# The 2016 olympics



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Not much interest im guessing since this thread is starting midway through it lol

anyone watching?

Canada isn't too impressive so far which doesn't come as a surprise...I was wondering why the media wasn't talking up our athletes in the weeks before the games, I guess there weren't high expectations.
But Im ok with it... its the choice we make when we decide not to put a lot of tax money into athletic programs.

One observation that was kind of interesting....my wife and daughter had the gymnastics on a couple days ago, and I was struck by how the different countries approached physical fitness...Canada and Britains girls looked like your typical gymnasts from years gone by. Chinas were noticeably smaller and more compact, possibly younger. While the US girls frankly looked like bodybuilders. just seemed interesting to see such a range of body types in the same competition, whereas in other sports, they all look more or less the same ie swimming.

Speaking of which, we couldn't figure out why most of the swimmers arrived in basically sporty parkas...would expect Rio, and the indoor pool to be fairly warm, along with the water they'll be swimming in.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Oh, and can anyone explain the IOC decision to punish Russias Paralympic teams for the juicing of its Olympic athletes?
Disgusting. Shows how corrupt the IOC is. They want the big name Russian athletes in the competition in spite of the state sponsored doping program, for obvious selfish reasons...but they have to appear to take it seriously, so they punish russias other "lesser" athletes who had little to do with it.


----------



## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

Diablo said:


> Oh, and can anyone explain the IOC decision to punish Russias Paralympic teams for the juicing of its Olympic athletes?


They're probably going to reverse the decision after receiving an under the table payment from Russia.


----------



## BSTheTech (Sep 30, 2015)

Looking at the American gymnasts. You can't tell me they aren't doping. 15 year old girls with bodies like Schwarzeneger.


----------



## torndownunit (May 14, 2006)

I have been watching some of the judo and some rugby. I just watched bits and pieces of other events. Judo is probably the only event I've watched that has many spectators. Tons of empty seats at most events.


----------



## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

BSTheTech said:


> Looking at the American gymnasts. You can't tell me they aren't doping. 15 year old girls with bodies like Schwarzeneger.


Having known gymnasts at that level, it has more to do with their training regiment. They train 4-8 hours a day, 7 days a week, from a very young age. The need to compete dominates their bodies' ability to develop normally. Although doping is definitely a possibility.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

cboutilier said:


> Having known gymnasts at that level, it has more to do with their training regiment. They train 4-8 hours a day, 7 days a week, from a very young age. The need to compete dominates their bodies' ability to develop normally. Although doping is definitely a possibility.


I think the question becomes "are certain countries really training that much harder than others in order to explain the different appearance?". I doubt it.


----------



## Chito (Feb 17, 2006)

I've been watching bits of it during the night. Last night I got the chance to see history with Penny Oleksiak. That was one amazing swim and really an amazing story in itself. To think that she's won more medals in her first Olympics than Phelps says something. She was not even expected to be in the podium but she's pretty much led the women's swimming team into believing they can be as good as the rest of the competitors. She will be fun to watch in the next Olympics. I don't think she'll have a problem continuing to improve as both her brother and sister are athletes.


----------



## leftysg (Mar 29, 2008)

Thanks Penny...you were amazing. Proud of all our athletes. Bring on the track and field events!


----------



## johnnyshaka (Nov 2, 2014)

Penny has been very exciting to watch...still can't believe she made up that much of a gap to win gold...wow!

And Phelps is ridiculous, period.


----------



## jbealsmusic (Feb 12, 2014)

Diablo said:


> Not much interest im guessing since this thread is starting midway through it lol
> 
> anyone watching?
> 
> ...


My wife and I have kept up with it a bit. Canada is actually doing pretty well by our usual standards. We're getting medals in events we rarely place well. The basketball and soccer teams are undefeated so far (at least they were last time I checked).



BSTheTech said:


> Looking at the American gymnasts. You can't tell me they aren't doping. 15 year old girls with bodies like Schwarzeneger.


Old school gymnastics coaches generally want their athletes as lean and light as possible. More and more modern coaches are learning to appreciate the additional power gained with regular strength training. The old school fear was that strength training would make the gymnasts too bulky and heavy to move well. That is not the case with most gymnasts for several reasons. Their muscular development could just be the result of stricter dieting and the addition of strength training.



torndownunit said:


> I have been watching some of the judo and some rugby. I just watched bits and pieces of other events. Judo is probably the only event I've watched that has many spectators. Tons of empty seats at most events.


