Brazil Olympics 2016

[waggy]

current coverage is so horrid they are basically unwatchable anyway

/this

The coverage of the olympics is a joke. The last one they talked so much that you would miss a good portion of the sports. 20 minutes of talking then 10 minutes of coverage? fuck off.

I ended up watching it online. At least then i got to see the actual competition oh and not just the 1-2 things that US dominates in.

 

[sdifox]

/this

The coverage of the olympics is a joke. The last one they talked so much that you would miss a good portion of the sports. 20 minutes of talking then 10 minutes of coverage? fuck off.

I ended up watching it online. At least then i got to see the actual competition oh and not just the 1-2 things that US dominates in.

BBC did an excellent job on their London Olympic coverage. live streamed everything. I was watching 10m Air Pistol though I knew nothing about the sport.

 

[William Gaatjes]

In the future "history wiki pages" we will read that this event increased the spread of zika over the entire world.
I am curious how that will pan out.

 

[Homerboy]

What I find funny is that they don't broadcast medal ceremonies anymore -- those can be seen online. *sigh*

Oh, and it looks like their president is most definitely going to be impeached now.

 

[gorcorps]

I don't know if it's because I've been completely numbed by ESPN, non-stop sports stuff year round, so many other on-demand services to fill my time (Netflix, Amazon, ect) or what...

But I have lost any and all interest in the Olympics at this point. When I was a kid and we had 3 channels of TV and no internet the Olympics were something very different and special. Now...I'm just...meh.

There's not a single thing in the summer Olympics that interests me. Winter is the only thing I bother with, and even then it's a specific handful of sports.

 

[Exterous]

If there's one thing to do with a blood transmitted virus like that, you don't bring visitors from every corner of the globe to help it spread faster.

Pretty sure I always hope the London Olympics don't get canceled when playing Plague Inc

 

[sactoking]

When I was younger I was pretty into the Olympics. I was a swimmer and a runner and the Olympics were really the only time in 4 years you got to see the best compete on TV. I also enjoyed many of the other sports like the short-track cycling; you never saw those unless you were "into" them.

As I got older I was less into the Olympics. I had worn out on swimming and running after competing in them year-round for 16 years, so watching them didn't hold as much appeal. The explosion of offbeat sports coverage really diluted the Olympic appeal of many of the offerings, which were no longer a novelty. And the increased popularity of things like women's gymnastics (which is huge among housewives and old people, two key Olympic demographics) made the broadcasts intolerable (not saying that gymnastics isn't a sport but let's acknowledge the elephant in the room: judging is corrupt and unreliable and the fact that they have to have age minimums (and countries like China keep trying to break them) is exceptionally unappealing).

Then I became more aware of the corruption of the IOC, the host city bidding process, and the extreme negative economic impact on host countries and I decided that the Olympics only currently exist to line the pockets of greedy officials.

 

[StrangerGuy]

When I was younger I was pretty into the Olympics. I was a swimmer and a runner and the Olympics were really the only time in 4 years you got to see the best compete on TV. I also enjoyed many of the other sports like the short-track cycling; you never saw those unless you were "into" them.

As I got older I was less into the Olympics. I had worn out on swimming and running after competing in them year-round for 16 years, so watching them didn't hold as much appeal. The explosion of offbeat sports coverage really diluted the Olympic appeal of many of the offerings, which were no longer a novelty. And the increased popularity of things like women's gymnastics (which is huge among housewives and old people, two key Olympic demographics) made the broadcasts intolerable (not saying that gymnastics isn't a sport but let's acknowledge the elephant in the room: judging is corrupt and unreliable and the fact that they have to have age minimums (and countries like China keep trying to break them) is exceptionally unappealing).

Then I became more aware of the corruption of the IOC, the host city bidding process, and the extreme negative economic impact on host countries and I decided that the Olympics only currently exist to line the pockets of greedy officials.

I always thought Olympics hosting is a massive money black hole which is why developed nations aren't really interested in hosting them anymore, while developing nations do it because they are just as corrupt as the IOC and thinks blowing money for a quickly forgettable sports event is a good idea.

