Olympics 2012

[kitt kat]

Half of my office is going. I'm jealous.

We have a bunch of former Olympians doing commentary for us, and they come and go at work. Most are goofy, but the little kid in me was excited to see Dominque Dawes.

[frazzles]

If you're going to do a Lolo pic, do it right

[vulcandeathgrip]

No surprise that us sport mad Aussies love the Olympics.

One of my personal favourite stories is that of Anna Meares. She is a cyclist who was a gold medalist in Athens at the age of 20. After years of working toward the 2008 Olympics she suffered an horrific accident. She fractured her vertebrae as well suffered nasty burns from the velodrome surface she hit at around 70kms/hour. She showed unbelievable fortitude to recover and won a silver medal in Beijing. She is again competing and I will be cheering hard for one of my countries toughest and humble athletes at London. Just an inspirational lady.

[scenicworld]

I prefer the winter Olympics (ice hockey!) but am still damn stoked for the summer games. International competition is awesome! I always get caught up in the swimming events for some reason. This year will be no exception.

same here, I've always preferred the winter olympics to summer and not just because of hockey (though that's a HUGE factor!!). downhill skiing, figure skating, speed skating and snowboarding are always so exciting to watch. I still enjoy the summer olympics a lot too, but I find myself getting really bored with the track and field after a few events. swimming and gymnastics are great though!!

[PlayaDelWes]

It has been proven that all winter Olympic video games are in fact better than all summer Olympic video games.

[algunz]

One must always check one's math. Always.

Yes, I realized the potential for error pretty quickly. It's still a bit shocking to me that it's been an official event for that many years.

But still @ bmack, that is too damn cool.

[Miroir Noir]

The Winter Olympics should be renamed the Disposable Income Leisure Activity Games, or alternatively, the Honky Olympics.

[sonnyboy11]

Sounds like if you're attending you should leave the frisbee at home

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/o...s-7936428.html

Happy about the vuvuzela ban, to be honest.

[menikmati]

Must force attendees to eat at McDonalds...

[sonnyboy11]

The food restrictions are likely to boost retail sales on the Olympic Park, where the world's largest McDonalds is waiting to serve its first customer. It has more than 1,500 seats.

1500 seats... wow. That's a lot of artery clogging happening in one place.

[Neighborhood Creep]

When the Olympics are on, there is no such things as other channels. Can't wait

[Alchemy]

I had a neighbor who was an olympian. She is an old lady now, but she would walk around the hallway of our floor for exercise every day. I don't know her name, what she did, or if she had any medals, but she is living quite comfortably.

[menikmati]

I'm predicting right now that Yohan Blake takes the 100m gold (not Bolt or Tyson Gay).

[frazzles]

You're insane, Menik. Although Blake winning would set me off into training that's more suicidal than what I'm already doing...

EDIT: Assuming a well executed start from Bolt.

[menikmati]

He's already beat Bolt twice this year....plus Bolt has had some injuries and car wrecks he's dealt with over the last year or so...all it takes is a bad start.

[frazzles]

Beating Bolt at the Jamaican trials is an accomplishment, sure, but it essentially doesn't matter. The idea is to qualify and Bolt did that. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't give max effort just to build up buzz around the race.

[RotationSlimWang]

So wait, Frazzles, are you saying that you're fast (read: black) enough to almost have been in this thing?

[frazzles]

The condensed version of Frazz' track career: I went from an early-bloomer (adolescent years) to a nobody (high school) to a late-bloomer (around the time I turned 20) to chronically injured (2010-now). The docs say I have an abnormal, semi-permanent case of Sinnding-Larsen-Johansson syndrome, but it sounds like they just said that was the closest thing to what keeps happening with me. At any rate, I'll probably get surgery to remove the extra growth.

2012 was never my primary goal after I started running into the low 10s for 100ms. Once I broke the 10-second barrier (on 3 distinct occasions) 2 years ago, I thought about it a little, but then my shit started fucking up real bad. The thing that bothers me about Blake is that he is my age and the time that he won the WC with last year equals my PR (9.92 secs):



TL;DR: Yes, that's what I'm saying. I was always garbage at 200 meters though. Even if my stride length is the same, and in some cases longer, than dudes who are 6+ feet, my 5'9" frame could never hold that speed down past the 150meter mark.

[Mr. Dylanja]

[Mugwog]

I love her.

[sonofhal]

The London 2012 logo is the ugliest thing ever designed.

Is that the one with Lisa Simpson giving a blow job?

[Mugwog]

It's official ladies: Most of those sexy male Olympians are all on the same team.

