9 thoughts on “The Olympics and Casual Sports Fans

  1. @Mike, you should probably remove the rings.

    We went through this on Ravelry; you cannot use trademarked olympic symbols. It’s in US law specifically. They search infringements out, and the are lawyered up. I pretty much guarentee: it will generate a cease-and-desist letter to OT.

    And I will not be watching; I support athletes. But the way it’s televised now is offensive; highlights and controversy and color, not competitions.Report

    1. The Ravelry story. Remember: we’re talking a social-media of about 3.5 million people who knit and crochet.

      http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2012/06/22/ravelry_olympics_usoc_apologizes_to_online_knitting_community_over_trademark_crackdown.html

      This year, the knitting-while-watching (or not watching or watching something else) are called the Ravellenics; and there are numbers of efforts underway to raise money for human rights groups that support LGBT rights.Report

    2. Is your sports coverage really that bad? The BBC is putting live streams on two extra channels that appear to be showing competitions start to finish. There is commentary but it’s not like they only show bits or cut away for a studio discussion while a skier is halfway down the slope.Report

  2. I love the Olympics – the amazing athletes, the pageantry, the chance to completely let loose with patriotic fervour. There great diversity of events combined with the fact that it’s only a little over two weeks means you can focus on it completely without the time commitment of following a team for a whole year. And every event matters. Every event has a gold medal at stake, so the competition is a lot more concentrated than in a full season of hockey. And it’s not just about cheering for a team you like – it’s about cheering for your country. Canada’s blowout performance in Vancouver only made me more enthusiastic. I’m going to be glued to the television for the whole of it.

    Also, there’s so many events that are just plain fun to watch. The snowboard and ski cross, the new slopestyle event, the gorgeous figure skating routines, and of course the hockey.

    CBC does a good job of broadcasting – they certainly focus on the Canadian athletes, but they show the full competitions live, not just the Canadian performances in a primetime reel like NBC.

    Canada’s already got a gold, silver, and bronze, so things are looking good! Hurray for Marc McMorris (competing with a broken rib, I can’t even imagine how painful that would be, they don’t even let you take painkillers) and the Dufour-Lapointe sisters!Report

  3. Other than my obsession with mixed martial arts, March Madness and the Masters golf tournament

    Do you also like marathons, mountaineering, and middleweight boxing? 🙂Report

  4. I enjoy the Olympic sports where the athletes decide the outcome, and intensely dislike those that are judged. I am keen to see who makes it to the bottom of the hill the fastest, or who can shoot the straightest and ski fast, and really like those nuts on the luge.

    Figure skating, snowboard trickery, any “sport” where the outcome is decided by sometimes openly biased judges, you can have. Not to say that the athletic prowess demonstrated isn’t impressive, but in reality it’s just an exhibition, not a competition.

    I also enjoy watching the parade, feeling especially good about athletes that enter and compete with no hope of winning. That, to me, is the true Olympic® spirit.Report

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