Summer Olympics: Beijing, China

[psycobabe007]

After watching the women's uneven bars final, I am a little blown away still at the mess that is the code of points for Gymnastics. I honestly think we have clearly seen the some of the worst case scenarios come to fruition during these games with this scoring system. Top it off with the stupid rules of the IOC that state that there is to be NO TIES in Gymnastics (of course its ok in other sports but not in Gymnastics) and you have a very convoluted and unfair system that has robbed athletes.

[Google]

 

[Bearcata]

Originally Posted by Critical

I enjoy the rhythmic gymnastics and synchronized swimming (although the male commentator for the latter is a moron), but the trampoline stuff isn't interesting to me.

Michael Phelps and his mom were both on one of the entertainment shows tonight and the host showed her a text message that Lindsay Lohan had sent to Michael. She too one look and said "Delete! Delete!" Love her.

I too enjoy watching the rhythmic gymnastics and the synchronized swimming. When I used to live near the Canadian border I would get CBC and was introduced to synchro and they would devote and hour or two to the competitons and you really got a feel as to what was a really good routine. Also I admire anyone who can hold their breath underwater that long and swim basically while standing on their heads and make it look pretty.

PS: The International Gymnastics Federation are idiots for not allowing ties. Nastia deserved the gold just as much as the Chinese gymnast did.

[mindy384]

I DVR'ed the show tonight but can someone please explain to me why nastia and the chinese chick have the same score and she (nastia) is listed with a silver medal?

Seriously... this gymnastic scoring stuff is getting ridiculous...lots of experts are even coming out and complaining about what is going on here.

[Marleybone]

This made more sense on TV when they showed the list of judges and their individual scores. In the third tie-breaker, He Kexin ended up with scores of 9.1, 9.1, and 9.0. Nastia had 9.1, 9.0 and 9.0. It's easy to understand her disappointment and frustration, but she seemed to handle it all pretty gracefully.

First tiebreak is the start value. Identical.

Second tiebreak is the deductions taken by the middle four judges. That was also the same.

The third tiebreak -- hang onto your hats, for your brains are about to explode --was the average of the three lowest of the four counting judges' deductions. This is where Liukin lost.

Finally, proof that gymnastics scoring needs an overhaul - E.M. Swift - SI.com

[psycobabe007]

Originally Posted by mindy384

I DVR'ed the show tonight but can someone please explain to me why nastia and the chinese chick have the same score and she (nastia) is listed with a silver medal?

Seriously... this gymnastic scoring stuff is getting ridiculous...lots of experts are even coming out and complaining about what is going on here.

Ok, without going too crazy, I am going to attempt to explain the scoring.


Kexin HE
A:7.70 B1:9.30 B2:9.10 B3:9.10 B4:8.90 B5:9.00 B6:8.90
total: 16.725

LIUKIN Nastia
A:7.70 B1:9.00 B2:9.30 B3:9.00 B4:8.80 B5:9.00 B6:9.10
total: 16.725


A total score in gymnastics is comprised of 2 numbers. The A score is the difficulty score and is set prior to the routine and is not changed provided all the elements are performed. Both Nadia and Kexin had A scores of 7.7 based on the difficulty of their routines. The B score is execution score that starts at 10 and is deducted for each mistake made during the routine. There are 6 judges for the B scoring portion and their scores are averaged to comprise the B score. The A and B are added to make up the total. Now, just as in other sports, the highest and lowest scores are taken away (which are in italics).

Since the total scores were tied, the first tie breaker is the A score. Since both scores were the same, the second tie breaker is the B score average. Again, both girls had the same scores. The third tie breaker is to eliminate another B score (which are in bold) and average again, which gave Kexin the higher score.

This is a very messy and frankly not needed. This scoring system was not designed for tie breakers, which are not necessary in any other instance other than the Olympics.

PS sorry for the butchered table of scoring above, lol!

[MsDiva2007]

The whole new scoring system doesn't pass the sniff test, sorry.

[JLuvs]

Just had to jump in with the generic comment that I am totally addicted to the Olympics. Thank goodness for my DVR as I am taping everything and watching most of it at normal hours. I am so impressed with how the British are doing, that is where I am from, and every time we have won a medal I have called my Mum and that starts off this massive phone relay

Thank goodness school hasn't started back for me as I would be comatose with any students that I would be subbing for.

