# Olympic Sports That Nobody watches? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [July 23, 2008, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478 "2008-07-23T13:52:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/41 "2008-07-23T23:00:26Z")
[QUOTE=Telemark] So, there would be looting and burning and pillaging in the streets of Canada. [/QUOTE] Yes. And it’s worse if the team _wins_. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2008, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/42 "2008-07-23T23:04:29Z")
The US coverage has gotten so much better with all of the cable networks showing the minor Olympic events. I watch very little of the main NBC coverage with all the behind the scenes coverage. But, I"ll spend hours on the CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo, and USA network coverage of all the other events. ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/43 "2008-07-24T00:16:32Z")
[QUOTE=jsc1953] The same logic (or lack thereof) applies to swimming, actually. If you’re trying to flee from a shark, would you do the butterfly stroke? [/QUOTE] Bah. Unless the Y changed their program, we didn’t even _teach_ the butterfly stroke until Flying Fish or Shark. I could _easily_ flee from one of them doing the butterfly. Porpoise might be a problem, though. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/44 "2008-07-24T00:44:55Z")
[QUOTE=susan\_foster] Well, looks like Rhythmics (don’t ask how many times I tried to spell THAT) is more complicated than just prancing around with ribbons. [Youtube clip gymnastics (didn’t listen to the music with it, so if it blasts, sorry!)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Viu7U8_IhD4) A lot of the flexibility moves there make me wince. [/QUOTE] Holy crap. At what age do the girls have surgery to remove their bones? Seriously…I wonder how many gymnasts have back problems as they age. I do not believe the human body was meant to be bent like a taco shell. ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/45 "2008-07-24T00:50:39Z")
Add me to the list of people who can’t stand racewalking. I do not know a single person who has ever participated or even tried it. I’ve never seen a single person doing it anywhere IRL. I have no idea even how one would get started nor do I even care. Sure it’s hard, but so is tying an anvil to your balls (which would be a lot more interesting). How is it even useful? Is there any particular distance where a racewalker could beat a runner? Everyone I know who is into getting somewhere in a hurry on their feet is a runner and they run 5K’s, marathons, and ironman triathlons. It’s not an NCAA track and field event. Not that popularity within the USA is important in determining Olympic events, but according to this [site](http://www.racewalk.com/Resources/Schools.asp) about 25 mostly obscure colleges in the USA support a racewalking program of any kind. I think it’s just one of those stupid sports that was introduced by some yahoo back in 1904 and somehow managed to hang in there forever. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/46 "2008-07-24T00:57:11Z")
[QUOTE=ivylass] Holy crap. At what age do the girls have surgery to remove their bones? Seriously…I wonder how many gymnasts have back problems as they age. I do not believe the human body was meant to be bent like a taco shell. [/QUOTE] Done correctly, yoga practitioners can achieve that kind of flexibility. I think the strain in gymnastics is from the high impact and strain forces they endure. > **[Sign in - Google Accounts](https://accounts.google.com/v3/signin/identifier?continue=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.google.com%2Fsite%2Ftiffanyllee%2FVrchikasana-bw.jpg&dsh=S1595588576%3A1778760678236409&followup=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.google.com%2Fsite%2Ftiffanyllee%2FVrchikasana-bw.jpg&osid=1&passive=1209600&flowName=GlifWebSignIn&flowEntry=ServiceLogin&ifkv=AWa2Pavy7lisZYUxMpTnyFcSXlpUtEwDHcb-f3M4dCmBlMDypamVlVMjAS1UnLawi6HhIt4Jma3m2A)** [http://farm1.static.flickr.com/153/343466766\_b971f2ed93.jpg?v=0](http://farm1.static.flickr.com/153/343466766_b971f2ed93.jpg?v=0) ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/47 "2008-07-24T02:17:40Z")
Off to the Game Room! (Bigger audience there.) ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/48 "2008-07-24T02:18:00Z")
