Are the Olympics relevant anymore?

[Manatee]

Also, back in the old days, we only had 3 TV networks and no internet. The choice was: watch the Olympics or play Canasta with your aunts who smelled funny.

 

[ghostdncr]

we only had 3 TV networks and no internet.

Dark times, man. DARK times!

 

[Fishersjohn48]

Bobsleigh?

 

[Bapak2ja]

[h=2]Are the Olympics relevant anymore?[/h]
Were they ever relevant? Were they ever anything more than a moneymaking opportunity or communist propaganda?

Never have watched them. Better things to do, like watch paint dry.

 

[bingley]

I think it kind of spoils it when athletes compete for a country they are not from. Hypothetical example--XXX athlete was born in Argentina, lives in Nebraska, and is competing for Japan.

I think this is a good thing. I hate all that competition among nations crap. Just because Michael Phelps can swim fast, it doesn't say anything about the average American. We are, for the most part, fat and sedentary, and if we can swim, we swim poorly. His gold medals reflect his individual talent, and that's why athletes are increasingly moving from one country to another to pursue THEIR career. It's not the nation's career, it's their individual career. It's like moving from one NBA/NFL team to another. I support them for it.

 

[Hogwylde]

Doesn't mean a rats @ss to me. Won't be watching them even for a minute.

 

[hoosierdoc]

Doesn't mean a rats @ss to me. Won't be watching them even for a minute.

Do you watch any TV show?

 

[semperfi211]

 

[churchmouse]

I love the downhill skying events and the jump but snowboarding is on the same level as skateboarding.....So what.
No, I can not do what they do but hey.....So what.

 

[Mossberg84]

I've always enjoyed the Summer Olympics better. I can't even remember the last time I watched any Winter Olympic events. I think the winter x-games are more watchable than the Olympics

 

[indyjohn]

IndyJohn: It's you. I bet that the hair on the back of your neck isn't the only thing that isn't standing up the way it used to.

Ha Ha Ha, that's pretty funny.... No wait...... (note to self: pointing out my age publicly is not good)

 

[RockofStrength]

I have honestly never gotten the appeal of the Olympics. It's a monumental waste of money, designed mostly for political posturing, and the bloody news NEVER SHUTS UP about it despite 95% of newscasters having not a friggin' clue about most of the sports.

Add to that my distaste for watching grown adults cry like little babies when they lose at a sport, and you can see why I view the Olympics rather poorly.

 

[bingley]

I do like the chance to see weird sports. Football isn't for everybody.

I have an idea: we should have an olympics of the average people. No athletes! Grab the averagest guys from the street, and see how well they run, swim, jump, etc. This way the different countries can truly be represented!

 

[bingley]

[video=youtube;effb2JYiKXM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=effb2JYiKXM[/video]

 

[ZombieApocolypse]

Im not too big into the figure skating stuff but anything on the slopes i couldnt take my eyes off

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

I enjoy watching athletic competitions and exhibitions.

I like watching SOME of the olympic events...

To me it is indeed kind of neat to watch those who are at the pinnacle of their respective sport compete against their peers.

Watching the men's downhill last night? Fascinating. Some of those guys get up to 85 miles an hour. ON SKIS! With nothing but a few bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments holding them up. If they crash - they're almost assuredly severely injured. (Not that I watch hoping for a crash - this isn't NASCAR...) I think it's compelling.

Ice skating / dancing - I appreciate it for what it is - but I don't really enjoy it. Still, however, watching someone jump off the ice and turn 4x in the air before landing - that's pretty darned cool.

Sprint biathalon... That's interesting to watch, too. Loved watching them shoot. Those rifles are neat.

 

[chraland51]

I must be getting old. The olympics have lost much of their attraction for me. It is not really amateur any more and has not been for a long time. I do not care much for any of the judged sports for obvious reasons. If you have to be judged, you are likely to be screwed depending on your politics and a few other factors. You need to be the one who runs the fastest or throws the farthest or do something else where judging will not determine the winner of your event. I do not care much for some of the hot-dogging that has gone on the last few Olympics, although I do have to laugh at a couple of idiots who ended up losing their events that they clearly would have won had they not hotdogged. I never did like to see people running around with our flag wrapped around them like a blanket no matter how happy they were for winning the gold medal. I have never seen anything about that in flag etiquette instructions. I know that the Olympics are supposed to be one big fun time where all the best athletes from around the world can get together in a supposedly non-political environment, but the advertising of the availability of thousands free condoms for the athletes makes the Olympics sound more like European soccer tournaments where the STDs spike after a big soccer tournament. I agree the a previous commentor that I no longer get goose bumps from watching a down-hiller hang on to his edges by just a hair so that he can have the fastest run. Just my 2 cents.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I seldom watch "normal" sports. Boxing was the last thing that held any interest for me, and without cable and pay per view...there isn't much boxing. Watching commercially unsuccessful sports holds even less appeal.