[algunz]

I can watch this over and over and over and . . .

[gaypalmsprings]

Greece expels Olympic athlete over racist tweets

Updated: July 25, 2012, 10:44 AM ET

ATHENS, Greece -- Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team Wednesday for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee said Wednesday that Papachristou is "placed outside the Olympic team for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement."

Papachristou is in Athens and has not responded to calls from The Associated Press. The committee said she was to travel to London shortly before the track events start.

Papachristou's Twitter account ((at)papaxristoutj) contains several retweets and postings of YouTube videos promoting the views of Golden Dawn, a formerly marginal extreme right party that entered the Greek Parliament in the recent two national elections -- in May and June this year -- by polling almost 7 percent of the vote.

But it was her attempt at a joke Sunday that went viral. Commenting on the widely reported appearance of Nile-virus-carrying mosquitoes in Athens, Papachristou wrote: "With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!". Her tweet prompted thousands of negative comments that snowballed Wednesday.

Since anyone can access an unprotected Twitter account, Papachristou's YouTube links and retweets inevitably became known. Several of her retweets were original tweets by Ilias Kasidiaris, the Golden Dawn spokesman and one of the party's 18 Parliament members, who became notorious a few weeks ago for striking a woman Communist MP in the face and throwing water at another female MP during a TV talk show. Papachristou tweeted to Kassidiaris on his name day, last Friday, "Many happy years, be always strong and true!!!"

Papachristou's initial reaction to the negative comments, on Tuesday, was to tweet: "That's how I am. I laugh. I am not a CD to get stuck!!! And if I make mistakes, I don't press the replay! I press Play and move on!!!"

Her attitude changed completely Wednesday and she has posted five apologetic tweets in less than two hours. The last tweet, a very long one in English, which she has also posted on her Facebook account, reads: "I would like to express my heartfelt apologies for the unfortunate and tasteless joke I published on my personal Twitter account. I am very sorry and ashamed for the negative responses I triggered, since I never wanted to offend anyone, or to encroach human rights.

"My dream is connected to the Olympic Games and I could not possibly participate if I did not respect their values. Therefore, I could never believe in discrimination between human beings and races. I would like to apologize to all my friends and fellow athletes, who I may have insulted or shamed, the National Team, as well as the people and companies who support my athletic career. Finally, I would like to apologize to my coach and my family."

Before the publication of the last tweet, Democratic Left, one of the three parties in Greece's coalition government, had published a statement assailing the "racist humor" and calling on the Hellenic Olympic Committee to expel Papachristou from the Olympics

"Let her make any miserable 'jokes' on social media while watching the games on TV. She definitely cannot represent Greece in London," the Democratic Left statement said.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

[heart cooks brain]

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tu...xrs=share_copy

[EastLos01]

The olympics are being streamed live on www.nbcolympics.com I had to log onto my dish account to stream it, but it gave me a whole bunch of options as far as providers to choose from. The U.S. Womens Soccer team is playing right now against the French.

[marooko]

Oops.

With so many Africans in Greece…at least the West Nile mosquitoes will eat homemade food!!!

Greece expels Olympic athlete over racist tweets

Updated: July 25, 2012, 10:44 AM ET

ATHENS, Greece -- Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team Wednesday for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee said Wednesday that Papachristou is "placed outside the Olympic team for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement."

Papachristou is in Athens and has not responded to calls from The Associated Press. The committee said she was to travel to London shortly before the track events start.

Papachristou's Twitter account ((at)papaxristoutj) contains several retweets and postings of YouTube videos promoting the views of Golden Dawn, a formerly marginal extreme right party that entered the Greek Parliament in the recent two national elections -- in May and June this year -- by polling almost 7 percent of the vote.

But it was her attempt at a joke Sunday that went viral. Commenting on the widely reported appearance of Nile-virus-carrying mosquitoes in Athens, Papachristou wrote: "With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!". Her tweet prompted thousands of negative comments that snowballed Wednesday.

Since anyone can access an unprotected Twitter account, Papachristou's YouTube links and retweets inevitably became known. Several of her retweets were original tweets by Ilias Kasidiaris, the Golden Dawn spokesman and one of the party's 18 Parliament members, who became notorious a few weeks ago for striking a woman Communist MP in the face and throwing water at another female MP during a TV talk show. Papachristou tweeted to Kassidiaris on his name day, last Friday, "Many happy years, be always strong and true!!!"

Papachristou's initial reaction to the negative comments, on Tuesday, was to tweet: "That's how I am. I laugh. I am not a CD to get stuck!!! And if I make mistakes, I don't press the replay! I press Play and move on!!!"

