Olympic Games

[Mal]

I see your point, to an extent, but the only reason that boardercross interests anyone in the first place is because of the grassroots explosion in the popularity of snowboarding. It's not like they just invented a sport out of thin air. The elements are taken from the exact thing that thousands of people are doing every day during winter -- bombing down the mountain, trying to go faster than their buddy.

How do you feel about the mogul competition? Once again, that is a new event drawn more from real experiences on the mountain, instead of the vast popularity of the competitive mogul circuit. When I was a kid, I spent a couple winters on a ski team at a local resort. Everyone on the team spent more time on the slopes fooling around in the bumps than practicing slalom.

Fair enough - it's not exactly Calvinball, and the slopes are 50% boarders these days. I would just prefer that after someone overlays structure, rules, and organized competition on an increasingly popular activity, thereby converting it to a sport, that the new sport grew up on the sidelines before being elevated to the Olympics, rather than the other way around. In the "Olympics are a big thing" purist sense, I fee like if a sport can't grow enough to sustain a somewhat significant competitive circuit on its own, then I don't think it's as worthy of inclusion as others that have. Again, though, in the spirit of "the Olympics are just another sporting event and should be inclusive, let it go" I can't get all that worked up about this. And as I alluded to before, maybe it should be a priority of the Olympics to promote fledgling sports in the spirit of All Sport Is Good, Get People Active. I guess I just prefer the other model.

Interesting point on moguls. I'm not a huge fan for some of the same reasons and others (the fact that there are judges involved). Yes, a lot of people would rather spend time in the bumps than working on their gs turns, myself included, but few people want to spend so much time on it that it's become a popular sport in its own right. If you had a moguls team practice for high schoolers, there's a pretty fair chance a lot of the team would spend half their time racing on the flat slopes. That said, I do find it fun to watch in a "how on earth do they go that fast" sort of way. Also, I've never seen a big ramped jump in the middle of a mogul field with a nice flat landing area beneath it, so that cuts against the natural outgrowth of what everyone's doing anyway argument, at least a little bit.

[Mal]

SPOILER ALERT





Update - looks like we're about to finish gold-silver in the women's downhill! Awesome.

[cato]

If you had a moguls team practice for high schoolers, there's a pretty fair chance a lot of the team would spend half their time racing on the flat slopes.

Ha!

That said, I do find it fun to watch in a "how on earth do they go that fast" sort of way. Also, I've never seen a big ramped jump in the middle of a mogul field with a nice flat landing area beneath it, so that cuts against the natural outgrowth of what everyone's doing anyway argument, at least a little bit.

Good point. As an aside, when I was skiing at Kilington some time in the early '90s, a bunch of hot shots wearing US Ski team gear were practicing (or just having fun) on one of the bump runs I was skiing with my buddies. I have never seen anything like it. To see the speed, technical ability and jumps up close, on the same very run that I was on, was astounding. And there were some jumps on the run, not quite like in the competition, but enough so that they could do the serious tricks.

[SoCalDukeFan]

In my opinion there are too many of these segments and not enough sports coverage. No wonder ratings are expected to be down, we tune in to watch sports, I can see videos of polar bears anytime I want.

I heard Al Michaels on the radio trying to defend NBC's awful coverage. He said what is wrong with learning about the world or something like that. If you don't like it, turn the channel.

Arrogant Al, what is wrong with it is you are supposed to be showing the Olympics. I can't turn the channel and get the Olympics. I can learn about the world on many other channels whenever I want but when I want to watch the Olympics I am stuck with NBC.

SoCal

[A-Tex Devil]

NBC's general incompetence aside, they have done the Olympics before, and I think they know EXACTLY what they are doing and what moves the meter to get the most viewers, even if it turns off the hard core sports fans.

