Viktor Mamatov, deputy head of the Unified Team delegation, said its strength will be figure skating, skiing, biathlon and speed skating. He predicted that the Unified Team would return with 27 medals, nine or 10 of them gold.
Beyond that, nothing is certain. The International Olympic Committee helped to collect $800,000 to send the Unified Team to Albertville. Adidas, the German sporting goods manufacturer, also sponsoring the team.
"Over one or two or three months, an athlete doesn't lose that professional level of quality," Unified Team figure skating coach Tamara Moskvina said.
"Still, this is the end, this is our last breath. "We know the money is not there anymore. Nothing will be free anymore. Everything as we know it will change."
Said German luger Jorg Hoffman: "In the past we always worried about how many medals we would bring home to our country. Now, we think about supporting our families and buying breads. We have joined the rest of the world."
Watching these changes closely are U.S. athletes and coaches. They do not see the Unified Team and Germany faltering in the 1992 Olympics.
