[Tennis Thread]

Given that Ivanisevic loved the throw around the f-slur with impunity and given that Pat Rafter is one of my all-time favorites and one of the true gentlemen of the game, I will always be very, very, very sad the 2001 final went the way it did.

[Tennis Thread]

3 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

The thing is I don't even think they were all his fans. They were likely just a bunch of drunk assholes who wanted to see more tennis and the drama of a comeback.

This.  Totally this.

11 minutes ago, BlackberryJam said:

ETA: Oh to see the texting going on between Nadal and Federer during this match.

THIS.  TOTALLY THIS.

[Tennis Thread]

*sad trombone

At least it wasn't Zverev who took Djoker out and won his first Slam.

Patrick McEnroe talking about Djoker gaining so many fans this year because of his POTENTIALLY (HAHAHAHA) historic run?  Um...

GIVE IT UP, tool, NO ONE who actually likes tennis likes him.

[Tennis Thread]

1 minute ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Now I am more convinced that I'm a jinx for Med. ☹️

PLEASE KEEP ANOTHER CHANNEL ON UNTIL IT'S OVER, THANK YOU SO MUCH.

Sorry, I'm having some FEELINGS at the moment...

[NFL Thread]

5 hours ago, mojoween said:

Did we all know that TJ Watt is better than JJ Watt?

I know that TJ is hotter.  Does that count?

[Tennis Thread]

3 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Chris Evert was shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, that the fans weren't lovingly backing Novaxx. Sure, he's chasing the calendar Slam, but doesn't she realize how unlikable he is? 

She sounds doped up on pills or something at the best of times, so I can't imagine any lucid thought – like, for instance, the obvious reasons why every normal tennis fan has enormous antipathy for Djoker – ever occurs to her.

[The Medal Race]

China is handling getting edged out of winning the most gold medals really well, you guys.

[MLB Thread]

34 minutes ago, cleo said:

I know it's shocking but it seems another woman had a restraining order against Bauer last yr. 

37 minutes ago, cleo said:

She tried to report the assault to the police and they arrested her for underage drinking.

Yep, that sounds about right.

[Gymnastics]

6 hours ago, ombelico said:

The author of the Slate piece (and all of their articles on gymnastics) is Rebecca Schuman, who shows up in "Golden" touting the typical line of "the USA team is so dominant, they will inevitably win the gold medal and even the C team would win" and now appears to be trying to distance herself from that.

I read her pieces because I enjoy reading about gymnastics but overall I've never come away thinking that her work is especially knowledgeable and well-researched. I doubt she actually talked to any of the gymnasts before writing this latest piece.

Yeah, I was going to say that I've read her gymnastics articles before on Slate and have found them to be pretty insufferable; she acts like she's very informed, but she's really just a blowhard who seems to parrot what others say without actually doing any real investigative work.  She's basically a loudly yapping Pomeranian.

[Closing Ceremony: Winter's Only A Few Months Away]

Did Bach do the usual "I call on the youth of the world to assemble four three years from now in Paris to celebrate the XXXIII Olympic Summer Games" thing?  If so, NBC didn't include it, preferring instead to cut away for a 12-minute-long commercial break right after Bach declared the Tokyo Games closed.  If he did say it and NBC didn't include it, I am going to be so pissed because that's the part that makes me cry, and I don't need to see those same commercials for 47 billionth time, and NBC robbed me of my "the Olympics are over" catharsis!!  If he didn't say it, well...that's a bummer because it's so moving.  Either way, somebody robbed me of my catharsis, damnit!

Also, Johnny Weir's insistence on calling Terry Gannon "Terrance" makes me want to stab him in the face.  I hate it so much.

[Gymnastics]

1 minute ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Was he the one who skated the same long program for like 10 years?  (I exaggerate, but not by much.)

It was actually 23 years, but yes.

[Gymnastics]

I watched the interview, and I didn't think the gymnasts were particularly rude at all for not eating the sushi (and you all know I wouldn't give Skinner the benefit of the doubt on anything if I could possibly help it).  I think any perceived weirdness was NBC's fault.

[Gymnastics]

1 hour ago, Lady Whistleup said:

There's a big age difference between the "grandmas" and the rest of the team. 24 vs 18 doesn't seem like a big age difference but at that age it is. Simone and MyKayla might feel more comfortable around people their own age with the same life experiences.

Skinner acts like she's 13, so I can see Suni and Grace, who are 18 and act like 18-year-olds, being more comfortable around each other than they might be around someone less mature mentally.

