Off-Season Olympics Coverage

[merylinkid]

1 hour ago, roseha said:

Maybe they will have to move the games to the fall for safety, but If they have to, I don't see how the US basketball team could compete.  Or most of the (worldwide) tennis players.  You'd think Olympic Tennis wouldn't be considered important by the players due to its relatively short history but most of them seem to take it very seriously.

Same way professional hockey players compete in the Winter Olympics.   Suspend the season for a couple of weeks.

I dunno about cancelling them.   But movnig them has its own logistical problems.   I mean you plan for summer when people are not working as much so traffic is not as bad.   Oops, now Fall when kids are back in school.   

[Sew Sumi]

An early fall Olympics would only affect the NBA preseson. Most superstars don't play that much then, anyway. It would also be after the US Open, so no conflicts there. It would actually be better for the golfers. 

[selkie]

https://swimswam.com/cas-publishes-full-sun-yang-decision-document-criticizes-suns-lack-of-remorse/

Sounds like being a rectal egress toward the testers did indeed play a role in length of ban. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy, I guess? 

[xaxat]

The Olympic flame arrived in Japan today.

FWIW.

[xaxat]

USA Track and Field and USA Swimming are calling for an Olympic delay. USA gymnastics is currently getting feedback from its athletes. 

[SeanC]

Canada officially says our athletes won’t go unless it’s postponed.

[xaxat]

(Japanese Prime Minister) Abe says Tokyo may have to postpone Olympic Games over coronavirus

I wouldn't be surprised if a decision was made this week.

 

[AimingforYoko]

1 hour ago, SeanC said:

Canada officially says our athletes won’t go unless it’s postponed.

 

1 hour ago, xaxat said:

(Japanese Prime Minister) Abe says Tokyo may have to postpone Olympic Games over coronavirus

I wouldn't be surprised if a decision was made this week.

 

Australia has pulled out as well. It's done for 2020. I say probably 2021, they'll just cancel any World Championships that year.

[xaxat]

Things are picking up steam.

Quote

Yoshiro Mori, president of the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee, said on Monday the decision to consider a postponement, but not a cancellation, of the Games had been agreed to with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach on Sunday. Bach wrote to athletes on Sunday to break the news to them.

 

[andromeda331]

14 minutes ago, xaxat said:

Things are picking up steam.

 

Wow, they really are. People have been suggesting postponing the Olympics but Bach's been blowing them off completely. I'm actually surprised that he's agreed.

[Sew Sumi]

Olympics have been postponed. Per IOC member.

[roamyn]

45 minutes ago, Sew Sumi said:

Olympics have been postponed. Per IOC member.

Yeah.  Possibly till next summer, but that’s not official yet.

[Sew Sumi]

My post was per IOC member Dick Pound. I think it's pretty official. All that's left is for the Tokyo committee to confirm. 

[Dr.OO7]

Rats.

I knew it was coming and I completely agree, but what a shame.

[Sew Sumi]

Now the IOC is backing off, saying Dick Pound's interpretation of events is his own. 

[AimingforYoko]

2 hours ago, Sew Sumi said:

Now the IOC is backing off, saying Dick Pound's interpretation of events is his own. 

Apropos of nothing, that's the best name in Sports.

[xaxat]

Japan's prime minister says IOC president agrees to postpone Olympics

[HartofDixie]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2020/03/24/tokyo-olympics-postponed-coronavirus-summer-games-2021/2863551001/

[KittenPokerCheater]

While I am sure all the athletes are relieved, it must also be a crushing disappointment too. Some folks may have lost their "window" as it were.

[NUguy514]

While I'm sad about the postponement, there was really no other decision to make, and at least they weren't canceled.

[AimingforYoko]

4 minutes ago, NUguy514 said:

at least they weren't canceled.

No way they were going to cancel, the IOC has a "no refund" policy on bribes.

[blueray]

I was disappointed when I heard but it makes sense. It would be to dangerous to have all those people (even if they banned an audience) in one spot. I imagine that most athletes had to put training on hold because of this and need that time to get back into it. I'm glad they didn't cancel either. I heard some time 2021, maybe they'll put it in the spring time or next summer.