[CrossingGuard]

Controversy. Controversy. Controversy.

There has been tons of it in these Olympic Games. And most of it seems to surround the female gymnasts of Team USA.

But before I go on, I must say that this will probably be a mega long post, so I don't know if everyone will read it. But I'm hoping you guys do.

So anyway, back to the controversy. There's Alicia Sacramone, who has taken a lot of heat for her falls on the beam and on the floor during the team finals. She was blamed by some people for Team USA's loss to China, but I've said it time and time again: they still would have lost even if her mistakes never happened, and I still stand by my opinion.

Alicia then found herself in a controversial situation again, but this time, it wasn't her fault. She was beaten for the bronze medal by a Chinese girl (I'm sorry, I forget her name), even though the Chinese girl fell on her knees during her second vault performance. This is why I hate the new scoring system for gymnastics. I know if they went back to the old way, some gymnasts could just skate through to the end and possibly win by successfully completing easier routines. But the Chinese girl still didn't complete her routine successfully yet still managed to receive fairly high marks (her score for her second routine was in the 15 range) just because the level of difficulty was high. I'm sorry, but I don't think that's right. She's basically being rewarded for her fall. As for the judges' scoring, I don't know, they did deduct quite a few points on her routine. Did they deduct enough? I have no clue. I'm not a gymnastics expert by any means and I'm not going to call myself one. But the point is, I think Alicia was robbed of the bronze.

And now there's this tie between Nastia and He (I only remember the Chinese girl's last name). Does there really need to be a tiebreaker? Like someone else said before, there aren't any tiebreakers in other sports. In swimming, 2 men (Brazil and another country) tied for bronze and they both received it. They didn't have a faceoff or anything. In track & field, 2 women tied for silver (I don't know which countries) and both received it. So why is there a need for a tiebreaker in gymnastics? They both deserved the gold. They both did spectacular, which is evident in their scores (16.725 is amazing ). I'm a Nastia fan (which is why I have an avatar of her), so that plays a huge part of me being upset over this whole thing. But even if I wasn't a fan, I would still say that she deserved the gold. Both of them deserved to be standing atop of the podium wearing the gold medal around their neck. Then it happened again with the men's vault final. I couldn't believe it, the tiebreaker had to be used again. It's just disappointing that two people get the same score and yet they both can't share the glory unlike in other sports.

This actually reminds me of Survivor. The tiebreakers used in Survivor have been criticized greatly (purple rock, anyone?). I know it's a tough challenge for Survivor execs to find a tiebreaker that everyone will be happy with. But this isn't the case for the Olympics. They should just scratch the tiebreaker in gymnastics altogether.

That's it for gymnastics in this post. Now onto pole vaulting. I love the sport and can watch it any day. I find it enjoyable and fun to watch (it's great to see the athletes' reactions when they know that they just won and/or beaten the world/olympic record). But what I didn't find enjoyable to watch was Jenn Stuczynski's coach getting angry at her getting second. I know he's her coach and coaches tend to get angry, but why should he get angry at Jenn's silver medal win? He didn't say anything like, "You sucked, you could have done way better," but his tone of voice and the way he looked (he had an angry look on his face) were just uncalled for. Be proud of the girl, she just got silver to the best pole vaulter in the world. He later said it was pretty good that she got silver since she has only been in the sport for 4 years, but he still said that in a mean tone. Personally, I feel that Jenn should be proud of herself. She got a medal in women's pole vaulting in the Beijing Olympics, and only 2 other women can say that: the gold and bronze medal-ers.

Then I also found this article:

Trash talk backfires at the Beijing Olympics

Yelena Isinbayeva got the Olympic gold and a world record; American Jenn Stuczynski got the silver and a lesson in humility.

And we now have a new rivalry that should make woman’s pole vaulting fun to watch for many more years to come.

Big poles and big mouths don’t go together. Stuczynski knows that now. Pole vaulting isn’t basketball or boxing. It’s far too graceful of a sport for the kind of trash-talk she doled out before the Beijing Games.

“I hope we do some damage,” she had said, “and, you know, kick some Russian butt.”

Big mistake.