[QUOTE=susan\_foster] Well, looks like Rhythmics (don’t ask how many times I tried to spell THAT) is more complicated than just prancing around with ribbons. [Youtube clip gymnastics (didn’t listen to the music with it, so if it blasts, sorry!)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Viu7U8_IhD4) A lot of the flexibility moves there make me wince. [/QUOTE] I like it. You can tell that someone basically wanted to find a way to shoehorn some circus acts into the Olympics, so they gave it a funky name, added some judges and viola: Rhythmics. > [@Lightray](#): > > Lots of Olympic sports seem rather odd. Reenacting after-battle message runs where the messenger keels over dead, or reenacting Napoleonic soldier-behind-enemy-lines stuff seems rather odd, too. But surely just as legitimate as, say, curling. So I got the first reference (Marathon) but not the second. Is there really an Olympic sport based that’s supposed to have originated that way, or am I being wooshed? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/49 "2008-07-24T02:42:21Z")
[QUOTE=Simplicio] I like it. You can tell that someone basically wanted to find a way to shoehorn some circus acts into the Olympics, so they gave it a funky name, added some judges and viola: Rhythmics. So I got the first reference (Marathon) but not the second. Is there really an Olympic sport based that’s supposed to have originated that way, or am I being wooshed? [/QUOTE] [Modern Pentathlon](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_pentathlon) Horse riding-carrying a message Fencing-sword fighting Swimming-crossing a stream Pistol Shooting-fighting your way forward Cross country running-making a run for it ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/50 "2008-07-24T02:47:37Z")
[QUOTE=Simplicio] Is there really an Olympic sport based that’s supposed to have originated that way, or am I being wooshed? [/QUOTE] I expect he’s referring to the Modern Penthathlon: > [@wiki](#): > > The modern pentathlon was invented by the Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games. As the events of the ancient pentathlon were modeled after the skills of the ideal soldier of that time, Coubertin created the contest to simulate the experience of a 19th century cavalry soldier behind enemy lines: he must ride an unfamiliar horse, fight with pistol and sword, swim, and run The rough winter equivalent is the Biathlon, I guess: cross-country skiing and shooting, an event based on the skills required for a Norwegian soldier. One year I helped out in [CIOR](http://www.cior.net/) training, doing administrative stuff for a bunch of reserve officers who were training for an even moderner version: they ran, swam, obstacle coursed, shot and “orienteered” (i.e. given a map and compass in unfamiliar terrain, get from here to there as fast as possible). That year, I think they were holding the meet in Italy. I got a t-shirt but not a plane ticket. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/51 "2008-07-24T02:52:53Z")
That’s pretty cool. I hope they broadcast it this year, sounds like fun to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/52 "2008-07-24T12:27:39Z")
[QUOTE=Shodan] Tritto on the judo. Back in '84 my cable company offered a special package of Olympic coverage. For just a few dollars, you could get a lot more of what you could watch on TV for free - even more gymnastics, even more track and field. Not even one extra moment of judo. :mad: [/QUOTE] In 1992 they had the Triplecast, three pay per view networks running tape delayed Olympics coverage 24x7. Guess how much Judo they had scheduled? That’s right, not a single moment of scheduled coverage, not even at 3am. In a single week, they had 500 hours of broadcast time available, and couldn’t block off one half hour for Judo. They did offer some kind of a wrap up during one of the moments I was watching, 5-10 minutes maybe. I suppose that was because one of our guys got a Silver medal. BTW, I went to [NBCOlympics](http://www.nbcolympics.com/) and checked out their TV listings… yep, not a thing scheduled for Judo. This is such bullshit, I think if you’re going to have exclusive rights to cover the Olympics, and have hundreds of hours set aside for broadcast, you should have to schedule at least one half hour per sport. ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/53 "2008-07-24T13:03:41Z")
[QUOTE=Cheesesteak] BTW, I went to [NBCOlympics](http://www.nbcolympics.com/) and checked out their TV listings… [/QUOTE] Hey, they’ve actually got profiles for athletes from other nations! I’m frankly shocked. The most irritating thing about US Olympics coverage is that it is _only_ US Olympian coverage. If there’s not someone from the US competing, or if the US competitor isn’t ranked high, the event might as well not exist. Instead of showing it, they’ll run glurge about soandso athlete overcoming adversity blahblahblah, or insipid puff pieces on local color. That’s why the last few Olympics I’ve actually preferred to watch the off-hours feeds on cable – they actually _show the event_, not just snippits of the “highlights”. 'Course, I prefer the swimming, which is big enough to show in its entirety, but it really cheeses me off when they only show a clip of boats crossing the finish line, voiceover the results, then quick cut back to John Tesh skeeving me out by drooling over the prepubescent gymnastics girls. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/54 "2008-07-24T16:05:51Z")
