Beach Volleyball: You gotta hand it to the ladies. That is one amazing streak. They really did look unbeatable. In fact, they didn’t lose a single game on their way to the gold medal. That’s impressive. The men may have had a loss along the way but they certainly earned that gold. Phil Dalhausser really is an incredible player. His height masks how good he is. It’s easy to think he there’s just because he’s 6’9″, but he chases down loose balls, serves like a monster, and sets ever so sweetly. If I had been 8 inches taller, I would have been Todd Rogers. I was sneaky the same way. I suppose I had to be, I could barely get over the net even in my best days.
Speed walking: A ridiculous sport. The athletes look like overgrown ducks. Sure it takes athletic skill, traveling 20K is always difficult. But that doesn’t make it a sport worthy of the Olympics. This is like being the best flashlight tag player in the world. I understand that you’re the top of your profession but it’s a dumb profession. As a side note, I’m surprised this is not a sport that can get you a college scholarship. Seems like it would be a good way for schools to meet their Title IX obligations.
Synchronized swimming: Like every red-blooded american male, I have heaped no end of scorn on this sad sad excuse for a sport. I must admit though that I really enjoyed the team version this time around. I was blown away by how high they throw each other without being allowed to use the bottom of the pool for leverage. I could still only watch two routines, but that’s two more than I expected.
False starts: The rules need a little revision. Right now there is an incentive to false start because you can mess with other runners at no cost to yourself. If you false start you should be disqualified, end of story.
Relay Race: Oh c’mon America. How many years are we going to blow it this way. Look, if this was the gold medal race that would be one thing. But this is a qualifying round. The top four teams make it. When you are already in the lead you should be making absolutely sure that the pass goes smoothly even if it costs you a couple tenths of a second. Simply unforgiveable.
Olympics Links o’ Interest:
Sex at Olympics Village
Incredible panoramic picture of Bejing Olympic Stadium just before the 100M dash.
The IOC is investigating the age of some of the Chinese gymnasts. If China was trying to show a new face to the world, it’s not working very well.