Isinbayeva is Russian but she understands English just fine. The greatest women’s pole vaulter of all time heard Stuczynski’s challenge loud and clear.

“I am not deaf,” she said. “It made me really angry.”

Their head-to-head clash turned Monday night at the Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing into a showdown, with long poles instead of Don King.

First, some Cliffs Notes for those who didn’t tune into this saga, with its slightly musty Cold War whiff, in the run-up to the Olympics.


— Stuczynski: Tall, wholesome American, natural athlete; took up pole vaulting late, had a gift for it, quickly became second-best woman’s vaulter of all time, behind the Russian.

— Isinbayeva: Lithe former gymnast who switched to pole vault when she grew too tall as a teen, hasn’t looked back since. In a class of her own.

Like any good fight, the public announcer introduced the combatants first. Isinbayeva was presented last and got the crowd’s biggest roar. No mistaking who the Bird’s Nest was rooting for.

Isinbayeva is a bit like those supermodels who supposedly don’t get out of bed for anything less than a very lucrative photo shoot. Only when the bar has reached dizzying heights that most other vaulters can’t clear does Isinbayeva deign to take her first jump.

She’s just that good.

Monday night, her first jump was 4 meters 70 (15 feet, 5 inches). She soared right over. Seven of the 11 other vaulters had already dropped out by that point.

And so up the bar went, and up again. It’s that exquisite turning of the screw that makes pole vaulting so addictive to watch. Who’ll crack first?

Women’s pole vault has only been an Olympic sport since the Sydney Games in 2000. It was an instant crowd pleaser. Almost single-handedly thanks to Isinbayeva, the sport has grown by leaps and bounds since then. Stacy Dragila’s winning height in Sydney was 4.60 (15-1), which Stuczynski and Isinbayeva now sail over that in their sleep.

On Monday night, the last two hangers on dropped out with the bar at 4.80 (15-9), leaving Isi and Stu to fight it out for the gold alone.

The Russian won by KO. She cleared 4.85 (15-11). Stuczynski vaulted no higher than 4.80. Game over.

Almost.

With the whole stadium now eating out of her hand, Isinbayeva wasn’t going to stop there. The crowd had only seen her jump twice—that was all it had taken for her to defend her Olympic crown.

She wanted to give them more … and perhaps rub that American nose just a little deeper in the dirt.

It was showtime. Isinbayeva-time. And that meant a world record.

First, she broke the Olympic record—her own, from Athens four years ago— as an appetizer.

Then, the bar went to a height it’s never been before, 5.05 (16-6 3/4).

She got it on the last of her three tries. She was celebrating even before she had fallen back to earth. She screamed. Clutched her face. Screamed some more. Did a forward somersault. Grabbed a Russian flag from someone in the crowd and set off on a lap of honor.

And that whole time, Stuczynski was made to wait, sitting on a row of plastic chairs, until Isinbayeva had cleared the magic height. It was the 24th time that the Russian had set a world record; she generally likes to eke them out one centimeter at a time.

Afterward, Stuczynski didn’t want to talk about her pre-game trash-talk, brushing off a question with an abrupt “OK, next.”

It was her first Olympics and her first medal, “I couldn’t ask for anything more,” she said.

Beaten but not cowed, she said she expects to catch Isinbayeva eventually.

“It’s just experience. She’s been in the Olympics before, she’s been in world championships, she’s jumped a decade longer than me, so it’s just a matter of time,” she said.

Isinbayeva tried not to be smug. She had done what she had set out to do: let her vaulting do the talking.

“I just wanted to prove who is the best at the Olympic Games.”

But she couldn’t resist one last little dig

“She must respect me and … know her position,” she said.

“Now she knows it.”

Link

When I read the title, I said, "Oh no..." But when I actually read what she said ("...kick some Russian butt."), I said, "Really? That's all she said?" That's not even that bad IMO. Of course it's understandable to be a little upset, but a full-on rivalry? I don't think so. What I would have liked to have seen from Isinbayeva is for her to try and take it as a positive. Isinbayeva is already amazing at what she does. She has broken the world record more than 20 times! I really think she's an awesome athlete. But Isinbayeva could have taken Jenn's comment and use it to fuel her. She could have taken the comment and used it as motivation to not let the girl who called her out beat her to the gold.