Casual American viewers want to see:

1. Figure Skating
2. Controversy (the luge track is deadly!!)
3. Americans do well (Vonn)
3. Human interest stories (Polar bears... well, they are like humans the way they use their cute little paws like hands)
4. Ice hockey (team sport, memories of 1980)
5. Amazing/surprising achievements by Americans (did we get a silver in the Nordic Combined? Whoa! -- actually NBC is not commenting on how really remarkable that is for us Americans. I mean, why the hell ski uphill if you have a ski lift?)
6. Amazing/surprising achievements by people in those other places that are competing against us.

I also believe that if NBC didn't think they'd get better ratings tape delaying, they wouldn't do it. Does it turn me off? Well, yeah. But I also think figure skating is ballet on ice that, after they removed compulsories from the competition, has as much place in the winter olympics as ballet or ballroom dancing does in the summer olympics. Athletes? Yes. Sports? No.

Back to the topic though. The ratings were going to be a debacle regardless. NBC is simply trying to optimize them.

[hurleyfor3]

Back to the topic though. The ratings were going to be a debacle regardless. NBC is simply trying to optimize them.

Apparently NBC will be losing so much money on these olympics that it will not bid on games in the future. (They have 2012, but 2014 is up for grabs.) Normally I'd want ABC to get them back, but everyone who made the games great on abc is either on another network or dead (Jim McKay). And as painfully self-effacing as Bob Costas is, he beats Stuart Scott.

[A-Tex Devil]

Apparently NBC will be losing so much money on these olympics that it will not bid on games in the future. (They have 2012, but 2014 is up for grabs.) Normally I'd want ABC to get them back, but everyone who made the games great on abc is either on another network or dead (Jim McKay). And I'm not sure I want Stuart Scott on my olympic coverage.

Hmmm... I am curious what will happen. If I remember correctly, the summer games are done pretty well. You can catch team handball or modern pentathalon on CNBC or USA or MSNBC. I haven't been paying attention, but are they airing ANYTHING on the sister channels this time around?

The winter olympics may just be a lost cause as a television spectacle in an era with so many options. This is the second one in a row I've had just a passing interest in when I used to be an olympic addict. I think the summer games still has a foothold, though.

[Mal]

As an aside, when I was skiing at Kilington some time in the early '90s, a bunch of hot shots wearing US Ski team gear were practicing (or just having fun) on one of the bump runs I was skiing with my buddies. I have never seen anything like it. To see the speed, technical ability and jumps up close, on the same very run that I was on, was astounding. And there were some jumps on the run, not quite like in the competition, but enough so that they could do the serious tricks.

No doubt! Those guys are amazing. I was skiing about five years ago with my brother, who's the best skier I know (skied Junior Olympics, now telemarks exclusively; a couple years ago at Vail we watched a bunch of 'rado boyz shred some bumps in front of us, then turn around to watch my brother tear them a new one on his telemarks, whereupon one of them skied over to us to say "Dude, you're a god!"). Anyway, at one point Tamara McKinney was on the chair right behind us so we followed her group for a run. Even my little bro said "Wow, that's awesome. It's amazing how much better she is than anyone else out here" after watching her ski.

Also, +1 on A-Tex Devil's first post above. I'd say he's nailed it on all accounts.

[InSpades]

Hmmm... I am curious what will happen. If I remember correctly, the summer games are done pretty well. You can catch team handball or modern pentathalon on CNBC or USA or MSNBC. I haven't been paying attention, but are they airing ANYTHING on the sister channels this time around?

They definitely are using other channels. I think it was MSNBC that had the 1st US hockey game (against the Swiss) live.

[blazindw]

They definitely are using other channels. I think it was MSNBC that had the 1st US hockey game (against the Swiss) live.

USA and CNBC are also doing hockey and curling live.

[dukepsy1963]

I will refrain from voicing some of my feelings about X-game sports being in olympics...but..

Something really bothers me about that red-headed kid (can't remember his name..you know him) owning his own half pipe for practice. I know, I know...but still.......

I guess I'm too "old school"....still...

[blazindw]

I will refrain from voicing some of my feelings about X-game sports being in olympics...but..

