The Winter Olympics 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Oh Canada

[Harpo]

Tonight's Dance Ice Pair Figure Skating final has Moir/Virtue skating to Mahler's 5th Symphony (I'm assuming the Adagietto of course).

Finally, someone talking about figure skating, the most interesting events.   Moir and Virtue were indeed the best. I didn't know what to make of the Israeli pair who wore black Orthodox Jewish outfits, but I realized later those were their "Israeli folk song" costumes. Re. the men's events, Plushenko was a crybaby. I have been watching a tv documentary series about quirky Johnny Weir and have become rather fond of him in a motherly way.  I'm not as interested in the ladies' contest, though watching Joannie skate so well only two days after her mother died was quite moving.

[Tapio Dmitriyevich]

Now Dutch champion Sven Kramer (who skated the fastest time) gets disqualified at the 10k for a mistake at the crossing, after his coach sends him to the wrong lane.

Oh I heard a report on it on the radio yesterday; felt very sorry for our dutch neighbours. It must have been a desaster...

[Marc]

Sven Kramer: Deserves his fate, retro-actively, for cursing at his coach, the poorest sod of them all. (Also very fair to keep Kramer running, enabling the Russian to go for silver. Had Kramer been taken out mid-race, chances are that the Russian would not have performed as well--making silver for the Dutchman (who instead ended up third) a possibility.

IMO, no one deserves such a fate.
Sven Kramer's coach, Gerard Kemkers, agreed that he fully deserved the cursing and that only he was entirely to blame. And he didn't want to help the Russian, he was only thinking of Kramer and still hoping and praying that it would work out all right, even though he knew that was useless thinking.

Let's be realistic about Kramer's fury: a professional sportsman is full of adrenaline, skating his balls off to go for the gold, been working for it (together with coach) for 4 years and then missing it because your coach isn't paying attention! To me, that's reason enough to get furiously mad!

IMO, Kemkers should quit writing novels on boards during the races. No other speedskating coach is doing that, and I personally have never seen any reason for it either. Why? He's got his voice (which he also uses a lot) and his fingers to show the skaters everything they need to know. BTW: many of the skaters do not pay any attention to it at all, because they're completely focused on themselves and their race.

At the Olympics 2002 Kemkers almost caused a fall of his pupil Jochem Uytdehaaghe, also on his way to gold, because a board fell out of Kemker's hands after the coach smashed himself backwards against the sideboards, out of pure enthousiasm.

On the other hand: Gerard Kemkers is a very sympathetic and committed guy. He'll do anything for his skaters. Sven Kramer knows that better than anyone else. They've collected already tons of titles together, and Kramer is only 23 years old.

Soon after, the incident has been talked over and the relationship is restored. The morning after they walked into the speedskating arena together, laughing and joking again. Kramer, saying in an interview: Mistakes can be made. He's still a great coach. I own a lot to him, and I won't let our relationship getting ruined by one incident, even though it happened at the most important moment of my career so far.

Unfortunately, Kemkers said in another interview that he's not planning to quit writing his novels: that's just the way we're used to work in our team, and it will remain that way.

Anyway, I'll keep my thumbs up for both of them in the team pursuit!

[Brahmsian]

Men's hockey:  Canada pounds Russia 7-3

Next up:  A very talented Slovakian squad!

[Marc]

Men's hockey:  Canada pounds Russia 7-3

Next up:  A very talented Slovakian squad!

Yep. Canada needed that extra match, I'm quite convinced of that. (Like they did in the elimination rounds of Salt Lake 2002.)

I sat down for the Great Match, thinking: may the best team win. 0:)

But man, were the Ruskies overpowered by the Canes .... and disappointing in the end! They began checking only in the 3rd period .... far too late. And I also would have changed goalies earlier, after the 3-0 score by Nash. Nabokov was already utterly humiliated by then.

Very good playing by some Canadiens who weren't all that good so far, like Boyle and Morrow. Although Boyle was lucky not to get penalized with a game misconduct against Semin.

So: the world champs are out, and so are the defending Olympic champs! And again the Swiss proved to be tough to beat by a full pro team!

Quite ex(c)iting tournament so far.
I supported the Slovakian squad in 2006, 'cause I liked their fresh and attacking style! They've grown more mature now .... let's wait and see!

[Marc]

Hey Brahmsian,

Congrats!

And now:

Fleury
for goalie?

[Valentino]

Catfight tonite!



War of words between Bjørgen (who would never have been any good without medicines) and Kowalczyk (who is a bad loser).

[Bogey]

Congrats Canada on your hockey gold!  A great game for any hockey fan and a great way to end these Olympics.

[Marc]

Congrats to all the Canadian ice hockey fans!

An insane Finale.

Crosby, playing at a rather moderate level during the entire tournament, scoring the decider, after a subtile grand little pass (whilst falling) by my fave player Jarome Iginla.
Bad luck for the Americans, who played a superb tournament, without losing one game in normal game time .... but I'm afraid this end was somehow written in the stars beforehand.

[WI Dan]

Well done, Canada!  Congrats!

A very exciting finish to a great hockey tournament.  Enjoyed all of it, immensely.  Congrats, also, to the Finns on taking the bronze.  It was well-earned!

