With the Winter Olympics in full swing and the closing ceremony approaching on Feb. 22, the 25^th edition of the Winter Olympiad has not disappointed. From U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin’s shocking crashes and 8^th place finish in the men’s figure skating solo final, to a potential impending grudge match in the Gold Medal game between the U.S. and Canada men’s hockey teams, there have been and will continue to be exciting moments at Milano Corina.

While sports like figure skating, ice hockey, snowboarding, skiing, and speedskating receive the majority of the media’s attention, there are other sports that aren’t thrust into the spotlight. Ranging from life-threatening ice-tube roller coaster rides to sports that leave you questioning how they were invented in the first place, here are the top five most underrated Winter Olympic Sports, worth watching for the remainder of these games and in future editions.

5. Bobsleigh (Two-Man and Four-Man)

Originally invented in the late 1800’s, the bobsleigh event was added to the winter Olympics in 1924, with the two-man event being added in 1932. This event is probably most famous for being the focus of the 1993 Disney film, Cool Runnings, which highlights in hilarious fashion the 1986 Jamaican Bobsleigh team. Irv Blitzer’s (played by John Candy) famous quote sums up the thrill and danger of sport well: “In a bobsled, your bones don’t break. Oh no. They shatter.” The event starts with the crucial push start as the men push the sled forward as fast as possible down an ice chute before piling into the sled and following the driver in unison, bobbing and weaving with each turn at breakneck speeds. Bobsledding is a truly exhilarating sport where the smallest mistakes lead to losing by the finest of margins. Check out the four-man final if you have the chance on Feb. 22.

4. Luge (Relay, Doubles and Singles)

Before these Olympics, I had never heard of the Luge event. However, while scrolling through Peacock, I saw the event, and the name piqued my interest. Luge, which was originally invented in Switzerland, begins with the athlete putting on a shield face mask straight out of the Tron franchise. They then mount a flat sled foot first and push themselves frantically downhill using their hands. After entering the main track, athletes must maintain contact with the sled lying flat as they fly through 90-degree turns at top speed. Even more entertaining is the doubles version, with teammates sharing the sled lying on top of each other. The cool outfits, excitement of imminent danger and thrill of high-speed racing make this event worth a watch.

3. Skeleton (Individual and Mixed Team)

Right off the bat, the name Skeleton lets you know you’re in for something exhilarating and potentially terrifying. The event is similar to the luge, with one key difference being the dismounted run up while holding the sled before mounting face-first at speeds of up to 90mph. Interestingly, the name does not come from the danger of the sport, but the shape of the older sleds being skeleton-like. If you’re looking for high speed, dangerous thrills, then few sports are more entertaining.

2. Curling (Singles and Mixed Doubles)

Compared to the previous three entries, curling is the ultimate change of pace, with the sport being a test of precision and team strategy. The teammates slide a weighted granite stone across the ice, aiming to score the most points by landing on the target and knocking the opponent’s stones off. What makes curling so interesting is the brushes that the athletes expertly use to steer the stone after it’s thrown by making the ice slicker in the path of the stone. With each end (the term for a round) involving eight stone slides per team and eight to ten ends, the matches last a long time. Curling is a great sport to watch for a relaxing afternoon, so give it a try if you get the chance.

1. Biathlon (Sprint, Pursuit, Mass Start and Relay)

Of the sports listed in this article, this is probably the only event that I would watch and follow year-round. The Biathlon somewhat randomly combines two very different events into one, with athletes being tasked with completing a physically demanding long-distance skiing race. The catch comes with the integration of the shooting, or sniping, section of the biathlon. After skiing a complete lap around the course, the athletes must stop, slow their intense heart rate, pick up a rifle, and successfully hit five small targets before continuing again. Each miss of a target with the rifle leads to a smaller penalty lap before continuing on the main course. No winter sport better combines physical exertion with mental fortitude. If you haven’t checked out the biathlon, do yourself a huge favor and turn on the Men’s and Women’s mass start finals on Feb. 20 and 21.

On Feb. 20, 2026, legendary folk group Mumford & Sons released their newest album “Prizefighter.” The band, tackles themes of love, acceptance, pride and mercy, and is famous for composing beautiful arrangements, adding to the folk-rock canon.

For readers who are unfamiliar with the group, Mumford & Sons is a British folk band formed in 2007 consisting of Marcus Mumford, Winston Marshall and Ben Lovett. This album marks the sixth studio album from the musicians, consisting of 14 total tracks. Below, I will list each song and my thoughts on them.

Here (feat. Chris Stapleton)

This track started off the album strong, with upbeat and rhythmic elements adding to the overall feeling of the song. The track featured popular country singer Chris Stapleton, known for his powerful accented voice. The blend of Mumford’s rough and gritty inflections and Stapleton’s clean and projected voice converges to make an uncommon and engaging two-part harmony. The electric guitar portion of the song reengaged me into the track and tied the song together for me. One gripe I often have with Mumford & Sons music is the reuse of the chorus numerous times to the point of exhaustion. This addition of the guitar and the horns helped negate that craft-fully.

Rubber Band Man (w/ Hozier)

This song featured an unexpected collaboration with Irish musician Hozier. He was a great addition to the band, and I enjoyed his harmony with the other members. This song makes use of their trademark folk backing track to its fullest, as well as a clever and concise bridge. Another thing I loved about this song was the lyrics. Mumford & Sons, while not being religious explicitly, have many allusions to the Christian faith.

