Bailer

Cheering for you as well!

And you're also hosting the World Championships and the Olympics in the upcoming years!

Exactly. Growing up listening to the same voice during ice hockey makes it pretty obvious I'll be watching on the national television. Eurosport is great for switching through the channels and looking for whatever event comes up during the day.

Does ski jumping no longer provide medals?

Just one or two. We're not asking for much.

I just noticed you had the same amount of athletes four years ago. Let's win the same amount of medals too!

He's on the ice.

Matching!

Not yet, but I'm definitely tuning in. We might have some medal contenders.

I'm waiting to become interested in a random sport I've never watched before, just like it happened with skateboarding in Paris.

This will be a long night of anxiously refreshing every single piece of media. Don't tell me we'll get the earliest updates no later than tomorrow.

Well, 53 looks good. I'm pleasantly surprised after not having any expectations.

That's so sad. Can you explain further?

Absolute 4D chess from our federation, announcing her when the quota was not available, and now she will actually compete.

God, I hope not.

@hckošice Do you agree with me to some extent, or am I hopelessly dreaming?

Time for more personal and detailed predictions: will have it hard this time. I'm trying to stay realistic about our chances. We're not going there as favorites in most events, and deep down I know it would be a big surprise if we suddenly overperformed or even dominated. Still, sports have a beautiful way of ignoring expectations. We're never predicted to do amazingly well at either edition of the Olympics, so I’m desperately hoping for moments that will stay with everyone in the country for years, whether it's a final that keeps people glued to their screens or a performance that will make us proud. Just one medal could mean so much. It would bring real emotions and something to cheer for to a country that isn’t going through its best period right now. And on the rare occasion of a hockey miracle, celebrations in the streets wouldn't be an oddity. It all comes down to four sports, the rest are out of reach: Alpine Skiing is a big mystery, and it will all come down to Petra, whether she'll compete and eventually shock everyone with a heroic result. That's the best-case scenario. Biathlon can be the dark horse, you never know how things turn around. The women's relay is probably our biggest chance, but all four of them need to deliver great performances. As for Ice Hockey, our national sport, I'll always believe in another fairytale. I'll always believe we'll pull off a miracle. Since I wasn't alive yet when we won gold at the World Championships, I can only resort to watching old videos and imagine how amazing it must have been to watch as your country is the champion of the world in something. Best on the planet. Even the silver years later was amazing, but I was too young to actually remember it, so it's time for another hockey euphoria in the country. Ski Mountaineering is a bit overlooked in the media right now, but I believe we have a huge chance of winning a medal in one of the events. Our athletes aren't minnows. We're a small country, still relatively young. There's not much we're known for in the world, but sports are a perfect way to build a national identity, to stop people from thinking you're still part of a state that ceased to exist decades ago. Doing well in sports is one of the few things these lesser-known countries can show off, not just the ones in Europe. I'm desperately hoping for a medal, and we all want those two weeks of the Olympics to be amazing and full of unforgettable moments.

Gratulujeme! @Jan Linha @stepansevs

The crowd in Czechia is amazing in every sport!

Vivat Slovakia But in all seriousness, it's been repeatedly stated how important it is to qualify in a team event for the next Summer Olympics. However, I have no idea if we even have a realistic chance. We only have one fewer individual athlete competing this year than we did in Paris, so individual quota spots aren't the main issue. Where can we find a competitive team, like we do in hockey? Maybe the women's handball team could start something big, but that's still far in the future, very likely unachievable in just two years. And to be clear, as horrific as our medal tally from Paris looked, those were some of the unluckiest Olympics for Slovakia I have ever seen. Finishing in the top six seven times (!) is absolutely insane.

I really hope Nordic Combined doesn't get scrapped. Actually, I believe the Winter Olympics should keep growing with new sports and disciplines (3x3 Hockey, Ice Cross, Speed Skiing, Ice Climbing), otherwise they won't feel like a true celebration of sports like their summer counterpart.

Another quick fact, Slovakia will be represented in 11 sports, the most ever!

Interesting to note, Estonia will most likely send 34 athletes, the largest delegation ever for the country!

https://www.facebook.com/lidlslovensko/posts/ďa-ku-jeme-chalani-že-si-celé-slovensko-môže-vychutnať-vaše-zaslúžené-víťazstvo️/1008097938150672/