Games of the XXX Olympiad Official Thread

[wdwgirl03]

Are you freaking kidding me??

NBC just took a commercial break in the middle of a swimming final. IN THE MIDDLE OF A RACE!!!!

Good lord, they just get worse and worse.

Well...it was the 800m freestyle...it seems like they usually do that for the longer races. It actually doesn't bother me.

 

[LisaR]

Well...it was the 800m freestyle...it seems like they usually do that for the longer races. It actually doesn't bother me.

Definitely didn't bother me either. We had the TV paused for awhile and we were able to fast forward until the last 100 meters. I like swimming but not that much.

Great night for the USA in swimming tonight. It looks like we have a terrific team building up for Rio.

 

[Bay Hill]

Sat telly guide...
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/story/2012-08-03/what-to-watch-london-olympics-saturday/56765142/1

Michael Hiestand of USA Today has run a blog almost every night. Last night's blog about the women's 800m final, and NBC will also cut away during the 5000m and 10000m races at Olympic Stadium...
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/story/2012-08-03/what-to-watch-london-olympics-saturday/56765142/1

Roy Jones, who got robbed in Seoul, talks about boxing corruption...
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/london/boxing/story/2012-08-03/Jones-blames-corrupt-boxing-officials/56761926/1

As Phelps said last night, the torch is passed to the next generation. Look for NBC to hype Ms. Franklin going into Rio in 2016. Last night's swimming coverage...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444320704577567314133967908.html?mod=WSJ_OL2012_MIDDLELEADNewsCollection

And a story of one of the powerhouses of swimming...Australia...The Sun May Be Setting on Australia Swim Empire ...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444320704577567480160535526.html?mod=WSJ_OL2012_WhatsNews_4_2_Right_Summaries

 

[declansdad]

They were sandbagging, trying to lose in order to get the match they wanted in the quarters. Personally, I think it's much ado about nothing. It happens in football. Teams that have qualified for the playoffs put the third stringers in. In rowing, sometimes teams that end up in a super fast heat will deliberately tank it and go to the second chance race. In soccer, teams that only need a tie will play for the tie. In swimming, they back off the final portion of the race once they know they've qualified.

There is a huge difference between playing your bench players and what these teams were doing. If you are going to sandbag, you should at least make some effort to make it appear you are playing. What they did was so blatant it was pathetic.

 

[SaraJayne]

Definitely didn't bother me either. We had the TV paused for awhile and we were able to fast forward until the last 100 meters. I like swimming but not that much.

Great night for the USA in swimming tonight. It looks like we have a terrific team building up for Rio.

Since we don't have a DVR, we're "forced" to watch the whole race.

 

[crashbb]

There is a huge difference between playing your bench players and what these teams were doing. If you are going to sandbag, you should at least make some effort to make it appear you are playing. What they did was so blatant it was pathetic.

They really very subtle about it, were they?

Of course, I'd argue that the blatant fall by the British cyclist wasn't very subtle either (not withstanding the fact that he now says that it was accidental and that he was just joking).

Frankly, I think that the badminton players were punished because of the entertainment factor not because of actual rule breaking. As the IOC spokesmen said, when asked about the cycling indecent - the cycling incident was different because paying fans “were not deprived of a competition.”

http://www.thestar.com/sports/londo...n-t-investigate-fake-crash-by-british-cyclist

I'm not condoning (or condemning really) either action - I just found the difference (and quote) funny (and telling).

 

[declansdad]

They really very subtle about it, were they?

Of course, I'd argue that the blatant fall by the British cyclist wasn't very subtle either (not withstanding the fact that he now says that it was accidental and that he was just joking).

Frankly, I think that the badminton players were punished because of the entertainment factor not because of actual rule breaking. As the IOC spokesmen said, when asked about the cycling indecent - the cycling incident was different because paying fans “were not deprived of a competition.”

http://www.thestar.com/sports/londo...n-t-investigate-fake-crash-by-british-cyclist

I'm not condoning (or condemning really) either action - I just found the difference (and quote) funny (and telling).

I didn't see the cycling event but it does sound like they could have applied the same ruling. I'm guessing that reason could be that there was no way to restart the badminton matches and they didn't stop even after they were warned.

 

[Princess Dolly]

I cannot believe I just watched Michael Phelps' last race. What an amazing career!

 

[sallybrealey]

WOW WOW WOW!

What a day in Britain, our most successful day in the Olympics ever! 3 Golds in the Athletics, just amazing!

 

[declansdad]

WOW WOW WOW!

What a day in Britain, our most successful day in the Olympics ever! 3 Golds in the Athletics, just amazing!

It was a treat to watch!

 

[LBIJim]

There is a huge difference between playing your bench players and what these [badmiton] teams were doing. If you are going to sandbag, you should at least make some effort to make it appear you are playing. What they did was so blatant it was pathetic.

