Olympics

[Stuart]

I meant to start this thread yesterday but got distracted by the Sailing on TV.

Has anybody else been watching the Olympics? when you've not been dancing that is. There's been some absolutely gripping action to date - the mixed doubles in the Badminton yesterday, and I've just watched Chris Hoy power his way to Gold in the Cycling. Absolutely brilliant.

[Sparkles]

I meant to start this thread yesterday but got distracted by the Sailing on TV.

Has anybody else been watching the Olympics? when you've not been dancing that is. There's been some absolutely gripping action to date - the mixed doubles in the Badminton yesterday, and I've just watched Chris Hoy power his way to Gold in the Cycling. Absolutely brilliant.

Was watching the swimming!
Yeah it's great :D and so nice when our talented young men and women actually get recognition for all the hard work they put in!
Now, onto my own personal bug-bear... when are they going to make dancing an official Olympic sport?!

[Lynn]

Watched the three day eventing. Bit of a mess with Bettina Hoy (Germany) getting faults which no-one noticed till afterwards - getting gold for Germany - then having it taken away - then given back - latest I heard it was being disputed again. Britain was in with a real chance of a gold, ended up with team bronze and individual silver (which would be team silver and individual gold if those faults are counted).

Any other 'horsey' folk think the cross country looked pretty easy compared to British courses? Some great moments in the showjumping though!

[Stuart]

Was watching the swimming!
Yeah it's great :D and so nice when our talented young men and women actually get recognition for all the hard work they put in!
Now, onto my own personal bug-bear... when are they going to make dancing an official Olympic sport?!
One of my former work colleagues is now working on the London 2012 Bid team. The next time I see her, I'll ask her what the chances are of getting Dancing included : :grin:

[Stuart]

Well done Matthew Pinsent and crew. That was an incredible effort and real edge of the seat stuff. I'd shouted myself hoarse by the end.

[Will]

I see some young upstart has gotten in infront of the "Official Sports Commentator" in starting an Olympic Thread. Sassanacks!

That rowing was something else though eh! Go GB :clap: :clap: :clap:

[Foofs]

The Olympics have been fantastic to watch - some very entertaining moments. I really felt for Robertson and Emms just missing out on gold but a great silver nonetheless. And the coxless-fours - my word! I've seen the medal ceremony three times now and mum and I cried each time. If Matthew doesn't get Sportsperson of the Year this year there is something very wrong!
The swimming hasn't been too great for us, but Stephen Parry was awesome. Hopefully the two relays and Davies tonight can finish on a high. And Phelps just leaves me speechless!
I am very concerned about the problems regarding DQs etc. I think the eventers were robbed - we should have won gold, silver and bronze. Don't know what the Jury of Appeal were thinking... As for the swimming DQ in the 200m back - what was the referee thinking!! If there is not enough information to DQ him, don't DQ him. I'd have thought they would have learnt their lesson after the Commonwealth Games, but never mind. Hopefully they'll have learnt it the hard way this time...

Anyway, rant over - lets hope that the recent build-up of medals for GB will continue after a slow start. (Especially when two of the four golds are round Scottish necks!!!)

:cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

[baldrick]

Yea, watched Bradly Wiggins win the gold in cycling persuit. GO the bikers
:clap: :clap: :worthy:

[Lynn]

Watched the three day eventing... latest I heard it was being disputed again...
The faults for Bettina Hoy were upheld which means that Leslie Law wins individual gold for Britain and the British win team silver :clap:

Feel sorry for Bettina though - was at a showjumping comp this afternoon (watching) and where the start was, that couldn't have happened - though it didn't happen to anyone else at the Olympics except Bettina (she rode through the start twice, which meant her round was counted from the first time, so she went over the time and had time faults, if anyone is interested - possibly not!). Sad as she thought she had won gold, but ended up dropping out of the medals completely. But great for the British team.

[Lynn]

The faults for Bettina Hoy were upheld which means that Leslie Law wins individual gold for Britain and the British win team silver :clap: And of course Pippa Funnel gets the individual bronze as well. So gold, silver and bronze for Britain in eventing. :clap:

[Stuart]

That was desperately unfortunate for Paula Radcliffe today. It was always going to be extremely difficult to run a Marathon in those conditions, and once the body starts to go in those situations, there's nothing you can do to pull it back.

