I'm sorry, but that is just really inaccurate. Like a lot because field hockey easily has twice the partcipants in the Games as softball and that's after qualification rounds (having attended a round or two where my country tried to qualify. Still haven't but yeah). While I understand being upset about the loss of softball, there were entire regions that have never even heard of the game much less played it. If we include softball, why not cricket? What about golf?

Wasn't golf in one of the more recent Olympics?

I know some sports go in and out of favor every few years when it comes to the games. I suppose you could make arguments for a whole range of different sports, if you wanted to.

Those were my thoughts exactly. Also? I hate softball, so I'm not particularly sorry to see it go.

Also apparently Phelps has decided to rock the pornstache for Olympics '08. Weirdly this seems to aid his buttah face, and make him slightly sexier than I usually find him, in a repulsive ugly-sexy way. He also has a Michigan tat to match his Olympic rings one. Niiice, because when I think U of M, I think smooth cumgutters!

Yikes! I think the pornstache makes Michael Phelps look even uglier. But it seems like he's having a good time in those pictures, and I hope he does well in his events.

Dude that's like something to look at while you're down there...

Having gone to both international websites for both sports, hockey has 122 national associations. Softball has 131 national associations. I can't talk for hockey, but I know softball does have 'minnow assocations' as well, with devoloping countries. Just because hockey has more players in the Olmypics dosen't mean that it has more players internationally than softball. It just means hockey allows more countries to play.

I'm not saying hockey should go, or any sport should go (well excluding sychronised swimming. Not a sport when you're judged on make-up and costuming) It just to me, if you're going to kick sports out based on certain criteria, than make sure every other sport meets the criteria too. Otherwise you give that sport a lot of reasons to be upset with the decision.

I kind of worried they will be too martial. Torino got it just right playing all the disco and making it fun. Plus Brian Williams was delicously incongruent with his Debbie Downer act, I hope for a return.

For whatever reason i'm a sucker for any Flags of the world event.

Hey it's also a break from the tedium that is baseball and soccer season. Now I will have something to watch at the gym!

I hate the pornstache because I actually think he'd look really hot in those pics without. I normally think hes a butterface, but the new hair suits him, as does the smiling. Also you cant make out his ears which are 95% of the problem.

I like him a lot though (I find him adorkable), so I hope he rocks it.

As a former synchro swimmer I can assure you it is a physically challenging sport and we were never "judged on make-up and costuming". I suppose you would draw the same conclusion for gymnastics or figure skating, not sports?

If I'm wrong on that, I'm sorry. I've read references to it on the web before that make-up and costuming were part of the scores.

I love gymnastics and figure skating, but I don' think anything where the winner is based purely on someone's interpretation should be classified as a sport. It dosen't make them any less challenging or skillful, but is ballroom dancing a sport? Its extreemly physically challenging, but would people recognise it as such?

Realisticlly though, gymnastics and figure skating will never be kicked out. They get too much ratings and therefore money.

While there is no doubt that interpretation is part of the scoring in gymnastics, figure skating and synchro there is also physical elements that are judged. Without the artistic elements these sports would just be someone performing random elements for 3-5 minutes and would be boring. All three sports used to have compulsory sections, which were eliminated for whatever reason, and were based purely on the physical performance and not artistic merits. There are some that would argue that dance should be incorporated into the Olympics. I don't think so since it has always been considered an art and not a sport, unlike figure skating, etc.

I just want to Word everything that westcoaster just posted, especially the synchro stuff. I've never done it, but that's because I know that I will DROWN and DIE because that shit is hardcore.

Like boxing?

Keeping in mind that nine times out of ten I think men look beter with facial hair, I have to say Phelps looks downright hideous with that thing on his face.

I would have respected him more if he went for a full-on Mark Spitz homage. I dig facial hair but Phelps is kind of rocking some half-hearted stachery. I vote for full on booshy stache or no stache at all.