Should Roy Jones get a Gold Medal?

[Felonious Monk]

If the Canadians can get a gold medal for skating slightly better than the Russian pair, shouldn't Roy Jones get a gold for thoroughly bitch-slapping some Korean chump around for 3 solid rounds in Seoul?

If you saw the fight, you saw the look on the Korean's puffy and bloody face after they announced him as the winner. Korean citizens were so ashamed that the next day they sent 50 Buddhist monks to Roy Jones' hotel room to apologize for the injustice. Two those fight judges were banned for life from judging boxing for taking bribes.

That's a hell of a lot more egregious than this skating nonsense.

 

[Nolan Dalla]

i agree that the 1988 Seoul Olympic boxing match was sham. That was probably the worst decision of all time (or close to it -- the 1972 US-USSR basketball match was the most idiotic thing perhaps ever on record in sports). But don't take it out on the Koreans. These has nothing to do with nationalism -- it's about JUSTICE. Ono getting the gold is just complte bullshit. Do you think for a second that if Ono were in the lead in that race and did the same thing to the Korean skater, they would have stripped the medal from Ono -- here on home ice with th crowd booing? Of course not! These Olympic events are a joke and a sham. Who cares if the USA wins twenty gold medals in something calle the "half pike" Now, it's just been announed that Cristine Aguilara (spelling) and N-SYNCH are singing at the closing ceremonies. Gee, makes you feel proud to be an American, doesn't it?

-- Nolan Dalla

 

[Phil Turcotte]

The juding at these "Olympics" has turned it into a complete farce. These judges should all be fired for the way the skating events have been run, which for those who dont know, the final decision in speedskating and figure skating are made by the same governing body.

Any event that relies solely on judges decisions to render a final outcome is **NOT** a sport. It might be entertaining, it might be fun to watch, BUT IT IS NOT A SPORT. This includes aerial freestyle, and I went to high school with the kid who won the silver medal. Sure its hard to do, but it is completly subjective on how you judge one skater/jumper/snowboarder against the other.

Relying on judges only gets these folks exactly what they deserve, a big pile of shit. If you cant time it with a watch or compare goals/runs/points, it shouldnt be here. Period.

 

[ryson]

Phil just hit the nail on the head:toast:

 

[Felonious Monk]

Nolan,

But don't take it out on the Koreans. These has nothing to do with nationalism

Where in my post did I blame the Koreans? You took something out of text. I have no problem with other nationalities, re-read my post.

 

[Nolan Dalla]

Monk:

Wasn't implying, or didn't mean to imply you were making a "nationalistic" issue out of it. Knowing you -- from your posts, I mean -- I realize that you are as about an independent-thinking a person as is on this forum.

I was making an issue of the fact that the Koreans have every right to be pissed. Whenever things don't go "our" way, the Americans are quick to whine and make a media scene (anybody remember Mary Deker Stanely's disgraceful whine parade after tripping over South African Zola Bud in the 1984 Olympics?). What I'm saying is that if we want FAIRNESS, we have look at things objectively, without regard to nationality. Again -- there's no way Ono would have been disqualified had he done what the Korean skater supposed was penalized for.

It's bafflin t me that any person of any nationlity could cheer Ono when he took the medal stand. It would have meant a hell of a lot more and woul have been a great scene to see Ono take th medal, walk over, and hand it to the Korean just as his name was announed and the flag was gettin ready to be put up. That would have been a demonstrationof supreme sportsmanship - what the Olympic Games are supposedly all about. Of course, then Ono would blow his corporate endorsement deals, so such a thing would never happen.

I get tears in my eyes when the Nationl Anthem is sung, and have attended many patriotic functions, but in Olympic Games I cheer againt the Americans. Too many brats and too many corporations.

So, in a sense, I'm guilty of practicing "anti-nationalism" myself.


-- Nolan Dalla

 

[Felonious Monk]

Regarding Ohno, the same judges that you say "gave" him the Gold were the same ones that stripped him of a Gold when he was in the lead and got taken down and the Aussie won. So, if playing favorites were the case, the judges would have ordered a re-skate but instead elected to let stand what had happened.

I don't think that Ohno getting the Gold is BS either. What Kim (Korean) did was illegal to do in that sport. It's not like football where you can have a nice comfortable lead on someone, lead changes occur frequently in short track speed skating and Kim's mistake was detrimental to the outcome.

The rule is that if you come around that part of a turn wide, you have to hold your "lane" and not cut down to the inside in front of another skater. Ohno owned that lane at that point in the turn.

Physics says you can go faster in a wider turn, which is what Kim elected to do, but at the risk of being passed. Kim could have stayed on the inside to protect his lead in that "lane" but chose not to. The ruling was correct. Kim failed to skate in the inside all the way around the lane, electing to race harder, therefore in a wider arch.

Kim was too wide and he knew it. He knew Ohno had him on the inside and did the only thing he could, block him by stepping to the inside in front of him. The judge was standing right at the corner and saw it too.

Did he sell it some? Maybe but I don't know for sure. I would have. At least the he didn't throw the flag down and bitch and whine when he was taken out in that first race. He took it like a man.

 

[Felonious Monk]

I get tears in my eyes when the Nationl Anthem is sung, and have attended many patriotic functions, but in Olympic Games I cheer againt the Americans.

