Olympics......The pinnacle of sport!!!!....or snorefest

[El Presidente]

Now I have mates who get very excited about the Olympics.    Only 4 more years!...only 4 more months!.....only 4 more weeks!....you get he drift 

Can I just  say that I am not one of them.

Now I appreciate how hard an amateur athelete trains to be the best. Good luck to them and I wish them all the best ....and by god I have tried to buy in to the "excitement" ......but I just can't. With the rare exception ...it is like watching paint dry 95% of the time.  I have zero interest in pro athletes at the olympics. 

Perhaps if we could just watch the sport without the annoying gaggle of TV sports reporters/past winner celebrities that feel the need to fill every bloody second with their analysis. 

"Jurgen Strom looks incredibly comfortable right now. He looks like he is completely  focused and ready for the 400 IM"

" He looks strong doesn't he Lucy Lou. He will need to maintain that focus once as he hops off the the team bus. What was your bus protocol Lucy back in Beijing"" 

Am I alone 

[BTWheezy]

You are not alone, Rob.  Not sure what Australian (or other countries) coverage is like, but I find the American coverage of the Games to be tedious at best.  The “human interest” stories, all the bull$h*t filler commentary — and let’s not forget the commercials! —is just too much for my taste.

While not perfect, I find Canadian coverage of the Games to be far more entertaining.  🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
 

-  Wheezy

[MrBirdman]

Nah, keeping up with the events in the newspaper is good enough for me 95% of the time. 

Part of the olympics’ problem is that the competition is often comically lopsided. I tried getting into a water polo game at a bar the other day, but that’s hard when the US is up 17-4 by halftime. 

[Islandboy]

I’m with you. There was a reason the ancient Greek athletes performed in the nude.

[99call]

52 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Now I appreciate how hard an amateur athelete trains to be the best. Good luck to them and I wish them all the best ....and by god I have tried to buy in to the "excitement" ......but I just can't. With the rare exception ...it is like watching paint dry 95% of the time.  I have zero interest in pro atheletes at the olympics.

For me it hinges on this.  Getting into athletics is such a niche unusual thing in a way,  that it really cast a shadow of 'are these the best of the best? or just the best of those who didn't get picked up by mainstream sport'  I just cant buy into it on that basis.   

[KCCubano]

Not sure why but really not into it much this year. That being said I am planning to watch some tonight. What time is cigar rolling prelims? 

[BTWheezy]

1 hour ago, Islandboy said:

I’m with you. There was a reason the ancient Greek athletes performed in the nude.

That would certainly give a spin on certain events…110M high hurdles, the long jump…😳

[Puros Y Vino]

Never cared for it outside of Hockey. It's High School sports on steroids. Or not.  Or maybe?  

[Ken Gargett]

some of it is the pinnacle. some of it is absurd and turgid and boring. 

when i was younger i was absolutely riveted. devastated when it finished. these days, not so much. i set the alarm for a few key events and will take a break, watch whatever (today, i think there are three swimming finals). if i was retired with time, probably watch a lot more. 

but the big issue for me is how many of these athletes do we really believe are not on the juice? 

[Islandboy]

58 minutes ago, BTWheezy said:

That would certainly give a spin on certain events…110M high hurdles, the long jump…😳

Yeah, hurdles would go something like...ouch!....ouch!....ouch!!!...ouch!!!...🤣

[Ken Gargett]

when you see something like that 400 free women's final, you do have to love the olympics. pretty dramatic.

the american, one of the truly greatest swimmers of all time, never beaten in an individual olympics event up against the young aussie who is the only person to beat her in an individual race outside the olympics. to go hammer and tongs, neck and neck for 400 metres for the upset win to the young aussie (yeah, of course national bias makes a difference), that was something indeed!

but the commentary never lets you down.

after both girls get out of the pool, there is the briefest of hugs (apparently they do not get on). our imbecilic mouthpiece (literally named basil) says, and i quote, "both girls ecstatic".

seriously? you really think that the american is ecstatic? she has just been beaten for the first time in an olympic event (because olympians are not competitive, are they?) by a young girl who she detests. she is probably realising that her career is ending. i'm sure she was over the moon. 