[roamyn]

4 hours ago, blueray said:

I was disappointed when I heard but it makes sense. It would be to dangerous to have all those people (even if they banned an audience) in one spot. I imagine that most athletes had to put training on hold because of this and need that time to get back into it. I'm glad they didn't cancel either. I heard some time 2021, maybe they'll put it in the spring time or next summer.

I would think that means two Olympics back-to-back, with Winter still being held in 2022.  Which will pull their pocket book tight, since that’s the whole reason they split them in the first place.

[merylinkid]

14 hours ago, roamyn said:

I would think that means two Olympics back-to-back, with Winter still being held in 2022.  Which will pull their pocket book tight, since that’s the whole reason they split them in the first place.

I thought they split them to generate more interest?    Instead of having it all bunched together, they split them so there would be interest every other year?   Ratings you know.   NBC gets the rating boosts every other year instead of twice in one year.   (not that NBC can get it right YET.    Everyone says SHOW MORE EVENTS.   They go with more personal stories).

[roamyn]

2 hours ago, merylinkid said:

I thought they split them to generate more interest?    Instead of having it all bunched together, they split them so there would be interest every other year?   Ratings you know.   NBC gets the rating boosts every other year instead of twice in one year.   (not that NBC can get it right YET.    Everyone says SHOW MORE EVENTS.   They go with more personal stories).

I remember they specifically said it was a financial issue.  The Olympics getting so big & expensive that it was harder & harder to give countries monies twice a year, plus all the travel expenditures for the IOC members.  

[andromeda331]

1 minute ago, roamyn said:

I remember they specifically said it was a financial issue.  The Olympics getting so big & expensive that it was harder & harder to give countries monies twice a year, plus all the travel expenditures for the IOC members.  

Not to mention all the extra money spent to treat the IOC members like Gods from their stupid long list of demands they just have to have.

[AimingforYoko]

Olympic organizers set July 23, 2021 as target date.

[HartofDixie]

https://nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com/2020/04/09/michael-phelps-simone-biles-usain-bolt-headline-two-weeks-of-olympic-games-week-programming-highlighting-historic-olympic-moments-april-13-26-on-nbcsn/

[legaleagle53]

On 3/25/2020 at 7:28 AM, roamyn said:

I remember they specifically said it was a financial issue.  The Olympics getting so big & expensive that it was harder & harder to give countries monies twice a year, plus all the travel expenditures for the IOC members.  

That doesn't have anything to do with pushing these Olympics back to 2021. The money for the 2020 Olympics has already been allocated and given. The next Summer Games will still take place in 2024 in Paris when they're supposed to, not in 2023. 2021 is just a one-off to get 2020 back on track.

[roamyn]

On 4/25/2020 at 9:56 PM, legaleagle53 said:

That doesn't have anything to do with pushing these Olympics back to 2021. The money for the 2020 Olympics has already been allocated and given. The next Summer Games will still take place in 2024 in Paris when they're supposed to, not in 2023. 2021 is just a one-off to get 2020 back on track.

Nobody said it did.  I was specifically responding to why the Summer & Winter Games were split into separate years, in the first place.

[andromeda331]

I'm glad they did. I always hated having to wait four years for the next Olympics it always felt like forever. Waiting two years is a lot easier.  Having two Olympics back to back 2021 and 2022 is going to be great. 

[xaxat]

Olympic sports were already suffering cuts at the US collegiate level and the coronavirus has only made things worse. Stanford to cut 11 varsity sports, cites pandemic as breaking point

[HartofDixie]

 

[Quickbeam]

I come here to comment on The Weight of Gold. It was interesting to me. I feel really badly for those who labor in low glamour sports and get spit out of the Olympic machine. But Ohno? Seems like he was treated well, I’m not sure anyone deserves a pension for skating fast at 20. 
 

My sympathies are reserved for the women whose sports virtually demand an eating disorder. Cohen and Gold were very well spoken as to their points of view. I have long felt that Olympic competition should be reserved for those 18 and older. So much abuse has occurred leaving children in the hands of sports experts she coaches. 

