|
COPYRIGHT 2005 South Florida Sun-Sentinal
Byline: Dave Joseph
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. _ Dave Silk stood on frozen Mirror Lake with other members of the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" Olympic hockey team, surrounded by autograph seekers and old friends. They shook hands, were handed hot chocolate and stood on a makeshift stage at the edge of the lake to watch fireworks tear a rip in heaven.
"This place . . .," Silk said, pausing to take in his surroundings. A heavy snow was falling. The glow of light from ragged bonfires cast sleigh riders and skaters in flickering shadows. He was standing now just a few hundred yards from the arena where the greatest game ever was played. Back to a time when a nation found innocence watching hockey played in its purest form and when a game transcended sport.
"This place is magical," Silk added.
This is hallowed ground. Where a "spirit and innocence" exists, says goalie Jim Craig. This is where a quarter century ago a group of college kids with no shot of winning an Olympic medal won gold, first by defeating the heavily favored and hated Soviet Union, and then, 25 years ago, beating Finland.
It was everything we wanted in a Cold War winter when the Soviets were invading Afghanistan, American hostages were in...
Read the full article for free courtesy of your local library.
|
Bookmark this article
Print this article
Link to this article
Email this article
Digg It!
Add to del.icio.us
RSS
