Benji Posted 28 February 2010 Posted 28 February 2010 Lucky enough to watch Parise play for the Devils over new years, he's a machine.
shen Posted 28 February 2010 Posted 28 February 2010 What a match this is! Neither side deserve to lose really
Fosse Boy Posted 28 February 2010 Posted 28 February 2010 SUPER SID!!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jordan Posted 1 March 2010 Posted 1 March 2010 Ugh. That Crosby goal wounded my soul. But I've got to be real here; a silver medal (with a win over Canada, no losses in regulation time) should be considered a great success for this USA team, considered by everybody to be good-but-not-great and given only an outside chance to reach the gold medal game. I'm hurt... but I'm damn proud of my team. These Olympics got off to the worst start possible, yet were immensely enjoyable to watch and follow. Vancouver and Canada really rallied behind these Games and showed great support in every sport; I couldn't count how many times I thought to myself, "I wish I were there!" See you in Sochi 2014! edit: Badcock Babcock.
Lillehamring Posted 1 March 2010 Posted 1 March 2010 well, i for one am going to struggle to fill the void left by this olympics - my birth nation got a long overdue gold, and my adopted nation, despite having half the participants and a fraction of the population matched the USA for golds, and weren't too far behind the germans and the canadians... so all good. oh, and having made my second ever cross country skiing expedition yesterday, to come home and watch northug race to another gold, was breathtaking, realising that it is the most physically demanding sport you can imagine!
Floating Fox Posted 1 March 2010 Posted 1 March 2010 Been watching the arieals....How mental is that shite!?
Lillehamring Posted 1 March 2010 Posted 1 March 2010 i just happened upon this, and it is absolutely scandalous - no wonder people find americans hard to stomach sometimes.... essentially, this yahoo website has developed a weighting system for olympic medals, which - shock horror - makes them the most successful nation. basically they have decided that certain medals are more 'prestigious' than others, inevitably events that the americans happen to excel in, and bizarely including the ultimate non-sport of figure skating... pretty pathetic, to be honest, and sadly bitter in their failure to dominate... The United States won the most medals in Vancouver, but Canada ended the Winter Games with the most golds. The press has declared the U.S. the winner of the medal count, but the International Olympic Committee will rank Canada at No. 1 by virtue of those 14 gold medals. So, which nation was the true victor of the 2010 Winter Olympics? Fourth-Place Medal has created a new medal tabulating system to answer that very question.For years, the media has used total medals to determine the winner of the medal count. It's an imperfect system in which a country winning six bronze medals would be ranked ahead of a delegation bringing home five golds. That method is only slightly better than solely using gold medals as a benchmark, which is the official IOC stance. Should silvers and bronzes really mean nothing? Why even award them then? Canada's 14 golds are a great achievement. But are they more impressive than the 28 silvers and bronzes won by the United States? In an attempt to end the confusion, Fourth-Place Medal developed a clear-cut, weighted system to evaluate the Olympic medal count. It assigns value to each medal and also gives added importance to medals won in marquee events. It's not perfect — are five bronze medals really equal to one gold? — but our weighted count is a vast improvement over the simple tally currently used to determine the "winner" of the Winter Olympics.
shen Posted 1 March 2010 Posted 1 March 2010 i just happened upon this, and it is absolutely scandalous - no wonder people find americans hard to stomach sometimes....essentially, this yahoo website has developed a weighting system for olympic medals, which - shock horror - makes them the most successful nation. basically they have decided that certain medals are more 'prestigious' than others, inevitably events that the americans happen to excel in, and bizarely including the ultimate non-sport of figure skating... pretty pathetic, to be honest, and sadly bitter in their failure to dominate... If that makes them feel better then I'm OK with it. I'm sure it'll cheer up the US men's hockey team no end
Jordan Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 ...Lies, damned lies, and statistics... i just happened upon this, and it is absolutely scandalous - no wonder people find americans hard to stomach sometimes....essentially, this yahoo website has developed a weighting system for olympic medals, which - shock horror - makes them the most successful nation. basically they have decided that certain medals are more 'prestigious' than others, inevitably events that the americans happen to excel in, and bizarely including the ultimate non-sport of figure skating... pretty pathetic, to be honest, and sadly bitter in their failure to dominate... This is your post from February 19, in which you link to an article written on that same blog which uses another "system" to argue that American success in the 2010 Games is overrated: this makes interesting reading....also noticed today that USA has 224 competitors, germany 160-odd and norway only 107 (uk 52) So, which is it, then? "Fourth Place Medal" is just trying to be entertaining (though not necessarily succeeding), but as for you, it seems as if you've just got a(n American) bee in your bonnet. BTW, FPM isn't exactly right about the IOC's medal "rankings." They do publish medal counts listed in order of gold medals (with silvers and then bronzes used as "tiebreakers") but for informational purposes only and doesn't sanction any medal "rankings" (EDIT: and for good reason too, as this would have caused quite the shitshow during the old Cold War, and now U.S.-China, rivalries) As for your earlier comments comparing Norway's medal haul to the United States, Norway is the all-time leading winner in gold, silver and bronze medals in the Winter Games, so one should consider them as much an underdog as the New York Yankees--or better yet, just Yankees, period. But the parity in competition at the Winter Olympics (esp. now, and esp. more so than the Summer Olympics) is part of the event's charm, and also part of the reason I enjoy watching the Winter Games much more than the Summer Games. There's nothing else in the world where Americans can go generations without winning and then all of a sudden become an international feel-good story (see bobsled [err, bobsleigh] and Nordic combined) yet just minutes away, a Norwegians are the most intimidating and dominant international force (xc skiing).
