Party time in Minsk

Belarus enjoying big upset win over Sweden

MINSK, Belarus (AP) -- Joyful Belarusians expressed pride Thursday in their hockey team's Olympic upset of the Swedes, as much of a shock at home as it was to the crowds in Salt Lake City.

"Belarusians have waited such a long time for such a victory and finally our dreams have come true," said Yanka Burak, a musician. "If Belarusians win the gold, can you imagine what a triumph it will be?"

Deputy sports and tourism minister Alexander Grigorov was equally ebullient about Belarus' stunning 4-3 victory over Sweden on Wednesday.

"This game will go down in the history not only of Belarusian hockey, but of Belarusian sport in general," he said.

In Sweden, national newspapers put pictures of the dazed Swedish players on front pages and made scathing assessments of the team's performance.

The Swedes entered the game 3-0 in the Olympics and were expected to advance with little trouble. But Belarus held on and scored the game-winning goal on a 70-foot shot that caught Swedish goalie Tommy Salo by surprise. Belarus will face Canada in Friday's semifinal round.

Some fans ran into the streets of the capital after the game, which ended shortly before midnight local time. They waved flags and chanted "Long live Belarus!"

Many fans saw the team's upset as a national victory and a vindication of sorts for Belarus, which has suffered economic decline and isolation.

The nation is devoted to the sport, and President Alexander Lukashenko has donned helmet, knee and elbow pads for matches of his own.

Lukashenko's press secretary Natalya Petkevich said the president was "rejoicing" and would soon send official congratulations to the team.

"This victory was unexpected for many but it was deserved," she said.

Some were not so starry-eyed.

"I think it was not the Belarusians' achievement that they won, it's just that the Swedish team wasn't psychologically tuned for the game," said Tamara Kolesnikova, a former Belorussia hurdler. "They knew that the Belarusian team had lost all the previous matches shamefully, and they played against Belarus in a slipshod manner and lost."

That is how most Swedish reporters summed up the loss.

The newspaper Svenska Dagbladet designed a fake stamp with a picture of Salo covering his face mask as the puck bounced off his head and into the net. The postmark declared: "Salt Lake City 2002 -- Fiasco."

Tabloid Aftonbladet called it "the day of shame," while Expressen showed Salo asking for forgiveness.

The players, including many from the National Hockey League, were pictured one-by-one in Expressen with their salaries listed under a headline "Guilty: they betrayed their country."

 

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