 

[El Presidente]

2 hours ago, Ken Gargett said:

when you see something like that 400 free women's final, you do have to love the olympics. pretty dramatic.

the american, one of the truly greatest swimmers of all time, never beaten in an individual olympics event up against the young aussie who is the only person to beat her in an individual race outside the olympics. to go hammer and tongs, neck and neck for 400 metres for the upset win to the young aussie (yeah, of course national bias makes a difference), that was something indeed!

 

It was a close contest indeed. I remember a freestyle race where I was challenged over 25 laps.  There was less than a fingernail in the finish but I managed to pip him before celebating with a well earned cold beer. 

James was 12 at the time and devastated. I remember those aboveground backyard pool days like they were yesterday. 

[Ken Gargett]

1 minute ago, El Presidente said:

It was a close contest indeed. I remember a freestyle race where I was challenged over 25 laps.  There was less than a fingernail in the finish but I managed to pip him before celebating with a well earned cold beer. 

James was 12 at the time and devastated. I remember thos aboveground backyard pool days like they were yesterday. 

my tactic was to start the above ground pool races (or in-ground to be fair) with the most massive belly flop i could manage. the idea being to bounce the other guy out of the pool or at least half drown him to get a head start. not that it ever helped. 

i did win a backstroke race at school, which mortified me as i hated backstroke. and this meant i had to swim in the next race. made sure i never won another (although to be fair, it was more the other swimmers who made sure of that). 

[Fuzz]

38 minutes ago, Ken Gargett said:

my tactic was to start the above ground pool races (or in-ground to be fair) with the most massive belly flop i could manage. the idea being to bounce the other guy out of the pool or at least half drown him to get a head start. not that it ever helped. 

i did win a backstroke race at school, which mortified me as i hated backstroke. and this meant i had to swim in the next race. made sure i never won another (although to be fair, it was more the other swimmers who made sure of that). 

You probably won because the other swimmers in your heat didn't want to do the backstroke either in the next race, so they let you win.

[Ken Gargett]

33 minutes ago, Fuzz said:

You probably won because the other swimmers in your heat didn't want to do the backstroke either in the next race, so they let you win.

nice! you really want to poke the bear? 

[El Presidente]

2 minutes ago, Ken Gargett said:

my tactic was to start the above ground pool races (or in-ground to be fair) with the most massive belly flop i could manage.

 

Imagine if you did that today! 

 

 

[Ken Gargett]

2 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

 

Imagine if you did that today! 

 

 

in truth, not sure i was much smaller back then. 

[Fuzz]

31 minutes ago, Ken Gargett said:

nice! you really want to poke the bear? 

Yep!

[Meklown]

I like it. I turn on the tv any time of the day and there's some sport to watch. Sure, it's not edge-of-your-seat stuff but it's still sport. 

The only ones I dislike are those that I know that the best athletes are not taking part. Yesterday's basketball match between Fr and US was a legit snorefest. I have no interest in football either even though I'm regularly a football fan. 

[BrightonCorgi]

In the US, the anti-patriot tone of several American athletes along with the beyond sterile atmosphere of the Games has made the Olympics not worth watching.  If one does decide watch the Games, it's all commercials at that.  Winter Olympics tend to be more entertaining for a TV audience.

[ha_banos]

Our coverage is BBC so no adverts. But that means more inane drivel. I'll watch select sports. Mostly highlights. 

Those pesky Ruskies are still there although they are hidden rather badly under the banner of ROC.

Looking forward to the controversy in the heavyweight women's weightlifting.

 

[Chibearsv]

I used to love it up until my 20s since the Olympic sports were either completely unique to me, or exactly the same sports that we did in high school; although sometimes were forced on us like gymnastics or wrestling 😖.  But it made watching athletes that are great at those sports intriguing.  Watching a guy jump off the ground and completely clear a bar that was over his head for the first time was amazing.  Now after seeing all of it so many times, the fact that someone ran 1/100 of second faster for a world record isn't that fascinating to me anymore.  I did catch some archery and air gun shooting on youtube which was different (but boring too).  

Watching 1,100 lbs. farm animals race with numbers on their sides is far more interesting 😁

[Fuzz]

I wish Roy & HG were doing their coverage of the Olympics again.

 

 

[BrightonCorgi]

I'd like to catch the cycling road race at least.

[ha_banos]

First ever gold for Philippines ☺️ well done

 

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