[Tiggerbabe]

It was always going to be extremely difficult to run a Marathon in those conditions
Or in my case, just miss out the last three words - furthest I ever got was 10K.
:worthy: to marathon runners everywhere.
What about the mens 100m final though? Are they fit or what? :clap: :clap:

[ElaineB]

Watched the three day eventing. Bit of a mess with Bettina Hoy (Germany) getting faults which no-one noticed till afterwards - getting gold for Germany - then having it taken away - then given back - latest I heard it was being disputed again. Britain was in with a real chance of a gold, ended up with team bronze and individual silver (which would be team silver and individual gold if those faults are counted).

Any other 'horsey' folk think the cross country looked pretty easy compared to British courses? Some great moments in the showjumping though!

Yes, compared to Badminton, I thought the Olympic course looked like a walk in the park. Even the water looked moderately straight forward. The striding at a couple of the combinations looked a bit short also?

Been watching the gymnasts as well - how do they do that?


Elaine

[Sparkles]

Am typing this watching Kelly Holmes receiving her GOLD medal for the 800m - way to go Kelly :clap:, it's been a long time coming but boy did she deserve it in the end! The look on her face as she crossed the line was priceless!

[Daisy]

Looks like they have as much trouble with judging and marking in the Olympics as they do in dancing. If they can't get it right then what hope do we have! :sick:

The scoring in the gymnastics has been a discrace. :whistle:

[Divissima]

I have become an Olympics junkie over the last ten days! Been watching a bit of everything (although favourites are gymnastics, swimming, and rowing) - that's one thing I love about the BBC's coverage of the Olympic Games - you can watch half an hour of judo (for example) and the commentator will explain the rules so you understand what on earth is going on, cheer on a British athlete, then just as you've had enough, they will cut to coverage of another sport. Could do without some of the inane interviews and commentary though :rolleyes:

It is so inspiring watching such amazing athletes as Matthew Pinsent, Ian Thorpe and the gymnasts. Makes me want to get down the gym more often :D

Even considering trying to go to Beijing in 2008, but not sure how feasible it would be. By the way, I thought that one or two Olympics ago, there was talk of Dancesport (ballroom) being an exhibition sport with a view to becoming a full event, but I'm not sure if this is my mind playing tricks on me. Anyone else remember this?

[Divissima]

Looks like they have as much trouble with judging and marking in the Olympics as they do in dancing. If they can't get it right then what hope do we have! :sick:

The scoring in the gymnastics has been a disgrace. :whistle:I tend to agree with you, Jane. Especially Khorkina and Nemov - their marks seemed unaccountably harsh. But then, what do I know? TwK (formerly a gymnast himself :yum: ) was explaining that judges are required to deduct fixed amounts for certain types of error.

[Lynn]

Looks like they have as much trouble with judging and marking in the Olympics as they do in dancing. If they can't get it right then what hope do we have! :sick: The eventing marking was a real mess and I'm sure will leave a bad atmosphere on the international eventing scene for a while. If the faults had been counted at the time it would have been seen as bad luck, unfortunate, or over fussy marking - but now that a competitor and country are being asked to hand back gold medals, it is seen as unsporting and unfair.

And so disappointing for Paula Radcliffe.

[Lynn]

Anyone know why Britain doesn't have a team in the showjumping? (An event they would have a good chance of winning gold in) I saw some of it but didn't hear any reason why. Didn't see a team for Ireland either and don't think the world champion (Dermot Lernaghan) is there as I saw him in a local show on Sat and the opening round was Sunday.

[Foofs]

Was watching the swimming!
Now, onto my own personal bug-bear... when are they going to make dancing an official Olympic sport?!


I've been thinking about this for years (from about the time that it was clear my own dream of being an Olympic swimmer was not going to be realised) but the problem is - what kind of dancing do you include? There are SO MANY styles, e.g. is ballet just an artform?; should disco/streetdance/hiphop etc be included when there are competitions for these already?; what about national dancing - highland dancing already has its own world championships?; then there is partner dancing - how much gets included - all the variants of MJ, all styles of ballroom, rock 'n' roll...?

