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Wanna talk Olympics?

#21
gln1955 said:
Soccer is different for the men and women. The men's tournament if for 23 and under players (except they allow three over-age players per team), so these are not superteams made up of top pros, like the regular national teams that compete in World Cup. The women's is wide open, so the national teams of the very best players are competing.

As for team handball, they should drop it and put in full contact dodgeball.

I tend to seek out the obscure sports like shooting, archery, fencing, weight lifting and equestrian. These folks work their butts off and they deserve some recognition.
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So you like obscure sports, just not team handball?
 
#22
I like the not normal sports. Fencing, Judo, and I discovered Women’s 7 Rugby. US took the bronze from Australia. First women’s 7 medal I think and first US rugby medal in 100 years. I still haven’t figured out the rules but it is fun to watch. I don’t like normal football, too much time wasted. This is 2 seven minute halves and the clock rarely stops, as do the players.
 
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#26
KohanMike said:
I signed up for Peacock app because it has a choice to watch multiple live events in split screen, hosted by the same guy who does the NFL Red Zone, but being in Los Angeles, I have limited time to see that. Might just cancel and record on my DVR from NBC and USA Network so I can zip through the tedious parts and commercials.

I'm not a soccer/football fan at all, so I skip that, will watch parts of all the other sports. I've let go of armature, it doesn't apply anymore so I don't fight it. In my younger days, I was a volleyball player (along with most other sports), so I watch that more diligently. But I'm looking forward to the Paralympics in August, love the triumph over adversity. In the mid 1970s, I was the co-producer of the Los Angeles Easter Seals Telethon for three years. Met and interacted with a number of disabled people, especially children and was very impressed and inspired by their stories, which serves me well now being partially disabled.

I recorded the opening ceremonies and glad for that because it got tedious, so I zipped through many parts. There's been a question by members of my uke group that Lady Gaga and Celine Dion were not singing live, but from everything I read, they did sing live. I liked the idea of the athletes riding boats on the Seine, but they could have travelled faster.

Will carry on the next couple of weeks.
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I'm from Atlanta and during the 'lympics had a chance to see quite a few events. But the following weeks I was at Stone Mountain pretty much every day watching the Para games. I was on the national junior and men's track cycling team during the mid 80s-early 90s so I know what a typical athlete has to do to get in the work. But holy crappe I am unable to heap enough praise on paralympic athletes. Every one I've known just oozes with grit most of us will never know.
 
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#27
KohanMike said:
I signed up for Peacock app because it has a choice to watch multiple live events in split screen, hosted by the same guy who does the NFL Red Zone, but being in Los Angeles, I have limited time to see that. Might just cancel and record on my DVR from NBC and USA Network so I can zip through the tedious parts and commercials.
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Several months ago I went for a year with Peacock at just over two bucks a month, mainly for car and ski racing, but also with the Olympics and America's Cup in mind. The have world feed coverage of every event if NBC or USA aren't doing their own coverage, most in real time. So the other day I was able to watch 4 hours of women's surfing from Tahiti in real time, and when I had time last night I caught the on demand replays of the men's heats from Monday. The would be Round 3, and it's completely epic, the venue and conditions are unbelievable. Each heat is 1/2 hour and the only commercials are in between the heats. But you have to dig to find this stuff, it takes a little work.

As far as pros in the Olympics, the surfing venue is completely life threatening, one of the most dangerous breaks in the world. No place for Eddie The Eagle types there. In some way the stars are the rescue crews though, I hope they're well paid too. ;)
 
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#28
TOOL460002 said:
I'm not super up on the NBA these days, but I don't know if Steph/LeBron/Davis/Embiid/Durant really need to lace up for South Sudan do they?
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South Sudan lost to this exact US team by one point a couple weeks ago in a tuneup game, after missing a couple of potential game winners at the end. International rules are a different thing, and there's talent everywhere these days. And crazy stuff happens, like the US women's rugby team going 95 yards in the last few seconds to beat Australia, the top team in the world. Not a sport I normally follow at all (which is mostly true of basketball as well), but still very cool in my book.
 
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#29
Killing Floor said:
I'm from Atlanta and during the 'lympics had a chance to see quite a few events. But the following weeks I was at Stone Mountain pretty much every day watching the Para games. I was on the national junior and men's track cycling team during the mid 80s-early 90s so I know what a typical athlete has to do to get in the work. But holy crappe I am unable to heap enough praise on paralympic athletes. Every one I've known just oozes with grit most of us will never know.
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I worked in a ski shop that did lots of tech work for the national team para skiers when they were training on Mt. Hood, it was super inspiring. My boss moved back to Salt Lake City and made coaching them his life's work, actually.
 
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#33
bass12 said:
Breakdancing as an Olympic sport? Don’t get me wrong, I find the athleticism of modern breaking breathtaking, but the prospect of it being an Olympic sport just seems bizarre and out of place. Same with skateboarding.
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I agree. Just because something requires a lot of athleticism doesn't necessarily mean it should be in the Olympics. I think the IOC is trying too hard to make the Olympics seem hip and current.
 
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#34
Maybe I missed it in previous Olympics, but has cross-country equestrian been there all along? I've seen equestrian events in typical enclosed areas many times, but this is the first time I recall seeing cross-country. It was great! The competitors rode through a beautifully designed course.
 
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#36
Killing Floor said:
....

Adult team handball is the dumbest activity of all and I am fully certain you could assemble a bunch of middle school boys from your hometown and they’d win gold. It’s ridiculous and I feel sad for the competitors.

...
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LOL, I'm OK with team handball but feel this way about 3 on 3 basketball.
 
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#37
FilterFunk said:
Maybe I missed it in previous Olympics, but has cross-country equestrian been there all along? I've seen equestrian events in typical enclosed areas many times, but this is the first time I recall seeing cross-country. It was great! The competitors rode through a beautifully designed course.
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Right, me too. It's sort off like a steeplechase race but longer with more jumps and the horses don't all start at the same time.
 
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#39
FilterFunk said:
I agree. Just because something requires a lot of athleticism doesn't necessarily mean it should be in the Olympics. I think the IOC is trying too hard to make the Olympics seem hip and current.
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Agree. May as well admit singing. It takes enormous physical effort and discipline and training to song opera. It’s not a sport.
There are too many “activities”.

And some sports (basketball, rugby for example and the next Olympics that will include lacrosse and football) get diluted and simplified for Olympics. I don’t love that.
 
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