Lillehamring Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 ...Lies, damned lies, and statistics...This is your post from February 19, in which you link to an article written on that same blog which uses another "system" to argue that American success in the 2010 Games is overrated: So, which is it, then? "Fourth Place Medal" is just trying to be entertaining (though not necessarily succeeding), but as for you, it seems as if you've just got a(n American) bee in your bonnet. BTW, FPM isn't exactly right about the IOC's medal "rankings." They do publish medal counts listed in order of gold medals (with silvers and then bronzes used as "tiebreakers") but for informational purposes only and doesn't sanction any medal "rankings" (EDIT: and for good reason too, as this would have caused quite the shitshow during the old Cold War, and now U.S.-China, rivalries) As for your earlier comments comparing Norway's medal haul to the United States, Norway is the all-time leading winner in gold, silver and bronze medals in the Winter Games, so one should consider them as much an underdog as the New York Yankees--or better yet, just Yankees, period. But the parity in competition at the Winter Olympics (esp. now, and esp. more so than the Summer Olympics) is part of the event's charm, and also part of the reason I enjoy watching the Winter Games much more than the Summer Games. There's nothing else in the world where Americans can go generations without winning and then all of a sudden become an international feel-good story (see bobsled [err, bobsleigh] and Nordic combined) yet just minutes away, a Norwegians are the most intimidating and dominant international force (xc skiing). i think the two articles tell their own story, the first one was written pretty early on and was a valid reassessment of the facts, written at a time when america was still probably expecting to finish with more golds than everyone else (and still shows the USA at the top), the second was some a lame attempt to manipulate the figures by using some nonsensical made-up ratings system, which heavily favoured events that are clearly more popular in north america. the cynic in me expects that they did the maths on the 'field of play events' at the end and didn't finish top, so they contrived this new 'system'. if you ask most europeans what the 'marquee' events are i'm sure it would be things like slalom and biathlon, (apart from the dutch). speed skating is to slalom what indycar is to formula 1... i don't have a bee in my bonnet, and they can write what they chose, i just think it is a shame that they had to resort to writing such a long article based on pure fantasy - as you say, there were some real feel-good moments for the USA, but rather than celebrate the nordic combined boys, they wrote this snivelling piece about how they are actually still the best - which is more or less the same thing as the russian skater did, claiming he should have won gold, presenting himself on his website with a 'platinum' medal - which FPM actually ridiculed quite heavily. i love american sport, but this kind of thing spoils the amazing amount of effort the athletes put in - like complaining about the brit girl's helmet - wouldn't it have been nice if they could have just accepted that they came 2nd and 3rd too many times? you have to admit, it is a bit childish: 'our golds are better than your golds'
shen Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 if you ask most europeans what the 'marquee' events are i'm sure it would be things like slalom and biathlon, (apart from the dutch). speed skating is to slalom what indycar is to formula 1... What's wrong with speed skating, compared to XC? I think most Europeans would consider the 'classic' events as marquee events. That probably means that a lot of Norways golds would disappear as some of them came in the recently formed/invented 'sprint', 'team sprint', 'Super-G' and the what not events...