Besides, at the end of the day is dance not more of an artform than a sport -would it qualify for the Olympics? If so, why? :wink:

[Divissima]

Is iceskating (the artistic kind rather than in-line speed skating) still an Olympic event (presumably Winter Olympics)? If so, I guess that is also a form of dance. You could have the same compulsory exercises and a freedance applicable to ballroom dancers (or other forms of dance), I guess. Also, I believe that the judges in many of the gymnastics events (and presumably synchronised swimming if that is still an Olympic sport) give marks for artistic interpretation, so there is already an element of subjective and 'artistic' marking there.

I suspect, as I blunder wildly through the issues, that this is a well-worn argument, though....

[Lynn]

Also, I believe that the judges in many of the gymnastics events (and presumably synchronised swimming if that is still an Olympic sport) give marks for artistic interpretation, so there is already an element of subjective and 'artistic' marking there. I had been thinking that about the gymnastics as well - scoring for both technical skills and artistic interpretation. So from that point of view, certain aspects of dance could be viewed as 'sport' ?

[Divissima]

Interestingly, if you go on the IOC website, Dancesport is a recognised sport and the International Ballroom Dancers Federation is a recognised sport federation.

I guess MJ has a way to go before we have anywhere near that level of organisation (but the idea of the MJDA looks less wacky now! :wink: )

[Dreadful Scathe]

i dont think that was ever a wacky idea, just impractical for now. There are thousands of modern jivers but no pros that i know of, im sure that to be a pro, at least using the same definition as an ice skater would use for example, you'd have to earn your living only from modern jive i.e. sponsorship, dance teaching, competition prizes... so maybe this will happen when events are televised and competitions are regular and sponsors are suddenly interested, but even then perhaps modern jive has a lot of evolving to do before this woud be possible. Im sure ice skating was at one point "a couple on skates struggling to stay up and dance at the same time", someone got realy good, others competed with them, people paid to watch them and with popularity it became what it is now. Is Modern Jive too marginal a dance for this to ever happen ?

[MartinHarper]

Olympic Jive? If it were anything like ice skating, I can imagine the list of required moves...

Triple Windmill (additional marks for direct entry into catapult or variant)
2.5 Butterfly (2.5 min: triple or higher butterfly for additional marks )
Sustained freespin (marked solely on number of turns)
Minimum bpm 160

Hmm, unappealing. Hopefully it won't happen any time soon... :)

[Stuart]

I have become an Olympics junkie over the last ten days! Been watching a bit of everything (although favourites are gymnastics, swimming, and rowing) - that's one thing I love about the BBC's coverage of the Olympic Games - you can watch half an hour of judo (for example) and the commentator will explain the rules so you understand what on earth is going on, cheer on a British athlete, then just as you've had enough, they will cut to coverage of another sport. Could do without some of the inane interviews and commentary though :rolleyes:

It is so inspiring watching such amazing athletes as Matthew Pinsent, Ian Thorpe and the gymnasts. Makes me want to get down the gym more often :D

Even considering trying to go to Beijing in 2008, but not sure how feasible it would be. By the way, I thought that one or two Olympics ago, there was talk of Dancesport (ballroom) being an exhibition sport with a view to becoming a full event, but I'm not sure if this is my mind playing tricks on me. Anyone else remember this?

There was talk at one time about Ballroom dancing being included in the Olympics. However I seem to remember that when Jacques Rogge became IOC president he decided that there were too many sports in the Olympics and they would try to get rid of some of them.

What a brilliant run last night by Kelly Holmes. It finally proved what she could do when fully fit. Shame I missed it as I decided to go dancing instead!

[Divissima]

MJ would probably need to change its name to JiveSport to stand any chance :rofl:

[Dance Demon]

Is iceskating (the artistic kind rather than in-line speed skating) still an Olympic event (presumably Winter Olympics)? If so, I guess that is also a form of dance.

as far as I can remember, there is figure skating, and ice dance, and they are seperate disciplines. Can't remember what the difference is, though it might be that individuals do figure skating, and couples do ice dance. :confused:
Either way, dancing on ice is considered a sport...... :)

