Winter Olympic sports can put athletes on the (literal) edge

By JIMMY GOLEN
AP Sports Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Skiers skidding into safety nets. Snowboarders eating it on the halfpipe. Speedskaters crashing into the barriers — and each other.  When Winter Olympians talk about losing their edge, they often mean the literal edge of a skate, a ski or a snowboard. That sharpened strip can be the difference between a spot on the podium, or one in the hospital. While the summer sports present their own dangers it’s the sheer slipperiness of the ice and snow in the Winter Games that can make a tiny mistake turn perilous. so the athletes sharpen their skis or skates to the finest edge. Even so, the Beijing Olympics have seen their share of accidents.