Pool and Open Water Swimming: Do Not Swallow the Water

[Chrissytd]

Now that was a race. I didn't even think she had it.

[Arynm]

Phelps is crying. I just love him! Lochte, call me when you get home.

ETA: He is accepting his medal and is completely overcome, just for context

Edited August 12, 2016 by Arynm

[shoregirl]

Yay Simone!!!!!! She was crying,  I was crying what an amazing race she had. Yay to the Canadian swimmer too.

[sereion]

SIMONE MANUEL!!!!!!! YES SISTA GIRL, YES!!

She kicked the door wide open! I loved how Rowdy was genuinely happy for her. I'm also thrilled for Penny!! 16 years old and four medals? She's the one to watch!

Yay for Ryan Murphy winning his second gold!

Edited August 12, 2016 by sereion

[Kromm]

9 minutes ago, megwhite said:

Go Simone! WOW! first african-American woman to win a Gold medal in swinning! 

She definitely wanted to kick the ass of that "black people can't swim" cliche.

[Daisy]

no. screw you NBC. 
Show me Simone and Penny's medal ceremony. 

[Kromm]

Just now, Daisy said:

no. screw you NBC. 
Show me Simone and Penny's medal ceremony. 

This is all on tape delay isn't it?  I'm sure it's coming.

NBC will never pass up an opportunity for shmatlzy patriotism.

[superdeluxe]

Now, I'm mad I missed the Simone Manuel race.  I just didn't want to sit through any Phelps garbage.

[Kromm]

Plus the weird angle of a tie, as well as the African-American swimmer angle.

[chitowngirl]

It hasn't happened yet.

[Daisy]

Just now, Kromm said:

This is all on tape delay isn't it?  I'm sure it's coming.

NBC will never pass up an opportunity for shmatlzy patriotism.

no this is Live. 
wow. i am so proud of Simone too. she's making me double cry. 

[photo fox]

1 minute ago, Daisy said:

no. screw you NBC. 
Show me Simone and Penny's medal ceremony. 

I wonder if they'll crop Penny out, like they've been cropping out the silver and bronze non-American athletes. :-/

[thejuicer]

Yay Penny!!!! Congratulations to Simone also. (I'm Canadian)

What an exciting race, incredible.

[methodwriter85]

3 minutes ago, Arynm said:

Phelps is crying. I just love him! Lochte, call me when you get home.

ETA: He is accepting his medal and is completely overcome, just for context

I just feel like everything means more this time around because I really think Phelps is really done.

Ryan though...I think he can come back. Come back to the 5 and 10, Ry-Ry, Ry-Ry.

[KenyaJ]

God, I'm crying right along with Simone, Greg, Maya, and Lia. How awesome.

[Arynm]

Simone might be my new favorite. Her face when she won was pure amazement, it made me cry. She is still crying and I am just so happy for her. I can't believe there was a tie!

[Kromm]

Just now, photo fox said:

I wonder if they'll crop Penny out, like they've been cropping out the silver and bronze non-American athletes. :-/

They have to play two anthems.

NBC will likely only broadcast ONE of those anthems, I'm sure.

[ketchuplover]

Lochte wins gold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!....in Canada

[Daisy]

History you guys:
we share a border and an olympic record and history. 

 

[galaxygirl76]

Wow, I got lucky because there is a storm going on here and it knocked out cable just after the finish of the ladies 100m. I'm happy that Kromo did well, too bad she didn't medal but this was her best time since she won gold in London. So we're kinda hopeful for the 50m freestyle.

[sereion]

7 minutes ago, Kromm said:

She definitely wanted to kick the ass of that "black people can't swim" cliche.

That, she did!!!! She blew that stereotype wide open!

[Kromm]

8 minutes ago, Daisy said:

History you guys:
we share a border and an olympic record and history. 

 

Well if I understand correctly, the record belongs just to the Canadian, even if the medal is shared. (we are talking about "most medals by a Canadian swimmer in an Olympic games" right?)

The "history" part is divisible I guess.  That record is history of course, but so is the African-American winner thing. A piece of history that is very good for encouraging African-American swimming (something that's needed a boost like... forever), but I do think the way it's being explained is a bit lame. I mean is she the first African-American woman to medal or the first black woman?  There's a huge difference.  But the media reports (so far) aren't distinguishing.

Edited August 12, 2016 by Kromm

[KenyaJ]

I'm so excited to see what a double anthem medal ceremony looks like. The only tie for gold I remember was Anthony Ervin and Gary Hall in Sydney, but that was the same anthem.

[againstthewind]

7 minutes ago, Daisy said:

History you guys:
we share a border and an olympic record and history. 

 

As someone who dated someone from Toronto for 9 years, we love y'all. I'd get dual in a second.

[Daisy]

2 minutes ago, Kromm said:

Well if I understand correctly, the record belongs just to the Canadian, even if the medal is shared. (we are talking about "most medals by a Canadian swimmer in an Olympic games" right?)

