Shirtless Tongan returns, steals Opening Ceremony show with Bermudians in shorts
It’s cold in PyeongChang right now. As in, potentially minus-13 degrees Fahrenheit cold. Cold enough that a number of news outlets have run stories with headlines wondering if it is actually too cold to run a Winter Olympics.
Cold enough that, during the final rehearsal for Friday night’s Opening Ceremony, volunteers walked out when temperatures plummeted to -9 F, and prior to the real Opening Ceremony, spectators — what few there were — were given a blanket and gloves.
Tonga’s flag-bearer, Pita Taufatofua, doesn’t care. Just as he did in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, Taufatofua came out shirtless and glistening with oil at the Olympic Opening Ceremony.
Now he’s back representing Tonga as a skier. And yes, he’s still shirtless, and still very, very oily.
The internet responded, as expected, once again for its favorite flag-bearer.
SHUT IT DOWN TONGA#OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/rdRj5jcSn6
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) February 9, 2018
Bermuda, too, didn’t seem to care about the weather. The Bermudian Olympians didn’t seem to care that the average low temperature in Bermuda in February is a lovely 59 degrees. While every other nation marched in layer upon layer — the United States wore heated jackets — with beanies and boots and gloves and any type of warm weather gear one could imagine, Bermuda rocked shorts.
Shorts? In temps that dipped into the negatives?
Indeed, shorts — and, along with Taufatofua, they immediately stole the show at the Opening Ceremony, becoming the unofficial gold medalists of the evening.
BERMUDA ARE WEARING SHORTS. REPEAT. SHORTS. #OpeningCeremony pic.twitter.com/5b9kTlIBoc
— Scott Bryan (@scottygb) February 9, 2018
Bermuda never disappoints at the opening ceremony. GET THEM BERMUDA SHORTS!!!! #OpeningCeremony
— Carrington Walsh (@carringtonwalsh) February 9, 2018
The team from Bermuda coming out it -20 temps wearing Bermuda shorts have won these games already #OpeningCeremony
— REDSTARGEE (@aron75aron) February 9, 2018
Olympics Opening Ceremony
Team USA enters stadium: winter jackets + giant heated gloves.
Team Bermuda enters next: short shorts.— Brett Ruskin (@Brett_CBC) February 9, 2018
Bermuda wearing shorts at the opening ceremony. #WinterOlympics2018 pic.twitter.com/4QjEomC5w0
— Louisa Jordan (@LouisaEditor) February 9, 2018
There's no medal at the opening ceremony, but if there was it would go to Bermuda. #Pyeongchang2018 #OpeningCeremony
— Josh Clipperton (@JClipperton_CP) February 9, 2018
Currently, PyeongChang is on track to become the coldest Games on record, likely to surpass Lillehammer, Norway, site of the 1994 Games, when temperatures hit 12 F.
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