The London Olympics

[North Star]

Bolt was amazing again, shame about Jukka Keskisalo's injury in men's 3000m Steeplechase, the speed was ideal for him, and a medal would have been probable.

[Gurn Blanston]

Yeah, I read about it, on Twitter, because we have NBC, that wants to show all the best highlights at 8pm when they can get the most viewers, NOT when it's actually happening..so lame.

Well, what you call lame is actually an attempt to hold their losses down  below $100,000,000. They paid $1.18 billion for the rights to broadcast, knowing going in that they were going to lose money but also that having such a prestige event would benefit them in the long run. As it turns out, viewership is up 9% from Beijing, so they will do better than expected. How much viewership do you imagine they would get by showing premier events at 1:00 in the afternoon? A few desperate housewives and unemployed's maybe? I think you have to look at the bigger picture; they may well be only programming executives, but that doesn't automatically make them morons. If they were congressmen too though....

[Gurn Blanston]

However, if you DO want to complain about something, I think this quote from a reader's comment section says it all:

"The time delay sucks, but it's nothing compared to the patronizing, condescending and vapid commentary NBC works into its Olympics narrative."

That's the nut of it for me.   

[TheGSMoeller]

Well, what you call lame is actually an attempt to hold their losses down  below $100,000,000. They paid $1.18 billion for the rights to broadcast, knowing going in that they were going to lose money but also that having such a prestige event would benefit them in the long run. As it turns out, viewership is up 9% from Beijing, so they will do better than expected. How much viewership do you imagine they would get by showing premier events at 1:00 in the afternoon? A few desperate housewives and unemployed's maybe? I think you have to look at the bigger picture; they may well be only programming executives, but that doesn't automatically make them morons. If they were congressmen too though....

I fully understand why NBC's coverage is this way, it's called prime time for a reason. In fact I even said in my original statement that they show the highlights when they can achieve the highest ratings, my rant is more of a personal one, I spend way too much time online or watching other stations that release the winners information as it happens, I have yet to watch an event I didn't already know the outcome of, that is ultimately because of my own doing and curiosity, but it still frustrates me.

And...I'll still watch it, on NBC, during prime time.

[Gurn Blanston]

I fully understand why NBC's coverage is this way, it's called prime time for a reason. In fact I even said in my original statement that they show the highlights when they can achieve the highest ratings, my rant is more of a personal one, I spend way too much time online or watching other stations that release the winners information as it happens, I have yet to watch an event I didn't already know the outcome of, that is ultimately because of my own doing and curiosity, but it still frustrates me.

And...I'll still watch it, on NBC, during prime time.

Have you tried the streaming feed that they have? I can't stream at home because of my feed rate, and at work because of the Rules, but I understand that they show things in real time there.

But anyway, I check CNN's web page on a regular basis every day for years and they are the worst about posting the results; not even a link to them, but a big headline that you can't miss. So I usually know the results too, but actually it rather whets my appetite for seeing the real thing later on. This has been an issue every time the Games originate from Europe ever since I started watching in 1960 from Rome. Not a new thing anyway. The easiest way to handle it is to reconcile to a suck situation. Before NBC, it was ABC's problem. So it goes.

[springrite]

Those living near the Canadian border are the lucky ones since they can watch the Canadian broadcast LIVE!

[Brahmsian]

Are the women weightlifters all women?

[Opus106]

Yeah, I read about it, on Twitter, because we have NBC, that wants to show all the best highlights at 8pm when they can get the most viewers, NOT when it's actually happening..so lame.

Have you tried the streaming feed that they have? I can't stream at home because of my feed rate, and at work because of the Rules, but I understand that they show things in real time there.

What about YouTube? They have parallel webcasts of all events happening at any moment, with and without commentary, from 240 all the way up to 1080p video quality. In fact, I watched the 100m dash last night (very early morning, rather) on YT.

[Todd]

Are the women weightlifters all women?

Define the words "all" and "women."

Speaking of weightlifting, another agony of defeat moment during a 432 pound snatch:

[springrite]

Liu Xiang.

In a way, the best finish. The most poetic way to end his career. I don't think another gold would top this.

[lisa needs braces]

The USA vs China women's volleyball semifinal that just finished was a nail biter. USA won.

[springrite]

The USA vs China women's volleyball semifinal that just finished was a nail biter. USA won.

China never made it to the semis.

Was it Japan? (Japan beat China yesterday 3:2)

[mc ukrneal]

China never made it to the semis.

Was it Japan? (Japan beat China yesterday 3:2)

Beach volleyball...

[Gurn Blanston]

Liu Xiang.

In a way, the best finish. The most poetic way to end his career. I don't think another gold would top this.

I was sad for him, but greatly impressed with his actions. The essence of the Olympic Spirit.

[Gurn Blanston]

China never made it to the semis.

Was it Japan? (Japan beat China yesterday 3:2)

Yes, beach volleyball. China plays Brazil for the bronze tomorrow. The 2 US teams play each other for gold/silver. It has been a good tournament so far, which is say despite the finish, just good solid play.

[springrite]

Yes, beach volleyball. China plays Brazil for the bronze tomorrow. The 2 US teams play each other for gold/silver. It has been a good tournament so far, which is say despite the finish, just good solid play.

Vanessa never appreciated beach volleyball and complain about the players not jumping, not blocking, too slow, etc. When we were on our vacation, she got a little tired walking on the beach. I said: "Now imagine you play volleyball on this sand."
Now, she appreciates them!

BTW, did anyone read that article on "The REAL Medal Count"? Oh geez...
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/united-states-leads-china-real-medal-count-220604173--oly.html

[mc ukrneal]

Vanessa never appreciated beach volleyball and complain about the players not jumping, not blocking, too slow, etc. When we were on our vacation, she got a little tired walking on the beach. I said: "Now imagine you play volleyball on this sand."
Now, she appreciates them!

BTW, did anyone read that article on "The REAL Medal Count"? Oh geez...
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/united-states-leads-china-real-medal-count-220604173--oly.html

They clearly didn't watch the women's soccer games (particularly the US v Canada semifinal)!!

[springrite]

Maybe the only truly objective event is Gladiator Fighting in which the loser dies. No controversy. No points. No judges.

Well, let's ignore that silliness and watch the beautifully objective and subjective event of Equestrian!

[Gurn Blanston]

BTW, did anyone read that article on "The REAL Medal Count"? Oh geez...
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/united-states-leads-china-real-medal-count-220604173--oly.html

That is a very tough nut there. And as I have stated here earlier, I don't really care about final medal counts etc. But I do care about things like judging vs actual play to help determine a winner. Another example came last night when the American girl got a low score on a very good routine on the balance beam. The coach protested that the judges had made an error, and a review determined that in fact, they probably did. Her score was adjusted and she ended tied for third place, but the tie-breaking system determined that she had won the bronze, not the girl who had been initially thought to win it. I thought this entire affair was tragic, and spoke very poorly of the judging system. Later on, some of the scores in the floor exercise were ludicrous, although no more complaints were filed. Nonetheless, it all leaves a bad taste in your mouth if you are a fan of pure sport. Much like the French judges who got tossed from the 2002 Winter Games for throwing scores to the Russian figure skaters in return for Russian money. Incroyable!

However, turning all that dung into a different medal count in order to satisfy ones nationalistic ambitions is equally incroyable.

[Brahmsian]

They clearly didn't watch the women's soccer games (particularly the US v Canada semifinal)!!

That was a fantastic game!  I'm proud of the Canadian women, and their hard fought battle against the # 1 team in women's soccer.  They were so close!