2024 Olympics - General commentary

rsvman said:
Katie Ledecky, ridiculous dominance. Four straight golds in the 800 free.

Prior to the race they said that of the twenty fastest times ever recorded, 19 of them were Ledecky's. Astounding.
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And... if the 1500 free had been an Olympic event in all 4 of those games Katie would almost certainly have two more gold medals.
 
acdevil said:
For some reason, I really enjoy the mixed relays (swimming and track). I wish track would give them the option of picking who goes where (I think the 4x400 had to be MFMF).
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I agree. The strategy in it is very interesting, and apparent leads often aren't what they seem depending on the order chosen. Plus this year the swimming race was incredibly close which made it even better.

The swimming is more interesting than the running because of the different strokes involved. So there is an extra degree of difficulty. Plus I generally tend to prefer Olympic swimming to track. For many reasons, including Rowdy Gaines.

I was trying to think through whether a mixed distance relay would work, i.e. 100, 200, 400, 800 (could do it for both swimming and track). I assume you would put the men in the longer distances? Or perhaps sprints and hurdles in track?
 
Darn it all! Novak Djokojerk just beat Carlos Alcaraz in two tiebreakers 7-6, 7-6. Great match, but it didn’t go the way I wanted. Oh well, I don’t put a whole lot of stock in tennis at the Olympics. They don’t even play best of 5 sets like they do at the majors.

Hopefully, Alcaraz will get revenge at the upcoming US Open.
 
Steven43 said:
Darn it all! Novak Djokojerk just beat Carlos Alcaraz in two tiebreakers 7-6, 7-6. Great match, but it didn’t go the way I wanted. Oh well, I don’t put a whole lot of stock in tennis at the Olympics, anyway. They don’t even play best of 5 sets like they do at the majors.

Hopefully, Alcaraz will get revenge at the upcoming US Open.
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That was some great tennis. For some reason I've developed a soft spot for Djokovic, was happy to see him win.

Separately, for anyone wondering why the US doesn't dominate 3x3, and why we field players most of us haven't heard of:

"While America typically owns basketball, FIBA and the IOC have focused on a more competitive playing field. The qualification system is points-based by player and team, rewarding those who play in more tournaments, which mostly overlap with the WNBA and NBA schedules. Players must go out of their way to compete in 3x3. Van Lith, for example, has played in 25 different 3x3 events to get on the Olympic radar, a lot of them during her college season downtime, when many of her peers are resting."
 
It appears that Scottie Scheffler has run away with Olympic gold in golf, four shots ahead of the field. Silver to Fleetwood, bronze to Matsuyama.

Scottie was -9 today; Xander, defending champ and 3rd-round leader, I believe, was +2. Ouch, gave up 11 strokes to Scottie.

BTW. this was a very strong field, and the Olympic champion should be recognized as equivalent to a major championship. Olympic champions are Justin Rose in Rio, Xander in Tokyo, and now Scottie in Paris.

I love America but I am rooting for Celine and Leona in the Olympics.
 
Steven43 said:
Darn it all! Novak Djokojerk just beat Carlos Alcaraz in two tiebreakers 7-6, 7-6. Great match, but it didn’t go the way I wanted. Oh well, I don’t put a whole lot of stock in tennis at the Olympics. They don’t even play best of 5 sets like they do at the majors.

Hopefully, Alcaraz will get revenge at the upcoming US Open.
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I agree. I have always rooted for “ABD” (anyone but…). Even more so after his vaxx shenanigans, when I believe he faked his covid test results hoping to slide into Australia. But I digress…
I think he was more motivated for this, the only thing he has not won. If it had been 5 sets, Alcaraz would have had a better shot.
 
sagegrouse said:
It appears that Scottie Scheffler has run away with Olympic gold in golf, four shots ahead of the field. Silver to Fleetwood, bronze to Matsuyama.

Scottie was -9 today; Xander, defending champ and 3rd-round leader, I believe, was +2. Ouch, gave up 11 strokes to Scottie.
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Actually, Scottie won by a single stroke over Fleetwood -- I was looking at final round scores.
 
acdevil said:
Huge upset in women’s road race cycling! US takes the gold with a rider that wasn’t even supposed to be in the event. One of her teammates dropped out to focus on triathlon and she got in.
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I read that first sentence and immediately thought of an American tourist on a rented bicycle who wandered, Forrest Gump-like, onto the Olympic course and won the event. After that, reading the second sentence was a let down.
 
I think Bobby said he could see the board during the race and knew he was on WR pace. I know those swimmers are experienced at this, but that is amazing. I cannot imagine how he is able to see the board while staying on pace. When I swim, it is hard for me to even catch sight of the large timer by the side of the pool.
 
CrazyNotCrazie said:
The swimming is more interesting than the running because of the different strokes involved. So there is an extra degree of difficulty. Plus I generally tend to prefer Olympic swimming to track. For many reasons, including Rowdy Gaines.
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Track & Field or 'Athletics' has running, throwing and jumping as well as hurdles and steeple chase. It has much more variety than swimming. And you can see the athletes fully as they perform, not confined to a pool of water. As for personalities, there have been plenty of colorful track athletes over the years: Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis, Dwight Stones, Michael Johnson, Usain Bolt, Mondo Duplantis, etc. To each his own.
 
DoubleBlue said:
Track & Field or 'Athletics' has running, throwing and jumping as well as hurdles and steeple chase. It has much more variety than swimming. And you can see the athletes fully as they perform, not confined to a single pool of water. As for personalities, there have been plenty of colorful track athletes over the years: Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis, Dwight Stones, Michael Johnson, Usain Bolt, Mondo Duplantis, etc. To each his own.
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My first sentence that you quoted was referring to the mixed relay - the mixed swimming is all of the different swimming events, while the mixed running is everyone doing the same event. So there is strategy involved in choosing which event you have each gender do in swimming. And if one team has a woman swim the first leg while another has a man, it will generally appear that the team with the man is way ahead, which might not necessarily be the case. There is less strategy in the running.

Regarding the second part (which I think is primarily what you were referring to), I agree: to each his own. I personally prefer the swimming, but I can totally understand and respect why someone would feel otherwise. Different strokes for different folks (pardon my pun). That is what makes the Olympics great. I cannot tell you how many hours I spent as a kid in the early 80s destroying keyboards playing Olympic Decathlon on our Apple 2+ computer - the diversity of events was great!

As much as NBC is trying to play them up, I don't find the track athletes this year as compelling as in the past. Usain Bolt or Carl Lewis was appointment television. They can talk about Lyles and Richardson as much as they want, but I don't feel the same way about them. But again, to each his own. Swimming is also weaker without Phelps, but Ledecky is pretty compelling (from an American perspective).
 
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