Yeah, that Chinese team, if they wanted to lose, could have at least played competently, then flubbed a few shots here and there in order to lose.

I'm not sure of all the details. Was there ever a "winner" of the Chinese-South Korean match? Or were they disqualified before the match was finished? Then afterwards ANOTHER two teams (South Korea #2 and Indonesia) decided to tank it?

I get WHY they wanted to lose. China wanted both of their teams to advance to the gold medal match and the unexpected but legitimate loss of the secondary team meant that at least one of them couldn't advance that far.

As it turned out, that secondary Chinese team won the gold medal. Hey, maybe that was their plan all along. Lose intentionally while looking legitimate, knowing the Chinese coach would order the top team to tank it and get disqualified, thereby allowing themselves an easier path to the top.

Jim

 

[LBIJim]

WOW WOW WOW!

What a day in Britain, our most successful day in the Olympics ever! 3 Golds in the Athletics, just amazing!

I was worried for Britain for the first few days. It didn't look like they'd come anywhere near to matching their Bejing medal count, which I thought was amzingly high. But now it looks like passing that total is realizable.

Jim

 

[cornflake]

Nobody has mentioned it (and it's probably a good thing...maybe the sport is colorblind) but there hasn't ever been an African-American AA Olympic champ. The media doesn't seem to be making any kind of a deal about it. I think it's grand!

ETA...HOLY COW! Costas JUST brought that up in the post event wrap up! Was wondering when it would come up.

I heard someone else say that and I didn't understand the deal. Haven't there only been like three before now? How is it so notable that all three were white? Really?

Also, that poor little blonde Russian girl was robbed, imo. So robbed. Her floor routine was far superiour.

 

[JaneBanks]

I heard someone else say that and I didn't understand the deal. Haven't there only been like three before now? How is it so notable that all three were white? Really?

Also, that poor little blonde Russian girl was robbed, imo. So robbed. Her floor routine was far superiour.

She completely messed up her vault, that's what cost her. She lost it right there. Gabby hit on everything, her scores were too high to catch up to.

 

[cornflake]

She completely messed up her vault, that's what cost her. She lost it right there. Gabby hit on everything, her scores were too high to catch up to.

She could have caught her on the floor, I think her score should've been higher (and I think Douglas' scores on a couple of things were generous).

 

[LisaR]

She could have caught her on the floor, I think her score should've been higher (and I think Douglas' scores on a couple of things were generous).

I believe someone said this much earlier to you (or in another Olympics thread). You seem to be watching a very different Olympics than many of us.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Originally Posted by declansdad View Post
There is a huge difference between playing your bench players and what these [badmiton] teams were doing. If you are going to sandbag, you should at least make some effort to make it appear you are playing. What they did was so blatant it was pathetic.

The difference is only in degree, not in kind. Both are not doing your best to win the particular match at hand. It's not like they were taking a bribe to fix matches for the bookies or anything. The object is to get the best medal you can. And if losing so you end up on the other half of the draw from a certain team, is what is called for, then so be it. If loafing a race to save energy in swimming is called for, so be it. I don't have a problem with either. I don't think it good strategy simply because once turned off, it's hard to turn it back on and one never knows whether other teams will hold true to form or not.

 

[HelenaB]

WOW WOW WOW!

What a day in Britain, our most successful day in the Olympics ever! 3 Golds in the Athletics, just amazing!

6 golds in one day!!!! I think it's the best day in British sport ever!

 

[declansdad]

The difference is only in degree, not in kind. Both are not doing your best to win the particular match at hand. It's not like they were taking a bribe to fix matches for the bookies or anything. The object is to get the best medal you can. And if losing so you end up on the other half of the draw from a certain team, is what is called for, then so be it. If loafing a race to save energy in swimming is called for, so be it. I don't have a problem with either. I don't think it good strategy simply because once turned off, it's hard to turn it back on and one never knows whether other teams will hold true to form or not.

Your bench players would be doing there best but perhaps not up to the level of the opponent. These ladies were not playing their best, they were making errors on purpose. Big difference.

 

[crashbb]

Yeah, that Chinese team, if they wanted to lose, could have at least played competently, then flubbed a few shots here and there in order to lose.

I'm not sure of all the details. Was there ever a "winner" of the Chinese-South Korean match? Or were they disqualified before the match was finished? Then afterwards ANOTHER two teams (South Korea #2 and Indonesia) decided to tank it?

I get WHY they wanted to lose. China wanted both of their teams to advance to the gold medal match and the unexpected but legitimate loss of the secondary team meant that at least one of them couldn't advance that far.

As it turned out, that secondary Chinese team won the gold medal. Hey, maybe that was their plan all along. Lose intentionally while looking legitimate, knowing the Chinese coach would order the top team to tank it and get disqualified, thereby allowing themselves an easier path to the top.

Jim

The South Koreans (two teams) won both games. Didn't matter in the end since all four teams were disqualified.