Olympics Thread

dochira wrote:
Yeah, that wasn't the wisest thing to say at that time. I think he also said something about Finnish food, which didn't sit too well with their delegation.

i guess there's a time and a place for speaking your mind! :hehe:

dochira wrote:

kenjilina wrote:well, from the scoring, london were always ahead of paris in each round so i don't know why paris were favourites

right until the voting happens, no one knows which way the IOC members are going to vote. It was either London, or Paris, and people just picked Paris as the favorite.

i think it was paris because they had just lost out to beijing in the last voting.

kenjilina wrote: i also think that jacque chirac's comments about english food didn't help the paris vote either. oops! :crazy:

i also remember that paris and beijing was throwing mud to each other as well. i don't remember who started it, but i think the chinese had said that paris shouldn't get it because that the city was not going to get cleaned up on time. they even had stray dogs all over the place.

the french countered that if those dogs were in beijing, they'd be in the menu in the local restaurants.

- niko

niko2x wrote:

the french countered that if those dogs were in beijing, they'd be in the menu in the local restaurants.

- niko

that's funny! :hehe:
isn't politics great! :nut:

Chian got it beacuse they lost to Sydney a few years back.. and they showed them crying and whatnot.

Even thought I hate the cold, it's time to resurrect this thread, since the Winter Games in Turin start this Friday... :D

I'm a little depressed about the upcoming Olympics.

They just did a show on HBO, interviewing Bill Johnson, the 1984 Downhill gold medalist. First American ever to win in the event.

Partied too hard after the games, blew through his fortune, blew his career... tried a comeback at age 41.

Massive accident during a race, brain damage, coma, and now he's living alone in a trailer park in Oregon. Dead broke. No family. And oh yeah, did I mention the severe brain damage?

Way to set it up, HBO!

Geezer wrote:I'm a little depressed about the upcoming Olympics.

They just did a show on HBO, interviewing Bill Johnson, the 1984 Downhill gold medalist. First American ever to win in the event.

Partied too hard after the games, blew through his fortune, blew his career... tried a comeback at age 41.

Massive accident during a race, brain damage, coma, and now he's living alone in a trailer park in Oregon. Dead broke. No family. And oh yeah, did I mention the severe brain damage?

Way to set it up, HBO!

Yow, that sucks... Hardly an inspirational story from HBO.

I remember him getting banged up pretty badly, but that was all that was said... Guess I better go to Wikipedia and check it out.

Tragic story, though. :(

BMW

They got me twice last night.

Discovery Channel did a piece on Indian Larry, big time motorcycle builder. He was showing off on a bike he'd built while filming for Discovery's show, Biker Build-Off, took the bike up on a banked track, stood up on the seat to ride with his arms outstretched... fell and died.

Bummer because the guy had had a rotten life, and only in the last year or so had he managed to pull himself up out of the gutter.

I switched from that to the story about Johnson.

Lousy night for TV.

Geezer wrote:Discovery Channel did a piece on Indian Larry, big time motorcycle builder. He was showing off on a bike he'd built while filming for Discovery's show, Biker Build-Off, took the bike up on a banked track, stood up on the seat to ride with his arms outstretched... fell and died.

Bummer because the guy had had a rotten life, and only in the last year or so had he managed to pull himself up out of the gutter.

Is Indian Larry a similar character to the Anthony Hopkins character in the movie The World's Fastest Indian?

I want to attend the games in Beijing, Vancouver, and London. I know it's at least 2 years away and maybe I'm being ambitious, but what the hey?

Hmm, you want me say something about the upcoming games in Torino?? I'll be watching the opening ceremonies. :)

Sorry to hear about those 'sad/bad/where are they now' past Olympians stories that you saw on TV Geeezer. :shakehead:

Thanks for dragging this thread out of storage bmwracer. :say_thanx:

I hope you get to attend the Olympic games one day dochira. :victory: I will be watching the opening ceremonies on TV this Friday also. :D

I decided to sign up for a daily e-newsletter from MSNBC Olympic Newsletter. Lets' see how informative they will be! So far these are a few of the things I have learned:

TURIN, Italy - "Italian police have no plans to raid the Olympic village in search of banned substances, but athletes who test positive will be sent to court under Italyfs criminal anti-doping laws.

gPolice will not enter the village,h Mario Pescante, a senior IOC member and Italian government official, said Monday. gThis is not going to happen.h ~ (source Associated Press)

-----------------------------------


"How young is too young at the Winter Olympics? Depends on who you ask, and what surface they happen to be skidding on.

