Since confirmation of the Jamaican bobsleigh team's participation "came on Monday," the Jamaicans are busy trying to raise an additional $80,000 to $100,000 "to fund their final preparations for Sochi." Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation General Secretary Dudley Stokes said that "financial woes may not have vanished altogether but had eased at least." Stokes: "We were able to raise over $120,000 via a crowd-funding site ... which meets the immediate need. So we're grateful for that, as it puts us in very good position to get the team prepared for the Sochi Games" (REUTERS, 1/23). ... Sochi hotel managers "are getting crash courses in how to smile." In line with Russian President Vladimir Putin's "efforts to show Russia's modern face" at the $50B Sochi Games, an "initiative has been launched to break down enduring stereotypes of Russians as cold, severe and unsmiling" (REUTERS, 1/23). ... Six sports and three disciplines "have applied to be included" in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games. Vying to be added are para-badminton, para-taekwondo, powerchair football, three-on-three intellectually impaired basketball, electric wheelchair hockey, amputee football, one-person multi-hull (sailing), blind match racing (sailing) and three-on-three wheelchair basketball (SPORTAL, 1/22).
