Olympics Thread

[Doc Holliday]

Curling is not a sport so much as it is a game. It is similar to shuffleboard and horseshoes, which are not Olympic sports. Curling is in the Olympics probably because it is a way for Canada to beef up its medal count. I don't really have a problem with events being added but if you really want to be fair about it, then add shuffleboard and horsehoes and darts as Olympic events.

Just because the USA sucks in curling doesn't mean you have to put it down. It's a sport being played successfully in many nordic nations, including Scotland, England, Sweden, Norway, Denmark & now even China & Russia. It's also an extremely popular sport to watch on tv in Canada & its gaining popularity in the States.

Obviously you've never played curling before. Or else you'd have a different opinion about it. I'd even predict that after an afternoon of playing curling, you'd wind up in a hospital bed for 3 days complaing of back pain & being sore all over. You have to be in good shape to be an elite curler today, as proven by the Canadians and British who played earlier today.

If the sport of curling doesn't belong in the Olympics, then neither should ice dancing, archery, dressage, skeet shooting, fencing, etc.

 

[Doc Holliday]

4 medals for Canada so far today, including 2 Golds, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze.

Right now Canada is kicking USA's ass in hockey & only a great performance by Jonathan Quick has kept the Canadians from scoring more goals.

I predict a Gold medal for Canada in men's hockey. They look like the Harlem Globetrotters out there today against the Americans. :thumb:

 

[Doc Holliday]

Gold in men curling...I love curling loll,
I was trying to decide if there was ONE winter Olympics sport I would not ended up dead if I was to try it in the Olympic settings and curling is the only one that came to mind...lol

You'd be surprised at how physically exhausting a curling match can be. You have to be in good physical condition to be a successful curler today. You need good stamina & physical strenght. If you're not a good strategist or shooter, you'd likely be on one of the brooms where your physical fitness & stamina is tested at the most. You need to be a good and strong sweeper in order to make the rocks curl and teams with lousy sweepers rarely win at curling. The rocks are also quite heavy and i know people who've been dealing with back issues for years simply from curling. There's also a lot of bending over, especially in shooting & sweeping....people with lousy backs like mine could no longer curl unless they don't mind putting their health to more risk(s).

And that's why Canada's Brad Jacobs rink spends a good part of their time working out & lifting weights in a gym on a daily basis. Being fit & strong gives them a better chance to perform well and their increased stamina means they can play at a high level throughout a match.

 

[Merlot]

BOYZ!

Canada 1 U.S. 0 is kicking ass??? Be careful you don't jinx it and become today's Joe.t bud.

Just because the USA sucks in curling doesn't mean you have to put it down.

If the sport of curling doesn't belong in the Olympics, then neither should ice dancing, archery, skeet shooting, bobsled, fencing, ski jump, hammer throw, javelin, etc.

Remember Beav speaks for himself and no one else, like the rest of us, and I agree he'd be more likely to be boasting if the U.S. was taking the gold. I really don't get why anyone has to put down curling or any other event in the Olympics, especially when they've never attempted the SPORT! Certainly it's ridiculous to equate "shuffleboard and horsehoes and darts" with curling.

However Doc, the way ice dancing has evolved the current requirements make the necessary physical agility, balance, and timing more challenging than hockey overall. I've played hockey, but I wouldn't dare attempt much of anything those freestyle or dancing skaters do, especially without pads or a helmet. Putting down those other sports you mentioned isn't any better than EB. And you should try fencing. It's a hell of a skilled workout. Remember that the Romans made their empire with tactics based on the use of their SKILL with the Gladius...swords!

About the U.S. Olympic performance. In the medals count we're close to the top. Still, I'm disappointed. With our population size, money, and facilities, being very close to countries like the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, and Canada, etc, is something of an embarrassment. By proportion of assets we should be doing much better. It's not a put down of any other countries, it's just that the U.S. potential should be higher. So congratulations on the achievements of all those countries who have accomplished so much in these and other Olympics.

BTW: I'm glad the Canadians are winning at hockey. Maybe you guys who have been crying about a professional Canadian located teams not winning the Stanley Cup can stop blubbering for a while.

Cheers,

Merlot

 

[lgna69xxx]

Congrats to Team CANADA! They played better than Team USA and deserved the win. Now lets get Kessel and JVR back home to get some rest before the game next thursday versus the Taveras-less Isles.

GLG

 

[EagerBeaver]

Certainly it's ridiculous to equate "shuffleboard and horsehoes and darts" with curling.

