As you probably know, London will be hosting the 30th Olympic games beginning next week. What you probably didn’t know is that London is also Waspit’s home, so we kind of feel like we’re hosting the Olympics too (sort of?)! The Olympics are always so much fun partly because they showcase athleticism at its finest but more so because they don’t come around very often – giving us all an excuse to get really, really enthusiastic when they finally arrive. Beijing 2008, for example, feels like forever ago. The only things I can really remember now are Michael Phelps dominating, controversies surrounding China’s female gymnasts/air pollution, and Usain Bolt’s lightning speed. So, this year I decided that I would prepare myself so that I can better remember London 2012 when Rio 2016 rolls around. The result: a couple lists of events and teams I’m really looking forward to watching (and some that I really couldn’t care less about).
4 events I definitely won’t be watching:
1. Opening Ceremony- You may disagree, but this is one I wont lose sleep over if I happen to miss. While some of the Opening Ceremony is awesome, like the unrestrained and spectacular introduction, watching 10,000 athletes walk around a track is sleep inducing.
2. Horse dressing- So, let me get this straight, the horse and rider prance around in a circle a few times and judges decide who the best is? Sounds like an easy gold medal for the home team, England.
3. 20km race walk- “In Race Walk events, an athlete must (to the human eye) be in contact with the ground at all times, unlike in running events, where both feet are momentarily off the ground.” The title says it all: this event is to judge who the best walker is…
4. Badminton- Instead I’ll just watch tennis or ping pong (or table tennis, rather). Plus, who wants to watch a “sport” that the U.S. doesn’t even dominate.
2 most outrageous events:
1. Pentathlon- Since penta means five, this event consists of five disciplines: fencing, swimming, horse riding, running and shooting a gun. The winner is decided by a mixture of points (fencing and shooting) and raw times (riding, running, swimming), but I wasn’t even going to begin analyzing how it worked. Really unclear who fairs well at this event, but you certainly have to be a jack of all trades to win this event!
2. Synchronized Swimming- Need I say more? (And yes, I will be watching this one)
5 coolest events I had never heard of:
1. Canoe Slalom- Basically, whitewater canoeing. Participants have to weave through gates on a set course in the least amount of time.
2. Handball- Of course, I’ve heard of handball, but how did I miss it last time? Handball is an Olympic sport? Awesome, because I thought it was reserved only for 5th grade gym class.
3. Equestrian jumping- Wasn’t really a fan of the equestrian events until I watched a video of the course the horse and rider maneuver through. The horses are jumping over walls and into ponds, just having a great time.
4. Sailing- Like horse riding, I kind of scoffed when I read that sailing is considered an Olympic sport; but, after I saw how intense the races are I figured I can’t miss this event this time around.
5. All throwing events- I guess everyone knows about the throwing stuff, but they’re just too cool to leave out. Javelin’s my personal favorite, but I fear for the guys who are in charge of measuring and are standing right in the middle of the throwing field. Believe it or not there is a video of a javelin accident in Rome, but I’m not putting it up, you can find it yourself…
3 U.S. Teams I’m planning on following
1. Men’s Basketball- I’m a huge NBA fan and plan on watching the ’12 team dominate this year’s basketball and get an easy gold medal for the red, white and blue (knock on wood).
2. Swimming- A fan favorite, swimming is always a fun event to watch – especially the short races because they always seem to come down to the wire
3. Women’s Soccer or “Football”- I like watching country vs. country soccer, but it’ll probably be a waste of time rooting for the men’s U.S. Team. The women’s team always seems to make some noise in the Olympics, plus I have a huge crush on Alex Morgan.
So that’s what I will and will not be watching. Either way, I hope #TeamUSA takes home a lot of gold.
1. What events are your favorites?
2. Do you always root for the U.S. even when they don’t have a chance (like in badminton)?
3. What is your best memory from Beijing 2008?
4. How cute is Alex Morgan?
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1. I like the jumping events personally and how could you forget pole vaulting??? Obviously the best event.
2. Always!
3. Hands down, Phelps
4. And yeah, Alex morgan is the cutest…ever
Yeah, pole vaulting is pretty awesome, but I figured no one ever forgets about it! The jumping events are cool too – except for the triple jump, which was close behind synchronized swimming in most outrageous events.
Handball! I played that game in high school and it was so much fun. If I can catch that on tv I am definitely going to watch it!
Heck yeah, I just looked at the TV listings and it’s on a bunch! There is no unique URL but you can maneuver around all 12,000 hours of NBC coverage here. Unfortunately USA doesn’t have a team.
when I first read this, I couldn’t believe you weren’t going to watch the opening ceremonies- but now that it’s happened I have to say you were right! So much hype over very little entertainment. What do you think?
I kind of lied; I ended up watching them. BUT I was thoroughly disappointed and really only excited to see the US teams walk.
Then I learned that the US Teams’ outfits were designed by Ralph Lauren and all production was done in China. Great job!