On a different note I saw this on another site and thought it was worth mentioning...
Quote:
They were discussing if Phelps is the greatest Olympian of all time now and I just don't see it.
Yes he has won the most gold medals but he also has the luxury of an event that allows him to enter into numerous races. What about a Marathon runner or any other sport where you can only enter one or two events.
Daley Thompson for example won 2 olympic golds for decathlon, surely they mean more as individual achievements than 2 golds for 100M and 200M swimming events?
I think Phelps is an amazing talent and is certainly one of the greatest, I just think he is allowed to enter too many events and as such it distorts the medal count a bit.
I think the poster makes an interesting point.
Dubz
I can see how some people would feel this way. One of the main reasons I feel he is the greatest is because, as mentioned above, the numerous races he can compete in. There are many great athletes who have qualified for one event and have won gold in several Olympic Games in that event. The athlete must not only be physically prepared but also mentally. Take the 2008 Beijing Games for example. Michael Phelps qualified for 8 races. When you add in semifinals/qualifying heats, that comes out to about 15 to 17 races. I would think it takes serious mental preparation to handle all that plus the physical toll in swimming that much in so little time.Thats my opinion, but maybe I biased. Go USA. :P
Just because your good self and Megg have differing opinions on this matter does not mean I think any less of either of you.
That's so generous of you, thank you!*
Ok, I was trying to be diplomatic and non-agressive with this statement but if that's the way you feel: FUCK YOU TOO !!
1. Have you ever actually heard of an athlete who would wish they didn't have to compete for their country? Cause I feel like you're making this issue up.
Yes various Scots over the years have said they would rather compete as Scottish athletes as opposed to British but whether it is hypothetical or not is not the issue, Your own country has been previously ruled by others how would your proud Polish athletes feel if they had to compete as Russian or German.
2. I'm sure most people are just proud of where they come from (proud without being racist etc.). I come from a nation who didn't have their own country for 150 years. And then came the Nazis. And then came the communists, for another half a century. So anyone in Poland would tell you that's it's considered a great honour to represent our own, independent after centuries of struggle, country. What's wrong with that?
There is NOTHING wrong with it but it should be a CHOICE, if i don't want to compete as a British athlete I want to compete as a Cornish/Yorkshire/Scot/Welsh or whatever it should be my CHOICE.
3. Like Kristy said, if you're from a newly independent state, are stateless or are opressed by your government, you can compete as an independent athlete. Check your facts before you start a rant.
So... by your point if the Olympic comittee do not recognise you as a "newly" formed state then you are fucked, How long were Lithuania/Latvia/Estonia fighting for independence before they were actually recognised in the eyes of the IOC as independent countries, I'm guessing they were proud "Russians" (I deleiberately used the term Russian as oppossed to USSR as that was how they were percieved)
4. I feel your approach is not as much related to the Olympics, but to the fact that Scotland isn't independent. Well, I guess that sucks. I'm sorry. Still, that doesn't make the Olympics a racist, Hitler-style event.
Yes I have my own agenda but that does not render my points moot
5. Olympics are one the most peaceful and honourable ways of competing (and competition is, as we know, part of our nature). I think they do a lot to promote peace and tolerance.
Really, I seem to remember assinations at the Munich games in 1970, Black Power Salutes (wonder if they have felt more comfortable competing as African-Americans or Independants) in 1968, a boycot by USA (and others) in Moscow in 1980... surely peace and competition do not go hand in hand, if you introduce competition there has to be animosity ergo - Non-Peace
* I'm sorry, couldn't find my sarcasm font. It's generally accepted that if you want to mark something as sarcastic you can use the ^ symbol at the beginning and end. ^You're very welcome^
On a different note I saw this on another site and thought it was worth mentioning...
Quote:
They were discussing if Phelps is the greatest Olympian of all time now and I just don't see it.
Yes he has won the most gold medals but he also has the luxury of an event that allows him to enter into numerous races. What about a Marathon runner or any other sport where you can only enter one or two events.
Daley Thompson for example won 2 olympic golds for decathlon, surely they mean more as individual achievements than 2 golds for 100M and 200M swimming events?
I think Phelps is an amazing talent and is certainly one of the greatest, I just think he is allowed to enter too many events and as such it distorts the medal count a bit.
I think the poster makes an interesting point.
Dubz
I can see how some people would feel this way. One of the main reasons I feel he is the greatest is because, as mentioned above, the numerous races he can compete in. There are many great athletes who have qualified for one event and have won gold in several Olympic Games in that event. The athlete must not only be physically prepared but also mentally. Take the 2008 Beijing Games for example. Michael Phelps qualified for 8 races. When you add in semifinals/qualifying heats, that comes out to about 15 to 17 races. I would think it takes serious mental preparation to handle all that plus the physical toll in swimming that much in so little time.Thats my opinion, but maybe I biased. Go USA. :P
No, not at all, you raise a very good point.
I would argue that it's still the one discipline where as a decathletes/pentathletes (for ecample) have to train and compete in many disciplines... However I suppose the counter argument would be: That while they are good at the Decathlon/Pentathlon they are not at the top of the individual events but rather all rounders... Just a thought.
