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    From 'Bonk' To 'Bombs' And 'Fly Swat': A Guide To Olympic Slang

    Olympic sports have their own vernacular — terms that make no sense to outsiders. Much of it has to do with when things go wrong. And some of it has to do with Seinfeld.
    by Melissa Block Feb 23, 2018 3 minutes
    Speedskaters Elise Christie of Great Britain gets by Kim Boutin of Canada and Andrea Keszler of Hungary as they fall during the Ladies' 500m quarterfinal on Feb. 13. "If the pass is gonna be close or tight," says U.S. speedskater J.R. Celski, "we usually say 'bombs,' like 'Uh-oh, something's gonna blow up!' So it's like an explosion. It most likely means people are falling."

    Olympic sports have their own special vernacular — colorful slang terms that are head-scratchers to an outsider.

    Here in Pyeongchang, I've made it my mission to crack the code. So I cornered as many Olympic athletes as I could and asked them to divulge their terms of the trade.

    When I asked U.S. biathlete Tim Burke for his best example, he didn't hesitate.

    "If you have a bad crash, a lot of times we call that a 'yard

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