No substitute for Olympic pins
...this is a test. this is only an olympic blog test. do not be alarmed. do not summon chechnyans ...
SOCHI – Don't mess around with the Olympic pins.
The most popular and ubiquitous collectible at any Olympics has always been the pins that various organizations produce and provide for each Games.
Apparently, the pins have been in short supply at Sochi, a development that prodded the local organizers into action.
Informed about the pin shortage at the IOC's Tuesday briefing, a Sochi Organizing Committee official looked dumbstruck.
"What a shame. Can I come back to you with a resolution?" she said before offering to provide the questioner with "a nice Torch Relay [pin] that you might not find on sale."
That offer produced an excited buzz among media members, one of whom shouted out, "Do you have one for everybody?"
"First come, first served," replied the official.
On Wednesday, the official had an answer.
"They should be already in the main Olympic store," she said. "I asked to make sure that the pins are always there because that's definitely the most popular artifact of the Games."