XXXth Olympiad - London

[Holdfast]

A very sad case of thick-headedness on the part of the selectors, it seems to me.

I think, TBH, it's a personality clash - they see Cook as an arrogant loose cannon, and so act like a clique in a huff, instead of gritting their teeth and having the world's number 1 take part.

Hierarchies hate being challenged by outsiders.

The really daft thing is that they'll now probably congratulate themselves on the genius of their decision, since it resulted in a bronze. No question will ever be allowed to arise in their collective mind that it could have been gold had they picked Cook.

Was there any reason both couldn't be selected; did they hit a limit on total number of entrants? If they were able to pick both, it feels like an even sillier decision.

 

[Lonemagpie]

I think they can only have one competitor in each weight class

 

[Holdfast]

Ah, I see. That, at least, does make sense.

Thanks for all the info, BTW. One great thing about the Olympics is that I always end up finding out lots of things about sports I don't regularly watch.

 

[PopBoy]

True True. I also never knew the basketball team of the US is the only group of athletes in Olympics that have a totally separate doping body to test them.

 

[Angel4576]

I think they can only have one competitor in each weight class

I wish they'd be more consistent with this. One competitor per nation for a lot of the individual disciplines, yet Jamaica can run a 1-2-3 in the 200m final. WTF?

Don't get me wrong, I don't begrudge Jamaica their success, it's almost inconceivable to think of a 'best of the best' 100m/200m race without both Bolt and Blake being there, but where's the consistency? With Kenny, Hoy and Hinds in the Men's Cycling Track Sprint we may well have had a 1-2-3 of our own.

True True. I also never knew the basketball team of the US is the only group of athletes in Olympics that have a totally separate doping body to test them.

Is that true?

Strange if it is. Wasn't one of the reasons that Baseball was dropped after Beijing that the IOC wanted them to adhere to the Olympic dope testing criteria?

 

[tomalak301]

Is it just me or do a lot of the Track athletes come across as arrogant assholes? They just interviewed the US 4X100M team and it was going well until Carmalita Jeter took all the class out of it. It's not just her either. I've seen it with quite a few of the Track guys/gals, Usain Bolt included. It just comes across as classless.

 

[Gryffindorian]

Certain athletes have a tendency to be cocky and think very highly of themselves. After all, they see themselves as world-renowned, and there are very few who can do what they do. They're rather lacking in the modesty department.

 

[MacLeod]

I think they can only have one competitor in each weight class

Yep I think this is the reason as well. Though no doubt questions will still be asked about Cook's exclusion.

Though perhaps the way to have settled the dispute was to have Cook and Lutalo Muhammed have a match and the winner goes to the Olympics.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Is it just me or do a lot of the Track athletes come across as arrogant assholes? They just interviewed the US 4X100M team and it was going well until Carmalita Jeter took all the class out of it. It's not just her either. I've seen it with quite a few of the Track guys/gals, Usain Bolt included. It just comes across as classless.

Their ability to win the 4x100 relay had been questioned by some in the media because of past failures with missed exchanges and dropping the baton, so all she was saying (in an animated fashion) was that there were some who doubted us but we did it. How is that classless? She was happy and proud about their win (after a 16-year losing streak) and breaking the world record which was set in 1985.

Certain athletes have a tendency to be cocky and think very highly of themselves. After all, they see themselves as world-renowned, and there are very few who can do what they do. They're rather lacking in the modesty department.

They are world-renowned and there are very few who can do what they do. It's not a lack of modesty to simply acknowledge the truth.

 

[Deckerd]

France is doing really well in the later stages again. Just got a mountain biking gold.

 

[Deckerd]

Certain athletes have a tendency to be cocky and think very highly of themselves. After all, they see themselves as world-renowned, and there are very few who can do what they do. They're rather lacking in the modesty department.

They've earned it. They are the true superstars of the world; not television celebrities, musicians or actors, with a few exceptions. They are world famous, it's not their imagination or pride. In order to do what they do as professionals they have to be single minded, ultra-competitive and have total self-belief.

 

[SmoothieX]

I was looking at the medal count this morning. I never realized they counted individual medals going out to players on a team sport as a separate medal. For instance, the US women won the soccer gold yesterday. They are each considered to have won one medal.

I'm all for giving every player their own medal, but I think winning a team sport should be listed as one medal in the count.

 

[eastman23]

Umm... what medal count are you looking at? I've never seen anyone count each individual medal handed out to everyone on a team that won.

 

[Shaytan]

France is doing really well in the later stages again. Just got a mountain biking gold.

Yeps. There is the certitude to win 2 more medals (gold or silver) with men in handball and women in basket ball.

I was also very happy to see Lavillenie winning gold in pole vault yesterday. It's only the 11th gold medal in the history of France in track and field. 3 of those gold medals were in pole vault.

There will be less medals compared to Beijing but more gold.

 

[clint g]

I was looking at the medal count this morning. I never realized they counted individual medals going out to players on a team sport as a separate medal. For instance, the US women won the soccer gold yesterday. They are each considered to have won one medal.

I'm all for giving every player their own medal, but I think winning a team sport should be listed as one medal in the count.

You're probably looking at a total medal count last ( they're out there) most lists don't divide it that way though. If they did the US would have alot more gold.

 

[Deckerd]

France is doing really well in the later stages again. Just got a mountain biking gold.

Yeps. There is the certitude to win 2 more medals (gold or silver) with men in handball and women in basket ball.

I was also very happy to see Lavillenie winning gold in pole vault yesterday. It's only the 11th gold medal in the history of France in track and field. 3 of those gold medals were in pole vault.

There will be less medals compared to Beijing but more gold.

Christophe Lemaitre is the only white sprinter in the world to run under 10 seconds. It's just a shame for him that he's at his peak at the same time as a certain Mr Bolt.

 

[SmoothieX]

Umm... what medal count are you looking at? I've never seen anyone count each individual medal handed out to everyone on a team that won.

Nevermind, false alarm. I was on nbcolympics.com.

They have two lists, one for medal by event, and another listing the same of everyone who received a medal.

So for example on one list, they say we have one medal in soccer, but on the other it lists the name of everyone on the team as having won one medal.

 

[Shaytan]

Christophe Lemaitre is the only white sprinter in the world to run under 10 seconds. It's just a shame for him that he's at his peak at the same time as a certain Mr Bolt.

No, the problem is not only Bolt. I never believed in his chances. He's good at the European level but he wouldn't stand a chance against the Caribbeans and the Americans, with or without Bolt.

 

[Deckerd]

He was in the 200m final. That means that right now he's one of the top 8 sprinters in the world. Which means he had a chance. Everyone in that race did.

 

[SmoothieX]

I'm getting fired up for the gold medal game in women's hoops later - I wonder if NBC will actually show it, or if basketball will continue to be relegated to some channel in the 900s or streamed online only.