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couchmaster
climber
pdx
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Jim has a good point. Look at all the Kenyans and Ethiopians winning track events.
However, until Nascar is an olympic event (hey, it's hard work for the drivers), I'm not getting my panties bunched up.
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Brokedownclimber
Trad climber
Douglas, WY
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My aged uncle who still lives in Steamboat Springs, CO. was a highly ranked competitive swimmer, BITD. His Country Club was the downtown YMCA in St. Louis.
The equestrian sports have a background through the use of cavalry up through the Second World War. Three day eventing was basically restricted to active duty cavalrymen through the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Many famous military men were reknowned riders: George Patton, George Marshall, Hasso von Manteufel, just to name a few.
Besides, riding a well-trained horse and riding well, is a LOT of fun! Just as much fun as running a marathon, and falling puking on the ground. I'm one of those guys who does enjoy dressage, since I have ridden some good dressage horses. I never was any good at it, but riding one of the horses was a real blast.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 1, 2012 - 11:04am PT
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Lennox, thanks for not saying I made a horse out of myself (I much prefer being an ass than a horse) but if you look at the demographics of swimmers vs, track and field atheletes you will see a vast difference. T&F, along with soccer are the two only truly international sports, played in every country and by every CLASS of person in every country.
There is a club atmosphere to swimming, although it is certainly more egalitarian than equestrian or yachting.
I'm not saying that they shouldn't be olympic sports, but I do feel that a track & field gold medal is more prestigious than a swimming medal just as a swimming medal is worth more than an equestrian medal.
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deejay
Trad climber
AV
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So by "clones" do you mean that both sports are predominatley white? Therfore they must come from privalaged backgrounds and come from families that belong to Country Clubs?
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crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
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Well it's clear that there are just some sports in the Olympics that over time have been dominated by folks with the financial wherewithal to to excel - through better equipment ( for example an expensive horse, although that might not be the rule), expensive training (Dara Torres) the ability to not have to work and therefore spend all their time training. Then you've got NBC, whose coverage will mostly be based on ratings or what they deem to be most popular.
My personal pet peeve is the inclusion of PROFESSIONAL NBA basketball players in the Olympics. Now there is the most glaringly obvious f up...how is that anyway? How could anyone call these guys amateur? I don't get that.
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Well, ski racing is a pretty darn expensive sport as well.
In regards to the OP, I've read that if Phelps medals three times this summer, he'll be the most decorated Olympian of all time. That may explain the preemption. Lotsa hype leading up to the games.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Any athlete who is going to excel and compete needs financial support , encouragement , and time to train and rest...Sometimes the athlete with better financial support wins out over the athlete without financial backing...An unfair advantage...Lemond had this support growing up thru the ranks..... Donini makes a valid point....
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tarek
climber
berkeley
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as a T&F fan, I agree with Donini.
My prejudice:
What the heck is the deal with the silly strokes?
Just go with freestyle, and be done.
Imagine, "And now, once around the 400m oval on all fours. The favorite in this event..."
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deejay
Trad climber
AV
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The triple jump is not contrived? or the events which consist of throwing different objects for distance?
I agree with Jolly Roger, the whole premise of this topic is flawed.
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Rick A
climber
Boulder, Colorado
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One certainly could not call Duke Kahanamoku a “Country Club Clone”: son of a policeman, dropped out of high school, original soul surfer, and Olympic gold medalist swimmer, 1912.
Donini’s all wet on this point.
http://www.answers.com/topic/duke-kahanamoku
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Toker Villain
Big Wall climber
Toquerville, Utah
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Olympics= national pride= major world audience
Good luck on that "lets get the big money out of it and get back to the roots of sporting competition" thing.
Yeah,.... that oughta fly.
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Tobia
Social climber
Denial
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I kind of lost a little enthusiasm for the Olympics in 1980 when J Carter boycotted them because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (if he only had a crystal ball).
It seemed to go against the whole grain of the spirit of athletic competition to let politics interfere.
Two people I once knew (I didn't meet them until 1986) were on the Olympic swim team and did not get to compete. One went on to train another 4 years to swim; but the other didn't. The one that went was not near the competitor she would have been in 1980. To hear their story of the disappointment is gut wrenching.
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Spider Savage
Mountain climber
The shaggy fringe of Los Angeles
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Let's see, which notable climbers would you call "Country Club Clones?"
Hmmmmmm....
They would not have to hold down a regular job to make ends meet.
They would be climbing all over the world, climbing a lot.
They might be struggling with some offwidth problem but not how to pay for the next trip.
I do know one or two who still live in their mom's basement. But they don't count. Unless they also have daddy's lifetime family membership at "the club."
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klk
Trad climber
cali
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jim, they broke away not because mp is rich or because swimmers are rich but because he's young, good looking, and an american who won big gold, and because his wins helped aging baby boomers recall mark spitz. plus he's white, and that's a bigger market.
yeah, nbc coverage of the olympics frickin blows.
when i worry about money and sports and corruption, though, the olympics is like 500th on the list, way after pro football, basketball, and baseball and their collegiate versions.
so far as horsemanship is concerned, when the f*#k is bull riding gonna be an olympic sport? brazil is gonna crush.
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Nick
climber
portland, Oregon
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I was curious about the original ascertain that Michael Phelps was a “country club clone” so I did a little research and found out he was raised by a divorced mother who was a school administrator. Not exactly country club clone material. He may or may not be a jerk, but he certainly was not raised in a privileged household by American standards.
My daughter was involved in competitive swimming and my experience was that almost all of the families involved were of middle class background. As a general rule most swimmers achieve high academic standards compared to the popular ball sport students and many can attend prestigious schools based on academic standing alone.
After the limelight of the Olympics most swimmers settle into a regular every day life of middle America.
Perhaps all sports are the realm of the privileged.
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guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
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Dam-There you go again Jim, stirring up ST with some misguided philosophical tirade guaranteed to bring out the worst of fellow SuperTopians.
Myself, I am putting pennies into the bank to attend the World Curling Cup in Mojave at the end of August.
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klk
Trad climber
cali
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the wacko lefty Che Guevera-worshiping radical ST loony birds
donini and che.
hmm.
well, they're both latins.
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Moof
Big Wall climber
Orygun
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over 2000 channels on my POS cable setup I am reminded every 2 years just how lame it is that all we get is time lagged highlight reals of most of the Olympics. I'd greatly prefer a dozen channels of simple uncut live feeds, and maybe just a wee bit of minimalist commentary.
The difference between the Canadian commentators and the US babblemouths for the 2010 Women's hockey was staggering. That was about all we could get interested in last time, and frankly I don't expect to follow anything on this go around. The coverage has just gotten too lame thanks to the news drones who have all been brought up on our awful 24 hour news cycle.
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blahblah
Gym climber
Boulder
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The triple jump is not contrived? or the events which consist of throwing different objects for distance?
The straight-up running is contrived too--100m, 200m, 400m etc.?? Then do similar events with some little jumps (hurdles) thrown in?
Just run one short race and one long race and be done with it.
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jogill
climber
Colorado
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John Orozco belongs to a country club??
John Orozco
I could not care less about the immensly popular manfish, Phelps, but this young man has a wonderful, inspiring story. I hope he does well in London.
;>0
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