“I've kind of separated myself from the culture of Christianity,” Mumford said.

Despite this, Christian ideas are not fully done away with in their lyrics. One line says, “Dying to raise the dead.” I found this creatively profound and made a connection with the crucifixion.

The Banjo Song

The Banjo Song has a great intro that is simple and evokes a very positive air about it. The overall sentiment is uplifting saying “And hey, when you call, when you fall, when you need someone, I could be your someone.”

Run Together

I loved the rustic banjo melody that is used in this song. Despite its minimalistic approach, it goes a long way. Also, the three-part harmony used in this song is incredible. Lyrically, this song paints a vivid picture. I particularly enjoyed the imagery of a tiger lying in wait as it has the protagonist in its mouth. It was captivating and showed me more of the storytelling side of their music.

Conversation with my Son (Gangsters and Angels)

"Conversation with my Son" has beautiful imagery instilled in the lyrics. They sing, "we're all tumblers and beggars," which I found to be gospel correlated. The most interesting thing I found in this is the allusion to W.H. Auden's, As I Walked Out One Evening, which says, "You shall love your crooked neighbour with your crooked heart." I love this reference and it connects to the overall song well. The focus on lyrics for this song as opposed to the chorus-heavy nature of other songs in the album, is also appealing.

Alleycat

The melodic hook of Alleycat is masterful. It combines Mumford’s experiences with a deep narrative allegory to convey the idea of mortality and finitude on earth. In an interview with Ireland’s Classic Hits Radio, Mumford says, “Alley Cat, I wrote in a prison actually. I go into prison and do poetry workshops and that came out of one of those sessions with the lads.”

Prizefighter

For the title track, Mumford & Sons pulled out all the production stops to make this a beautiful song. I was fascinated by the call and response that Mumford has with the backing track and the linear nature that the song takes on. The harmonies in this song were also angelic.

Begin Again

Begin Again has great use of wordplay and meter. The rhythm of phrasing was engaging and playful, but this was overall a generic song that seemed like it was made to be a soundtrack to an Instagram reel showing mountains and waterfalls. To me, it was nothing special, but it had some interesting lines.

Icarus (with Gigi Perez)

This track was strong and had once again a unique backing track. The allusion to the mythology of Icarus was fun and was a good vehicle for the themes of youth-driven choices. Two things I loved were the gospel chorus used in the background and the exciting drum fills.

Stay

This track slows the album down with its raw acoustic sound and a standout vocal performance by Mumford. The lyrics were glorious and elevated the song to another level as one of the best tracks on this LP.

Badlands (Gracie Abrams)

This track was a surprisingly captivating one amongst the album. Featuring singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams, this song has masterful meter. The contrasting voices between the two singers were so sonically pleasing to me, and I hope to hear more of that in future albums. Something about the arrangement and the lyrics perfectly evoked the feeling of nostalgia and progress for a brilliant track.

Shadow of A Man

Despite not enjoying repetitive choruses, this song’s chorus was enjoyable enough for me to want to hear it more.

I’ll Tell you Everything

This song was strong in its confessional-esque lyrics, specifically with the hook. He sings, “I was bank robber, then I was Superman.”

Clover

This final track has a beautiful melody. Christian ideas reappeared to me as he sings, “Isn’t normality a treat.” There seems to be some irony that makes me imagine a man speaking to Christ in His incarnation. It really evoked condescension to me, and I loved it. It ultimately ended in the most beautiful harmony in the entire album.

Overall Thoughts

Prizefighter was a great album with excellently clean production. Despite the consistent use of vocal inflection and chorus repetition, the lyrics and composition make up for it completely. If I had to rate it, I would give this album a 7/10.

Photo provided by Roberta, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Looking for extracurriculars on campus and love history? John Brown University’s History Society might be a good group for you. As a student-led club, The History Society seeks to foster a community that enables people to pursue their fascination with history beyond the classroom. In an interview with Hudson Langhofer, the president of the society, insights were gained into who they are and how they would like to grow.

The Rest is History…

The group originated last fall in an attempt to revive a former club for history enjoyers

“We’ve held five meetings so far this semester, in addition to meeting regularly last fall, with an average of 8–10 participants at each event. Since this is our first year as an official club, we’re still building momentum and growing our membership, but it’s been exciting to see the interest increase,” Langhofer said.

Events and Activities

The club has hosted numerous events this semester, appreciating American and world history.

“Our highlight of the year was our Hamilton sing-along in the Jones Recital Hall, which was a great success and a lot of fun for everyone involved,” Langhofer said.

Another event held this semester was a trivia night covering Greek, Norse and Egyptian mythology.

“We’re especially looking forward to hosting a Mock Roman Senate later this semester, which I think will be a big hit,” Langhofer said, addressing future events.

Looking forward

In the interview, Hudson reflected on the club’s predecessor, which was short-lived and hoped their club would have longer lasting presence in the community of JBU history lovers.

“There was a similar club a couple of years ago that eventually dissolved, so we’re really hopeful that the History Society will continue to grow and remain active in the years ahead,” Langhofer said.

Sign me up!

Students can get involved by following the JBU History Society on Instagram or by attending the biweekly meetings, held on Fridays at 7:00 p.m. in Cathedral 302.

Photo provided by Chris Lawton on Unsplash