[Divissima]

i dont think that was ever a wacky idea, just impractical for now. There are thousands of modern jivers but no pros that i know of, im sure that to be a pro, at least using the same definition as an ice skater would use for example, you'd have to earn your living only from modern jive i.e. sponsorship, dance teaching, competition prizes... so maybe this will happen when events are televised and competitions are regular and sponsors are suddenly interested, but even then perhaps modern jive has a lot of evolving to do before this woud be possible. Im sure ice skating was at one point "a couple on skates struggling to stay up and dance at the same time", someone got realy good, others competed with them, people paid to watch them and with popularity it became what it is now. Is Modern Jive too marginal a dance for this to ever happen ?
All good points, Smurfy. I just wonder whether there are as many people who are involved in icedance or figure skating as there are in ballroom dancing these days. It's a genuine question - would be interesting to find out. Maybe some of the sports involved in the Olympics are throwbacks and will be edged out for younger 'sexier' sports (er, beach volleyball anyone :wink: ). One thing which emerged in my cursory glance at the IOC website earlier is that in order to get IOC recognistion, the sports have to have some kind of international governing body - and subject themselves to the same drug testing guidelines.

I am suffering nasty images of the open competitors being ushered off the floor of the Hammersmith Palais to pee into bottles! :sick:

[RobC]

I am suffering nasty images of the open competitors being ushered off the floor of the Hammersmith Palais to pee into bottles! :sick:
:rofl: I was going to make some comment involving the toilets at the Palais, but I'll resist.

[Gus]

There was talk at one time about Ballroom dancing being included in the Olympics. However I seem to remember that when Jacques Rogge became IOC president he decided that there were too many sports in the Olympics and they would try to get rid of some of them.


I truly hope that we get back to more SPORTS and less ARTS in the Olympics. Remember the furore when Synchronised Swimming became and event? (Is it still there?). I'm sorry to be blunt but why dont we just go the full hog and have Morris Dancing (that should increase our medal haul), darts, chess and and team interior decorating. At least if they introduced synchronised pole dancing the ratings would go up (ohh ... forgot .. no need, there is already semi-nude beach volleyball!!)

At Uni we (succesfully) stooped the Ballroom dance club moving across from the Societies Union to the Athletics Union .... but that barrier has now been breached. I find it extremly worrying that Ice Dance is an Olympic sport but of all the martial arts only Taekwando and Judo are Olympic sports ... not very representative when you consider all the martial arts practitioners throughout the world.

Then again, maybe I'm totally off track ... in the original Olympics wasn't poetry or prose an event?

[RobC]

I'm sorry to be blunt but why dont we just go the full hog and have Morris Dancing (that should increase our medal haul), darts, chess and and team interior decorating.
Oh Gus, Gus, Gus. I never had you down as part of the 'Natasha Kaplinski, I think Jive is like Morris Dancing' crowd. You have gone down in my estimations...... :whistle:
:flower: :hug:

Seriously though, if DanceSport was to be an olympic event, TeamGB would have a very strong chance of wiping the board with the medals. There is a reason why most the top dancers come to the UK to train :waycool:

[RobC]

At Uni we (succesfully) stooped the Ballroom dance club moving across from the Societies Union to the Athletics Union .... but that barrier has now been breached.
Oh yes, and we were one of the Unis pushing to make Ballroom part of the Athletics Union - It was a hard fight, but we got there in the end :clap:

[Stuart]

I truly hope that we get back to more SPORTS and less ARTS in the Olympics. Remember the furore when Synchronised Swimming became and event? (Is it still there?). I'm sorry to be blunt but why dont we just go the full hog and have Morris Dancing (that should increase our medal haul), darts, chess and and team interior decorating. At least if they introduced synchronised pole dancing the ratings would go up (ohh ... forgot .. no need, there is already semi-nude beach volleyball!!)

At Uni we (succesfully) stooped the Ballroom dance club moving across from the Societies Union to the Athletics Union .... but that barrier has now been breached. I find it extremly worrying that Ice Dance is an Olympic sport but of all the martial arts only Taekwando and Judo are Olympic sports ... not very representative when you consider all the martial arts practitioners throughout the world.

Then again, maybe I'm totally off track ... in the original Olympics wasn't poetry or prose an event?

Apparently Karate was due to be admitted at Barcelona, but due to some very shady back room manouverings Taekwando got in. The book " Lords of the Rings" by Andrew Jennings goes into more detail about this.

Did anyone see Amir Khan's fight in the Boxing this evening? That was an incredible performance.

