OT: Pointless Olympic Sports

[Dove]

I'll look forward to tattoo artistry as an upcoming event.

 

[Adios]

I will officially stop watching the day they announce stock car racing as a new event

Inviting UMass athletes to join is even worse.

 

[Dove]

Mrs Dove says water polo is a stoopid event.

 

[StongingtonBob]

Inviting UMass athletes to join is even worse.

Umass is always well represented at the games.

 

[Adios]

Umass is always well represented at the games.

It is pointless to attend UMass. Unless you live in Mass and want to save money on a college education.

 

[babysheep]

They're not just committing their lives to these "pointless" sports, they're committing their lives to being the best in the world at something. They're some of the most driven people on the planet, whether they chose basketball or rowing or curling or table tennis.

 

[freescooter]

I have to say that I always thought beach volleyball was kind of bogus...I mean they don't even allow beers between points. to me they have added a whole bunch of quasi-sports over the last few years...synchonized swimming? Seriously? Pretty much anything where the decisions are based on judges as opposed to most points/first over the finish line type events are questionable, too. I'm inclined to also include sports where only one country really has a chance to win, too...If the USA basketball team ends up blowing everyone else out, one wonders whether that is a meaningful undertaking, for example. I guess other than the ability to tell your grandchildren about the time you guarded Michael Jordan or Larry Bird, I'm not sure what benefit Turkmenistan or somebody gains from playing a team of NBA all stars and getting blown out by 20 or 30...I twas almost like they added sports to fill tv time as opposed to because anyone cared.

 

[ZenConn]

It is pointless to attend UMass. Unless you live in Mass and want to save money on a college education.

If they really wanted to save money, they could have spent 15 minutes ....

 

[Waquoit]

All I can really tell you from watching it is that Al Trautwig is the dumbest human being on the planet. I'd rather watch 8 hours of Duke's best flops narrated by Dick Vitale than 15 minutes of Trautwig.

I agree. I remember reading one of those Olympic Preview's years ago (TV Guide, I think). It listed all the sports and who was doing the announcing with a comment or two. It said:

Al Trautwig - Small Bore Rifle: How apropo

 

[Waquoit]

I have to say that I always thought beach volleyball was kind of bogus.

I disagree. It's a legit sport and competition. The result is based on head-to-head performance without judges doing the scoring. Did you ever try playing it? It's pretty tiring.

 

[Waquoit]

Umass is always well represented at the games.

Only because Jack Welch donated a bunch of free tickets when he ran NBC.

 

[Waquoit]

Any of the shooting should be a out.... another sport out is badminton

Did you ever play real badminton? I mean indoors with regulation lines and a net that doesn't droop? It's a lot of fun, another good sport.

 

[freescooter]

I disagree. It's a legit sport and competition. The result is based on head-to-head performance without judges doing the scoring. Did you ever try playing it? It's pretty tiring.

Yeah, I agree with all those points, but in the Olympics? Maybe on the beach in San Diego or someplace...I always put it in a catagory with men's over 50 slow pitch softball or maybe bocce...has that been added yet?

 

[UConn990411]

My problem is not that most of those sports are in the Olympics (although equestrian, archery, and synchronized swimming and diving are a duck*ing joke).

My problem is that those sports are in the Olympics, but the likes of baseball, softball, rugby (to be added in 2016 I believe), and cricket aren't. That right there indefensible.

Also, while I don't give a rats a** about gymnastics, the rule that only two people from each country are allowed to qualify for the all-around competition is one of the biggest jokes in the history of sports.

 

[Fishy]

I have no problem with the equestrian stuff or archery or shooting - you can at least see where those sports have their origins. Synchronized anything has to go - two people doing the same thing at the same time is indefensible as a competition.

I get why baseball and softball are no longer included. There really is no international baseball competition going on a regular basis, so you almost have to re-form the sport every four year - there is no infrastructure that exists to put players on teams, offer preliminary competitions to qualify teams for the Olympics, etc. You can do that in soccer, but not baseball - logistics are a nightmare, the costs are high and interest around the world is marginal.

Another one...BMX race. Meh.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Badmitton is fine with me, not dissimilar to paddle tennis or squash or raquetball even volleyball really when talking about multiple riffs on the same basic concept. Basically as Americans with Football as our most popular sport we've got no right complaining about random rules or excessively contrived competition. Except for anything synchonized and rhythmic gymnastics and even there since dancing with the stars is one of the highest rated US TV shows we've got little to stand on.

I thought dapriest made some cogent points albeit in a manner harking back to early GOUCONN rants, particularly about all the swimming events. It is a bit ridiculous that they have medals for 4 different strokes each at varying distances and then combos. Just swim as fast as you can and whoever gets there first wins even if they do that weird underwater Man from Atlantis thing the entire length of the pool*.

* PS for anyone who decides to take up swimming all recreational pools are 25 meters or yards long and not 50, a rude awakening after you watch how fast the olympians swim. Their swimming is more than twice as fast as an average athletic person can swim. In contrast Usain Bolt is really fast at under 9.7 seconds, but most athletic people can finish 100 meters in 13 or 14 seconds.

 

[Waquoit]

Yeah, I agree with all those points, but in the Olympics? Maybe on the beach in San Diego or someplace...I always put it in a catagory with men's over 50 slow pitch softball or maybe bocce...has that been added yet?

Not a good comparison. Beach volleyball is a workout, unlike bocce.

But I get your point about questioning if it's an Olympic sport. It was put in a few years bach when it riding a wave of popularity. I have my problems with all of the X-game type sports. They were added solely to appeal to the desired "demographic". I find them incredibly boring. If the godfather of your "sport" is Evel Knievel, is it really a sport? Never mind the fact that most of them are "judged", a sign of a bogus sport IMO. The way they have taken over the Winter Games is a crime.

 

[Fishy]

If the 'average athletic' person needs two minutes to swim 100 meters, they're not an average athletic person. At least not by my definition.

On the really rare occasions back in the day that we had a meet at a 50m pool, times were always much faster than usual - half the turns.

 

[babysheep]

Man some of you guys just sound like grumpy old men who complain any time something changes.

 

[CL82]

Man some of you guys just sound like grumpy old men who complain any time something changes.

Every time you post your post counts changes. Stop it. It's very annoying.

 

[Edward Sargent]

No Mens synch diving. I have discovered the secret though when the men borrow Misty May's bikini bottom and try and stuff everything in they make way too big a splash.

 

[uconNYC]

Badminton, Handball and a few other sports mentioned are actually very popular and competitive in different parts of the world. I do think a few events like Steeplechase and sports like Modern Pentathlon could easily be axed from the Olympic program as could events which are very similar to one another and normally won by the same athlete (e.g. 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle).

 

[rw005]

I'm sure I'll get flamed for this, water polo.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I'm sure I'll get flamed for this, water polo.

As you should. Water Polo probably variances more versions of what considered an athlete than most any sport.

World Class Cardio- Check
Physical Strength- Check
Endurance-Check
Hand Eye Coordination- Check
Creativity- Check
Excitement/Scoring- Check
Easy to follow on the tube- Check
Nice looking chicks- Check
Dudes wearing banana hammocks that are obscured because they're under water all game- check.

 

[superjohn]

I definitely consider myself an average athletic person and I'm sure I couldn't swim 100 meters in 2 minutes. I hate swimming, always have, I know many people that are very good in some sports and not good in others it's all about what you like and have some experience in.