The most acrobatic women's figure skater in the world, Mao Asada of Japan, has been banished from the Winter Games because she didn't turn 15 soon enough. Now, two of the favorites, Irina Slutskaya and Michelle Kwan, are both over 25.

"We're not old, we're professionals," said Slutskaya, when asked this week about the relatively advanced ages of herself and Kwan." ~ by Filip Bondy - MSNBC

-------------------------------


They even have an Olympic Glossary to become familar with individual terms used in the various sports. Here you go I'll get you all in the mood with the Luge:

Bridge
The sled's support legs, which connect the seat to the runners.

G-force
Inertial force, equal to the force of gravity, that holds the bobsled to the wall on turns.

Kreisel
A curve that turns into a circle when the track crosses over or under itself.

Kufen
A runner of the sled.

Labyrinth
A combination of little curves, with little or no straightaway.

Omega
A curve that resembles the Greek letter.

Paddling
Using spiked gloves, the action of pulling oneself forward during the start motion.

Pod
The aerodynamic shell attached to the bottom of a sled.

Steels
The only parts of the sled to touch the ice. Steels are runners attached to the fiberglass kufens.

Thanks for the Olympic tidbits, E-chan...


BTW, is Luge pronounced "looj" or "loogie"? :hehe:

bmwracer wrote:is Luge pronounced "looj" or "loogie"? :hehe:

i guess in jpn, it'd be pronounced "lu-geh" :hehe:

bmwracer wrote:Thanks for the Olympic tidbits, E-chan...


BTW, is Luge pronounced "looj" or "loogie"? :hehe:

niko2x wrote:i guess in jpn, it'd be pronounced "lu-geh" :hehe:

Ooh you are more than welcome B-kun! :)

loogie????? Now that is funny!!!! :hehe: I like the name 'lu-geh'...we should re-name all the Winter Olympic sports to their Japanese pronounciations...they would all sound better. :applaud:

I guess we will have to remember that 'luge' is 'huge!' ;)

dochira wrote:I want to attend the games in Beijing, Vancouver, and London. I know it's at least 2 years away and maybe I'm being ambitious, but what the hey?

Hmm, you want me say something about the upcoming games in Torino?? I'll be watching the opening ceremonies. :)

I'll be watching too, but likely with News no Onna in parallel :hehe:

Baseball, softball out at the 2012 Olympics -- and the call stands
By STEPHEN WILSON, AP Sports Writer

TURIN, Italy (AP) -- They're out! Baseball and softball won't be played at the 2012 London Olympics. And this time, the call stands.

Baseball and women's softball remain on the program for the 2008 Beijing Games, and will be eligible to reapply for readmission to the 2016 games.

London, however, is no longer possible.

"We will work with them at the Olympic Games at Beijing and see if there's a chance to come back in the program" after London, IOC president Jacques Rogge said. "I understand the disappointment of those who pleaded for the reinstatement."

Croatian softball player Jelena Cusak said the decision will cut off crucial funding for youth softball programs around the world.

"These kids won't have the Olympic dream any more," she said. "They won't understand this decision. We can't explain it to them. They don't know the politics."

Down to their final chances at the IOC's annual meeting Thursday, neither sport even made it to a vote. Support of at least 51 percent of members was required before reinstatement could go to a secret ballot.

After that, each sport would have needed majority backing in a second vote.

They never got that far: It was 46-42 against baseball and 47-43 against softball in the preliminary round.

"The dreams of young people from around the world who aspire to compete in the Olympic Games in softball and baseball were dealt a setback today," U.S. Olympic Committee chairman Peter Ueberroth said in a statement. "We are disappointed the IOC chose to not reconsider its decision to eliminate these sports from the 2012 Olympic Games program.

