The 2006 Winter Olympics: How Deep Is The Ocean Edition
How bad was Sunday for the U.S. Olympic team? How high is the sky? Here’s Mike Celizic from MSNBC:
Call it Black Sunday, the day the sky fell in on the U.S. Olympic Team. And nothing the team can do during the next two weeks can make up for the opportunities already lost.
The United States has already missed enough opportunities in its best events to be almost certain that it will not meet its own goal of equaling or beating the record 34 medals it won four years ago. That is the reality of Black Sunday.
It’s a good thing we’re so keen on ‘extreme’ sports in the U.S., because 4 of our 5 medals to date have come from the hallowed haven of the halfpipe. We rule in snowboarding, dude!
The U.S. team isn’t the only organization whose performance is leaving a bitter taste; the NBC coverage is getting hammered, as well; Frazier Moore of the AP calls it ‘must-flee TV’…
Actually, I watched last night from 7 – 10pm (EST) and aside from the Michelle Kwan sob story at the start found the coverage to be mostly about athletic events.
But I must admit the whole “Torino” thing is driving me crazy. I wouldn’t mind so much if they said “Firenza” and “Roma” and “Venezia” too, it’s just that the faux-Italian affectation of saying “Torino” is just plain annoying.
Me too, tms. I read somewhere that it was Dick Ebersol’s decision. He was over there, liked the local name and decided more or less on his own that “Torino” would be the name they’d go with. But it seems ridiculous to be faux-Italian when along with the logo “Torino 2006,” I’ve seen the Italians have plastered the slogan “Passion lives here” – in English – on everything.
I’m an unapologetic Olympic junkie, though I get annoyed with the tendency to hype a few athletes before they’ve, you know, won anything (I’m looking at you, Bode Miller).
I’m a bit puzzled by the tone of the MSNBC report. We’ve never won a ton of medals at the Winter Olympics, and now it looks like we won’t beat the 2002 record. So that constitutes “Black Sunday”? Sheesh, talk about high expectations.
I’ve given up on the NBC coverage and have switched to the CBC insted (I’m far enough north that I get it on cable). They don’t cut away all the time to the talking heads, they don’t over hype, the give equile time to everyone, not just the Canadans, and they cover a lot more sports. Over all it’s about 5 to 10 times better then NBC.
Don’t we have more important issues in our lives to be concerned about? You would think that the US not being able to “metal” in short track speed skating would bring this world to a complete stop. I know it sure affected my life. Kind of like who wins the Stuper Bowl.
HI – I AM SICK OF THE U.S. NEWS COVERAGE OF THE OLYMPICS. THE MEDIA CREATES UNJUSTIFIABLE HYPE AND THEN CRITIZES THE ATHLETES FOR NOT LIVING UP TO THE MEDIA’S HYPE. THE MEDIA CREATES CONTROVERSIES BY ASKING ATHLETES LOADED QUESTIONS AND THEN RUNNING TO THEIR OPPONENTS WITH ” DID YOU HEAR WHAT ” SO AND SO SAID – I AM ALL FOR BANNING ALL CONTACT BETWEEN THE MEDIA AND ATHLETES DURING THE OLYMPICS OR ATLEAST UNTIL ALL THEIR SCHEDULED EVENTS ARE COMPLETED. THE COVERAGE OF THE GAMES ON TV IS AS BAD AS EVER – HALF THE TIME IS SPENT ON TANGENTIAL STUFF AND TALLING HEADS STIRRING ONE POT OR ANOTHER – FUTHERMORE, I WANT TO SEE SPORTS NOT HEAR ABOUT EVERYONE’S TRAGEDY – ALL HUMANS HAVE TRAGEDY IN THEIR LIVES. THE BIGGEST FAILURE AT THE OLYMPICS IS THE AMERICAN MEDIA – AGAIN – JOHN RUNYON