Olympics Thread

JC

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Chris B." data-cid="606029" data-time="1471415415">30 cycling medals - Britain won 11 (including six gold) and no other country won more than two. Their competitors are casting a few aspersions. 
 <a class="bbc_url" href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-3743708/Team-GB-s-gold-medal-winning-cycling-stars-success-questioned-Olympic-rivals-following-Rio-success.html">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-3743708/Team-GB-s-gold-medal-winning-cycling-stars-success-questioned-Olympic-rivals-following-Rio-success.html</a> 
 
I'd be inclined to look at what sort of "Lydiard factors" are at work. Wouldn't surprise me if they were replicating some of the stuff the Brownlee brothers do i.e. sleeping in an oxygen tent. They've certainly stolen a march on the rest of the world and are a fundamental explanation of why our cycling team didn't achieve its targets. </blockquote>
 
Lottery money - lots of it -, and expectations boosted by recent success have been the drivers by the look of things. You can't say it's come from nowhere, Obree and Hoy back in the day put cycling on the map in the UK to the extent it attracted significant funding. The current crop seem to have reaped the rewards of that investment.

booboo

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="606003" data-time="1471408555">
They were in a shitload of trouble financially after FIFA WC. 
Here's Greece, 12 years on: <a class="bbc_url" href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/gallery/2014/aug/13/abandoned-athens-olympic-2004-venues-10-years-on-in-pictures">https://www.theguardian.com/sport/gallery/2014/aug/13/abandoned-athens-olympic-2004-venues-10-years-on-in-pictures</a> 
Softball anyone? <img src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/static/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2014/8/13/1407945050442/4a454e6a-7537-4f44-b45d-9a8d40af7be7-2060x1361.jpeg?w=1010&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max" alt="4a454e6a-7537-4f44-b45d-9a8d40af7be7-206"> 
Admittedly, the hockey field has held up well - might show this to Mrs TA as proof we should astroturf the backyard :think: <img src="https://i.guim.co.uk/img/static/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2014/8/13/1407944936403/56bca6d4-3df7-4827-a2f2-c589e148b811-2060x1371.jpeg?w=1010&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&fit=max" alt="56bca6d4-3df7-4827-a2f2-c589e148b811-206"></blockquote>
 
Have read about the Montreal Olympic Stadium ... and it's still in use ...

Ben

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="JC" data-cid="606052" data-time="1471421736">
<div>
Lottery money - lots of it -, and expectations boosted by recent success have been the drivers by the look of things. You can't say it's come from nowhere, Obree and Hoy back in the day put cycling on the map in the UK to the extent it attracted significant funding. The current crop seem to have reaped the rewards of that investment.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
Probably Boardman more than Obree but, yeah, success has bred success and Obree and Boardman were early pioneers for British track cycling.
 
On a kind of related note, the per capita medal table is a bit of a farce. Population has nothing to do with anything - I believe - it's all down to funding. If someone pumps money into (say) Brazil sport, we'd soon watch them fly up the medal table. Britain, like Aus before them, didn't suddenly get good at Olympic sports, they just got funded.

Cyclops

Yeah they sometimes do a by funding medal table which is always a good one to look at - even by GDP is a good proxy (although a country like India has a pretty good GDP but not a lot of funding so not perfect).

Chris B.

No doubt that money helps - but, everyone knows that now.
 
If you look at the countries that won track cycling medals - Aust, Germany, USA, Italy, Netherlands, France, Canada, NZ, Denmark, China, Russia - it's pretty hard to think any of them are on shoestring budgets. They were chucking around a figure on the radio of NZ$27 million from High Performance Sport NZ given to our track cycling programme - which I'd guess is pretty budget compared to many. But even so - that's going to buy you a shit load of training, gear and travel. We've supposedly got some great facilities.
 
About the only thing it's not going to buy too much of is science. So what have the Brits done with their money - it's got to be more than just marginally better bikes.

Chris B.

<a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/olympics/83274254/panel-of-experts-links-hair-removal-to-cyclists-saddle-pain'>http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/olympics/83274254/panel-of-experts-links-hair-removal-to-cyclists-saddle-pain</a>
 
No stones left unturned, apparently.... :)

canefan

Just watching the replay of the women's pole vault and I must say Eliza McCartney is quite easy on the eye along with qualifying for the final

Mokey

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Chris B." data-cid="606068" data-time="1471425114">
<div>
No doubt that money helps - but, everyone knows that now.
 
If you look at the countries that won track cycling medals - Aust, Germany, USA, Italy, Netherlands, France, Canada, NZ, Denmark, China, Russia - it's pretty hard to think any of them are on shoestring budgets. They were chucking around a figure on the radio of NZ$27 million from High Performance Sport NZ given to our track cycling programme - which I'd guess is pretty budget compared to many. But even so - that's going to buy you a shit load of training, gear and travel. We've supposedly got some great facilities.
 
About the only thing it's not going to buy too much of is science. So what have the Brits done with their money - it's got to be more than just marginally better bikes.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
We do. The AvantiDrome just outside of Cambridge is top class. Like all the rowers settled around the HPC at Karapiro, most of the cyclists are now based there.
 
Have to say, one things about the games that is grossing me out (apart from the green pool) is the booing by the Rio crowds, especially when athletes are getting medals. That is ugly.

