Five Winter Olympics contenders journal their progress to the 2010 Games

Vancouver 2010 sponsor Panasonic has selected five athletes for whom qualification for the games was a struggle. One lucky member of the public will also be selected to be the site's "Gold Blogger," relaying the Olympic experience live from the Games themselves.

The winning Gold Blogger will be dispatched to Vancouver for the competition's duration, February 10-28, with an all-expenses paid air fare and accommodation provided, along with the complimentary use of a laptop computer and digital camera.

The five Olympic athletes each have an incredible story to tell about their journey to Vancouver, and are using their blogs to talk about their training programs and reflections on the route to hopeful Olympic glory.

Clyde Getty is a 47-year-old USA-born Argentinian freestyle skier who won the hearts of spectators at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino with his courtesy and passion, despite finishing last after failing to land a difficult jump.

Tu?ba Karademir learnt to ice skate on Turkey's only ice rink aged 5 and then migrated with her parents to Canada in search of a professional figure skating coach to support her burgeoning talent.

Robel Teklemariam certainly stands out in the Cross-Country Skiing category - he was the first Ethiopian to represent his country at the Winter Olympics when he debuted in 2006 at Turin and remains determined to improve on his previous placings of 83rd out of 99 in the 15km event.

Completing the quintuplet are skeleton racers (a form of tobogganing) Katherine Eustace of New Zealand and Kazuhiro Koshi of Japan. Two years ago, Katherine was a track-and-field sprinter but changed to speed sledding on advice of a friend, despite the sport's anonymity in her homeland. Forty-six-year-old Kazuhiro has suffered job losses due to his long-term sporting commitment and wants to take home a 2010 medal as Japan's oldest Winter Games representative.

Website: 5dreams.panasonic.net