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| Yuzuru Hanyu |
I am a dedicated fan of all our Olympians. USA, USA, USA. I chanted it when our men's ice hockey team beat Russia yesterday in 8 rounds of a shootout. What a great game! I have watched these Winter Games every night of the week since they started. I have watched everything from the biathlon to curling. However, I have a few Gripes that I need to lay down concerning these games.
1. Figure Skating: Frankly, I just don't get it. I don't understand how the judges score it. The other night in the men's free skate, Japan's Yuzuru Hanyu fell not once, but twice and won the gold medal. I always thought if you fell it was pretty much over especially if another skater performs perfectly. I know he broke a record for most points in the short program, but c'mon, he hit the ice twice. Was everyone else that bad? I didn't think so. Speaking of points, how the hack are they tallied up? I know a quad jump is worth more than a triple. Hanyu fell on a quad jump but got points for the attempt. WHAT! Points for simply an attempt. Hell I would attempt nothing but quad jumps and pray that I landed one or two. In my opinion perfection trumps a simple attempt. I always said figure skating was fixed and now I am sure of it. The 3 or 4 favorites are the only ones that have a chance.
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| The Agony of Defeat |
2. Ski Jumping: Since when did they add style points to ski jumping? It used to be nothing but raw distance and landing upright. Now they have style points and plus or minus wind points. ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME! Like figure skating, style points are nebulous and up for interpretation. A jumper could go further but end up not winning. It doesn't make any sense? Also, have you ever looked at the jumping ramp? There is no actual snow on it. It is white plywood with ski grooves and rails. It is virtually impossible to fall like Slovenia's Vinko Bogataj did in 1970. Remember ABC's Wide World of Sports intro with the Agony of Defeat. Yep, that was Vinko. I believe he suffered a concussion. Today, their ski's cannot go awry because they are in pre-made grooves with rails along side of both sides. What fun is that?
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| Plushenko Folds Up |
3. Finally for today, let me say that NBC's coverage is poor at best. Every night in prime time all we get is figure skating, speed skating and skiing. They may throw in another event for 10 minutes of the 3 hour broadcast. By the way, what's up with Bob Costas and that eye infection. I think he was all bombed up at a local Sochi bar and got worked over. Speaking of getting worked over, someone needs to put a muzzle on Tom Hammonds. The other night I thought he was going to go down to the ice and kiss the Russian mens skater Evengi Plushenko. Plushenko hurt his back and bailed out on his long program. C'mon man, it's the Olympics and you are the favorite to win gold. You have to suck it up and get out there. U.S. skater Jeremy Abbott fell the night before the long skate and injured his hip. He still came out with a gutsy performance the next day. USA, USA. My guess is we will never hear from Plushenko again because Putin will send him to the salt mines of Minsk.
There you have it. My Gripes on the Olympics for week one.
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