But anyway, I wanted to show everyone that article because it had some background information of what went down, and I thought I'd share it.

So enough with the negatives. On to the positives, though I'm sure many of you have already stopped reading at this point.

It was great to see the Americans sweep one of the track & field events. I think it was the 100m hurdle run, but I'm not sure. And I also loved seeing the American win gold in the women's discus competition. The last time an American won gold in that event was back in 1932!

I volleyball! Beach or indoor, love both of them. I know a lot of people here aren't a fan of beach volleyball, but the matches I've seen have been amazing! Who could forget Rogers/Dalhausser's match against the Swiss? That match was amazing! And I also really enjoyed Walsh/May-Treanor's match against Brazil. There were some amazing plays during that game. And speaking of Walsh, she's coming to my school soon! My cousin told me quite some time ago. I hope she brings her 2 gold medals: the one she won in Athens and the one she'll win again in Beijing (~knock on wood~).

[myrosiedog]

Al Roker and Matt Laurer just did the funniest Rythmic Gymnastics routine on the Today show this morning. Brian Williams is also in it. We were rolling on the floor laughing. It was so funny. And actually they weren't too bad, as they had to have practiced. But for a light moment, it was a scream. I'm sure youtube will have it up soon.
The seriousness on Al's face was just great. Probably one of the funniest bits I've ever seen (except for all in that one piece gym suit).

[Lois Lane]

Originally Posted by Critical

Michael Phelps and his mom were both on one of the entertainment shows tonight and the host showed her a text message that Lindsay Lohan had sent to Michael. She too one look and said "Delete! Delete!" Love her.

For real?!!! I LOVE THAT! Yeah, Lindsay Lohan would just add drama to the Phelps family!!! I heard rumors that he's dating Amanda Beard. They're good friends, both very attractive and Olympic medalists...so maybe it's just a rumor. But sorry if it's true, Amy Lee. (You've still got dreamy Wentworth...)

And what the hell is wrong with the Spanish athletes? Who thinks this is OK? After the basketball team came up with their lame excuse about pulling their eyes out to the side to make them slant up, the tennis team now does it -- And the photo was on their OFFICIAL site, so it's not like it was something they were trying to keep under wraps. What a bunch of racist idiots!:

Beijing Olympics: Second Spanish team photographed making 'slit-eyed' gesture - Telegraph

Beijing Olympics: Second Spanish team photographed making 'slit-eyed' gesture
A second group of Spanish Olympic athletes has been photographed making “slit-eyed” gestures, threatening to overshadow the Beijing Games with a row over racial stereotyping.

By Matthew Moore
Last Updated: 12:37PM BST 15 Aug 2008

The latest photo to emerge shows Spanish women tennis players pulling the pose, apparently in anticipation of their Federation Cup match against China in April.

Pictures of the Spanish men’s and women’s basketball teams making the gesture, a crude impersonation of Chinese people, were published in adverts in Spanish newspapers earlier this week.

The photos, which were reprinted around the world, added to Spanish sport's poor reputation for racial sensitivity.

The latest image appears to show players in Spain’s Federation Cup team doing the “slit-eyed” gesture along with members of their support staff. There is no suggestion that they intended to cause offence.

It was apparently taken after the team defeated Italy in the quarter-finals of the competition - the leading team contest for women tennis players - in Febraury. Wine glasses are visible on the table in front of the party.

The Spanish team that defeated the Italians included Lourdes Dominguez-Lino, Nuria Llagostera Vives, Anabel Medina Garrigues and Carla Suarez-Navarro.

Llagostera Vives, Medina Garrigues and Suarez-Navarro are all competing at the Games in Beijing.

The photo is still visible on the official website of the Spanish Tennis Federation, where it was spotted. The original is captioned “Estamos preparados para China”, which translates as “We are prepared for China”.

Spain’s women tennis players defeated the Chinese team in their Federation Cup semi-final in April. The Spanish are due to play Russia in the final in September.

_______________

The players and coaches and whoever authorized these photos are morons. I hope they all lose. They are unsportsmanlike and I don't care if their intent wasn't to "offend." What was their intent then? To show everyone they're 5 year old idiots? And the wine on the table is no excuse, like the article is implying...