No surprise Judo is popular in Rio. Brazilian Ju-Jitsu is essentially their national sport. It is closely related to Judo. I'm kind of surprised BJJ isn't an olympic sport by now.



cboutilier said:


> Having known gymnasts at that level, it has more to do with their training regiment. They train 4-8 hours a day, 7 days a week, from a very young age. The need to compete dominates their bodies' ability to develop normally. Although doping is definitely a possibility.


In high level competition of any kind, doping is always a possibility. Even at amateur levels, people in all sports are taking PEDs. If they were, it wouldn't surprise or disappoint me. It is just par for the course.



Diablo said:


> I think the question becomes "are certain countries really training that much harder than others in order to explain the different appearance?". I doubt it.


I think the real question is, "How does each country's training style effect the physique of their athletes?"

Do they do 100% skill based training? Do they incorporate a strict diet? What kind of diet? Do they incorporate separate strength training on top of the skills training? Etc. Even without taking PEDs into account, the answers to those questions could very easily explain the different physiques.



Chito said:


> I've been watching bits of it during the night. Last night I got the chance to see history with Penny Oleksiak. That was one amazing swim and really an amazing story in itself. To think that she's won more medals in her first Olympics than Phelps says something. She was not even expected to be in the podium but she's pretty much led the women's swimming team into believing they can be as good as the rest of the competitors. She will be fun to watch in the next Olympics. I don't think she'll have a problem continuing to improve as both her brother and sister are athletes.


She has been crushing it. Very cool to watch. And SO young. She may have a very bright competitive future ahead of her!


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Ya, Phelps is as dominant as Tiger Woods used to be....competitors know they are fighting for 2nd place at best.


----------



## johnnyshaka (Nov 2, 2014)

Diablo said:


> Ya, Phelps is as dominant as Tiger Woods used to be....competitors know they are fighting for 2nd place at best.


Ledecky, seemingly Phelps' female equivalent, has been very impressive to watch as well...her and Oleksiak should be fun to watch the next few Olympics.


----------



## BSTheTech (Sep 30, 2015)

Heard a story about Phelps. When he was starting out he trained 7 days a week, 365 a year. His coach figured out that by training weekends and holidays it would give him an extra year of training by the time the next Olympics arrived (his first).


----------



## keto (May 23, 2006)

DId you see the CBC clown swimming announcer call Lochte the winner and Phelps fading away when it was the other way around? Mistakes happen but that was ridiculous. Is he the same guy who called another (Chinese?) swimmer 'like a pig' when he thought the mic was off?


----------



## Xelebes (Mar 9, 2015)

If anyone was wondering, the aquatics are all being done outside. The swimmers and divers were swimming and diving in a stiff rain with a stiff wind and the daytime high was 19C. The swimmers would also be coming out to swim at midnight so the air was a bit colder than that daytime high. I thought that was cool. . .

Cursed polysemy.


----------



## keto (May 23, 2006)

Ha


keto said:


> DId you see the CBC clown swimming announcer call Lochte the winner and Phelps fading away when it was the other way around? Mistakes happen but that was ridiculous. Is he the same guy who called another (Chinese?) swimmer 'like a pig' when he thought the mic was off?



ha it was Elliot Friedman, not the colour guy, who blew the call.


----------



## johnnyshaka (Nov 2, 2014)

johnnyshaka said:


> Ledecky, seemingly Phelps' female equivalent, has been very impressive to watch as well...her and Oleksiak should be fun to watch the next few Olympics.


Ledecky's margin of victory in the 800m freestyle was ridiculous...and she shattered her own world record, too. Wow.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

Win or lose, what makes me proudest of Canada's athletes is that they conduct themselves with dignity. Something I think the Americans can actually learn from. Last time it was that smart alec Makayla Moroney....this year so far it's the classless arrogant sore loser Hope Solo.


----------



## jimmythegeek (Apr 17, 2012)

Diablo said:


> Win or lose, what makes me proudest of Canada's athletes is that they conduct themselves with dignity. Something I think the Americans can actually learn from. Last time it was that smart alec Makayla Moroney....this year so far it's the classless arrogant sore loser Hope Solo.