Man, you're one strange cat!

I see your point about the whining part of it but who's to say that other countries don't do it too? Almost all of those countries want to beat us and I'm sure they do the same things we do. You probably remember this from your Texas days: Hated by many, Loved by few, respected by all.

The bullshit that gets stirred up begins and ends with the media and it can definitely make us look bad at times but I'm a realist and I call it like I see it. I know what's right and what's wrong and I know not to get too caught up in some useless winter games. One thing I won't do though is root against my country.

To each his own.

 

[TexasBC6]

in Olympic Games I cheer againt the Americans. Too many brats and too many corporations.

Talk about going completely against the spirit of the Olympics! I detest the commercialism that has so obviously pervaded these latest games as much as you I'm sure, but to specifically cheer against the athletes from your own country because they are "brats" is absurd. Sure there probably are quite a few brats and lord knows the corporations are out of control, but I am flabbergasted by your statement. I have always, and will always cheer for the athletes representing my country because they are from my country. I can't understand someone cheering against them because of greedy corporations that they have no control over or because of a label (that you put on them) calling them brats.

You are right though, there is not a chance in hell they would have made the same decision against Ohno had it been the other way around in that race.

 

[Phil Turcotte]

I kept cheering for that 16 year old to fall down last night. I hate ice skating, it is absolutely an absurd event. It is not a sport and I refuse to call what Ted Williams did and what these little women do the same thing.

Its the Nascar effect for me. I dont go to the races in Deleware to see great racing. I go hoping to see a 40 car wreck on the start that results in all the drivers getting into fisticuffs. Same with ice skating. I kept praying Kwan would start her triple flippy do too close to the boards and smash into them.

How about if all the skaters had to do their seperate performances at once? *That* would be great.

 

[bigbagrat]

I'm not a fan of ice skating, either, but I did watch the women's final last night. Didn't have clue what was going on. I gotta go with Phil, I was watching not to see a great skate but for each of them to fall.

The sooner the Olympics are over the better, but it's nice to read a few jingoistic thoughts in these posts while they are on.

 

[hello there]

Russians challenge figure skating results, seek gold for Slutskaya

By LARRY SIDDONS
AP Sports Writer
February 22, 2002

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Russian officials protested the women's Olympic figure skating final Friday, saying silver medalist Irina Slutskaya should get her own gold medal because of biased judging.

``We filed the protest last night because we think the judging was biased,'' said Viktor Mamotov, the head of the Russian delegation in Salt Lake City. ``Canadian pairs skaters were awarded their gold medals. Now that subjective judging harmed us, we want the same for Slutskaya.''

Read entire story here:

http://sports.yahoo.com/oly/news/ap/20020222/ap-olympicprotests.html

 

[nhl8810]

Let the russians

Let the russians

bitch if they want...But there is no way that Sara Hughes did not deserve to win. There jsut pissed because the judes in skaketing finaly gave the medal to someone who deserved it not the one everyone picked from the start. All this BS is outta control..If you dont like it then LEAVE....Nothing would make me happier than to kick the living crap out of those f*#^%kers tonight in hockey and send them home even more pissed

 

[Felonious Monk]

The Russian skated the fourth best performance out there. Cohen and Kwan got screwed not the Russian. The Italian got screwed too, she skated as well as anyone not named Hughes. It's a popularity contest. The judges from Russia, Denmark and Belarus placed Slutskaya over Hughes in their ranking. There is no way that can be explain except bias. That event wasn't even close.

 

[bigbagrat]

Monk...

Monk...

Dude, you've got me worried. You possess more knowledge than the average red-blooded American male should about figure skating and speed skating. I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist you stop hanging with Scott Hamiliton, for your own good.

AND, we'll need to see a picture of your crib to prove to all of us you don't have any pictures of Dick Button on your walls..........

 

[djv]

Bring back the good old days when it was for honor. It was for the chance to compete. The gold medals were the size of a 50 cent piece. Now days there bigger then skippy penut butter top. They would stand on make shift wooden platforms about a foot off the ground to get there medals. There is way to much money in this chit. We have way to many competeing. No country should have more then there top two persons for each event. Hell put em back on radio screw the TV. Just think how many good cop shows and basket games were missing. Why is baskets in the summer games. Money. Curling that's a biggie. Nolan what you say to many Brats. AMEN.

 

[ryson]

Question about Olympic Gold Medals

Question about Olympic Gold Medals

does anyone know the troy (or total content of gold) weight of a gold medal, is is pure gold etc. Say for instance someone with a gold medal wanted to melt it down and sell it (I am sure it has happened). Just curious about how much "true troy weight gold" is in a gold medal.

 

[bigbagrat]

Ryson

Ryson

Ah yes, more deception by the IOC:

According to a couple of sites, Olympic gold and silver medals must be 92.5% pure SILVER. Gold medals are made of 210 grams of silver coated with 6 grams of 24 carat gold. The medals must be at least 60mm in diameter and at least 3 mm thick, rising to 5mm at the highest point on the medal. The host country designs the front and back.

I would think an Olympic medal has more worth as an award as opposed to the mineral value but I'm sure athletes on hard times have sold them.

What a bummer! Melt your gold metal and find it's made of silver!!

 

[ryson]

Thanks BBR - that's kind of what I thought, that IOC is a class act aren't they?.