The unifying message of the Olympic spirit only goes so far, as the Winter Games in Salt Lake City have proven this past week.

Both Russia and South Korea threatened to pull out of the final events of the Salt Lake City games and the closing ceremonies this Saturday following controversial decisions by the International Olympic Committee last week.

The IOC and the International Skating Union sent virtually all of South Korea into an uproar after stripping Kim Dong-sung of the 1,500 meter short track speed skating gold two days ago. The ISU ruled that Kim illegally cut in front of American Apolo Anton Ohno on the final lap. The union eventually awarded Ohno the gold.

The decision sparked more than 16,000 emails to the United States Olympic Committee web site from furious South Koreans, causing the web site’s server to temporarily crash. Some of the more threatening of the messages against Ohno were passed on to the FBI.

"We can take various measures, including not participating during the closing ceremony," said Park Sung-in, the head of South Korea’s Olympic team.

Russian leader weighs in

Russia is considering taking the same measures if International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge doesn’t address the "unfair treatment" of Russian athletes at the Salt Lake games.

"Juan Antonio Samaranch has gone and Jacques Rogge has taken his place. Regrettably, for the new leadership, the first time is bound to be a flop," said Russian President Vladimir Putin, himself an avid athlete.

At issue is an International Skating Union (ISU) decision to award duplicate gold medals in the pairs figure skating competition to Russian and Canadian pairs and the disqualification of a member of Russia’s heavily-favored women’s cross-country relay team.

The ISU and IOC presented Canadian pair Jamie Sale and David Pelletier with a duplicate gold after the Canadian Olympic Committee protested their second-place finish following an almost flawless performance.

A few days later, Larissa Lazutina a member of the dominant Russian women’s 20-kilometer cross-country relay skiing team was disqualified after doctors found high levels of hemoglobin in her blood during pre-race testing. Boosting hemoglobin levels enhances an athlete’s performance ability. Levels can be increased either though altitude training or illegally, through a combination of drugs.

An IOC representative said that Lazutina’s disqualification was a "health issue," not a doping issue. A urine test on Friday will decide if the skiier took performance-enhancing drugs.

Russian Olympic Committee President Leonid Tyagachev remained resolute.

"We are clean," said Tyagachev. "We have nothing to hide."

Paranoia, promises of a "war" in the hockey rink

The decisions have thrown both Russian athletes and their countrymen into a paranoid frenzy.

"It's upsetting," said Irina Slutskaya who was awarded the silver medal in the women’s figure skating event Thursday night, behind American Sarah Hughes.

"I worked really hard on my presentation," Slutskaya said. "Interesting thing about these Olympic Games. I'm obviously not the only Russian to have suffered here."

Tyagachev pointed to the high number of Russian athletes to be tested for doping as further proof of a conspiracy.

"I think we are seeing a witch hunt," he said.

As a result, the men’s semifinal hockey game between Russia and United States Friday evening has taken on new meaning. A source close to the Russian Olympic team told Reuters that a Russian victory would assuage all suspicions.

"It is more than just a game for them. It will be like war, not the Cold War, but rather real war on ice," the source said. "It means everything for them now."