[Gwendolyn]

On 7/30/2020 at 5:04 PM, Quickbeam said:

I feel really badly for those who labor in low glamour sports and get spit out of the Olympic machine. 

I agree. The skeleton athlete talking about begging to go home when her father was dying and being told, as she was the only member of the US team that had a chance of winning a medal, she had to compete for the sake of the federation. Same for the late bobsledder Steve Holcomb talking about being told if he didn't win in Vancouver his career was over and potentially funding for the sport. All these athletes are often more of a commodity than a human being to their coaches, trainers and sports federations than human beings.

Viewed from that perspective you can see why USA Gymnastics looked the other way while athletes were being abused, because nothing was more important than winning.

 

On 7/30/2020 at 5:04 PM, Quickbeam said:

But Ohno? Seems like he was treated well, I’m not sure anyone deserves a pension for skating fast at 20. 

I think the point Ohno was making wasn't so much a pension, but understanding why it looks like an Olympian is cashing in after gold, because a) they owe a lot of money and b) you have to grab the sponsorship deals while you can to bank for a future you're not prepared for because you've been singularly focused on one thing. But more importantly there needs to be some sort of debt forgiveness plan or counseling on how to transition into something else.  To be the best you have to basically have no life and despite sports federations and the USOC, there's no support for when it's over to figure out how to start a business, become a coach, find a new passion. And athletes that dare to think of life outside the sport better win or you'll hear complaints of how they performed poorly because they went to class in college when they should've been training. There's got to be a happy medium. Not supporting athletes for life, but at least some counseling on how to transition away from training and into something else.

The main take away though is if an athlete says they need help for a depression, instead of the coach having to go up a chain of command at the USOC, they should have names of counselors or therapists on hand for immediate intervention. Allow that athlete to step away if need be or they're going to have more suicides on their hands. Especially with social media and regular media pushing narratives that add unneeded pressure to an already tough gig.

 

[xaxat]

Whoa. White House threats could put U.S. Olympic athletes in middle of anti-doping funding fight

Quote

WADA President Witold Banka said other nations want the organization to consider a resolution that would designate the United States as noncompliant with the World Anti-Doping Code if it withdraws funding, as the Trump administration has threatened to do. The United States being deemed noncompliant could effectively prohibit it from sending athletes to the Olympics, world championships or other major international events.

 

[Silver Raven]

Russia is banned from applying for international sporting events for the next two years.  They were also originally banned from using "Russia" on their uniforms at the next two Olympics, but that has been modified to allow them to use the word Russia if they also use the words NEUTRAL TEAM in the same size on their uniforms. They also can't use the national flag.

https://apnews.com/article/russia-banned-name-flag-olympic-games-a8bd342806883f66152859701d5ae5d4

 

 

[legaleagle53]

We'll see how strictly this "ban" is enforced in Tokyo in 2021 and in Beijing in 2022.

[NUguy514]

20 hours ago, Silver Raven said:

Russia is banned from applying for international sporting events for the next two years.  They were also originally banned from using "Russia" on their uniforms at the next two Olympics, but that has been modified to allow them to use the word Russia if they also use the words NEUTRAL TEAM in the same size on their uniforms. They also can't use the national flag.

https://apnews.com/article/russia-banned-name-flag-olympic-games-a8bd342806883f66152859701d5ae5d4

 

 

As it was in 2018, this is a completely toothless, cowardly decision.  If the doping Russian athletes (i.e. all Russian athletes) are allowed to compete, then no real punishment has been issued, nothing will change, and any idea that the CAS strives to preserve the integrity of fair sport is bullshit.  Russia knows it won this battle.

Meanwhile, a badminton player from Mauritius was issued a two-year ban for doping, which is obviously the correct decision, but it's no skin off the CAS's nose to ban a player from a tiny country.  When it's big, mighty Russia, however, the CAS essentially does nothing.  The inequity drives me crazy.

[CrazyInAlabama]

All afternoon they've been advertising Tokyo 2020, which of course means Summer 2021.    How could they possibly have this safely?  

[AimingforYoko]

On 2/7/2021 at 4:39 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

How could they possibly have this safely?  