Donsteppa

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Mokey" data-cid="606079" data-time="1471426780">
Have to say, one things about the games that is grossing me out (apart from the green pool) is the booing by the Rio crowds, especially when athletes are getting medals. That is ugly.</blockquote>
 
Yep! Can't see world sporting bodies rushing to take events like the Olympics back to Rio in the future.

canefan

Ratpoo endears himself to olympics fans by suggesting Hamblin and the American girl who fell and helped each other finish shouldn't be celebrated. He really is a horrible fat git

Chris B.

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Mokey" data-cid="606079" data-time="1471426780">
<div>
We do. The AvantiDrome just outside of Cambridge is top class. Like all the rowers settled around the HPC at Karapiro, most of the cyclists are now based there.
 
Have to say, one things about the games that is grossing me out (apart from the green pool) is the booing by the Rio crowds, especially when athletes are getting medals. That is ugly.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
Heard Ian Ferguson talking about a new whitewater canoe facility (in Auckland I think). He said it's the best whitewater course in the world - and having an artificial course is important, because nature doesn't provide a tough enough challenge - apparently you need the bottom of the course to be flat to increase water speed.

hydro11

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Chris B." data-cid="606068" data-time="1471425114">
<div>
No doubt that money helps - but, everyone knows that now.
 
If you look at the countries that won track cycling medals - Aust, Germany, USA, Italy, Netherlands, France, Canada, NZ, Denmark, China, Russia - it's pretty hard to think any of them are on shoestring budgets. They were chucking around a figure on the radio of NZ$27 million from High Performance Sport NZ given to our track cycling programme - which I'd guess is pretty budget compared to many. But even so - that's going to buy you a shit load of training, gear and travel. We've supposedly got some great facilities.
 
About the only thing it's not going to buy too much of is science. So what have the Brits done with their money - it's got to be more than just marginally better bikes.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
You can look at the<a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_UCI_World_Tour#Nation'> nation ratings </a>on the UCI World Tour this year. Spain, France and Colombia are the top three cycling nations and won a bronze medal between themselves at these games. It has a lot to do with how countries value the events. It seems that most European countries don't value track cycling very much. Spain didn't even make a final on the track and they are the best cycling country in the world.

Unco

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Mokey" data-cid="606079" data-time="1471426780">
<div>
We do. The AvantiDrome just outside of Cambridge is top class. Like all the rowers settled around the HPC at Karapiro, most of the cyclists are now based there.
 
Have to say, one things about the games that is grossing me out (apart from the green pool) is the booing by the Rio crowds, especially when athletes are getting medals. That is ugly.
</div>
</blockquote>
I see the same shit every time I watch a Brazilian UFC card, they're rabidly pro-Brazilian and anti-pretty much everyone else. They're the worst.

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Donsteppa" data-cid="606080" data-time="1471427071">
Yep! Can't see world sporting bodies rushing to take events like the Olympics back to Rio in the future.</blockquote>
 
Besides the fact it has bankrupted their already fucked, crime-riddled, disease-infested, poor-arsed armpit of a country, you mean?

canefan

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Donsteppa" data-cid="606080" data-time="1471427071">
Yep! Can't see world sporting bodies rushing to take events like the Olympics back to Rio in the future.</blockquote>I think they spent so much on bribes to get the games they didn't have enough to spend on the actual games. After the football WC and the olympics they must be super debt ridden. 
If FIFA and the IOC weren't so corrupt they'd follow simple rules 
Don't have the events in the developing or third world because infrastructure and organisation is piss poor 
Don't have the events in Russia because Putin sucks 
Don't have the events in the Middle East because it's too hot, you can't drink or fornicate without getting thrown in prison 
The FIFA WC is going to be rubbish in Qatar but the Tokyo olympics in 2020 will be great I predict

Higgins

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Unco" data-cid="606099" data-time="1471437370">
<div>
I see the same shit every time I watch a Brazilian UFC card, they're rabidly pro-Brazilian and anti-pretty much everyone else. They're the worst.
</div>
</blockquote>
This looks like another honour wrested away from Crusuder country!

Unco

Lisa Carrington's racing in the 500m heats right now.

Unco

And she finishes first in her heat. Semis are at 2:17am.
 
The Women's 470 medal race is at 4:05am as well. Not sure what else is today though.
 
Edit: Okay, the schedule tells me the women's hockey semi is at 8am.

Derm McCrum

There's a German runner, Ringer, currently leading the field in the men's 5000m. 
At least the krauts are honest about it....

Rancid Schnitzel

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="canefan" data-cid="606104" data-time="1471438005">
I think they spent so much on bribes to get the games they didn't have enough to spend on the actual games. After the football WC and the olympics they must be super debt ridden. 
If FIFA and the IOC weren't so corrupt they'd follow simple rules 
Don't have the events in the developing or third world because infrastructure and organisation is piss poor 
Don't have the events in Russia because Putin sucks 
Don't have the events in the Middle East because it's too hot, you can't drink or fornicate without getting thrown in prison 
The FIFA WC is going to be rubbish in Qatar but the Tokyo olympics in 2020 will be great I predict</blockquote>
 
The best games in recent years have been Sydney and London, I.e. games held in proper countries with people who can afford tickets. Seoul and Barcelona were great too, because these were nations on the rise. 
The ironic thing is that BEFORE the world cup and Olympics I really wanted to go to Brazil. Now I don't want to go near the place.

The Silver Fern

Olympics Thread