Are you getting psyched up over the 2006 Winter Olympic Games?

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

They’re coming up, in just over two months from now – Feb. 10-26 in Turin (Torino), Italy! NBC has been flashing that Olympic logo for several weeks now and it gives me a bit of a buzz every time I see it. Face it, the Winter Games have an intrinsic glamour that the Summer Games sometimes lack. Gone are the 350-lb. Turkish and Eastern European weightlifters and wrestlers; here come the (ever-improving) Chinese figure skaters, the Scandinavian downhillers, the Dutch and Japanese speed skaters! :slight_smile: :cool: :slight_smile:

I’m particularly looking forward to hockey, because it’s played according to international rules on the big rink, which makes for a more dynamic, fluid game (although the recently redrawn rules for NHL hockey seem to be a big improvement in that direction).

That, and the ski jump. There’s just something about that silly and arguably overrated hurling of one’s self into the big air that is so daring and elementally appealing… even if the emergence of “X-treme” sports threatens to diminish the novelty, and even pre-eminence, of some Olympic events.

And the short-track speed skating. Very cool, fast, aggressive, dangerous, unpredictable and exciting to watch, and the top competitors don’t have to be unusually tall or be bulked up on steroids to be competitive in it (in fact, those would probably work against them).

Now, if only the Olympic organizers have fixed the problems with the judging of some of the events. I guess we’ll have to wait and see about that.

And speaking as a football fan, it’s nice to have the Games to look forward to after the end of the football season. (Seasonal Affective Disorder might as well be renamed Post-Football Season Affective Disorder for at least some of us sports fans…)
So, are you beginning to get the Olympic bug, and if so, for which events?

#2

Figure-skating, which I follow even in off years. There was virtually none on TV last year, though – not even the Worlds! – so I don’t have a good sense of the field going into the Olympics, which sucks.

#3

I love speed skating, short and long track, though short is my favorite.

I really enjoy the Olympics. I’m so cynical that it’s surprising how much simple enjoyment I get out of that event, but I do. And the Winter Olympics is so much, er, cooler than the Summer. Love. LOVE.

Okay, so I’m weird.

#4

I’ll be watching the men’s and women’s hockey if I’m not at work, but none of the other sports are all that interesting to me.

#5

I’m looking forward to it, but only because I get Canadian TV. NBC’s approach to Olympic games is simple: If an American isn’t supposed to win, it doesn’t get covered. If it’s a glamor event, it gets taped for prime time no matter when it happens. Watch CBC, you see stuff live. Though they do favor Canadians, it isn’t nearly as bad as NBC.

#6

Oh, and curling. I’ll probably watch some curling because the strategy really is quite interesting.

#7

I’ve lost all hope for legitimate competition (things like equipment not conforming to regulation, astonishingly brazen corruption in judging, incorrect results becoming official, all kinds of rules simply not being enforced are accepted as normal practice, because they are). And I don’t care what anyone says, I will never, ever get comfortable with the idea of a teenage girl losing a huge chunk of her childhood to get wrapped in a gaudy costume and face the specter of humiliating herself in front of the world.

But I’m definitely not going to miss it. For me, the Olympics is a great opportunity to see a plethora of technical, highly specialized sports that’d never get the time of day in America otherwise. And for the human drama, the emotion, the soaring highs and crushing lows, all of which is all too real, even if the contest isn’t.

I’ll treat it like I treat the NBA now: A nice, fun diversion, and something to take my mind off of the UH womens’ volleyball team’s inevitable postseason floparama. :slight_smile:

#8

I look forward to watching Canada take home two more gold medals in hockey.

#9

Flodjunior and I will be watching cross-country (a.k.a. “real”) skiing and biathlon for sure. Biathlon is our favorite. Probably watch most of the jumping and Nordic combined, too, and it’s not unlikely we’ll watch at least some of the other sports.

Every four years, Norwegian schools have their winter break during one of the weeks of the Winter Olympics. I refuse to believe that this is just a coincidence.

#10

Oh-oh. I just realised I may not have a TV come February. :eek:

My favorite is any of the skiing competitions. Figure skaters can stuff it!

#11

I loves me the luge. I look forward to that and biathlon. Alas, opening ceremonies aren’t on my birthday this time; they often are (Feb. 8th).

#12

I have very little interest in the Olympics anymore. I think the beginning of the end for me was when they started letting professionals play basketball. I liked watching hungry young collegians a lot more than mildly interested NBA stars.

#13

I enjoy watching the Olympics. Now that CNBC and MSNBC can cover the real events and leave the endless figure skating and ice dancing to the prime time NBC coverage.

#14

There’s an Olympics coming up?
<shrug>

Just another sports event I won’t be seeing.

#15

Are you getting psyched up over the 2006 Winter Olympic Games?

Nope… now ask me about the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany!! As always, I’m rooting for the Netherlands… So much potential, so little to show for it :frowning:

#16

No buzz here. I think the IOC got greedy (along with the networks) when they staggered the winter and summer games. With an event staged every two years instead of four, it just doesn’t seem special anymore.

And the “pros” being allowed to participate doesn’t help matters.

#17

I watch the winter olympics, but I don’t get psyched up too much over them.

The Summer games are a different story. I love them - the people have far fewer clothes on.

#18

I like the winter olympics. They’re a little heavy on the figure skating, but I always like a good race and there’s lot of racing whether it’s skis or skates.

Also, between the last olympics and this one, I’ve started doing short track speed skating so I’m going to be a little more into that this time.

#19

I like curling and I am not even Canadian. Is that wrong?

#20

That is my feeling as well. It has been years since I cared about the Olympics. They seem to come and go so often that they aren’t special.