483 ½ Wizolympics – Day 3 Update: Snowman Battle Final Round

Welcome to the final of the Snowman Battle! If this morning’s preliminaries were any indication, this is sure to be something to see. And here come the finalists! The fans are going wild, especially those from Germany, who haven’t seen a gold in this sport since the 403rd Wizolympics, when Abigail Burkhard’s snowman split into two separate snowmen. One decapitated Aleksandr Kezerian of Armenia’s snowman, while the other one ripped off his arms. Certainly not what the audience was expecting.

And here we go. This round will be slightly different from the previous three. All three competitors will fight each other, not having to worry about one but two other snowmen. Right now, the three finalists are finishing composing their snowmen without magic. The ding you are about to hear is the end of the hour. Rules in the final are a little more lax, allowing for more excitement. Competitors are now allowed their wands to control and alter their snowmen, while still keeping to the general snowman shape. Seung Jun from the Republic of Korea seems to be abandoning his tactic from his previous match with Lavioso. Instead of small and sleek, his snowman seems to be growing in size. And he has a sword! That snowman is easily fifteen feet tall.

Lutz Schnee has taken the original form of a snowman and created a humanoid shape. Never seen this before. It seems the judges are allowing it because it’s still a “man made of snow.” Should be quite interesting to see how it measures up to Jun’s giant. Andorra’s finalist has designed quite a breathtaking snowman of medium proportions. There seems to be a force field around the snowman to shield him. No, wait!  They have some sort of blue tinge to them… I can’t believe it! Neu has casted the Bluebell Flames Charm around her snowman, but the flames themselves look like tiny snowflakes. Is she allowed to do that? The judges are permitting it, so he’ll no doubt get some extra points for creativity. Germany is going to have a tough time with this one.

Jun’s giant is slowly thundering his way across the arena toward Schnee’s man of snow, angrily swinging his gargantuan sword. OH! That was close. Schnee’s snowman came dangerously close to losing his head. That snow blade of Jun’s is a lot more lethal than it looks. But it seems Jun made a fatal mistake is choosing to make his snowman large. He’s not as agile as his first one; I guess he was hoping brute force would be enough to win him the gold. It appears not. Schnee’s snowman has a huge advantage, given the fact that his snowman has actual legs. The snowman is running circles around Jun’s giant. It seems to be getting dizzy.

*THUMP*

Jun’s snowman has just fallen to ground in an explosion of snow and ice. Not even a form is visible. It seems Jun was standing a little too close behind him when he fell. Mediwizards and Rescue Wizards are attempting to dig him out of the enormous pile of snow.

Schnee’s man of snow has turned its sights on Neu’s flaming snowman, as if that’s not ironic. I wonder how Neu is keeping the snowman from melting. Those flames are extremely hot. Schnee’s snowman seems to recognize the dilemma as well. The two remain at an impasse for three minutes, leaving them only seven with which to have a winner, or we go into sudden death.

Schnee’s snowman charges forward and attempts to plunge its arm into the wall of flame to get at Neu’s snowman’s head. Not the best idea. Schnee’s snowman’s arm melted up to the shoulder. Neu gives her competitor a wicked grin. Her snowman starts toward Schnee’s. The snow on the ground is melting, but Neu’s snowman is still showing no signs of being affected by the fire around him. He raises his stick arm and takes a swing at the man of snow’s legs, singeing them off with little effort. Schnee’s snowman looks up to Neu’s, waiting for the death strike. It seems this match is just about over, witches and wizards – what? Schnee has just cast the Draconifors Spell on his snowman. It is now flying around the arena.

Officials are rushing into the stadium. Schnee’s snowdragon aims at the ground, mouth first toward Neu’s snowman. The snowdragon has just swallowed Neu’s snowman. There’s no way they can allow this from Germany, can they? Oh, that’s more like it. Schnee’s dragon is melting. The residual effects of the Bluebell Flames Charm have reduced it to a puddle.

The judges have just disqualified Schnee. Jun will walk away with the silver – if they can find him in that snow pile – and that means Leire Neu will take the gold home to Andorra.  Germany won’t be thrilled tonight, but congratulations to Andorra! And that’s it for this year’s Snowman Battle. Swish and flick!

Reporting Live from the 2014 Sochi Wizolympics

~Arabella Featherman, Daily Prophet reporter