Actually it is your post that is ridiculous. From wiki:

"In its goals, form and equipment, shuffleboard shares various features with (and perhaps influences by or upon) many other games, including air hockey, bowls, bocce, curling, croquet, carrom and billiards. Historically, the ancient shovelboard, about which little is known, appears to have diverged into modern shuffleboard and sjoelen, and with the former leading to the development of both table shuffleboard and shove ha'penny."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuffleboard

My post merely brought out the latent unfairness of making a game like curling an Olympic Sport, while not doing the same for other similar games, including shuffleboard as well as horsehoes and darts.

And it is you who insult and put down those games, while I merely suggest that they also be considered for Olympic sport status.

 

[man77777]

BTW: I'm glad the Canadians are winning at hockey. Maybe you guys who have been crying about a professional Canadian located team not winning the Stanley Cup can stop blubbering for a while.

Stanley Cup is just about money, Hockey in OG are about real strenght of a Nation.

In this world, there are the things you can buy, and some you just can't... (Price-less)

 

[Merlot]

...many other games.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baseball

"Baseball is a bat-and-ball game..."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Football

"Contemporary codes of football can be traced back to the codification of these games..."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_hockey

"While the general characteristics of the game..."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curling

"Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice towards a target area which is segmented into four concentric rings..."

Beav...anyone can find the word "game" on Wiki in connection to these activities, just as anyone can find the word "sport" for any of them. I hope your astounding need to win a point is not a reflection of your real limited view.

Stanley Cup is just about money, Hockey in OG are about real strenght of a Nation.

Oh yeah, that's why the lack of a Cup for a Canadian located city has caused Canadian hockey fans such distress so frequently. Because it matters so much less. :lol: Someone has a "real strength" in BS.

BTW - So Canada as a nation was weaker than the Czech Republic, Russia, and Finland in 1998; Sweden, Finland, and the Czech Republic in 2006. It's a sport bud...not life and death.

Cheers,

Merlot

 

[Doc Holliday]

Beav...anyone can find the word "game" on Wiki in connection to these activities, just as anyone can find the word "sport" for any of them. I hope your astounding need to win a point is not a reflection of your real limited view.

It doesn't happen very often, but i totally agree!

 

[lgna69xxx]

Lol, Really??? Take a lookie at the article below and you could easily say Canada AND the USA both "bought their way" into today's game theoretically and a chance to buy a medal, Canada for sure gets gold or silver and the States can get bronze.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304450904579367082662376324

Very interesting read and really, quite accurate... Canada and USA are like the NY Yankees (will always have a shot to be champions because of their resources and smarts about the sport) and Team Sweden is more like the red sox, third highest payroll and if they play well and have luck on their side, can pull off a big win once in awhile. GO CANADA! :canada:

PS. I would say a perfect example of something money cant buy and that shows the "strength" (and heart) of a nation is to look no further than at the Jamaican Bobsled team. Little money at all to compete yet they made it back in 2014 to the Olympic Games.

In this world, there are the things you can buy, and some you just can't.

 

[man77777]

Oh yeah, that's why the lack of a Cup for a Canadian located city has caused Canadian hockey fans such distress so frequently. Because it matters so much less.

If you knew Canada, you would know that the "canadian hockey fans" just care about their own team. Ask to any Toronto fans if he would like to see Montreal win its 25th Stanley Cup, just cause it's a canadian team...

Ask to any NHL profesional players, country means absolutly nothing in NHL...

 

[Doc Holliday]

Now lets get Kessel and JVR back home to get some rest before the game next thursday versus the Taveras-less Isles.

GLG

The problem is that they still have one more game to play, against Finland for the bronze medal. I'll be crossing my fingers since Finland is likely to play the Americans like they did against Canada by playing an ultra-defensive style & stay in their own zone for most of the game, hoping to get a tie & win it in a shootout. Which means that Kessel will likely spend a lot of time in the opposing zone, thus making him a target of some vicious hits.

 

[lgna69xxx]

You are correct sir, it just seemed like today was the gold medal game. I say send Phill and JVR home NOW! The Leafs were playing as well as anyone b4 the break and i hope these 2 weeks did not mess that up when they resume on the 27th. (just kidding about sending them home btw)

Not sure if you will be in town for the game against the habs sat night but if you are, meet for wings and a drink for the game? (thursday as well!)

The problem is that they still have one more game to play, against Finland for the bronze medal. I'll be crossing my fingers since Finland is likely to play the Americans like they did against Canada by playing an ultra-defensive style & stay in their own zone for most of the game, hoping to get a tie & win it in a shootout. Which means that Kessel will likely spend a lot of time in the opposing zone, thus making him a target of some vicious hits.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Now this i agree with 110% :thumb:

If you knew Canada, you would know that the "canadian hockey fans" just care about their own team. Ask to any Toronto fans if he would like to see Montreal win its 25th Stanley Cup, just cause it's a canadian team...