I assumed that Abby Womback's absence would help the USWNT's attitude. Guess not. While on the topic of soccer: Holy shit! Sophie Schmidt! She might be my favourite player to watch in the entire world. Totally selfless. She defends as hard as she attacks. She has spent the last 5 years or so just being quietly fabulous while Sinclair and others got all the attention (fair enough. Christine Sinclair is probably the greatest Canadian ever to play the game). I'm so glad she got to be the heroine last night. I have about a million things to say re:cycling but I'm gonna wait until somebody else brings it up...well...Wiggins. He isn't an asshole. He just sounds like one in post-race interviews. I swear!


----------



## torndownunit (May 14, 2006)

Diablo said:


> Win or lose, what makes me proudest of Canada's athletes is that they conduct themselves with dignity. Something I think the Americans can actually learn from. Last time it was that smart alec Makayla Moroney....this year so far it's the classless arrogant sore loser Hope Solo.


Wasn't as bad as this Egyptian booed after refusing judo handshake


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

torndownunit said:


> Wasn't as bad as this Egyptian booed after refusing judo handshake


Ya, ugly politics plays a part in all this too....apparently Serbian athletes were told not to share the podium if an athlete from Kosovo also won.

But that's what you get when nationalism plays such a big part in an event.

Id like to see the US use some more discretion in who they select to represent their country...based on character as well as performance.


----------



## Guest (Aug 17, 2016)

Japanese pole vaulter’s Olympic dream crushed by his own penis


----------



## Guest (Aug 17, 2016)




----------



## BSTheTech (Sep 30, 2015)

I was watching the first round of golf and heard the English announcer on TSN refer to a Chinese player as a "Chinaman". Seems offside. %h(*&


----------



## bluebayou (May 25, 2015)

Watched the heavy weight, +97 kilo weight, and saw a 530 pound clean and jerk. Hard to imagine lifting that over your head!!!


----------



## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Derek Drouin - Gold in the men's high jump


----------



## keto (May 23, 2006)

Drouin - OK who among you knew he was a 5 time NCAA champ and the reigning world champion at high jump? Pisses me off that the national sports media doesn't give our track and field people any coverage. Although shame on me, I didn't recall he won bronze at the prior Olympics. 

The male pole vaulter was also a recent world champ I think, which I hadn't known.


----------



## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

Shawn Barber, the pole vaulter, was also a _NCAA_ champ as well. It's no wonder the Americans are such a machine in sports when they have arguably the best training environment in the world in the NCAA. Too bad Canadian University sport is so undervalued by the our sports system as a viable development pathway to the national level.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

BSTheTech said:


> I was watching the first round of golf and heard the English announcer on TSN refer to a Chinese player as a "Chinaman". Seems offside. %h(*&


It's definitely an out of date term, like "oriental" although I'm not really sure what's offensive about it.China + Man. What's the issue? Not directed at you of course.
This generation is too sensitive.
"Coloured person" is offensive. ""Person of colour" is acceptable. Fuckk me.
It all seems like a trap to make someone out to be a racist when it was never their intention or in their spirit.

If we get to be this sensitive, I don't like being called white. It's inaccurate and has historical connotations to slave owners. My skin has pigments, esp this time of year. You know what I look like? A French fry. When's the last time you saw a McDonald's commercial "...come try our delicious white French fries!"? And I don't like how we all get lumped in with each other....esp the Irish. What do you mean " but you all look the same!"?

Lol j/k! Sort of.


----------



## leftysg (Mar 29, 2008)

I was heartened by the acts of sportsmanship shown by the American and New Zealand runners in the women's 5 K. If you didn't catch that as I didn't, it's worth googling because their actions truly are the heart of the Olympics. They both were placed in the final afterwards. Makes your heart feel good. Congrats Derek Drouin and go Damian Warner!


----------



## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Apparently ticket sales have been horrendous at these games. I have a feeling it will be a financial disaster when its all said and done


----------



## leftysg (Mar 29, 2008)

For some reason the smiling end of the Degrasse Bolt 200m semi reminded me of this. Lot of potential! Call the series Boltman!

