Posted on 02/21/2013 7:39:37 PM PST by ExxonPatrolUs
The International Olympic Committee issued a surprise decision on Tuesday to exclude wrestling from the 2020 Olympic Games. For a number of years, the committee has drawn fire for its lack of transparency. With its secret vote to remove one of the original Olympic sports — one that dates back 21 / 2 millennia to the first games in ancient Greece — it has added another decision that deserves scrutiny. (snip)
I am not without bias when it comes to the sport. I was a wrestler for 10 years — in high school, at Princeton University and as an officer in the Navy, where I competed for a spot in the 1956 Olympics (unsuccessfully, as it turned out).
Wrestling’s Olympic legacy is unmatched. It is one of the oldest contact sports and was an important part of the first Olympic Games, which historians date to 776 BC. The first modern Olympics, in 1896, included wrestling as a marquee event. The sport has missed only one Olympics since then, in 1900. For those counting, that is 26 straight Games over a span of 112 years.
Wrestling is a universal sport. To compete, all that is needed is an opponent and a flat surface. Anyone can participate, regardless of geography, weather, race, gender, culture or economic background. It doesn’t require a golf course, a swimming pool or a horse. More than 170 nations from all over the globe have competed. In the 1996 Olympics alone, 75 countries were represented on the mat. Athletes from a great number of nations have won medals — countries as diverse as Iran, South Korea, Sweden, Cuba and Hungary. Indeed, more countries have been represented on the winners’ podium for wrestling than for nearly any other sport.
(snip)
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
The problem with wrestling is that it does not have the viewership that gymnastics, swimming or that stupid ribbon dancing.
If people don’t watch it on TV, the IOC can and should eliminate wrestling.
Good man, great letter...and John Kerry is no Donald Rumsfeld
Time to eliminate the olympics, period. It serves no useful purpose and is a colossal waste of money. It is nothing but a morass of PC anyway.
I cannot not disagree with that.
The Olympics’ only purpose is to sell feminine hygiene products to suburban soccer moms who want to see human interest stories and 14 year old pre-pubescent female gymnasts.
I would actually like to see the Olympics return the Pankration. They would have to vigorously enforce the few rules they do have tho.
Let’s cut wrestling, we can always keep curling
” that stupid ribbon dancing.”
I prefer to call it ribbon twiddling.
And even before he became a murderer, I thought it was a travesty that the Olympics allowed the “Blade Runner” to compete. Might as well have robots competing in it.
Since when did this guy become an expert on anything?
His qualls? Check his history, you have a computer Was instructor pilot, Sec Def at 43, corporate big cheese., etc., etc...
I am reading thru Rumsfeld’s book on my Kindle. He’s lived a pretty interesting life and that was before the Bush 43 years. I’m sure that wrestling being booted probably has alot to do with the chick-a-fication of the sports world as the Olympics media coverage is aimed at the crowd that does not pay attention to sports until the olympics come around and they dont want to see a bunch of burly hairy men wrestling.
I am reading thru Rumsfeld’s book on my Kindle. He’s lived a pretty interesting life and that was before the Bush 43 years. I’m sure that wrestling being booted probably has alot to do with the chick-a-fication of the sports world as the Olympics media coverage is aimed at the crowd that does not pay attention to sports until the olympics come around and they dont want to see a bunch of burly hairy men wrestling.
I’d watch it they would get rid of those ridiculous looking wresting “uniforms” and just do it like the ancient Greek men- in the buff. To make it more challenging drizzle them with olive oil.
“Since when did this guy become an expert on anything?”
It’s pretty obvious why your “About” page is empty.
Probably a big-bucks country that doesn’t win many medals in wrestling has “convinced” the committee to drop wrestling.
It does not help that that NBC and its affiliates covering the Olympics put the matches on at off-prime hours, nor do they carry the matches either on demand or online. The ‘poor viewership’ is more due to network disinterest than to public apathy.
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