As my fair readers know, I’m not one to shy from a good bout of sports watching unless it’s hockey on TV or NASCAR. Thusly, I’ve been following the winter Olympics. I can’t help but peek at results through out the day only to go home at night to watch said results in full technicolor wonder. The first Olympics I remember are the 1992 Olympics (can the Albertville and Barcelona Olympics really have been 14 years ago?). As much as I would like to say I remember the ‘84 or ‘88 Olympics I don’t — I was 3 and 7 at those times. I love the Olympics and, as usual, have a few thoughts to throw into the mix (presented in bullet point format).
- I’m a big fan of figure skating, and it is with a heavy heart that I have been trying to accept Michelle Kwan’s withdrawal from the Olympics. I still remember her amazing long program performance in the ‘98 Olympics. To date, I have not seen a comparable performance. While Tara Lipinski’s performance of the first triple loop - triple loop combination jump was indeed notable, Kwan’s comparable technical ability in addition to her far superior artistry should have won her the gold. Unfortunately, she skated first among competitors. Now eight years later, she has had to withdraw from the Olympics still shy the gold that should have already been hers. Kwan in 2010 I say. Yes, I know she will be 29 — and I don’t care.
- My two new favorite athletes might just be Bode Miller and Jonathan Weir. I very much appreciate their candor when talking to the media. None of the “I’m just happy to be here” crap. Not from these guys.
- Short distance, short track skaters have massive legs! They’re small then, bah-bam, huge, muscly legs. It’s amazing.
- The commentating team for figure skating may very well cause me to claw my eardrums out. If I listen too often to Dick Button droning on in his typically negative “this performance just didn’t do anything for me” fashion, I may leap into the television and do something entirely out of character. Same goes for Sandra Bezic. Please just let Scott Hamilton commentate by himself.
5 responses so far ↓
1 web // Feb 16, 2006 at 1:43 pm
You lost points with me on this one.
- Hockey rules.
- 1 post about figure skating is 1 post too much. (sorry)
- Bode Miller and Jonathan Weir suck equally.
2 Nicole // Feb 16, 2006 at 2:42 pm
* I don’t dispute that hockey rules. I love it in person; however, I can’t watch in on TV. And women’s hockey on TV? Not going to happen for me.
* Re: figure skating — You’re just upset because you don’t know what a triple loop is.
*Come on! No love for athletes that aren’t afraid to tell it like it is? Yes, they’re role models, blah blah, but it refreshing to not hear all the “I’m just happy I made it” crap.
*And for good measure, NBC’s coverage of the Olympics blows.
3 web // Feb 17, 2006 at 3:51 pm
Re: Figure Skating
I can’t have respect for a sport where your success/failure hangs in the balance of a panel of Judges.
Sorta like half pipe snowboarding — its not that it isn’t bad-ass what people can do — it just who you know not what you can do.
“No love for athletes that aren’t afraid to tell it like it is?”
Yeah you don’t think Jonathan Weir is hamming it up for the camera’s just a bit?
4 tom // Mar 15, 2006 at 1:57 pm
If you think Michelle Kwan’s long program at Nagano was amazing, you must not have seen her performance at the U.S. Nationals. *That* was the incomparable performance. She did very well at the Olympics, but it was nothing like what happened at Philadelphia. Probably to some degree at least, that was a factor working against her… people had already seen a performance that was spectacular and it was almost impossible to repeat that. But Tara also had more than the jumps going for her; her speed combined with effortlessness were unmatched that night.
5 Nicole // Mar 15, 2006 at 3:15 pm
I don’t remember Kwan’s performance at the Nationals. Seems odd that I would have missed it… I also don’t mean to take away from Tara’s performance, her jumps (and athleticism) were indeed great. However, I still don’t believe that her performance was better than Kwan’s. Figure skating is also about artistry and emotion, none of which I saw in Tara’s.
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