Ask to any NHL profesional players, country means absolutly nothing in NHL...

 

[Doc Holliday]

If you knew Canada, you would know that the "canadian hockey fans" just care about their own team. Ask Doc or Igna if they would like to see Montreal win its 25th Stanley Cup, just cause it's a canadian team...

Ask to any NHL profesional players, country means absolutly nothing in NHL...

I agree. When Boston played Vancouver, i was actually cheering for Tim Thomas & the Bruins. I did cheer for Calgary a few years earlier in their cup run, but it had nothing to do with the fact they're a Canadian team. And i'll go on record for admitting that i'll cheer for any other American team if ever the Habs ever make it to the cup finals, which i doubt will ever happen in my lifetime.

The last time Montreal made a run, it happened when the great Jaroslav Halak had stolen Carey Price's job. I cheered for every single American team that faced the habs during those playoffs.

Each NHL team has players from all over the world. Cheering for a team has nothing to do with the country that city is located in. I do know that many habs fans (and other hockey fans) do cheer for a Canadian team if it happens to play against an American team in the playoffs. I find that stupid. If they want to cheer for a nation, then they should wait for the Olympics or the world cup, where national pride does matter.

However, when the Leafs played the Bruins last season in the playoffs, i didn't know a single hab fan who was cheering for the Leafs. Most habs fans i know hate the Leafs as much as I hate the habs. Not much different from the Yankees & Red Sox in baseball.

A few weeks ago, a lot had been made of the fact Sam Kadri (Nazem's father) wasn't wearing a Leafs jersey like the other Leafs fathers did on their recent trip to Florida for games against the Panthers and the Bolts. I didn't think it was such a big deal. Heck, Phil Kessel's dad didn't appear to wear a Leafs jersey either and no one made a fuss about it. It wouldn't surprise me if the haters simply were giving the Kadris a hard time because they happen to be muslims. Anyways, it's quite well known that Sam Kadri has been a long-time Hab fan, having lived in Montreal when he first immigrated from Lebanon. That's where he fell in love with hockey & why he got his son into hockey. Even though they later moved to London, Sam Kadri remained faithful to his longtime team, should like i would be if i'd ever move to Ottawa or Montreal. I'd still be a Leafs fan. I'd expect the same for any habs fan if he'd move to another city or province. People were saying that he should have been wearing the Leafs jersey in order to fit in with the other fathers....and to do it for his son. Baloney!!!

I doubt any father cheering for the Yankees would wear a Red Sox jersey in public if his son played for the Red Sox, and vice-versa. Same thing in hockey when it's the Leafs and habs. Leafs fans forever, habs fans forever. Nothing wrong with that. That's hockey passion for you! :thumb:

 

[man77777]

However, when the Leafs played the Bruins last season in the playoffs, i didn't know a single hab fan who was cheering for the Leafs. Most habs fans i know hate the Leafs as much as I hate the habs.

I agree except on this part. Habs' ennemies are the bruins, not the Leafs... All my friends and myself supported the Leafs on this one...

 

[lgna69xxx]

Ok great, maybe i will have one less date and go to the game also.... $200 for pure bliss for an hour or $200 to see the Leafs/habs in the Bell Centre on a HNIC Saturday night for 3 hours? Cant go wrong with either so why not have both!

I just hope all the time in Russia and the travel does not slow down what was one of the NHL's most deadly duo's in JVR and Kessel. They say traveling that far takes time to recover and they get home likely wee hours of the morning monday and have a game thursday on the road then again travel to Montreal saturday. Lets hope the rest of the team is well rested and ready to go. But Phil and James are professionals so hopefully no side effects from the O games.

If i happen to be in town that weekend, i'm definitely going to the game. I haven't been to a game in over a year or two, and i really feel good about this year's Leafs team. Nothing wrong in meeting up after the game, though! :thumb:

 

[Doc Holliday]

I agree except on this part. Habs' ennemies are the bruins, not the Leafs... All my friends and myself supported the Leafs on this one...

I get you. But i was referring to the habs fans that i knew. They are quite aware that i hate the habs, and in order to 'pay me back', so to speak, they did everything they could to cheer against the Leafs thinking it would piss me off. :smile:

 

[november]

Congrats to both the men and women's hockey teams. They were great games and fun to watch. Carey price was good as usual,the price was right. Defence and goaltending was the difference. Proud to be Canadian, Go Canada Go!

 

[smuler]

A wonderful win by both Canadian hockey squads..

You Canadians should be very proud :canada:

Congratulations to the women, and good luck to the men on Sunday

You have our goaltender in Sweden's net on Sunday....:nod:

I have a funny feeling that he's gonna be needed the way the bees were swarming today vs the USA


Best Regards

Smuler