2022 Winter Olympics (Beijing) 2/4/2022

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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
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I don't know how people can watch the Olympics (or any sporting event) without time shifting and skipping commercials. I skip a lot of other stuff too. I was thinking last night, I'm going to skip a lot of events, ones where the subtleties that distinguish the winners from the losers aren't particularly clear. I think I'm going to skip downhill, slalom, moguls, ski jump, some others.

Exceptions: Figure skating, snowboarding, there are others, I'll see. But I'll skip a skater who's falling apart.

I skipped the opening ceremonies. I watched a bit of this and that, wasn't impressed.

Mike Torico is infinitely better than Bob Costas, who usually bothered me.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
41,080
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wow that kamila valieva girl from russia is on another level in figure skating
She's by far the best I've ever seen. In fact she's the epitome of figure skating excellence, and incomparable. I can't tell the difference between her performance and an imagined performance in which a skater is spot on perfect. Complete mastery.
 
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brianmanahan

Lifer
Sep 2, 2006
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She's by far the best I've ever seen. In fact she's the epitome of figure skating excellence, and incomparable. I can't tell the difference between her performance and an imagined performance in which a skater is spot on perfect. Complete mastery.

i couldn't believe it when i watched her perform. the technical was unmatched, and artistically she was up there with the very best.
 

Torn Mind

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
12,086
2,774
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Shiffrin skis out of the Giant Slalom.

I rarely watch. Seems like every time I watch, a Mikaela(or Mckayla) has a disaster. (The other was Maroney)

I am a living voodoo doll to Mikaelas. :p
 

manly

Lifer
Jan 25, 2000
13,457
4,168
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i couldn't believe it when i watched her perform. the technical was unmatched, and artistically she was up there with the very best.
She has long, gangly legs and I don't find it aesthetically pleasing. But I only know a little more about figure skating than I do about curling. :p The U.S. women had a good run in the past, but the commentators said the Russians are favored to sweep the podium.

Peacock premium is a good way of watching the Olympics. Surprisingly I'm able to skip over the TV ads as I watched the national broadcast.
 

Zorba

Lifer
Oct 22, 1999
15,613
11,256
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Shiffrin skis out of the Giant Slalom.

I rarely watch. Seems like every time I watch, a Mikaela(or Mckayla) has a disaster. (The other was Maroney)

I am a living voodoo doll to Mikaelas. :p
Seems like every Olympics our downhill team gets a ton of hype, then falls apart.
 

KMFJD

Lifer
Aug 11, 2005
33,378
53,376
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Ireen Wust just won her 6th gold medal and 12th overall in speed skating (6g 5s 1b)
 

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
111,931
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Seems like every Olympics our downhill team gets a ton of hype, then falls apart.

heh, pretty much this. Though, Shiffrin so far in her career has pretty much lived up to the hype. That fall was extremely rare for her, but also not unusual for that course this year. The "snow is weird."

And it's also an extremely low margin of error in these downhill events.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
41,080
10,319
136
Shiffrin skis out of the Giant Slalom.

I rarely watch. Seems like every time I watch, a Mikaela(or Mckayla) has a disaster. (The other was Maroney)

I am a living voodoo doll to Mikaelas. :p
It's the worst part about watching the Olympics, disappointment when athletes have those disastrous moments. Some of the sports you're just holding your breath. I think the 2nd or so woman down that GS hill fell at just about the same point in the course, so Schiffrin falling there was no surprise to me. Her skis were chattering pretty wildly a moment before. She tried to save her speed but couldn't without going down. I think the conditions were pretty bad. Artificial snow has to suck.
 

Torn Mind

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
12,086
2,774
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It's the worst part about watching the Olympics, disappointment when athletes have those disastrous moments. Some of the sports you're just holding your breath. I think the 2nd or so woman down that GS hill fell at just about the same point in the course, so Schiffrin falling there was no surprise to me. Her skis were chattering pretty wildly a moment before. She tried to save her speed but couldn't without going down. I think the conditions were pretty bad. Artificial snow has to suck.
Yeah, one of the Italians.
The Harbor Freight grade of snow manufacturing. ;) Sometimes things work adequately, sometimes things just fall apart.
 

Hans Gruber

Platinum Member
Dec 23, 2006
2,535
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There is more snow in the Arizona mountains than in China. All the snow is manufactured there. The fake stuff works fine for snowboarding but the big hill stuff, just seems weird to see.
 

KMFJD

Lifer
Aug 11, 2005
33,378
53,376
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XWz9AC0.gif


impressive cheating by China there
 

manly

Lifer
Jan 25, 2000
13,457
4,168
136
Seems like every Olympics our downhill team gets a ton of hype, then falls apart.
Barely missing gold, American Ryan Cochran-Siegle wins silver in the Super-G! 50 years ago, his mom won a gold medal in slalom at the '72 games.
 
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Captante

Lifer
Oct 20, 2003
30,354
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Artificial snow has to suck


Problem with man-made snow is that the "slickness level" tends to be very uneven. (fun stuff when your left ski slows down suddenly while the right maintains speed!) This problem is made worse when natural and artificial snow are mixed which is a non-issue at these Olympics.

Who was the freaking moron who decided it was a good plan to have the winter Olympics in a place with no natural snow?

:rolleyes:
 
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Exterous

Super Moderator
Jun 20, 2006
20,594
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Problem with man-made snow is that the "slickness level" tends to be very uneven. (fun stuff when your left ski slows down suddenly while the right maintains speed!) This problem is made worse when natural and artificial snow are mixed which is a non-issue at these Olympics.

Who was the freaking moron who decided it was a good plan to have the winter Olympics in a place with no natural snow?

:rolleyes:
Things like that matter less to decision makers when you can use the bribe money to buy your own mountain chalet
 
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Torn Mind

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
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Beijing will always be a second class city compared to Shanghai. Always.

Sucks the French gal couldn't claim gold over Eileen Gu. Only sane thing to do is cheer for the red army to lose.
 
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spacejamz

Lifer
Mar 31, 2003
10,985
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I really haven't been watchin...is this real?? LOL

so this is real...but those structures in the back are not nuclear plant cooling towers...it is is an old steel mill....

1644341469724.png
 
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Torn Mind

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
12,086
2,774
136
I really haven't been watchin...is this real?? LOL

View attachment 57154
Well, you can say they were frugal about money and stuck to the "reuse" part of using resources. Despite me hating the regime, I can safely say we Chinese value saving money over fashionability if push comes to shove. If even an $2 extra is spent, it is like inviting death to one's door.

Yep, I was looking it up myself and it is apparently a former steel mill operating as a museum. Maybe the raw materials for Harbor Freight Tools back before 2008 can trace their origin to there.

And besides, it is a country for the proletariat/peasant farmers. /sarcasm