[Tiggerbabe]

I've just watched the end of the Decathlon - wow! Daley Thompson's (sp?) olympic record has been beaten at last, 20 years (?) on. :worthy: :worthy:
Thing that impressed me most, though, was the cameraderie between all of the competitors - wonderful to see :clap: :clap:

[Jooles]

I am sitting in Athens writing this in the BBC office where I've been for the last four weeks. I've not managed to find a place to jive in Athens. A few of us went to a salsa club during the first week we were here but it turns out that they don't open these clubs in August. So I have really been missing my dancing.

I thought I'd answer a few of your questions before I go to a briefing on the Closing Ceremony......can life get any more exciting!!!!!

GB didn't qualify a team for the show jumping. We simply don't rank highly enough in the world. Ireland though do have a team here.

Each home nation at one time were allowed to include two new sports into the games and there was talk in Sydney of Ballroom dancing being included. In the end I think taekwondo was included instead. However in China there is talk of no horse events being included nor some of the canoeing events. So who knows, if people in Chine do a lot of dancing, jiving may get a chance.

Synchro swimming IS still in the Olympics. I made a very tongue in cheek story about it for our programme last night.

I'm sorry to read the comment that the interviews and commentary is inane. So much time and effort goes into those commentaries and interviews. I think our commentators just get used to being criticised, but when I know how hard I've worked to make the sport I'm working on a bit more entertaining or informative for everybody at home I still get upset. I'll just have to develop a much thicker skin.

I hope you carry on watching.....and enjoying.

[Gadget]

... but of all the martial arts only Taekwando and Judo are Olympic sports ... not very representative when you consider all the martial arts practitioners throughout the world.
Fencing? (Eppe) It is considered a martial art.
It was scheduled, and the video was set, but it got pulled and something else put in it's place.:mad: I have heard multiple rumors that they have been looking to get rid of it from the Olympics for a few years now; not happened yet.

[Tiggerbabe]

when I know how hard I've worked to make the sport I'm working on a bit more entertaining or informative for everybody
So, what sport is it then Jooles?

My nine year old has to write a report for a magazine, on one of the Olympic Sports, for his homework, with the instruction that it must be both interesting and informative - HELP!!!!!!! He didn't chose to do it on Synchronised Swimming though :whistle: :whistle:

[Gus]

Apparently Karate was due to be admitted at Barcelona, but due to some very shady back room manouverings Taekwando got in. The book " Lords of the Rings" by Andrew Jennings goes into more detail about this.


Heard a rumour that the son of the President of the IOC did Taekwando ... of course I bet that had nothing to do with the decision :whistle:

[Sheepman]

I'm sorry to read the comment that the interviews and commentary is inane. I hadn't noticed those comments, but no doubt there is some truth in it, it must be tough for 2 and 1/2 hours of a marathon, when most viewers will be dipping in and out. But the other night, we got round to a friends house, she was watching the 100m heats on Sky Sports! To me that has always been the home of tedious and inane commentary, OK it wasn't as bad as I remembered, but we insisted that she switch over to BBC for decent coverage. :clap:

I vaguely recall a conversation from earlier that day, "Sue Barker, she is so good isn't she?" . . . "and that other woman . . ."

Greg

[Lynn]

GB didn't qualify a team for the show jumping. We simply don't rank highly enough in the world. Ireland though do have a team here. Thanks. I was wondering afterwards f we didn't have enough good horse/rider combinations. There should be though! Nick Skelton jumped such a brilliant round last night - its a pity there wasn't a team all riding like that! I think I read that Dermot Lernaghan is running a training weekend in NI for up and coming riders so maybe in years to come GB and Ireland will be up there in the medals!

[Divissima]

Each home nation at one time were allowed to include two new sports into the games and there was talk in Sydney of Ballroom dancing being included. In the end I think taekwondo was included instead. However in China there is talk of no horse events being included nor some of the canoeing events. So who knows, if people in Chine do a lot of dancing, jiving may get a chance.Or, if London does get the 2012, maybe we just encourage the Dancesport people to lobby the organising committee, and then try to get MJ into the opening or closing ceremonies... :waycool:


Synchro swimming IS still in the Olympics. I made a very tongue in cheek story about it for our programme last night.Aha! I haven't seen any on TV yet, but will keep watching.