[QUOTE=Lightray] Hey, they’ve actually got profiles for athletes from other nations! I’m frankly shocked. The most irritating thing about US Olympics coverage is that it is _only_ US Olympian coverage. If there’s not someone from the US competing, or if the US competitor isn’t ranked high, the event might as well not exist. Instead of showing it, they’ll run glurge about soandso athlete overcoming adversity blahblahblah, or insipid puff pieces on local color. That’s why the last few Olympics I’ve actually preferred to watch the off-hours feeds on cable – they actually _show the event_, not just snippits of the “highlights”. 'Course, I prefer the swimming, which is big enough to show in its entirety, but it really cheeses me off when they only show a clip of boats crossing the finish line, voiceover the results, then quick cut back to John Tesh skeeving me out by drooling over the prepubescent gymnastics girls. [/QUOTE] The coverage in 2004 was quite a bit better than in previous years; let’s hope that continues. Much more coverage of non-US athletes; fewer puff pieces or glurges. By “boats”, do you mean rowing, canoeing, or yachting? Because I know I saw many rowing races from start to finish. Ed ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/55 "2008-07-24T16:17:48Z")
[QUOTE=Lightray] …then quick cut back to John Tesh skeeving me out by drooling over the prepubescent gymnastics girls. [/QUOTE] I don’t think Tesh worked the Athens games (and good riddance), can’t remember whether he did Sydney or not. I figure he’s in a padded room somewhere muttering “stick the landing, stick the landing…” ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/56 "2008-07-24T16:22:40Z")
[QUOTE=suranyi] By “boats”, do you mean rowing, canoeing, or yachting? Because I know I saw many rowing races from start to finish. [/QUOTE] Rowing and kayaking, mostly. I may be mixing up my Olympiads on the coverage, though… I vaguely recall seeing a few of them given coverage during non-prime time, along with the horsey events and some other stuff, like the shotput event at Olympia. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2008, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/57 "2008-07-25T14:41:44Z")
Let us pause to remember the least popular, least watched Olympic event (or part of an event) of all time: figure skating compulsories. Even though it was part of the most wildly popular event (figure skating) in Winter Olympic history, nobody would watch it, and TV wouldn’t show it. It was discontinued after 1984. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2008, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/58 "2008-07-25T14:43:36Z")
[QUOTE=jsc1953] That’s my point, exactly. How did we (the athletic human in general) devise a competition to see how fast we could _walk_? What’s the point? If we want to compete to see who can go from A to B fastest, why put the one-foot-on-the-ground qualifier in place? The same logic (or lack thereof) applies to swimming, actually. If you’re trying to flee from a shark, would you do the butterfly stroke? [/QUOTE] Along the same lines, it’s amazing that we’ve got this far into the thread and no-one’s mentioned the Triple Jump. I mean, why? It makes as much sense as, say, a one-legged long-jump. Talk about arbitrary. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2008, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/59 "2008-07-25T14:50:07Z")
[QUOTE=Alive At Both Ends] Along the same lines, it’s amazing that we’ve got this far into the thread and no-one’s mentioned the Triple Jump. I mean, why? It makes as much sense as, say, a one-legged long-jump. Talk about arbitrary. [/QUOTE] The Long Jump _is_ one-legged. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478/60 "2008-07-25T14:56:38Z")
[QUOTE=Lightray] Rowing and kayaking, mostly. I may be mixing up my Olympiads on the coverage, though… I vaguely recall seeing a few of them given coverage during non-prime time, along with the horsey events and some other stuff, like the shotput event at Olympia. [/QUOTE] I thought the shot put coverage was cool and I watched every minute of it. To bad they only show it when its held at the origins of the event. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/olympic-sports-that-nobody-watches/457478.md?page=4)