See Dubz, that here is your problem. You think if you use enough curses, it will magically make everything you say right. And that's also why no one takes you seriously. You're a five year old. Feel free to call me a c*nt as you usually do when someone has a different opinion or whatever, I just refuse to have any sort of 'serious' discussions with you anymore because it makes no sense. I won't be bullied by you. (And yes, I consider flooding me with such language any time we differ bullying).
See Dubz, that here is your problem. You think if you use enough curses, it will magically make everything you say right. And that's also why no one takes you seriously. You're a five year old. Feel free to call me a c*nt as you usually do when someone has a different opinion or whatever, I just refuse to have any sort of 'serious' discussions with you anymore because it makes no sense. I won't be bullied by you. (And yes, I consider flooding me with such language any time we differ bullying).
So because you manage to say Fuck You in less colourful language and I reply in kind I'm the bad guy. I tried to offer an olive branch in the way of saying that while I don't agree with you I still respect your stance and right to argue, rather than just stamping my feet, If you happen to read back through these posts you'll find that I have taken onboard various points raised and changed my stance from "No Countries" to "Choice of representation", You on the other hand have just point blankly refused to listen to anything I've said or offer much criticism as to why I'm wrong. "That makes no sense" is a statement not an argument. You basically threw the fact that I was trying to calm things down with your snarky "sarcasm font" comment I felt like I had just been slapped in the face hence the Fuck You Too, comment.
On the bully side of things it is not my intention to bully or harass anybody on here, I (did) count you all as friends and while I curse and use bad language it is not meant as a slur on or directed at anyone in particular, It's just how I talk on here. I have been on this board for the past 10years and everyone knows I rant, it's a release, it's not meant to be taken personally.
If you or anyone else wants to single themselves out as a victim, go right ahead, I think it says more about you than it does about me.
Thank you for the decent Conversations/Jokes/Tunes or whatever over the years,
I have been on this board for the past 10years and everyone knows I rant, it's a release, it's not meant to be taken personally.
I might have been on this board for 'only' 5 years but I can recall various times when various people brought to your attention that they are offended/uncomfortable with the way you communicate. You say terrible things and then you always go "oh, but I didn't mean anything bad". It doesn't change the fact that those things are offensive. I'm not a language saint either, but you call people "w*nkers" because they like Coldplay, "c*nts" when they enjoy a tv show you find lame and throw "f*ck you"'s every 2 sentences. How can it be not taken personally?
I honestly don't mind curse words used as exclamation words or whatever but when you use them to describe actual people, I won't take this anymore. Maybe that's the way I was raised but I won't ever be okay with aggression, even if it's 'only' online.
Also, yes I am snarky. All the freaking time. Ask Kristy. But see, you can't take a bit of sarcasm if it's directed at you yet you expect others to be okay with the way you speak.
Anyway, back to the actual subject. I'm super excited there was a new women marathon record! Sooo impressive. I cannot even run for 5 minutes. Actually, isn't this year particularly good record-wise? People astonish me sometimes. And guys, triathlon. I cannot. How can people do this and not collapse? And they showed so many cool London places while at it! It made me so sad :(
I can see how some people would feel this way. One of the main reasons I feel he is the greatest is because, as mentioned above, the numerous races he can compete in.
I'm with you. I'm not too crazy about him but I guess the point is he competes in so many different types of swimming while others usually only do 1 or 2. So, much more training and stress and actual races and therefore more possibilities to win medals. Although it doesn't mean that everyone who ever competed in the Olympics wasn't super uber fantastic.
Just back from a holiday in the God's Own County, as the good people of Yorkshire call it. Plenty of Olympics on the telly at my inlaws', and I found myself enjoying most of it. Sort of overwhelmed by all of those Team GB medals, tiny Finland is still struggling to get anywhere. It was interesting to watch it from another country's point of view. An expat Brit from USA was complaining that he can only see US related sports, and has to dig deep in the internet for the UK results.
At the local paper, Yorkshire Post, they had a map of the county and where the medallist live, people are so very proud of their own. TV news programme Look North had a feature of the triathlon brothers who come from near Haworth, showing how the local kids are inspired by the athletes. Saw plenty of cyclists and kids training in the fields. At the same time the whole British team is celebrated there, too.
UK is an interesting mixture of proudness in both local and national level. Union Jacks were very prominent everywhere in Yorkshire this time, possibly partly as leftovers from the Queen's 60th anniversary party. In an ordinary year it's more typical to see England flags.
I was saddened to hear that some of the golden postboxes were already vandalised. I'm not a massive fan of painting the boxes, but if it's done, people should leave them alone.
So proud of our women's soccer team (you know, "football") after the heartbreak of the game vs. the US, they deserved a metal so much!
It is amazing, when an athlete's first thought after scoring the winning goal, is to grab the Canadian crest on their jersey. I <3 sports
So proud of our women's soccer team (you know, "football") after the heartbreak of the game vs. the US, they deserved a metal so much!
It is amazing, when an athlete's first thought after scoring the winning goal, is to grab the Canadian crest on their jersey. I <3 sports
The US Canada game was GREAT . You could see the toll it took on the team
In terms of Olympic futbal , North America kicked ass . Congrats to Mexico mens and the US & Canadian womens squads
