Posted on 02/20/2006 12:56:56 PM PST by Cecily
In the pantheon of bad ideas as they pertain to newspapers, you will almost always find an editor or nine. It's uncanny how they can ceaselessly come up with something obvious or dull -- hey, let's write about ratings! -- but when applied to the Olympics there's also what they perceive to be a Bigger Picture. Namely, what does it mean for us as a country and a people if the Olympics get trounced by prime-time soap operas or reality series about treacly cats?
While we suspect it has a lot to do with the Nordic combined or the biathlon, it could conceivably have something to do with meritless male divas performing badly on ice skates or an adult's inability to tell a child the difference between the luge and the skeleton -- other than one goes head first, the other feet first and that neither should ever be copied off the roof.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Looks like she has quite a rack of lamb. Perhaps that's the secret to her balance...
The guy on the right of your photo looks like Roberto Duran. Well, his nickname was "Fists of Stone" so that would make sense.
45 minutes till 24
I totally agree with you Red Boots. It's a great chance to see all the sports they don't show on television here. The one problem I have with the coverage is that they don't show backgrounds on most of the athletes from other countries. Many have compelling and often inspiring stories. I think in many ways we've become a bit jaded as regards the Olympics. Remember when it was a joy for an American just to get a bronze? Now we expect gold every time and get down on athletes like Bode Miller who have been touted by the press. Sometimes you just don't win but who wouldn't be inspired by the athlete with no chance to win trying his best? It's not like they're going through the motions - everyone is trying to win or they wouldn't be there in th first place but sports are a metaphore for life. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.
Speaking of hype (not that I always object), did anyone see the pre-show to the Daytona 500?
I missed it. UI know it is extremely popular but I'm not much for watching cars go about in circles. I gave it a shot. I even went to a race in Fort Worth a few years back. I got a kick out of watching the fans but not much else.
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I've not seen any of the "choreography" in ice dancing. I think you could take the songs and the skating routines, randomly match them, and the announcers would explain how the dances matched the music, and what excellent "choreography" it was.
One pair (I don't remember if it was ice dancing or pairs figures) skated to Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" 4 years ago. I would have loved to have seen the woman slap the man at the end of the song (Would that have been legal? I think so...) All through the song, Gaynor is telling the guy to get out of her life -- but the skaters didn't portray that in the routine at all. If she had slapped him at the end, THAT would have been choreography -- and also a refreshing contrast to the rest of the routines.
Curling is just big marbles.
I'm no fan of short track skating either -- although this year the skaters don't seem to be interfering with each other so much. Was it 4 years ago that Ohno won the gold because of interference? He was as much the perpetrator as the victim of interference in that race.
I was also hoping to see Michelle Kwan get another chance -- alas, that won't happen -- I'm not sure I'll watch the women's figures now.
I watched the opening activities (around 1:00 as I recall)and went away until after 5 to see the close of the race.
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