Her attitude changed completely Wednesday and she has posted five apologetic tweets in less than two hours. The last tweet, a very long one in English, which she has also posted on her Facebook account, reads: "I would like to express my heartfelt apologies for the unfortunate and tasteless joke I published on my personal Twitter account. I am very sorry and ashamed for the negative responses I triggered, since I never wanted to offend anyone, or to encroach human rights.

"My dream is connected to the Olympic Games and I could not possibly participate if I did not respect their values. Therefore, I could never believe in discrimination between human beings and races. I would like to apologize to all my friends and fellow athletes, who I may have insulted or shamed, the National Team, as well as the people and companies who support my athletic career. Finally, I would like to apologize to my coach and my family."

Before the publication of the last tweet, Democratic Left, one of the three parties in Greece's coalition government, had published a statement assailing the "racist humor" and calling on the Hellenic Olympic Committee to expel Papachristou from the Olympics

"Let her make any miserable 'jokes' on social media while watching the games on TV. She definitely cannot represent Greece in London," the Democratic Left statement said.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

[westcoastpirate]

The olympics are being streamed live on www.nbcolympics.com I had to log onto my dish account to stream it, but it gave me a whole bunch of options as far as providers to choose from. The U.S. Womens Soccer team is playing right now against the French.

Where can you stream this if you don't subscribe to cable service? I really just want to see the opening ceremonies. Hulu?

[EastLos01]

Sorry, I have no clue. I luckily stumbled on to nbcolympics today while trying to find out the schedule.

[Alchemy]

Oops.

Oops, the Sequel:

Organizers display SKorea flag instead of NKorea

By FRANK GRIFFITHS
Associated Press

GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) -- London Olympic organizers mistakenly displayed the South Korean flag on a jumbo screen instead of North Korea's before a women's soccer match Wednesday, prompting the North Koreans to refuse to take the field for nearly an hour.

The flag flap began during player introductions when a North Korean player was introduced along with a shot of the South Korean flag.

The match against Colombia was delayed for more than an hour, and organizers apologized for the error.

"Today ahead of the women's football match at Hampden Park, the South Korean flag was shown on a big screen video package instead of the North Korean flag. Clearly that is a mistake," organizers said. "We will apologize to the team and the National Olympic Committee and steps will be taken to ensure this does not happen again."

The International Olympic Committee put the responsibility on London officials.

"It's a matter for the organizers," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said.

North Korea and South Korea are bitter rivals. The flag mix-up comes amid high tension on the Korean Peninsula following a North Korean long-range rocket launch in April and repeated threats by Pyongyang to attack the South. Seoul and the U.S. have called the launch a cover for a test of banned long-range missile technology. North Korea says the rocket, which broke apart shortly after liftoff, was meant to put a satellite into orbit.

Wednesday's match started 1 hour, 5 minutes late. Fans were confused at first, then turned to doing the wave and finally started booing as they became increasingly restless.

An announcement was eventually made over the public address system about 20 minutes after the scheduled 7:45 p.m. (1845 GMT; 2:45 p.m. EDT) kick off, apologizing for the delay and saying it "was due to an issue behind the scenes. We're trying to resolve it and we'll keep you updated."

To pass more time, music was pumped from the speakers. Players from both teams finally emerged onto the field about 40 minutes after the match was supposed to begin. The players warmed up again for 10 minutes before they returned inside the tunnel to be led out again for the national anthems.

Flag controversies aren't new at the Olympics. At the 1992 Barcelona Games, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley from the Dream Team draped U.S. flags over their shoulders to hide a rival sponsor's logo on their jackets when they received their gold medals.

At the 2010 Vancouver Games, the Australians displayed a flag with a boxing kangaroo - the mascot for the country's team - in the athletes village, despite an International Olympic Committee rule that usually only permits official national flags to be displayed. The IOC eventually relented.

In 2000, sprinter Cathy Freeman caused a stir when she took a victory lap after winning the 400-meter final at the Sydney Games draped in the Aboriginal flag, which was not recognized as an official national flag by the IOC.

Also in 2000, North and South Korean athletes marched together at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics under the unified Korea flag, sparking a standing ovation. But with relations deteriorating in the years since, each country insists on a separate flag.

Last month, there was another mix-up in Britain. British field hockey officials apologized to the South African women's team for playing the apartheid-era national anthem before one of its matches at the London Cup, a warm-up event for the Olympics.

The event's organizer, Great Britain Hockey, said it was an administrative mistake and offered a "full and unreserved apology."

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AP Sports Writer Joseph White contributed to this report.