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Maestro- 08-21-2008
I think the Chinese people are amazing as well as the athletes. It just sucks that the world is lumping them in with the government, which is not so cool.

I want more gymnastics!

kindred- 08-21-2008
Good news about the underage Chinese gymnasts: the IOC is going to investigate.

sumire- 08-21-2008
Glad to hear it. I don't know if they'll be able to accomplish anything if China digs its heels in and denies all wrongdoing, though.

I didn't used to like the rhythmic gymnastics rope event--it doesn't seem that different from the ribbon apart from being harder to see--but in the team event, it was neat to see the creative things they did with multiple ropes--twining them like cat's cradle, bundling them to make a step to flip a girl, suspending one girl across two ropes in a split.

Have other Olympics had their equestrian jumping courses tricked out like mini-golf courses? The horses and riders are all tidy and proper and British-looking, and then the fences are decorated with tacky painted plywood fans and pagodas and dragons.

mrinsouciance- 08-21-2008
I haven't caught any of the equestrian events, but now I'm picturing them having to jump through one of those spinning windmill things.

Binky- 08-21-2008
Man, the Diving commentary lady is SUCH a buzzkill. She must want emotionless automatons up there.

sumire- 08-21-2008
I LOLed at this quote from this article.
QUOTE
"This is surreal. What a drama," Ibsen, 26, said after Sunday's victory was confirmed. "I couldn't have written a greater thriller."

jcpdiesel21- 08-21-2008
Why didn't NBC cover more of the BMX racing in primetime? That was so incredibly awesome, and the two finals lasted about five minutes total! I wanted to see more! Instead, they had to follow it with more beach volleyball, bleah.

The Dude- 08-21-2008
QUOTE (Maestro @ August 21, 2008 12:04 pm)
I think the Chinese people are amazing as well as the athletes. It just sucks that the world is lumping them in with the government, which is not so cool.

saving grace of NBC's coverage was Costas pointing that out.

As for the Athlete Breeding Project, they're way ahead of you.
QUOTE
Why didn't NBC cover more of the BMX racing in primetime? That was so incredibly awesome, and the two finals lasted about five minutes total!
They even cut out them evading Gloppy in the Molasses Swamp.

sumire- 08-22-2008
YES! Kudos to Jeremy Wariner for blowing off the reporter when he persisted in asking him about his coaching when Wariner said he wasn't going to talk about it.

Love listening to the Brazilian men's beach volleyball matches--"Fabio serving..." "Fabio on the block..." "Nice dig by Fabio..." "To Fabio... missed it!"

kindred- 08-22-2008
QUOTE (sumire @ August 21, 2008 06:05 pm)
Have other Olympics had their equestrian jumping courses tricked out like mini-golf courses? The horses and riders are all tidy and proper and British-looking, and then the fences are decorated with tacky painted plywood fans and pagodas and dragons.

I can't remember the specifics, but showjumping often involves very overdressed fences. They're absolutely massive, too!

goochello- 08-22-2008
Alright, BMX is now one of my favorite olympic events

Did anyone else expect the racers to start throwing banana peels, red shells, and bombs at each other ala SuperMario Kart? Because that is exactly what their race track looked like to my family.

epudom- 08-22-2008
BMX is awesome, and I enjoyed it even though Reade didn't win her expected gold. All they need to do now is combine it with the Madison, and they'll have my heart forever...

kindred- 08-22-2008
BMX is mental - it looks like a bunch of adults have borrowed their kids' bikes for a boozy race at the end of a drunken BBQ.

Apparently, all the Olympic athletes are shagging like crazed rabbits in the village after their competitions finish.

Raised by wolves- 08-22-2008
Well, so much for the inquiry.

Here's my favorite part:
QUOTE
Earlier this month, the AP found registration lists previously posted on the Web site of the General Administration of Sport of China that showed both He and Yang were too young to compete. He was born Jan. 1, 1994, according to the 2005, 2006 and 2007 registration lists. Yang was born Aug. 26, 1993, according to the 2004, 2005 and 2006 registration lists. In the 2007 registration list, however, her birthday has changed to Aug. 26, 1992.

"If you trust every Web site but not a government ... There are so many Web sites, so much hearsay," Lu said. "These are not official. It is possible that all news on the Internet is accurate?"
Yes, we should just blindly trust the Chinese government. Because they're so open with information and everything.

kindred- 08-22-2008
I wouldn't be at all surprised if the IOC are deliberately leaving it while the Games are on, but may well revisit it after it's all over. To officially accuse China of cheating now would be a huge, huge deal - the kind of thing that could start wars, I reckon. But it may still be that good sense will prevail and the underage medalists may be dealt with afterwards.

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