Lillehamring Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 What's wrong with speed skating, compared to XC? I think most Europeans would consider the 'classic' events as marquee events. That probably means that a lot of Norways golds would disappear as some of them came in the recently formed/invented 'sprint', 'team sprint', 'Super-G' and the what not events... well, exactly, that's the whole point - its all a load of bollocks - there's no such thing as a marquee event - it's like saying you get more points for beating middlesborugh than for beating coventry - america didn't win as many golds as canada and germany, why can't they just accept that, just seems daft and childish and, yes, i'd be the first to admit that norway certainly took advantage of some very similar events. as for speed skating, well, i personally find it a bit dull, especially the long track events - taking nothing away from the athleticism of speedskaters, it does seem limited in the skills needed
shen Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 well, exactly, that's the whole point - its all a load of bollocks - there's no such thing as a marquee event - it's like saying you get more points for beating middlesborugh than for beating coventry - america didn't win as many golds as canada and germany, why can't they just accept that, just seems daft and childishand, yes, i'd be the first to admit that norway certainly took advantage of some very similar events. as for speed skating, well, i personally find it a bit dull, especially the long track events - taking nothing away from the athleticism of speedskaters, it does seem limited in the skills needed Well you have to be an avid ski fan or a Norwegian to be able to enjoy cross country The 30 or 50km mass start? Jeez... Everyone would skip to the sprint if they could. At least the speed skating is done with quite quickly in comparison and also has time checks to update you on the runners position each lap
Jordan Posted 2 March 2010 Posted 2 March 2010 Well you have to be an avid ski fan or a Norwegian to be able to enjoy cross country The 30 or 50km mass start? Jeez... Everyone would skip to the sprint if they could. At least the speed skating is done with quite quickly in comparison and also has time checks to update you on the runners position each lap It's like the marathon, but in snow... (even Northug's 2:05 finishing time would be a gold-medal-worthy 26.2 miles in sneakers)
Guest DavidJCW Posted 3 March 2010 Posted 3 March 2010 Great games. Sad they're over really as it was really good watching it live during the night... there were some great events on to watch.
Lillehamring Posted 3 March 2010 Posted 3 March 2010 Well you have to be an avid ski fan or a Norwegian to be able to enjoy cross country The 30 or 50km mass start? Jeez... Everyone would skip to the sprint if they could. At least the speed skating is done with quite quickly in comparison and also has time checks to update you on the runners position each lap 10000m 'speed' skating is terminal - at least with the 'langrenn' there's some scenery mind you, i think that goes to show how amazingly good these athletes are, imagine maurice greene winning a medal in the 100m and the marathon... as you can see in this joke sketch 'marit lifts heavy things' - some definition there, eh?
Jordan Posted 4 March 2010 Posted 4 March 2010 I went curling for the first time last night; I should probably put this in a new thread about the 2014 Winter Games because it's clear I'll be there representing the USA in my new sport
Lillehamring Posted 4 March 2010 Posted 4 March 2010 I went curling for the first time last night; I should probably put this in a new thread about the 2014 Winter Games because it's clear I'll be there representing the USA in my new sport harder than it looks?
Jordan Posted 5 March 2010 Posted 5 March 2010 harder than it looks? Yeah, I might want to edit my last post and change it to 2018... It's a very tricky sport, but my friends and I had a lot of fun getting out on the ice and getting a crash course in the delivery and sweeping. In fact, we all signed up for trial memberships at the club. Looks like a great deal: $135 gets us eight two-hour lessons/games in March, October and November (the club is only open in the fall and winter), plus I think we can pretty much get all the member privileges during this time, and the club has plenty of equipment (brooms, sliders to put on shoes, stones) that's free to use. The clubhouse is a cute, quaint place with a fireplace, TV, stereo and bar (all members get tabs, and those seem to run up quite quickly). So, I'm on my way to becoming a real curler... I think this will provide lots of laughs (both the "laughing with" and "laughing at" varieties).
Lillehamring Posted 5 March 2010 Posted 5 March 2010 Yeah, I might want to edit my last post and change it to 2018... It's a very tricky sport, but my friends and I had a lot of fun getting out on the ice and getting a crash course in the delivery and sweeping. In fact, we all signed up for trial memberships at the club. Looks like a great deal: $135 gets us eight two-hour lessons/games in March, October and November (the club is only open in the fall and winter), plus I think we can pretty much get all the member privileges during this time, and the club has plenty of equipment (brooms, sliders to put on shoes, stones) that's free to use. The clubhouse is a cute, quaint place with a fireplace, TV, stereo and bar (all members get tabs, and those seem to run up quite quickly). So, I'm on my way to becoming a real curler... I think this will provide lots of laughs (both the "laughing with" and "laughing at" varieties). sounds good - and you really never know, it's not like you'll be too old in 2018 . which should hopefully be in norway
Guest DavidJCW Posted 5 March 2010 Posted 5 March 2010 I wanna go curling! It looks like a lot of fun!!!
Fox You Forest Posted 5 March 2010 Posted 5 March 2010 I wanna go curling! It looks like a lot of fun!!! I've wrote to Jimmy Savile to see if he can make it happen with the Russian team.
Lillehamring Posted 6 March 2010 Posted 6 March 2010 anyone following the world cup now the olympics are done, i guess it's not going to be live on bbc, but i think eurosport cover it. anyway, currently enjoy the team ski jump event.
Jordan Posted 9 October 2010 Posted 9 October 2010 The new curling season started last night. My entire body is sore. Sweeping is fvcking hard work.
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