player with the most medals at the end of the competition will win a small prize.

 

Send your e-mail in the following format:

  • In the Subject field, type "contest entry". Any other text may cause your entry to be lost to the spam filter.
  • In the body of your message, put the following information:
    • First line: your player name. This is the name that will appear in the contest results. You may use your real name or a pseudonym, but try to use no more than 32 characters.
    • Second line: countries on your 5-medal slope. You may use abbreviations as long as they're easily recognizable. Recommended abbreviations appear at the bottom of this page.
    • Third line: countries on your 10-medal slope.
    • Fourth line: countries on your 25-medal slope.
    • Fifth line: countries on your 50-medal slope.
    • Sixth line: countries on your 100-medal slope.
    • Seventh line: your tiebreaker prediction in hh:mm:ss form.
  • On subsequent lines you may add some comments if you like. You may discuss your contest strategy, relate an amusing anecdote from your personal Olympic experience, or write anything else that may interest your fellow players. Long-winded or boring comments may be shortened or otherwise improved by Laughton.org.

An example of a properly-formatted entry appears at right. There's no need to include the numbers of the slopes, but feel free to do so if it helps you organize your countries.

    Sample Entry
   Date:  February 3, 2006
     To:  contest@laughton.org
   From:  you@youraddress.com
Subject:  contest entry
P. Tchaikov-Ski
5   GBR
10  SPA, FIN
25  CHI, SWE, POL, JPN, CZE
50  RUS, AUT, CAN
100 USA, GER, NOR, KOR
02:15:30
If I win, I'd better
get something nice!

 

Scores will be posted on this webpage frequently during the course of the Olympics, but only the final tally determines the prize winner. At the conclusion of the Olympics, the player with the most medals on his slopes wins. Any slope for which a player has collected too many medals - that is, more medals than the size of the slope - counts as zero. In the event that two players are tied for the highest medal count, the one whose tiebreaker prediction comes closest to the actual winning time of the men's 50km cross-country ski event will be declared the winner. It make no difference if the prediction is higher or lower than the actual time.

 

Your entry must be received no later than midnight, February 10, 2006, U.S. eastern time.

You may send only one entry from an e-mail address. If you have more than one address, you may send one entry from each.

Illegible, irrational, or improperly formatted entries will be discarded.

Entries containing libelous, scurrilous, or scandalous text will be discarded.

 

 
ALBAlbania
ALGAlgeria
ANDAndorra
ARGArgentina
ARMArmenia
AUSAustralia
AUTAustria
AZEAzerbaijan
BLRBelarus
BELBelgium
BERBermuda
BIHBosnia-Herzegovina
BRABrazil
BULBulgaria
CANCanada
CHIChile
CHNChina
CROCroatia
CYPCyprus
CZECzech Republic
DENDenmark
ESTEstonia
ETHEthiopia
FINFinland
FRAFrance
GEOGeorgia
GERGermany
GBRGreat Britain
GREGreece
HKGHong Kong
HUNHungary
ICEIceland
INDIndia
IRIIran
IREIreland
ISRIsrael
ITAItaly
JPNJapan
KENKenya
KAZKazakhstan
PRKN Korea
 
KORS Korea
KGZKyrgyzstan
LATLatvia
LIELiechtenstein
LTULithuania
LUXLuxembourg
MKDMacedonia
MADMadagascar
MEXMexico
MDAMoldova
MONMonaco
MGLMongolia
MARMorocco
NEPNepal
NEDNetherlands
NZLNew Zealand
NORNorway
PAKPakistan
PERPeru
POLPoland
PORPortugal
ROMRomania
RUSRussia
SMRSan Marino
SENSenegal
SCGSerbia-Montenegro
SVKSlovakia
SLOSlovenia
RSASouth Africa
ESPSpain
SWESweden
SUISwitzerland
TJKTajikistan
THAThailand
TURTurkey
UKRUkraine
USAUnited States
ISVUS Virgin Islands
UZBUzbekistan
VENVenezuela
   
Medals Won
CountryGoldSilverBronzeTotal
GERGermany1216836
USAUnited States10131134
NORNorway135725
CANCanada73717
AUTAustria341017
RUSRussia54413
ITAItaly44513
FRAFrance45211
SUISwitzerland32611
CHNChina2248
NEDNetherlands3508
FINFinland4217
SWESweden0257
CROCroatia3104
KORSouth Korea2204
ESTEstonia1113
CZECzech Republic1203
BULBulgaria0123
GBRGreat Britain1012
AUSAustralia2002
POLPoland0112
JPNJapan0112
SLOSlovenia0011
BLRBelarus0011
The winning time of 02:06:20.8
in the 50-kilometer men's cross-country ski event
was posted by Mikhail Ivanov of Russia.

 

Click here for a list of medals to be awarded in Torino by sport in PDF format.

 

The official website of the 2006 Winter Olympics: