Dogecoin Digital Currency Pooled To Send Bobsleigh Team To Olympics

The meme-based Dogecoin, which against odds has risen in popularity despite being worth less than Bitcoin, has been used to provide the Jamaican bobsleigh team with the funds it needs to go to the 2014 Winter Olympics. The digital funds were raised via a charity setup called Dogesled.

The goal was to raise $30,000 USD equivalent in Dogecoin, which happened in a single day via generous donations by those who have been mining the cryptocurrency. Those funds have since been cashed out and converted into Bitcoin, which is more stable and has less potential to see the value of the currency suddenly drop out. Following the cash out, another $1,000 or so in donations have trickled in, making for a total of over 26 million DOGE being donated.

The fundraising was prompted by an announcement that while the Jamaican bobsleigh team had qualified for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, they needed to raise $40,000 USD to cover the costs of travel and equipment. An Indiegogo campaign was started to help fund this — whether the converted Dogecoins will be donated to the team via the campaign or some other way hasn't been detailed.

Though the initial goal was hit, the Dogecoin Foundation still has the website up and is taking in more digital monies, so if you're keen on seeing bobsledding and have a cache of Dogecoin laying around the hard drive, you can join in via the #dogsled hashtag campaign.

SOURCE: BuzzFeed