Something really bothers me about that red-headed kid (can't remember his name..you know him) owning his own half pipe for practice. I know, I know...but still.......

I guess I'm too "old school"....still...

What's wrong with Shaun White owning his own halfpipe (that can only be accessed by helicopter no less...awesome)? It's just like Shaq and many other basketball players having their own basketball courts or a tennis player having his own tennis court or Tiger having a golf course on his property. In my mind, all of these are the same. Tony Hawk has his own skateboarding halfpipe in his backyard and his own training facility. It's how the best get better.

[Deslok]

Just because you know you want to...

Online curling

[davekay1971]

Last night was fun to watch!

Never thought I would care at all about the half pipe, but White was absolutely amazing. The kid was just so much better than anyone else. Props to him for throwing down an amazing run after he'd locked up the gold.

Kudos also to the American girls dominating the downhill skiing. Nothing bad at all about watching two hot American babes kicking butt.

[allenmurray]

What's wrong with Shaun White owning his own halfpipe (that can only be accessed by helicopter no less...awesome)? It's just like Shaq and many other basketball players having their own basketball courts or a tennis player having his own tennis court or Tiger having a golf course on his property. In my mind, all of these are the same. Tony Hawk has his own skateboarding halfpipe in his backyard and his own training facility. It's how the best get better.

I think it is part of longing for the days when the Olympics were amateur events (and I know the arguments both pro and con). That is what makes it different from your examples of Shaq and Tiger - we know they are professional athletes, we like to pretend that he Olympics are still full of amateur purity - sport for sports sake. There was a time when the Olympics seemed different from other sporting events, and the playing field more level.

I know those days are gone, but some of us old guys still miss them.

[hurleyfor3]

Hate on the X sports all you want, but Shaun White is awesome.

She looks like a dude, though.

[cato]

I think it is part of longing for the days when the Olympics were amateur events (and I know the arguments both pro and con). That is what makes it different from your examples of Shaq and Tiger - we know they are professional athletes, we like to pretend that he Olympics are still full of amateur purity - sport for sports sake. There was a time when the Olympics seemed different from other sporting events, and the playing field more level.

I know those days are gone, but some of us old guys still miss them.

Snowboarders are probably closer in spirit to amateurs than most of the other competitors. Take away the Olympics and the XGames, and every half-pipe in the country would still be packed with kids inventing new tricks.

[cato]

I will refrain from voicing some of my feelings about X-game sports being in olympics...but..

Something really bothers me about that red-headed kid (can't remember his name..you know him) owning his own half pipe for practice. I know, I know...but still.......

I guess I'm too "old school"....still...

What is "old school" about not having the respect to look up the name of one of the best American athletes in this generation?

[blazindw]

I think it is part of longing for the days when the Olympics were amateur events (and I know the arguments both pro and con). That is what makes it different from your examples of Shaq and Tiger - we know they are professional athletes, we like to pretend that he Olympics are still full of amateur purity - sport for sports sake. There was a time when the Olympics seemed different from other sporting events, and the playing field more level.

I know those days are gone, but some of us old guys still miss them.

I mean, it's not in his backyard. He owns a halfpipe. Just like a figure skater's family could put a ice rink in their backyard so they can practice there, or a tennis player has a tennis court. They don't have to be professional for these things to happen, they just have to have the money to get one.

[Duvall]

I think it is part of longing for the days when the Olympics were amateur events (and I know the arguments both pro and con). That is what makes it different from your examples of Shaq and Tiger - we know they are professional athletes, we like to pretend that he Olympics are still full of amateur purity - sport for sports sake. There was a time when the Olympics seemed different from other sporting events, and the playing field more level.

I know those days are gone, but some of us old guys still miss them.

See, I look at the other way. Allowing professionals to compete increases the chances that any advantages will flow the most talented, those with the greatest capacity to excel. In my view that's more pure than allowing these sports to be dominated by who are fortunate enough to have the leisure to pursue them without compensation.