I'm sorry to read the comment that the interviews and commentary is inane...when I know how hard I've worked to make the sport I'm working on a bit more entertaining or informative for everybody at home I still get upset. I'll just have to develop a much thicker skin. Apology already PMd to Jooles :blush:


I hope you carry on watching.....and enjoying.Watching as I type....

[Lynn]

Thanks. I was wondering afterwards f we didn't have enough good horse/rider combinations. There should be though! Nick Skelton jumped such a brilliant round last night - its a pity there wasn't a team all riding like that... maybe in years to come GB and Ireland will be up there in the medals! Or maybe this year... after the first round of the individual there were only 2 clear rounds - Britain and Ireland. Nick Skelton did another fantastic round - amazing considering 4 years ago he broke his neck. Well done to him!

[Tiggerbabe]

:clap: :clap: Congratulations to Amir Khan - into the finals of the boxing - and the commentator mentioned Dick McTaggart of Dundee (very famous British boxer,who won gold in 1956 ) at least twice - hurrah!!!!!! :D :D

[Stuart]

I saw the Cuban world champion he might have to face in the final earlier in the games and he looked really good. It should be a really good fight in the final.

I'm now going to give Paula Radcliffe every chance for this evening by going out. It worked for Kelly Holmes on Monday :grin:

[Tiggerbabe]

so maybe in years to come GB and Ireland will be up there in the medals!
Not in years to come Lynn :wink: - Just seen Ireland get a gold in the showjumping - many congratulations :clap: :clap: :hug:

[Lynn]

Not in years to come Lynn :wink: - Just seen Ireland get a gold in the showjumping - many congratulations :clap: :clap: :hug: I know - its great! :clap: A good boost to the sport in Ireland. I really wanted Nick Skelton to get a medal for GB though - just a shame those 3 fences came down in the final round (1 or 2 and he could have still won silver or gold). All the same, a great comback after a broken neck 4 years ago. Great to see so much showjumping on 'regular' TV – one of my favourite sports (you’d never have guessed :whistle: )

[Chicklet]

I'm sorry to read the comment that the interviews and commentary is inane. So much time and effort goes into those commentaries and interviews. ...
I'll just have to develop a thicker skin

I've done a quick poll in my office and it has been decided that the best way to improve the commentary will be to show a screen three quarters full of Jonathon Edwards in full smile and leave the "other action" in the top right corner where it won't distract from the talent.
I'm also quite happy to pop over and and test the thickness of his skin. :nice:

[Tiggerbabe]

Another medal this morning on the water :clap: :clap: - Ian Wynne managed to get bronze in the canoeing, despite having sprained his ankle falling off the team bus last night - all that training and then nearly missing out because you can't find the pavement - oops!!!! :whistle:

Hoping to be near a tv someplace tonight to catch Kelly Holmes race *fingers crossed*

and a huge thanks to Jules, who sent a lovely e-mail to David to help with his homework, really kind :hug: :flower: :flower:

[jivecat]

Looks like they have as much trouble with judging and marking in the Olympics as they do in dancing. If they can't get it right then what hope do we have! :sick:

The scoring in the gymnastics has been a discrace. :whistle:


Yes. I agree. They had to alter the marking scheme some time ago after the time of Nadia Comaneci but I think it should be revised again. I don't think Khorkina performed very well but I love all the prima donna stuff. The incident of Nemov's marks was unbelievable- I don't know what was worse- the low mark he got, or the fact that the audience was able to sway the judging. Where will it all end? I thought Nemov's behaviour was pretty sportsmanlike under the circumstances. Almost more entertaining than the gymnastics was the cameramen's attempts to catch one of the stars looking sulky. I thought the American team looked a touch mardy when they failed to get the gold but Courtney Cupets made up for it by smiling dutifully whenever she got knocked off lead position. The Korean guy's body language when he left the arena after unjustly being done out of the gold was classic - head down, shoulders up, bottom lip out, feet stomping. But I really couldn't blame him.

Have any rhythmic gymnastics - the bit where they wave the ribbons about - been televised?

