Maybe the Fench guy won the first one and they did not show that (I was watching the evening highlights/tape delay show), because they kept saying how difficult it would be to beat him two races in a row.
No, the Brit won the first two races and got the gold. It was covered pretty clearly by the announcers during the broadcast. I’m not sure where the confusion is coming from.
No, the British cyclist won 2-0 - I haven’t read the wiki linked-to upthread, but it seems to me that it’s a disadvantage to lead off, so I assume Jason Kenny (GB) won the drawing of lots to decide who starts first. It can’t be that great an advantage, though, because he started the second race and won it anyway (if it were, they would have to do best of 9 or something to try to make it fair).
Is the reason that lanes 2-9 are used for the 100m because lane 1 already gets the most wear (from all the distance running), so it is not used for the sprints? I can easily imagine that at this level, lane 1 having 30 people pounding round it 25 times (in the 10,000m) could affect the “springiness” of the track enough to disadvantage a 100m runner in lane 1. If lane 2 is used, that is not an issue. Or maybe it’s just to even out track wear in general, so it lasts a bit longer?
Well, I therefore missed it. Maybe I missed the intro because of fast-forwarding through beach volleyball or something. But they definitely more than once commented on the difficulty of beating him twice in a row, not two out of three.
Part of your body in swimming has to be on the surface of the water at all times after 15 meters except when finishing. That’s to keep people from going back under after they get past the 15 meter mark.
Because women can’t swim that much. At least that’s what was believed before. Everywhere else both men and women swim the 800 and 1500. There’s been a push to add the 800 for men and 1500 for women for years now.
The confusion seems to be coming from a comment the announcers made after the first race about how hard it would be for the British cyclist to beat the French one two races in a row; somebody seems to have inferred that the British cyclist had to win two in a row.
Speaking of cycling…how much of the Men’s Omnium aired? I thought I saw one or two races from the 4K time trial, but that’s about it. You would think that they would show the top riders in the last event - the “killer kilo” (1K time trial). (Yes, I know it’s available online, at least in the USA; in fact, the elimination (devil take the hindmost) race was one of the few NBC online events with commentary.)
The reason why using lanes 2-9 is an issue for me is that the announcers have been describing the runners by the lanes on which they’re running. So you’ll hear an announcer say something like: “Joe Smith, the top European, is making a move in Lane 4”. Since there are 8 runners, the natural inclination is to look for the 4th runner. It takes a second to then move to the next lane to find the 3rd runner, who it is they’re actually describing. I think that even if lanes 2-9 are being used, the lanes should still be called 1 through 8 during the race. This would be particularly beneficial for the casual sports viewer who may only watch a race or two, and not even realize that he/she is focusing on the wrong racer.
Really? 'cause the Olympics totally needs more swimming events…
I am so looking forward to the two swim marathon events. I will be on the edge of my seat for the whole 10 km :rolleyes:
They should at least add one in which you’re allowed to swim under water as long as you like. 
I did see this. Not sure what is going on. Drink the pool?
I finally heard a comment last night from IIRC Tim Daggett that it was something that NBC was doing to help viewers.
The international gymnastics federation does not dictate what moves the gymnasts use like that. Rather, they assign difficulty to whatever things the gymnasts try. Typically the men try something, then the women adapt it. The stop and then fall to the floor thing I did see once or twice, but the way the difficulty points are added, stacking elements gets more points. The quick jump on landing adds a difficulty bonus because it adds a jump combined on the end of the tumble. I thought it would be an easy way to cover being somewhat off balance, but one of the gymnasts demonstrated in the qualifications what happens if you are slightly off balance - your straight up hop becomes a leap out of bounds. Wasn’t it Gabby who took three steps because of that?
Handstands from the pommel horse are difficult, especially when you aren’t already in motion. They’re also harder to control - more momentum. I’m not sure if pommel horse is timed, but the action is supposed to be continuous motion, no stops. The high-legged swings were flashy, but it appears gymnasts have opted for handstands instead. The routines still require the detail work across the horse, from pommel to bench and back. But you are right, I did notice the lack of the high leg sweeps.
I understand the complication of comparing, say, the American’s score on the vault vs the Russians’ score on the uneven bars. Each element has a different level of difficulty and scoring range. But this can be accommodated by using a gasp table.
Not that women are a sideshow to the men, but the premise is that women cannot equal men, either due to their average size disparity, or endurance, or whatever. Thus women’s events are on smaller venues, for shorter lengths or durations, etc. Some of this may be historical legacy of the Olympics, some may be built into current international sports standards.
Water polo is half soccer, half wrestling. Being able to sink your opponent to take her ball is much more important than being able to breasstroke accross the length of the pool.
Gymnastics routines are set in advance so that the judges can pre score to assign the difficulty of the routine, and verify it has the required elements. The gymnast has the flexibility to combine a variety of element types in whatever order, but once they have their routine, they practice it over and over to work out the kinks and get the connections and details right. The judges are probably like the commentators who have seen the gymnasts practicing their routines all week long prior to the event. They know what is coming. Improvising on the spot seems to be discouraged by the new system.
The problem with that is, the lanes are clearly numbered 1-9 both at the start and at the finish line, and it could get confusing.
What’s going on with the 110m hurdles this year? I watched the heats and it seemed there was a DNF in every heat. In fact of the of the 53 entrants 8 didn’tfinish or were disqualified. The most dramatic race was the heat involving Liu Xiang Of the eight starters, one (the Pole) pulled a hamstring out of the blocks, two failed to clear the first hurdle and one more took a massive tumble on the penultimate hurdle. It was extraordinary, especially as a distraught Liu was turned away from trying to leave the stadium through the entranceway and then proceeded to hop the length of the track to leave with his competitors.
Looking back at the last two Olympics this year’s attrition rate (8/53 = 15%) is far greater than that of Beijing (3/43 = 7%) or Athens (1/48 = 2%). Does anyone know what’s going on?
My first guess: rain.
Actually, at first, I thought most of the problems were being caused by “whoever came up with the bright idea of making the hurdles purple,” but then I noticed that the side that faces the runners is white.
Speaking of track questions, here’s one: there is a curved line about 20m from the finish line - obviously it’s a starting line for something, but what? At first, I thought it might be if they were going to keep the track there after the Olympics and ever wanted to have a mile run, but a mile is 1609.344m, so the line would only be 10m from the finish line, not 20. It’s also not the start of the steeplechase, which is on the far side of the track. I am also assuming that it won’t be for the men’s marathon, which I would think would start at the same place as the women’s marathon, which was held entirely outside of the stadium.
Waterfall start line for the 2-mile, rarely run.
According to this (warning: PDF), it’s the start line for the 2000 meter steeplechase, which is apparently an experimental event.
Didn’t know they were running that at the Games since both men and women ran the 3000 SC.
I don’t think they are. They apparently just included the start line for it for potential future use.
Watching Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh-Jennings on beach volleyball, Misty has a Nike swoosh on her uniform. Kerry has an oval (0?) in that location on her uniform. Top, pants, even glasses. I assume she isn’t sponsored by Nike, or has some other sponsor. Is that symbol a logo, or just a placeholder?
Oakley. Huge in beach sports.