No plastics? No Olympic Games!

Plastics make the difference on ice and snow in almost all winter sports, that - starting from today until February 28 - will be the protagonists of the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. Skis are a sandwich construction based on different materials, plastics being one of them. For example, the back side of a ski – the one in touch with snow – is made of a special plastic resin that glides extraordinary well. And especially in cross-country skiing, there is also the possibility to glue plastics on the ski to adjust it to different temperatures and kinds of snow. In biathlon plastic materials are not only used to produce poles and skis, but also the gun stocks. The same reinforced carbon fibre plastics also help to make bobsleds faster. In fact the strange cigars, that will race on Vancouver's tracks, are covered with plastics. In biathlon, plastics are not only used to produce poles and skis, but also the gun stocks. The same reinforced carbon fibre plastics also help to make bobsleds faster. In fact, these strange cigars that will race on Vancouver's concrete-based track with its artificial ice surface are covered with plastics. Bobsleigh combines speed, power and agility, and like in all sports, nobody may win without a real good performance. Of course many of the developments made for professional athletes quickly find their way to ordinary people who practice sports just for fun.