# Regarding Certain Olympic Sports **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 20, 2004, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664 "2004-08-20T03:45:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/1 "2004-08-20T03:45:03Z")
1. What the hell kind of stupid sport is whitewater kayak racing? 2. Could the women’s beach volleyball players wear skimpier clothes? How about topless with a thong? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Llama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@The\_Llama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Llama)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/2 "2004-08-20T03:51:52Z")
If you have a petition for #2, I’ll be happy to sign. ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/3 "2004-08-20T03:55:22Z")
Dude, they choose to wear that skimpy clothes. Indeed, the tall one from the US Team (Walsh) was talking to a reporter who asked how she chose the suits and she said it was all her choice (and that she wanted to make sure her titties didn’t fall out). Of course, I’d argue that since volleyball was born on the beach (or at least beach volleyball was), wearing attention-getting garb is staying true to the roots. If you don’t think something strenuous and requiring skill like the rafting is worthy, what do you think of the trampoline? Since we’re starting petitions, can we get one started to have NBC show the trampoline competition? The video on their web site is fucking awesome! ---
**Author:** ![AwSnappity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@AwSnappity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AwSnappity)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/4 "2004-08-20T04:35:29Z")
Spot on with #2, IMO. I posted something in my blog to that effect. 'Cause, you know, I always play better volleyball when my ass cheeks are hanging out. It’s enough that they wear the two pieces, but do they have to sexualize every damn aspect of their sport? On the other hand, I wouldn’t mind if they sexualized the men’s swimsuits any more. 🆒 [sub]No, I’ve never heard of a “double standard”…why do you ask?[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/5 "2004-08-20T04:49:40Z")
I thought the kayaking was silly at first but after watching it for a bit I’m quite impressed. They work hard! ---
**Author:** ![threemae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@threemae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threemae)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/6 "2004-08-20T05:44:25Z")
I’ll take some tubby guy sitting on his couch for the last 2-months bitcing about sports because he hasn’t heard of them and cannot understand them or they don’t provide enough masturbatory stimulation for 500, Alex ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/7 "2004-08-20T05:50:37Z")
😕 What do you have against kayaking? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/8 "2004-08-20T11:50:22Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > 😕 What do you have against kayaking? I suspect that Hyperelastic has no experience in the sport, either competitively or recreationally, and therefore has not been able to develop an informed opinion. Hyperelastic, in your opinoin, what attributes should a sport have to be worthy of Olympic competition, and in what way does wild water kayaking not have these attributes? ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/9 "2004-08-20T11:52:48Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > 😕 What do you have against kayaking? There isn’t enough cheap titilation for him in it. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/10 "2004-08-20T12:07:41Z")
> [@TwistofFate](#): > > There isn’t enough cheap titilation for him in it. I guess that one of the drawbacks of Olympic paddling as opposed to local paddling is that you don’t get wet nekkid paddlers changing at the side of a road at the end of their run. ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/11 "2004-08-20T12:14:42Z")
> [@Hyperelastic](#): > > Could the women’s beach volleyball players wear skimpier clothes? How about topless with a thong? I gather it’s because Janet Jackson’s try-out for the team didn’t go over particularly well at the Superbowl. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/12 "2004-08-20T12:41:47Z")
> [@threemae](#): > > I’ll take some tubby guy sitting on his couch for the last 2-months bitcing about sports because he hasn’t heard of them and cannot understand them or they don’t provide enough masturbatory stimulation for 500, Alex [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=4602900](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=4602900) > [@Hyperelastic](#): > > . . . a bearded black midget having sex with a very reluctant (so reluctant it was borderline rape) dumpy middle-aged redhead while his white midget hippie friend spied on them from a crack in the door. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/13 "2004-08-20T14:52:04Z")
Corrected link: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=4602900#post4602900](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=4602900#post4602900) ---
**Author:** ![Chairman\_Pow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Chairman\_Pow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chairman_Pow)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/14 "2004-08-20T14:58:38Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=4602900](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=4602900) Woah, that went right to a “Submit new reply” page. Huh. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/15 "2004-08-20T16:03:20Z")
Race Walking. :dubious: I’ve never seen so many people over the age of four blow their noses into their hands as I did last night. ---
**Author:** ![Hyperelastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Hyperelastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hyperelastic)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/16 "2004-08-20T17:12:51Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Hyperelastic, in your opinoin, what attributes should a sport have to be worthy of Olympic competition, and in what way does wild water kayaking not have these attributes? It should be followed with interest by at least 0.1% of the population. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that kayaking does not meet this criterion. If you like to kayak, great, have fun. But they almost eliminated softball, which is far more popular as a spectator and participant sport than kayaking. As far as the volleyball comment, it was irony, folks. I certainly enjoy watching those taut, quivering buttocks bouncing across the sand, but there’s a place for titillation and it ain’t the Olympics. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/17 "2004-08-20T17:24:34Z")
> [@Hyperelastic](#): > > It should be followed with interest by at least 0.1% of the population. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that kayaking does not meet this criterion. If you like to kayak, great, have fun. But they almost eliminated softball, which is far more popular as a spectator and participant sport than kayaking. I think you may be guilty of just a _touch_ of america-centrism here, since in non-US countries mentioning “softball” will most likely conjure up images of an unfortunate medical condition before anything resembling a sport. And more than that, what’s with this 0.1% shit? Let’s face it; do 0.1% of the population avidly follow the shot put when it’s not the Olympics? No, I thought not. Quite a lot more people paddle than put, I’ll guarantee you that. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/18 "2004-08-20T17:37:21Z")
[QUOTE=Hyperelastic] What the hell kind of stupid sport is whitewater kayak racing?QUOTE] > [@Hyperelastic](#): > > It should be followed with interest by at least 0.1% of the population. And just how does that make it a stupid sport? ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/19 "2004-08-20T17:43:12Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > I thought the kayaking was silly at first but after watching it for a bit I’m quite impressed. They work hard! No kidding! I saw the women’s race the other day. Their forearms look bulletproof. I’d rather watch that than gymnastics. ---
**Author:** ![Binarydrone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@Binarydrone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Binarydrone)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2004, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664/20 "2004-08-20T17:46:23Z")
> [@Hyperelastic](#): > > …a place for titillation and it ain’t the Olympics. Weren’t the Olympics originally played in the nude? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-certain-olympic-sports/260664.md?page=2)