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Slipperduke

The Camden Cad
Joined
Aug 24, 2004
Messages
4,333
Location
North London
I would have put this on The Slippery Column, but I thought that maybe it would have a wider interest. I think I'm going to get a lot of hate mail for this one....



It has swallowed up half of Rafa Benitez's midfield, savaged Mark Hughes' plans for a successful start, forced AC Milan fans to wait for their latest star and caused an almighty row at Werder Bremen. All across Europe, at the worst possible time, there is an exodus of stars and they're all going to the same place. Beijing. Javier Mascherano, Lucas, Jo, Ronaldinho, Rafinha, Diego and scores more are deserting their clubs in favour of that festival of folly, the Olympic Games. What on earth has got into them? Manchester City have just paid £20m for Jo and he's let them down already.

The Olympics is the most over-rated, over-hyped, pointless waste of resources in the sporting calendar. It's an packed programme of all the games that hardly anyone cares about, fringed by messy, ill-conceived attempts to incorporate the ones that people do. Every four years the world gathers uneasily to watch a collection of strangers running really, really fast, or jumping really, really high or, more often than not, praying really, really hard that they don't get asked to wee in a bottle. Drug cheats and champions mingle freely with plodding triers and no-hopers, like that poor non-swimmer from Equatorial Guinea who found himself in the 100m freestyle and almost drowned.

I hate it when people tell me that some of these obscure sports require years of training and great personal discipline. So does accountancy, but that doesn't mean I want to watch it on television. In the UK, people lose all sense of perspective when someone with a British passport manages to squirm into medal contention for throwing a hammer, or shooting clay pigeons, or for jumping off a diving board. If it's that good, if it's that entertaining, why don't we watch it all the time?

Any ideas about it being a sanctuary for the amateur athlete go out the window when you see half the ATP tour knocking about on the tennis courts and the argument is well and truly shot out of the sky when you hear about what they've done to the football. For some reason, it's the only event with an age limit, confusingly fixed at 23, and then undermined by a loophole for three 'over-age' players. New Zealand, Belgium and Honduras, those international giants, will battle for glory with the depleted representatives of the European elite and, of course, those pick'n'mix South Americans.

Why would all of these Brazilians and Argentines, en masse, walk out on their paymasters to fly halfway across the world for this? Are they not satisfied with the World Cup, the Copa America and the stand-alone group of World Cup qualifiers? Do they not get tested enough in the Champions League? If everybody was entering, if every team was top strength, then I could see the appeal, but this is just a lop-sided, restricted, rubbish version of the World Cup. Is anyone really going to be that happy to jump up on the podium, wave their gold medals and shout, "Yes! We did it! We beat the Korean youth team! This is just like winning the World Cup!" I sincerely hope not.
 
I thought the Olympics used to be about amateur atheletes, so how can professional footballers be involved? I rarely watch any of it, unless one of those with a bit of character's involved - Kelly Holmes, Matthew Pinsent in recent times, Kriss Akabusi and Daley Thompson going back a bit.
 
Football at the Olympics is indeed daft. I work to the general principle that if winning Olympic gold isn't the pinnacle of achievement in that sport, then out it should go. So that's goodbye tennis and football for starters. Possibly basketball too - certainly most American players value an NBA Championship ring more than Olympic gold (which is handy seeing as they only won bronze last time).

But generally speaking - and it's very rarely I say this - I'm having to disagree with you mate. The Olympics are absolutely fantastic. It's a brilliant eye-opener for one. It brings to your attention sports you may never have had an interest in but which you come to find fascinating. I never had much time for cycling before Chris Boardman won gold in 1992 - now I love it.

So I don't watch archery unless it's a leap year. So what? I really enjoyed following it at Athens in 2004. Admittedly, I'm a total sports nut - SUFC and Essex CCC are great, but I need much more than they offer - but I think the Olympics is an absolutely wonderful event. Really looking forward to Beijing and even more so London 2012.
 
Football at the Olympics is indeed daft. I work to the general principle that if winning Olympic gold isn't the pinnacle of achievement in that sport, then out it should go. So that's goodbye tennis and football for starters. Possibly basketball too - certainly most American players value an NBA Championship ring more than Olympic gold (which is handy seeing as they only won bronze last time).

But generally speaking - and it's very rarely I say this - I'm having to disagree with you mate. The Olympics are absolutely fantastic. It's a brilliant eye-opener for one. It brings to your attention sports you may never have had an interest in but which you come to find fascinating. I never had much time for cycling before Chris Boardman won gold in 1992 - now I love it.

So I don't watch archery unless it's a leap year. So what? I really enjoyed following it at Athens in 2004. Admittedly, I'm a total sports nut - SUFC and Essex CCC are great, but I need much more than they offer - but I think the Olympics is an absolutely wonderful event. Really looking forward to Beijing and even more so London 2012.

Good points one and all, and I take all of them on board for long consideration. However, I should just point one thing out...

You like rugby.
 
Good points one and all, and I take all of them on board for long consideration. However, I should just point one thing out...

You like rugby.

It's a fair cop guv :D

Anyone else here going to Harlequins RL vs Bradford Sunday week?







Ok, just me then.
 
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