| Salt Lake City |
 |
 |
| GER |
12 |
16 |
7 |
35 |
 |
| USA |
10 |
13 |
11 |
34 |
|
| NOR |
11 |
7 |
6 |
24 |
|
| CAN |
6 |
3 |
8 |
17 |
|
| RUS |
6 |
6 |
4 |
16 |
|
| AUT |
2 |
4 |
10 |
16 |
|
| ITA |
4 |
4 |
4 |
12 |
|
| FRA |
4 |
5 |
2 |
11 |
|
| SUI |
3 |
2 |
6 |
11 |
|
| NED |
3 |
5 |
0 |
8 |
|
|
|
|
Love for Russians spurs volunteer
Friend was stabbed while on mission
By Chuck Oxley
Associated Press writer
BOISE, Idaho — It would have been easy for Ben Madsen to hate Russians.
While serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in western Siberia in 1998, two fellow missionaries were stabbed by a drunken man in a blind rage. When Madsen got to the scene, he saw one of his closest friends lying dead in the street.
"I think it was a life-changing experience for him," said his father, Roger Madsen, director of the Idaho Department of Labor. "He ended up realizing it wasn't an attack on the church or America. It was just a random attack."
Despite the traumatic event, Ben's two years of service in Russian cities east of the Ural Mountains, where temperatures sometimes sink to 40 below, only warmed his heart to the Russian language and culture.
It was that experience that led the 23-year-old senior at Brigham Young University to be hand-selected as one of 20 American interpreters, guides and liaisons for the delegation of Russian athletes at the Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.
For the past two weeks, Madsen, a Meridian High School graduate, has worked 19-hour days to accommodate Viktor Mamatov, the leader of the Russian Federation's Olympic delegation to the United States.
As a National Olympic Committee assistant, Madsen accompanies Mamatov to events and provides interpretive services. Besides Russian, Madsen speaks German and French.
Some times his duties include driving athletes to competitions or taking them out in the evening for a good time.
"They like to drink and socialize," Madsen said.
Certainly, Russians are known for their fondness for vodka. The country is troubled with a high rate of alcoholism and it was alcohol that played a large part in the deadly attack on Madsen's friends.
Imbibing is strictly against church rules for Mormons. But Madsen does not judge the Russian athletes in his care.
"Of course, I would not restrict them in any way. I hope they have a good time in whatever way they can. I'm just happy to share it with them," Madsen said.
Initially, Madsen said, the Russians seemed suspicious of his motives. In Russia, as elsewhere in the world, Mormon missionaries are known for their familiar dark suits with the black name tags. In addition to humanitarian work, part of their job is to proselytize for the church. But that has not been his mission during the Olympics, Madsen said.
"It took a couple of days, but they came to understand that we love their language and just wanted to be with them and share their experience," Madsen said.
For the past two weeks, Madsen has lived with the athletes in the Olympic Village and he has had full access to nearly any venue and event. It has provided him a perspective of the games few others have.
Madsen recalled driving one of his favorite Russian athletes, Aleksei Yagudin, to the men's figure skating competition in downtown Salt Lake City.
"I would say he was extremely nervous. There was just this silence in the car. I tried not to be intrusive. But you can just tell, their level of intensity is unbelievable," Madsen said. "For Russians, gold is victory. They're not pleased without total championship."
It turned out that Yagudin was pleased because he took gold that day.
Head-to-head competition created tension between his American roots and his kinship toward the Russians. But the hockey face-off went perfectly.
"I rooted for the American team on the inside, but I rooted for the Russian team on the outside," Madsen said. The game ended 2-2. "I actually wanted them to tie."
After his extraordinary Olympic experience, Madsen is rethinking his career. Although he had been preparing for law school, now he is considering international business, an occupation that would allow him to spend more time with his adopted second culture — one mysterious to most Westerners.
"Yes, the first impressions you get from the Russians is that they are very stern and cold. But they have a saying, 'We are like an orange — hard on outside, but warm and sweet on the inside.'
"I really feel a connection to the Russian people, a deep understanding, and I feel like I can appreciate their way of life."
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February 23, 2002
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