The "history" part is divisible I guess.  That record is history of course, but so is the African-American winner thing. A piece of history that is very good for encouraging African-American swimming (something that's needed a boost like... forever), but I do think the way it's being explained is a bit lame. I mean is she the first African-American woman to medal or the first black woman?  There's a huge difference.  But the media reports (so far) aren't distinguishing.

well i just meant... all the historical stuff we're sharing in together. 
like for Simone, being the first african american (maybe? the black swimmer). 
we have our own bit of history, but we get to share in all the history feels because we both .. won ... the.. medal now i feel silly. 

[photo fox]

@Kromm, why wouldn't they share the record? 

I remember at a previous Olympics, there was an athlete of African descent from neither Africa or America, and they called him/her "African-American from 'other country name'". lol

[Kromm]

Just now, Daisy said:

well i just meant... all the historical stuff we're sharing in together. 
like for Simone, being the first african american (maybe? the black swimmer). 
we have our own bit of history, but we get to share in all the history feels because we both .. won ... the.. medal now i feel silly. 

Nah don't.

The whole black vs. African-American bit certainly isn't any of OUR fault, for example. I mean good lord. Its just pure laziness by the reporters IMO.

[Daisy]

Simone and Penny still looked so shocked. 

[selkie]

12 minutes ago, Daisy said:

no. screw you NBC. 
Show me Simone and Penny's medal ceremony. 

Imagine the pre-game between say, the Maple Leafs and Rangers...

Thrilled for Manuel, who has, until now, seemed to be not quite living up as The Next Great Sprinter compared to what the Australians have been doing the past few years. Would love to see a picture of her and the other Simone with their gold medals.

Seems like you can't get away from doping in swimming, and this is in some ways righting a wrong that happened 40 years ago when the Netherlands' (by way of Curacao) Enith Brighita should have been the first black woman to win an Olympic gold but got outyouched by East Germans who were part of their state-sponsored doping program.

http://www.usaswimming.org/ViewNewsArticle.aspx?TabId=0&itemid=4181&mid=8712

Quote

While we never should have waited for 36 years after to acknowledge the wonderful career of Enith Brigitha, we will take the opportunity to celebrate Brigitha’s amazing accomplishments. Brigitha was born in the island of Curacao, in the Caribbean. When her parents divorced, she was relocated to the Netherlands. She went to her first Olympic Games in 1972 at the age of 17. Though she didn’t medal, she gained exposure and experience. After winning a gamut of individual national titles, and after winning a silver and bronze medal at the World Championships, Brigitha was awarded back-to-back “Dutch Sportswoman of the Year” in 1973 and 1974.

At the 1976 Olympic Games, Brigitha finally earned the first individual Olympic medals of her career, becoming the first black swimmer to medal. She finished 3rd in both the 100 and 200 freestyles. However, as mentioned earlier, Brigitha was only beaten by East German swimmers, with the one exception in the 200 freestyle, where USA’s Shirley Babashoff won silver.

Brigitha never officially won Olympic gold. She finally hung up her swimsuit a few years after the ’76 Olympics. But she found a way to give back to the swimming community, opening a swimming school in Curacao.

[Kromm]

4 minutes ago, photo fox said:

@Kromm, why wouldn't they share the record? 

I remember at a previous Olympics, there was an athlete of African descent from neither Africa or America, and they called him/her "African-American from 'other country name'". lol

Because the record is about CANADIANS ("most medals by a Canadian swimmer in an Olympic games") and only one of them is Canadian.

Edited August 12, 2016 by Kromm

[Daisy]

oh. there was no silver medalist. interesting. 
they got announced together. 
then they grinned together. 

Simone waved. Penny liked leaped up there. 
penny got hers first, Simone can't stop grinning. PEnny is laughing
I'm bawling. 

Simone gets her anthem first. 

[Dots And Stripes]

1 minute ago, Kromm said:

Because the record is about CANADIANS and only one of them is Canadian.

The time was an Olympic Record.

[galaxygirl76]

I don't think there is a female gold medal winner from African decent, but there were a few other medalists(I believe one of the ladies on one of the French relay teams in London was of African decent and Enith Brigitha from the Netherlands won two medals in Montreal).

 

I'm so very happy for both ladies, they are so shocked. It warms my heart in so many ways.

 

@Daisy, there is never a second place if there are two winners. Same with if there are two second place finishers, there will be no bronze.

Edited August 12, 2016 by galaxygirl76

[Cherpumple]

Awww, I love it when they cry on the podium!

[Kromm]

Just now, Dots And Stripes said:

The time was an Olympic Record.

Ah cool. Then I withdraw my objection! 

[Daisy]

Simone is crying. I am now losing it. 

Time for O CANADA!! (man i better cherish this we only won 1 gold last Olympics). 
penny looks so stoic. 

[Kromm]

20 minutes ago, Daisy said:

no this is Live. 
wow. i am so proud of Simone too. she's making me double cry. 

Okay, here's the problem.  Even if the swimming was live, they jumped over to Gymnastics. And that was taped this afternoon, wasn't it?