[Brahmsian]

Crosby scores.....and collectively Canada exhales! 

Wow, what a game.  That USA squad should be so very proud.  No one gave them much of a chance to win a medal (let alone silver) and most might have picked them to finish 5th or 6th.

Clearly, the two best teams truly were in the gold medal game, and it could have so easily have gone to the USA.  Crosby truly became a national hero today.

The best hockey I've seen since the 1987 Canada Cup.

Canada wins 14 gold medals, the new all-time best in the Winter Olympics.  And the USA wins a record total medals, and congratulations to you, Team USA.  Both nations did great, and I'm now sad that the games are over. 

[Brahmsian]

Fellow Winnipegger, Jonathan Toews of Team Canada was named the top forward in the men's hockey tournament! 

Ryan Miller of Team USA, best goalie and MVP of tournament, was a no-brainer! 

[Gurn Blanston]

Crosby scores.....and collectively Canada exhales! 

Wow, what a game.  That USA squad should be so very proud.  No one gave them much of a chance to win a medal (let alone silver) and most might have picked them to finish 5th or 6th.

Clearly, the two best teams truly were in the gold medal game, and it could have so easily have gone to the USA.  Crosby truly became a national hero today.

The best hockey I've seen since the 1987 Canada Cup.

Canada wins 14 gold medals, the new all-time best in the Winter Olympics.  And the USA wins a record total medals, and congratulations to you, Team USA.  Both nations did great, and I'm now sad that the games are over. 

Absolutely; what a game!

This was a most enjoyable Olympics in any case. You saw old powers that have dominated certain sports for a long time, fading away, and new ones stepping in (for example, Korea in Ladies' Figure Skating coming on, while America didn't medal for the first time since 1968). Yet America medaled in Nordic Combined for the first time ever! And also in 4 man bobsleigh! Who would have believed that?

Canada did a great job putting things on, despite the sometimes bizarre weather. Looking forward now to London in 2012 and Russia in 2014. They'll have a high bar to clear.



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Listening to:
Hamburg Soloists / Emil Klein - Hob 03 01 Divertimento in Bb for Strings Op 1 #1 4th mvmt - Menuetto -  Trio

[Marc]

Fellow Winnipegger, Jonathan Toews of Team Canada was named the top forward in the men's hockey tournament! 

Ryan Miller of Team USA, best goalie and MVP of tournament, was a no-brainer! 

Yes, they both played a great tournament.

BTW admins, did something strange happen with the Avatar function or do I have personal PC problems?

I see a mr. Brahms who is suddenly looking like a Maple Leaf!

[Gurn Blanston]

Yes, they both played a great tournament.

BTW admins, did something strange happen with the Avatar function or do I have personal PC problems?

I see a mr. Brahms who is suddenly looking like a Maple Leaf!

No, clearly his avatar is totally screwed up, I suspect digital mischief, since it appears to me to be some sort of totally twisted caricature of Brahms...



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Listening to:
Hamburg Soloists / Emil Klein - Hob 03 03 Divertimento in D for Strings Op 1 #3 3rd mvmt - Adagio

[Brahmsian]

BTW admins, did something strange happen with the Avatar function or do I have personal PC problems?

I see a mr. Brahms who is suddenly looking like a Maple Leaf!

[Brahmsian]

This was a most enjoyable Olympics in any case. You saw old powers that have dominated certain sports for a long time, fading away, and new ones stepping in (for example, Korea in Ladies' Figure Skating coming on, while America didn't medal for the first time since 1968). Yet America medaled in Nordic Combined for the first time ever! And also in 4 man bobsleigh! Who would have believed that?

Gurn, you hit the nail bang on here!  I noticed this as well in many of the sports.  In the Winter Olympics "Marathon", the 50KM Cross Country race on Sunday, a Canadian finished 5th (probably expected about 50th  ), and only 1.5 seconds away from gold.  We are far from being known for our cross country skiing.    The Ice Dancing was another one, normally dominated by Russia.

And hey, we finally got that 4th pillar up in the closing ceremonies....better late than never! 

[springrite]

Can't wait to see the Senegalese Curling Team in 2014!


I enjoyed what I had time to watch, especially curling, Figure Skating (Pairs and ladies. Did not watch the men's) and speed skating (short track and normal track). Too bad I had the watch hockey while muting the sound. The commentator on Chinese TV is an idiot who knows nothing (I mean not knowing what offside and icing are, for example) and listening to him makes one want to puke. But hockey without sound is a bummer, too. But what I watched was good hockey ... while, except for the Russians who really sucked -- not what I had expected.

[Valentino]

Gurn, you hit the nail bang on here!  I noticed this as well in many of the sports.  In the Winter Olympics "Marathon", the 50KM Cross Country race on Sunday, a Canadian finished 5th (probably expected about 50th  ), and only 1.5 seconds away from gold.  We are far from being known for our cross country skiing.    The Ice Dancing was another one, normally dominated by Russia.

Yeah. Next up a Norwegian medal in ice hockey. 

And hey, we finally got that 4th pillar up in the closing ceremonies....better late than never! 

You guys need to become much more uptight.

[The Six]

And mighty Ducks players won all 3 medals. This is what the Olympics are about.