Seriously, though, any tension wasn't obvious on camera to me.  If there was any, however, Skinner should have kept her mouth shut about it because she and her trash husband would likely be why there was tension.

[MLB Thread]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

Fucking COVID, what the hell.

More like, this what you get for refusing to get the fucking vaccine, Rizzo.

[The Medal Race]

11 minutes ago, legaleagle53 said:

We have now just passed China for most gold medals as well as everyone else for most medals overall. WOOT indeed!

And if I'm not mistaken, China's last shot to tie us has now passed with Li Qian's silver in the women's middleweight boxing final.  We could still win one more gold in the men's super heavyweight, but we've officially secured the lead for most golds, whether we win by one or two.  And that's largely due to our women, who have won six of the eight (so far, maybe) gold medals we've won in the last two days.

[Volleyball and Beach Volleyball]

YYYYYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSSS!!!!!!!🥇

[Gymnastics]

3 hours ago, greyhorse said:

 I'd be surprised if Suni never had sushi.  Yes, she's Chinese, but I'd think that her Asian parents would at some point have brought the family out to a Japanese restaurant.

Suni is not Chinese; she's Lao (of Hmong descent, to be specific).  And I don't know why her parents would be likelier to take her to a Japanese restaurant than Simone's or Jade's parents (I'll totally grant you Skinner's parents, though; Italian is probably as adventurous as they get with their food choices).

I luuuuurve sushi, but I also understand that people can be really finicky about seafood and that the best athletes in the world can be very picky (understandably) about what they put in their bodies.

It's ironic and delicious to see Russia bitching about cheating and biased judging.  The total lack of self-awareness deserves a god medal in and of itself.  You shouldn't even be here, assholes, so sit on it and spin.

[Swimming, Diving, Water Polo - Live from the Aquatics Centre!]

7 hours ago, katisha said:

16 hours ago, galaxygirl76 said:

Tower diving is too damn stressful, I keep worrying they are going to hit their heads! 

Me too, because many years ago in Australia, someone did. 😔

And Meade isn't the only one.🥺

2 hours ago, Conotocarious said:

Was it me or the second place finisher seem a bit peeved.

He definitely was, although he seemed happy during the medal ceremony.  The pressure on Chinese athletes in certain disciplines (like diving) is enormous, and I think Yang was the one who was "supposed" to win: he had the crazily difficult dives, and he performed the highest-scoring Olympic dive ever as his final dive.  And he still came up just shy of gold by not even two points.  Cao was just a teeny smidge better overall and absolutely nailed that final dive when he absolutely needed to.

[The Medal Race]

4 hours ago, greyhorse said:

Might be an unpopular opinion, but I thought Steve Kornacki was just flat out unnecessary.

Not at all.  When I saw him hyperventilating in front of his little screen on the second day of the Games, I thought to myself, "What is the point of a Steve Kornacki?"  I've since come to the conclusion that a Steve Kornacki does not have a point to it, but I do think if you put two Steve Kornackis in the same room, it would go something like this:

I think they'd eventually wear themselves out.

[Basketball]

I'm an American, but I was rooting for France.  I think it would've been a good thing for Olympic basketball for another country to have won the gold.  At least it was a close game.

[Skateboarding, Sport Climbing, Surfing - New in 2021!]

3 hours ago, greyhorse said:

Quoting myself here... I made the above comment in jest, but I just came across this...

https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/31944288/the-next-great-olympic-sport-cornhole

Please no.

FINALLY!  An Olympic sport I could win a gold in!!

[Swimming, Diving, Water Polo - Live from the Aquatics Centre!]

I cannot stress enough how monumental Quan's achievement is.  It's almost/basically impossible to have one perfect dive at the Olympics, let alone two (and one measly 9.5 away from three...out of five total dives)!!  I took diving when I was a kid (I was terrible and gave it up after six months or so), and that is one of the most dominant Olympic performances of all time; it's basically what Usain Bolt did in Beijing in both the 100m and 200m.  What an absolute thrill to watch her dive!

[Controversy: At THIS Olympics?!]

7 hours ago, AimingforYoko said:

Sad, but not surprising.

Yep.  I hope the harassers are exposed, and then I want those men to be pilloried.

[Swimming, Diving, Water Polo - Live from the Aquatics Centre!]

Quan Hongchan just decimated the record for the women's 10m platform.  Wow.

[Controversy: At THIS Olympics?!]

I'm not sure where else to post this, but it truly, truly abhorrent that NBC still gives Shaun White airtime.  I saw Mike Tirico with him, and I've never hit the fast-forward button so quickly.