Everybody gets vaccinated? Somehow? *coughmoneycough*

[CrazyInAlabama]

Vaccination at best is only 95% effective, and how many will refuse to get it anyway?  

[doodlebug]

21 hours ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

Vaccination at best is only 95% effective, and how many will refuse to get it anyway?  

Most vaccinations are around 90% effective, but that is more than enough to create herd immunity which prevents huge outbreaks.  That's why we don't see measles, mumps and rubella epidemics anymore.

As long as at least around two thirds of the athletes are immune to COVID, there is little chance of a major outbreak at the Olympics because there won't be enough people who can pass it along.  Getting the athletes to get vaccinated is going to be the trick, especially since most of the vaccines require two doses 3-4 weeks apart and immunity isn't full strength until about 2 weeks after the second dose.  That means that they would need to start vaccinating athletes at least a couple months before the games begin.

[xaxat]

Any decision on the 2021 games might be easy compared to the 2022 Winter Games. Human rights groups are urging countries to consider a boycott of the 2022 Beijing games because of the Chinese government's treatment of their Uighur minority. In response, China is indicating that they might institute economic sanctions on any country that does boycott.

[andromeda331]

12 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Most vaccinations are around 90% effective, but that is more than enough to create herd immunity which prevents huge outbreaks.  That's why we don't see measles, mumps and rubella epidemics anymore.

As long as at least around two thirds of the athletes are immune to COVID, there is little chance of a major outbreak at the Olympics because there won't be enough people who can pass it along.  Getting the athletes to get vaccinated is going to be the trick, especially since most of the vaccines require two doses 3-4 weeks apart and immunity isn't full strength until about 2 weeks after the second dose.  That means that they would need to start vaccinating athletes at least a couple months before the games begin.

Yes, but as much as I want the Olympics to happen. I don't want the athletes to be vaccinated before all those most at risk the elderly, essential workers, etc. 

[doodlebug]

10 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

Yes, but as much as I want the Olympics to happen. I don't want the athletes to be vaccinated before all those most at risk the elderly, essential workers, etc. 

I absolutely agree with that.  We've got to protect the most vulnerable first and foremost.  Athletes should be among the last groups immunized.  However, presuming a couple more vaccines are developed and available; it is possible that the developed countries will have enough vaccine to immunize everyone who wants to get it by mid July when the Olympics are scheduled to start.

[AimingforYoko]

Naomi Osaka calls out Tokyo Olympic Committee head for "really ignorant" statements.

Like: “If we increase the number of female board members, we have to make sure their speaking time is restricted somewhat. They have difficulty finishing, which is annoying.”

Isn't it nice when they don't speak in code? Nothing to parse there.

[AimingforYoko]

UPDATE: Yoshiro Mori resigns.

My guess is that he was asked to resign.

[AuntieDiane6]

Quote

I absolutely agree with that.  We've got to protect the most vulnerable first and foremost.  Athletes should be among the last groups immunized.  However, presuming a couple more vaccines are developed and available; it is possible that the developed countries will have enough vaccine to immunize everyone who wants to get it by mid July when the Olympics are scheduled to start.

Thirty to 40% of all healthcare workers are refusing the vaccine and a lot of people here in the US have given up on trying to schedule it or think an even better "one dose" version will come out in the spring.  

There will be plenty for everybody by May.  Heck, even in NY they've opened eligibility requirements.  

[blueray]

My take on the Olympics they make getting the shot (any of them) mandatory to compete. There is no (little) fans in the stands probably just immediate family. And they all wear masks when not competing. Luckily it's summer so a lot of the events are outside. The most dangerous ones are probably swimming and gymnastics. But you figure everyone is vacinated and they space them apart, clean the equipment, etc. 

They do a vertual opening cermony and hopefully still have the countries "march" in. Similar to the democratic convention where each state was voting, except they'll be "coming" in.

The problem of course is third world (or poorer countries) and while I don't agree with it. To be honest, I bet their athletes will get the shot before most of the general population. They value them attending, and I feel like this would be the case even if there wasn't a "mandate" on the shot. Plus a good amount of them don't train in their home country anyway.