Disappointed the women again lost to Canada in ice hockey. Yeesh.
Just watched the women’s figure skating while cleaning up after dinner. I am not yet sure how I feel, other than sad. Sadness that the Olympic spirit appeared absent. So many tears; not tears of happiness. The whole drama and a 15-year old caught-up in it all. The whole scene sad and disappointing. Maybe I’ll feel different in the morning.
Did you see how incredibly excited the Canadians were? I’m an American, but i teared up when the Canadian team sang along to their national anthem. I enjoyed that game, despite the loss.
The Russian figure skating apparatus needs total banning from international competitions for five to ten years. Their dysfunction was shown to the world tonight. One athlete a cheater who fell apart under pressure; the coaches criticizing her as she was coming off the ice. Another having a toddler’s meltdown for coming in a close second place. The third left bewildered as the coaches unsuccessfully managed the other two. I don’t blame the skaters, they’re young and children, but the adults are abusive and likely criminal. Blech. Utterly disgraceful to the sport.
(Although their costume design is superb.)
That’s really too harsh. She’s 15 years old, legally a minor, and if she was doped, she was the victim. And having her to perform after all that mess and putting her up for so much psychological pressure made her a victim again. I totally agree with your rage on the Russian skating team and their coaches, medicine staff and functionaries, but don’t blame a 15 year old girl.
I don’t blame any of those Russian skaters. They are all young, and i doubt they have a lot of choice in whether to take the drugs, or even to be there. And I’m pretty sure they are all doping. They are under enormous pressure.
They also aren’t fun to watch. Most of the skaters are joyful when they succeed. Most are visible excited about their programs. Most are fun to watch. The Russians just look stressed. It’s sad.
Can’t blame the Russian girls. They’re caught up in an evil system and really have to do what they’re told. Time to give Russia the boot, at least in this event.
I blame the adults who should have known and done better by their athletes as well as their country. But I blame the IOC more. They could have just tossed the one girl out of the competition and avoided all the drama and damage that spectacle caused to those girls and to the sport. As one of the announcers said, the IOC was worried about her mental health if she was kicked out due to the positive drug test. Seeing how it all unfolded, how’s her mental health now? I just find it disturbing how child athletes can be abused like this in front of our eyes by adults who ought to know better. Huge black eye for figure skating and for the IOC.
I blame the IOC for letting any of them compete. “The Olympic committee of Russia”, or whatever they are calling the non-ban.
The men’s and the dancing was great, but I agree that the women’s this year was depressing. No joy.
Putin and his country have flaunted that they are still in the Olympics despite cheating. They need a one cycle(summer + winter) full ban to be cleared to return.
I will watch pairs, hoping it is back to the positive spirit of Men and Dancing.
I wonder if this all this will end in a ban on minors competing in Olympic sport? That would have huge implications of course in many sports.
That would suck. It should end on a real ban of Russia competing, not this farce.
What the IOC did be the equivalent of a sports league banning a player, and the player changing their name and playing again.
“Pete Johnson, you are banned from ever playing in the league again.”
“Oh, but you have only banned Pete Johnson. I go by Peter Johnson now.”
“Well, that all seems in order, welcome to the league Peter.”
Or:
“All South African athletes are banned from participating in the 1984 Summer Olympics.”
“Er, I’m Zola Budd of Great Britain now.”
“Well, that’s all right then.”
I can almost see this happening:
- Russia gets a 4-year Olympics ban - no “Russian Olympic Committee,” no “Olympic Athletes from Russia,” nothing.
- Putin invades Ukraine.
- Paris 2024 and Milano (“don’t call it Milan”) 2026: the Ukraine team seems a lot bigger than in past years, and a lot of those names sound a lot like Russian athletes’ names…
Now I get what this whole Ukraine invasion thing is about.
Article on ski jumping (there is a ski jump ~30 miles from me)
Brian
I don’t see what’s wrong with that. They have rules for qualification; using the rules to one’s advantage can hardly be held against you.
I think Elizabeth Swaney’s determination to make the Olympics (or to use a much older example, Eddie Edwards) is terrific.
Jesus Christ! They deserve medals for sure! That’s a long way to jump!
I tried to think of some response to this doping scandal, and honestly, all I could come up with was “Well, at least it was just the team competition.” All these shenanigans about being/not being allowed compete and suspiciously fluid nationalities just reinforces in my mind that nobody gives a damn and that’s never going to change. I’ve long since given up hope of either iteration of the Olympiad ever becoming “good”. If the collapse of the mightiest and most monstrous corrupting influence in the history of sports in 1991 couldn’t do it, it’s a lost cause. Accept that crap is going to happen and just hope that it isn’t excessive.
As for Valieva, the best thing that could happen to her is that she gets picked up by a skating program with a semblance of compassion. Heck, with nationalities as loose as they are, there are probably several flags she could compete under. I don’t know what are the chances that this will happen, but I’m holding out hope…it’s all I got.
Okay, another question that just popped up. Know how in some ice dance routines, for one of the lifts the woman stands directly on the man’s thighs? How exactly does she do this without putting him in the hospital? The announcers said some things about “flat part” or “inside edge”, but those skates didn’t look very flat to me. I’m amazed anyone even has the courage for this.
Here you go:
In short, proper balance, padding, and sometimes they do get injured.
Of the ROC women skaters, is it possible that Kamila threw the free skate – purposely performed below par so there would be no medal controversy?
As for Sasha, the silver medalist, that’s another sign that Russian athletics is messed up. Clearly no one ever told her “You’ve gotta lose to know how to win.” For the first minute or so, I was dumb enough to think she was crying in solidarity with Kamila, like “You bastards set her up and knocked her down; she should be on the podium with me,” but nooooooo. Just wasn’t content with silver.
Even though Anna, her teammate, countrywoman and, I would assume, friend, but maybe not, is sitting there like a stuffed animal: she just won the gold and no one cares! Meanwhile, from what I could see from the American women skaters, they consider themselves a team, and if just one of them had medalled, the other three would have shared her happiness. And I saw that solidarity in some of the skiing events. Granted, at least one of those crews included siblings…but IME, siblings don’t always support each other. It’s called sportsmanship, FFS. I vaguely remember a few people congratulating Anna, maybe a weak hug, but look at all the people around Kaori, the Japanese woman, who was also sobbing, but because she’d given her all, not because she saw bronze as failure!
I hope Sasha does quit skating, but as far as Olympic medals, I hope the choice will be made for her; I join the crowd calling for a ban on Mother Russia, for real this time.