[video]



[h/video]


----------



## Guest (Aug 18, 2016)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Apparently ticket sales have been horrendous at these games. I have a feeling it will be a financial disaster when its all said and done


Irish IOC exec Patrick Hickey arrested by Rio police for scalping Olympic tickets


----------



## ZeroGravity (Mar 25, 2016)

I am not sure who he'd be scalping them to since the attendance has been awful anyways. Guess he didn't make all that much off of it.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Apparently ticket sales have been horrendous at these games. I have a feeling it will be a financial disaster when its all said and done


do you mean more than usual? lol

Ya, most of the crowds look pretty small.
TBH, im a little surprised by all the hype about it. I would rather have gone to Rio than Beijing.


----------



## jimmythegeek (Apr 17, 2012)

Attendance has been bad but surely that was expected. Many locals can't afford tickets and Brazil's many social and environmental issues were highlighted for years prior to the event. As a result, I don't think folks were all that keen to travel. That being said even "successful Olympics" are financial disasters...

On a happier note: Women's MTB starts in 30 minutes. The field is incredibly deep. I can think of 6 or 7 that could run away with it and 2 of them are Canadians. Should be fabulous!


----------



## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

I think I just saw two men beat out the Canadian girl for a medal in the womens 800.


----------



## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

Well I had to look it up 

Controversial Hermaphrodite to Run in Women's 800 Meter Olympic Final Saturday

The other one I was wondering about was Margaret Wambui, this article covers it all pretty well. Interesting times we live in 

Why the Women’s 800 Will Be the Most Controversial Race at the Olympics


----------



## leftysg (Mar 29, 2008)

Maybe three


----------



## leftysg (Mar 29, 2008)

Just thinkin...she set a Canadian record in the women's 800... but no medal in a controversial environment. She was a classy interview. Maybe she deserves to carry our flag out.


----------



## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Diablo said:


> It's definitely an out of date term, like "oriental" although I'm not really sure what's offensive about it.China + Man. What's the issue? Not directed at you of course.
> This generation is too sensitive.
> "Coloured person" is offensive. ""Person of colour" is acceptable. Fuckk me.
> It all seems like a trap to make someone out to be a racist when it was never their intention or in their spirit.
> ...


Now is that Orange or Green when you're talking about the Irish? Or are you lumping the Scots who were shipped to Ireland and then shipped to Canada?


----------



## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

davetcan said:


> Well I had to look it up
> 
> Controversial Hermaphrodite to Run in Women's 800 Meter Olympic Final Saturday
> 
> ...


Intersex? No one told me about intersex. Let's just go back to the basics.


----------



## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

Electraglide said:


> Intersex? No one told me about intersex. Let's just go back to the basics.


Times, they are a changin'


----------



## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

GuitarsCanada said:


> Times, they are a changin'


No matter what it's still basic division. But it does get confusing at the orgy.


----------



## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Unbelievable


----------



## davetcan (Feb 27, 2006)

Guitar101 said:


> Unbelievable
> 
> View attachment 22860
> View attachment 22861


My thoughts exactly. So much for the level playing field. may as well let all the rest of the athletes dope up.


----------



## GuitarsCanada (Dec 30, 2005)

The funny thing is she decides to wear a completely different running outfit than all the others just to highlight it even more


----------



## keto (May 23, 2006)

Well, they came and went without a significant security or terror issue - I know there was some small stuff, I even heard of 1 death, but you know what I'm saying. Colour me pleasantly surprised.


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

keto said:


> Well, they came and went without a significant security or terror issue - I know there was some small stuff, I even heard of 1 death, but you know what I'm saying. Colour me pleasantly surprised.


i wasn't. our media likes to hype everything up...sour grapes I suppose for not getting the Olympics here.
In a way, I think Brasil doesn't get the credit it deserves, for proving that you can hold the event without (further) bankrupting its citizens so it can indulge the aspirations of its politicians. I hope other nations follow suit and use budgetary restraint as well.

as to the hermaphrodites above, I was thinking about this the other day...with the rise of the trans issue in the public and legal eye...at some point its going to have to be addressed in sport. and IMO, it will likely signal the death of womens sports.
Maybe those eastern bloc countries in the 60's and 70's were far ahead of their time and we didn't know it


----------



## Guest (Aug 23, 2016)

three levels?
mens, women,s and other?


----------



## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

laristotle said:


> three levels?
> mens, women,s and other?


 I don't think that will go over well.


----------



## Accept2 (Jan 1, 2006)

The only part of the Olympics I watched was Doreamon in the closing ceremony. Special Olympics will feature the real athletes, thats why they call it special................


----------

