Would you like to have all the Big Sky releated facts heading into the Olympics in Sochi all in one place? Me too…luckily for us- The Missoula Independent put together a great piece. That coverage is highlighted below, but first- does the resignation of Montana native Michael McFaul as US ambassador to Russia mean the end of a “reset” in US-Russia relations?
Not so, says the Russian Ambassador to the US in this Voice of Russia report:
Russian ambassador in Washington Sergey Kislyak: I don’t know who will succeed him, but I do know that Mike has long been looking forward to resuming his job at Stanford where he was employed as a professor. I saw him give lectures. He is a skilled lecturer. I knew that he used to enjoy his work a great deal.
As to this perception of the end of McFaul’s diplomatic career as the end of the “reset”, I think it’s big words. They don’t reflect the essence of our relations, the things we do. I happened to work with him here when he was on the White House staff, and I should say that I’m grateful for the time we worked side by side. As to his time in Moscow, I don’t think it would be correct for me as the Russian ambassador in the United States to assess the activities of my Moscow-based colleagues. It’s up to his employers to rate his effectiveness. But in any case, he once told me that his time in Moscow was one of the most interesting periods in his life – although a difficult one.
The Missoula Independenthas a great compilation of all the Big Sky related facts you’ll want to know heading into the Olympics in Sochi, along with a profile of the youngest Olympian- Whitefish’s Maggie Voisin.
Here’s just some of the Big Sky stats:
1. Andrija Vukovic, a 19-year-old member of the Serbian Alpine Ski Team, is a freshman at Rocky Mountain College in Billings.
2. The Sochi Winter Olympics cost Russia an estimated $51 billion, more than $40 billion over budget. It’s not only the most expensive Olympics ever, but you could pay for every other Winter Olympics combined—and probably have enough left to help the city of Missoula buy Mountain Water Co.
6. Whitefish’s Maggie Voisin is the youngest U.S. Winter Olympian since 1972. That year, two 14-year-old speed skaters, Kay Lunda and Connie Carpenter-Phinney, competed in Japan. Lunda placed seventh in the 500m, while Carpenter-Phinney finished seventh in the 1500m. Carpenter-Phinney, however, went on to win gold in cycling at the 1984 Summer Olympics.