"However, we will continue working with the international federations for these two sports, along with other countries, to see that they are reinstated to the Olympic program at the earliest opportunity."

U.S. IOC member Anita DeFrantz, who had led efforts for softball's reinstatement, said the sport may have been harmed by its perceived association with baseball.

"Baseball and softball are continually presented as a package," she said. "Baseball is my nation's national past time, but softball has no option. For the athletes in softball, if it's not the Olympic Games there is little to look forward to."

The sports were narrowly voted out at the IOC assembly in Singapore in July, becoming the first to be removed from the Olympics since polo in 1936. Softball fell one vote short of making the cut -- 52-52, with one abstention. Baseball was eliminated by a 54-50 vote.

Because no other sports won admission in Singapore, London 2012 is left with 26 sports on the program, two short of the maximum. Baseball and softball can try to get back on the 2016 program at the IOC's session in 2009 in Copenhagen.

Thursday's decision was seen as a political victory for Rogge, who feared that overturning July's vote would damage the IOC's credibility and set a bad precedent.

It was also a setback for U.S. interests in the IOC, which is increasingly dominated by Europeans.

"It's a very difficult decision, not just for our hemisphere but for Asian cultures as well," U.S. member Robert Ctvrtlik said. "There was a solid faction that didn't want the IOC appearing that they would flip on issues."

During a debate before the vote, more than a dozen members -- but only one European -- spoke in favor of bringing the two sports back. Notably, the one who spoke out against was a prominent European -- Crown Prince Willem Alexander of the Netherlands.

"I think anti-Americanism was a factor," International Softball Federation president Don Porter told The Associated Press. "I think that vote was political. It wasn't about a sport. It had do with a political situation to protect the president. It hurts our sport and it hurts our athletes."

International Baseball Federation president Aldo Notari, an Italian, took a philosophical approach.

"Of course, we will try again in 2009," he said. "Life continues. Baseball is out now, but continues to be a very strong sport around the world."

London organizers had planned to build baseball and softball venues in Regent's Park at a cost of around $40 million. London 2012 deputy chairman Keith Mills said Thursday that organizers may still go ahead with softball facilities to leave a "legacy" for the sport.

IOC members from Cuba, Australia, Guatemala, Brazil, Spain, Canada, South Africa and Taiwan were among those speaking in favor of readmitting both sports. Several delegates said the Singapore vote should be overturned because no replacement sports were brought in.

While some members were opposed to reviewing a decision taken just seven months ago, Australian member Kevan Gosper said the IOC should have the courage to do so.

"We should be big enough to review a decision if there is good cause," he said. "I think there is good cause and there should be no embarrassment that we are looking at it so soon."

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/torino2006/news?slug=ap-iocmeeting&prov=ap&type=lgns

Yet rhythmic gymnastics and synchronized swimming still remain in the Olympics.

That's dopey. :shakehead:

bmwracer wrote:Yet rhythmic gymnastics and synchronized swimming still remain in the Olympics.

That's dopey. :shakehead:

That's because European nations do not sport baseball teams. And they hold a clear majority in the IOC.

bmwracer wrote:
Is Indian Larry a similar character to the Anthony Hopkins character in the movie The World's Fastest Indian?

Not in any way shape or form. In the Hopkins movie, the Indian referred to in the title is the old Indian Motorcycle Burt Munro (crazy old guy from New Zealand) used to set the land speed record. He was in his 60s when he set the record. The bike was even older.

Indian Larry was a former drug addict, bank robber, ex-con, motorcycle mechanic from Brooklyn.

Geezer wrote:Not in any way shape or form. In the Hopkins movie, the Indian referred to in the title is the old Indian Motorcycle Burt Munro (crazy old guy from New Zealand) used to set the land speed record. He was in his 60s when he set the record. The bike was even older.

Indian Larry was a former drug addict, bank robber, ex-con, motorcycle mechanic from Brooklyn.

So desu.

Got the Indian thing all bass ackwards. :ashamed: