Olympic Sports Sports-ALL

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Seems to be time, from Simone Biles stumbling and still kicking everyone's butts to Team USA Hoops proving they most certainly are not the Dream Team, it's time for Olympics!

Note, the Olympics are a sh*tty institution, and I would welcome a thread about how sh*tty they are in P&C, But let's keep it sports unless the sh*ttiness directly affects sports (i.e. Sha'Carri Richardson).

It's also being held in a place that actively does not want the Olympics and where hundreds of millions of dollars were spent on infrastructure that can't even have spectators.

The Olympics chief also started things off on the right foot by confusing "Chinese" with "Japanese."

Were it anyone else, I'd give them the benefit of the doubt, but f**k the IOC.

Nevertheless! Roll on the athletes and competition!

USA to not even make the medal stand in basketball this time around?

I can recognize what a disaster the Olympics are all around, but damn if I don’t love the actual athletic competition.

A bunch of it is almost certainly the fact that I was a college level athlete in one of the sports that’s only relevant every 4 years, but I get into all the other stuff too, and I can’t really explain it. Like, the women’s gold medal hockey game from the last Winter Olympics was more memorable to me than watching the football team I grew up rooting for win a super bowl, and I’ve literally never watched any hockey outside of the Olympics in my life.

Again, I genuinely believe the IOC should have one regular person compete in every event, so we get a better idea of how insanely good these people are.

It could be former NCAA-level athletes, but frankly, for maximum enjoyment, I just want to watch a completely regular person who perhaps runs 5K a week, try to keep up in the 1500m.

Prederick wrote:

Again, I genuinely believe the IOC should have one regular person compete in every event, so we get a better idea of how insanely good these people are.

It could be former NCAA-level athletes, but frankly, for maximum enjoyment, I just want to watch a completely regular person who perhaps runs 5K a week, try to keep up in the 1500m.

It would give the lifeguards in the pool something to do.

UpToIsomorphism wrote:
Prederick wrote:

Again, I genuinely believe the IOC should have one regular person compete in every event, so we get a better idea of how insanely good these people are.

It could be former NCAA-level athletes, but frankly, for maximum enjoyment, I just want to watch a completely regular person who perhaps runs 5K a week, try to keep up in the 1500m.

It would give the lifeguards in the pool something to do.

I'd like to see them keep up for 400m with the athletes running the marathon.

Who would have thought that the Japanese government generally ignoring COVID-19 in order to get the Olympics pushed through would catastrophically backfire on the entire country?

Like, i'm sure it's partially (mostly) what's being reported, but I cannot stop laughing at how almost every single update about the Olympics is like "perhaps we shouldn't be doing this?"

Wait, hang on, why are they even bothering with the opening ceremonies?

Rat Boy wrote:

Wait, hang on, why are they even bothering with the opening ceremonies?

IMAGE(https://media.tenor.com/images/337fc151c7cc7870c51be465bdc06ac2/tenor.gif)

The world needs the greased up flag guy from whatever pacific island that guys from.

Tonga, I believe.

You don't think they're going to have all the athletes walk in and stand in the middle of the stadium together?

Just that guy.

When you've lost both Toyota AND the emperor...

“We will not be airing any commercials related to the Games in Japan.”

Emphasis mine. Sounds like they're only going to stop having ads in Japan, not all of the Olympics.

For myself, I'm excited to see some competition since it involves a lot less CTE-related longevity-shortening activities. (Read: It truly is getting harder to watch football.)

I can understand the Japanese public being unhappy with the games going on, but they're putting in a metric ton of precautions. I feel like sports have done a fairly admirable job of containing outbreaks in general and I want these athletes to be able to compete before their window of opportunity disappears.

It's risky, but at this point the athletes, teams and reporters are all there, so this boulder is a-rolling down the hill. Hopefully it helps the world come together a bit more.

Rat Boy wrote:

You don't think they're going to have all the athletes walk in and stand in the middle of the stadium together?

Probably just walking in and out again? Will be a really weird opening ceremony in an empty stadium.

I thought athletes weren't going to be involved in the ceremonies, but I don't know where/how I got that impression.

And of note, women's soccer starts before the opening ceremony. Tomorrow at 430am eastern time, US women begin group play.

And softball's already started at *checks notes* Fukushima.

I'm sure it's fine, but the juxtaposition is.... pretty wonderful.

UptoIsomorphism has it right. This is all about money. But I don't think this about making new money as much as it is about not having the costs of preparing for, and hosting, the Games going to waste (Japan)... and - of course - not having to refund the Games' corporate sponsors (the IOC).

The Games couldn't be postponed a second time; the International sporting calendar is too tight for that. For example, the World Athletics Championships are taking place next July in Eugene, Oregon. It would have to be cancelled outright (by the IOC rather than the host country, I believe).

And it doesn't promise to be as much fun for the athletes. Many will not attend the Opening Ceremony (certainly many of the British team will not be attending). Some will catch Covid, and therefore be unable to complete (I read that a British shooter, Amber Hill, had this happen to her and will no longer defend her Gold Medal).

And the party likely won't be happening in the Olympic Village either. I read that athletes will not be allowed to enter the Village until 5 days before their event, and will have to vacate it 2 days afterwards. No two week 'knees up' for skeet shooters and softball players.

And a serious Covid outbreak could still decimate events. I fear that we will see many empty lanes in swimming and athletic events. And I can't imagine how the combat sports will fare...

detroit20 wrote:

UptoIsomorphism has it right.

Off topic, but this is going in my sig.

Prederick wrote:

I'm sure it's fine, but the juxtaposition is.... pretty wonderful.

There's also bears.

Rat Boy wrote:
Prederick wrote:

I'm sure it's fine, but the juxtaposition is.... pretty wonderful.

There's also bears.

I'm glad more athletes are coming out and living their true lives, and f*ck those cardboard beds...

What do you mean, "not those bears"?

From what I've read in the past, cardboard beds will be less of an issue that the lack of condoms.

Once the first week (and first week's events), the Olympic Village has traditionally turned into the kind of place that people who visit 'lifestyle' resorts would consider debauched.

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