[drathzel]

Yes. I agree. They had to alter the marking scheme some time ago after the time of Nadia Comaneci but I think it should be revised again. I don't think Khorkina performed very well but I love all the prima donna stuff. The incident of Nemov's marks was unbelievable- I don't know what was worse- the low mark he got, or the fact that the audience was able to sway the judging. Where will it all end? I thought Nemov's behaviour was pretty sportsmanlike under the circumstances. Almost more entertaining than the gymnastics was the cameramen's attempts to catch one of the stars looking sulky. I thought the American team looked a touch mardy when they failed to get the gold but Courtney Cupets made up for it by smiling dutifully whenever she got knocked off lead position. The Korean guy's body language when he left the arena after unjustly being done out of the gold was classic - head down, shoulders up, bottom lip out, feet stomping. But I really couldn't blame him.

Have any rhythmic gymnastics - the bit where they wave the ribbons about - been televised?

I havent seen any rhythmics this time!! And like the sad little girl i am i have been watching the highlights, at least, everynight!!

Very glad the footies back on!! I was starting to get withdrawl symptons!!

I vote ceroc become an olympic sport!! :na:

[Stuart]

I havent seen any rhythmics this time!! And like the sad little girl i am i have been watching the highlights, at least, everynight!!

Very glad the footies back on!! I was starting to get withdrawl symptons!!

I vote ceroc become an olympic sport!! :na:

According to my paper, the rhythmic gymnastics are on today and tomorrow. It doesn't look as though it is on the BBC, but it might be on Eurosport.

[Stuart]

What a brilliant run by Kelly Holmes. Not only a gold, but a PB and something that hasn't been done since 1920 (Albert Hill did it then for GB, according to Brendan Foster). Who'd have thought at the start of the Olympics that she would do that.

I'd say she is almost certain to get the Sports Personality of the year now.

[Minnie M]

Doesn't make you feel proud to be British - fantastic :worthy: Kelly rules :worthy: girl power :worthy:

[Minnie M]

What a brilliant run by Kelly Holmes. .............I'd say she is almost certain to get the Sports Personality of the year now.
:clap: :yeah: :worthy: wot an amazing race :worthy:

[Lory]

Another GOLD! Mens 4 x 100! :clap: :worthy: :clap: :cheers:

[drathzel]

According to my paper, the rhythmic gymnastics are on today and tomorrow. It doesn't look as though it is on the BBC, but it might be on Eurosport.


Damn Sky television and all other deviants!!! Thank you :innocent: xxx

[Stuart]

Another GOLD! Mens 4 x 100! :clap: :worthy: :clap: :cheers:

That was a bit of a turn up for the book. Given the way they ran in the semi final I was sure they were either going to drop the batton or muck up the changeovers in some way. Brilliant performance.

Did anybody catch the moment when Kelly Holmes was on the podium about to receive her Gold medal for the 1500m. Hicham El Guerrouj was doing his lap of honour after winning the 5000m (the first man to win the 1500m and 5000m since Paavo Nurmi). Just as he went past the podium, he and Kelly turned to acknowledge each other's achievements - brilliant.

[Dance Demon]

Just watched Amir Khan win Silver. Absolutely no disgrace in losing to a Cuban who has not been beaten since 1999. Amir boxed exceptionally well and can be proud of winning silver at the tender age of 17. definately one for the future :clap: :clap:

[drathzel]

Well started off poorly but have redeemed ourselves!! Go GB

[Stuart]

We've actually ended up with a bigger medal haul than in Sydney, so well done GB.

Time now to catch up with all the other stuff I've videoed during the Olympics!

[drathzel]

Time now to catch up with all the other stuff I've videoed during the Olympics!


I cant believe its over sniff sniff :tears: what will i do with out the atheletics, the swimming and the gymnastics? oh well thank god for footie!! Yeahy!!

[Stuart]

I cant believe its over sniff sniff :tears: what will i do with out the atheletics, the swimming and the gymnastics? oh well thank god for footie!! Yeahy!!

Rugby season kicks off next Saturday as well
:clap:

[drathzel]

Rugby season kicks off next Saturday as well
:clap:


Woo hoo.. thank god we are a bunch of sports mad citizens!!! :rofl:

[RobC]

I cant believe its over sniff sniff :tears: what will i do with out the atheletics, the swimming and the gymnastics? oh well thank god for footie!! Yeahy!!
Jeez. You guys..... Anyone might think that you have a life outside dancing and the forum ..... :whistle:

[drathzel]

Jeez. You guys..... Anyone might think that you have a life outside dancing and the forum ..... :whistle:


HA not possible.... you can have the tv on in the backround when you are n the computer :grin: