Thread: OLYMPICS!!!

Does anyone (maybe in the US) heard something more about this: www.001ofasecond.com ?

Would be very disturbing if things get fixed on these levels of sports.

I wouldn't take this too seriously. I think his arguments have a lot of holes. For example, he keeps saying how Cavic "beat" Phelps in the qualifying races. If the author had watched the swimming all week, he would know that the swimmers hold back in the qualifying matches to save energy. They do just what is needed to make the next round - they don't worry about "winning" those heats.

He then goes on to criticize Phelps for being immature - as if that has anything to do with the outcome of race. Most 23 year olds that I know aren't the most mature people. I think Phelps has actually been pretty impressive given the spotlight he's under.

To scream conspiracy over one swim out of eight? The first relay race was just about as close. Did Omega arrange to have Lazak swim the fastest 100 meter leg in history – beating two world record holders in the process – so they could go on to fix the final race? Pah-leez. Omega has been the official timekeeper for a very long time, and I don't recall fixing ever being raised with respect to their performance.

I think the author is an anti-corporate conspiracy freak who will always find an ax to grind somewhere. Just for the record, I have my own problems with big corporations and their intrusion into sports (thank gawd they’re still called Giants Stadium and Yankee Stadium), but this guy has that shrill sound to him that makes me suspicious. I think they should fix the broken scoring systems in Gymnastics and Boxing before we worry about Omega.

Jordan

Currently watching the Tae-Kwon Do.

How the HELL does that get scored? It looks like dancing to me! Olympic Riverdance....

Thats all Olympic TKD is. Dance!

A touch is scored the same as a knock down kick his head off blockbuster, so they are more likely to focus on blocking then tapping their opponent in the scoring zone rather than trying to actually fighting in any meaningful way.

Speaking of amazing...I don't follow track and field, but Bolt makes it look so easy! He's hot-dogging down the track and breaking world records - unreal!

Jordan

Absolutely! I wish I could run like that. I just saw it on the BBC news.

It was also just reported that the US's interpretation of the medals table differs from the views of other countries. Is this true?

In the 'adjusted' US medal table the US are suspiciously 2 points in the lead.

Originally Posted by sidneykidney

Absolutely! I wish I could run like that. I just saw it on the BBC news.

It was also just reported that the US's interpretation of the medals table differs from the views of other countries. Is this true?

In the 'adjusted' US medal table the US are suspiciously 2 points in the lead. :hmmm:

Who is "the US"? I see the same count numbers on MSN and the BBC...

Jordan

This is what beijing 2008 sees as the official table: gold medals being the determining factor.

CNN, NYTimes, USA Today ..... all of them see things differently. I could go on but this proves my point.

Dont get me wrong, all i'm saying is that both China and the US have an interpretation of the medals table that puts them top. And you know what, in 2012 I dont doubt for a second that the medals table will be dependant on a per capita basis.

Well, that CNN one at least is perfectly matching the rankings of the official one's right-hand column actually, but I take your point. In Australia the medal tally is ranked alphabetically, then by golds won. So we've been on top for a long time

Per capita, I think NZ would take the prize, or some other tiny country that grabbed a gold or two (maybe even Jamaica).


James.

Actually, just found this from the LA Times blog site. It's not completely up to date, and it's based on overall medals from what I can see, not Golds, but I think it shows the gist of the per capita ranking idea and how it seriously downweights the larger (population) countries:

The top 10:

1. Slovenia (5) - one per 401,542 Slovenians
2. New Zealand (8) - 521,862
3. Jamaica (5) - 560,866
4. Australia (35) - 588,595
5. Armenia (5) - 593,717
6. Estonia (2) - 653,802
7. Bahrain (1) - 718,306
8. Belarus (11) - 880,542
9. Denmark (6) - 914,120
10. Norway (5) - 928,891

Selected Others:

11. Cuba (11) - 1,038,541
21. Finland (3) - 1,818,649
22. Great Britain (33) - 1,846,785
28. Latvia (1) - 2,245,423
30. Canada (13) - 2,554,822
40. Russia (42) - 3,350,049
41. Greece (3) - 3,574,272
42. United States (79) - 3,845,881
58. China (76) - 17,500,586
70. Iran (1) - 65,875,223

So unless the Brits do some population culling, per-capita aint gonna help you come London....

James.