So its NBC monkeying around anyway.

[Daisy]

1 minute ago, galaxygirl76 said:

I don't think there is a female gold medal winner from African decent, but there were a few other medalists(I believe one of the ladies on one of the French relay teams in London was of African decent and Enith Brigitha from the Netherlands won two medals in Montreal).

 

I'm so very happy for both ladies, they are so shocked. It warms my heart in so many ways.

 

@Daisy, there is never a second place if there are two winners. Same with if there are two second place finishers, there will be no bronze.

Penny looks so stunned. 
and you'd think after my 7th summer Olympics, i would have known that. I was legitimately like. "wait. hold up. where's the silver?" LOL thanks :)
 

1 minute ago, Kromm said:

Ah cool. Then I withdraw my objection! 

hehe and I don't feel so silly ;)

[Cherpumple]

I never thought about before, but I guess they need to have a few extra medals on-hand in case of a tie. I wonder what they'll do with that leftover silver?

[jjj]

Canadian channel is also showing Penny going into the stands to greet her family.  Lovely for all of them, and Canada! 

[Kromm]

1 minute ago, Daisy said:

hehe and I don't feel so silly ;)

Consider that Canada specific record a bonus one! 

[Rinaldo]

1 minute ago, Daisy said:

and you'd think after my 7th summer Olympics, i would have known that. I was legitimately like. "wait. hold up. where's the silver?" LOL thanks :)

It's just mathematics. If there are two equal first places, then the next person is in third place. I've seen the "two equal silvers, hence no bronze" before (in fact I think it happened in swimming 4 years ago), but never two golds.

[selkie]

The black Frenchwoman who picked up a relay medal a cycle or two back is Mahlia Matella. Her brother Mehedy just swam the semfinals of the 100 fly.

[Amethyst]

12 minutes ago, superdeluxe said:

Now, I'm mad I missed the Simone Manuel race.  I just didn't want to sit through any Phelps garbage.

I nearly did, too!  I was tired of the grumpy Phelps clock, so I turned the channel, but when I turned back, Simone was already in the water.  I like "WTF?!?"

[Daisy]

if you guys have CBC - they are re-showing the race! :)

[selkie]

A tie for Olympic gold in swimming first happened in the 100M free in 1984 between Nancy Hogshead and Carrier Steniseiffer.

 

In the 1970s, they timed to the 0.001 of a second but went back to the hundredths  around 1980 because there just wasn't the right precision in terms of pool construction and how the tough pads were set up to be fair to the swimmers with that small of a margin.

[Daisy]

Penny is the first person born in this century to win an Olympic individual gold medal. (laugh) - I'm thinking Laurie from gymnastics is the first one to win in a team. 

[muffkins]

What is up with the CBC announcer today.  in the original broadcast of the race, he kept saying Emily Overholt.  Overholt wasn't even in the race.  Man can't keep his swimmers straight.  I noticed that they edited it in the re broadcast.

[TVFan17]

1 hour ago, catray said:

Hate on NBC and the Phelpspalooza all you want but damn, the man is a beast. 4 golds in the 200IM; he totally killed it. 

Poor Lochte... I'm crushed he didn't medal. 

While I am totally opposed to the drunk driving issues, I am hoping that kind of behavior is behind Phelps and that he will now go on to become a wonderful father and (eventual) husband. 

But -- as someone who generally hates sports and avoids watching them on TV with rare exceptions -- when I tune in to the Summer Olympics, I want excitement.  I want drama.  I get all of that pre-, mid- and-post-Phelps' races.   I love watching Phelps swim -- even this many years later -- because he is unreal.   When Phelps races, he IS a beast, as you said.  He is a force.... a machine... a phenomenon... practically superhuman.  Yes, there are many more chances to win medals in swimming than in other sports, but the fact that he can still beat the young whippersnappers now that he is 31 is amazing too.  I'm just not sure that we're going to see anyone else pull off what he has pulled off for many, many, many more years.

Also, I truly think that Phelps' Olympic competitive career has come to an end.  We may see him pop up as a commentator or announcer in 2020, but I think this is the last Olympics where he is going to be so prominent.

And am I the only one who actually loves seeing little Boomer?  I think Boomer is adorable and I have no problem seeing his precious little face and giant headphones!

Edited August 12, 2016 by Sherry67
stupid typo

[Superpole2000]

1 minute ago, muffkins said:

What is up with the CBC announcer today.  in the original broadcast of the race, he kept saying Emily Overholt.  Overholt wasn't even in the race.  Man can't keep his swimmers straight.  I noticed that they edited it in the re broadcast.

He's not a play-by-play guy in any sport. He's a late fill-in. Exceptionally smart guy, very good at his regular job, mediocre at this one. I could tell how sad he was to have screwed up. He was silent for minutes afterward. All told, the swimming commentary has been excellent because the Canadian swimming analyst is an A+.

I hope Penny is interested in communications because she'll have a gig for life with the Canadian Olympics broadcasters if she wants it.