 

[Blackjack200]

I always thought Olympics hosting is a massive money black hole which is why developed nations aren't really interested in hosting them anymore, while developing nations do it because they are just as corrupt as the IOC and thinks blowing money for a quickly forgettable sports event is a good idea.

Yup, but there's no reason it has to be this way. Lots of cities in developed nations already have the infrastructure in place, so making the games beneficial to the host is simply a matter of the terms you negotiate. But then there's not enough grease to go around.

 

[Remobz]

Brazil is like the cesspool of South America. Corrupt, inept and a joke for the rest of South America.

How the hell did America loose to this cesspool of a Country?

This will be one of the worst Olympics ever! A damn shame

 

[Blackjack200]

Brazil is like the cesspool of South America. Corrupt, inept and a joke for the rest of South America.

How the hell did America loose to this cesspool of a Country?

This will be one of the worst Olympics ever! A damn shame

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_Corrupt_Practices_Act

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Yup, but there's no reason it has to be this way. Lots of cities in developed nations already have the infrastructure in place, so making the games beneficial to the host is simply a matter of the terms you negotiate. But then there's not enough grease to go around.

Nobody has the infrastructure in place. There are always lots and lots of building projects like athletes dorms and upgrading transportation is a big thing. The giant money pits are stadiums, they cost insane amounts and never ever generate a return on that investment, it's always cash just pissed away. The few financially successful Olympics have been successful because they did it on the cheap. They got a lot of private sponsorship and used existing stadiums almost exclusively. Then they were able to use their budgets for upgrading the city infrastructure which can pay dividends and improving highways and public transport is money that is eventually going to get spent anyway. And good planning allowed the dorms to be used as low income housing or converted to hotel/convention centers. It can be done if it's viewed as a business from day 1 and every aspect is subjected to budget oversight so see what the long-term benefit will be and to control spending. The problem is that it's very tough to make money and too big a risk for cities that are already in good shape. It's kind of a last-gasp thing for locations that are already in trouble and hoping for a miracle.

Phase 1) Borrow gazzilllions of dollars to build huge stadiums
Phase 2) ?
Phase 3) Profit

 

[Ns1]

^^

LA has the infrastructure in place. We are ready and waiting.

 

[Anubis]

I think the last time the Olympics were in LA is 1 of like 2 times the host actually made money

 

[maddogchen]

all these olympics fans will be traveling to the Zika hotspot and then spreading it all over the world when they return home.

 

[lupi]

Life threatening virus, 3rd world sanitary conditions in areas used for athletic events, quasi coup in progress, how could this possibly not turn out well.

 

[waggy]

BBC did an excellent job on their London Olympic coverage. live streamed everything. I was watching 10m Air Pistol though I knew nothing about the sport.

same. I watched the BBC online and it was great. I got to watch a lot of sports. lol i think i ended up watching Air pistol also.

The commentary was also damn near perfect. Just enough to introduce the sport and mention who won. NO 20 minute segment on 1 person who is not even in the top 3. just competition and mentioning the winners regardless of nationality.

 

[waggy]

Life threatening virus, 3rd world sanitary conditions in areas used for athletic events, quasi coup in progress, how could this possibly not turn out well.

well..

when you put it that way it sounds like a great trip!

 

[PokerGuy]

I will watch some of it the same way you can't help but watch a trainwreck. It's sad for the people of Brazil -- it's the perfect storm of bad things. Horrible economy, horrible disease running rampant, massive amount of money wasted, massive negative press because of the sewage and disease, political upheaval, all at the same time. Ugh.

I don't know if it's because I've been completely numbed by ESPN, non-stop sports stuff year round, so many other on-demand services to fill my time (Netflix, Amazon, ect) or what...

But I have lost any and all interest in the Olympics at this point. When I was a kid and we had 3 channels of TV and no internet the Olympics were something very different and special. Now...I'm just...meh.

This, 100% this, I feel the same way. It used to be a once every 4 years cool different thing. You tuned in to watch sports you'd otherwise never consider watching just because it was part of the olympics. Now? Naah, I have other things to spend my limited time on.

 

[Anubis]

BBC did an excellent job on their London Olympic coverage. live streamed everything. I was watching 10m Air Pistol though I knew nothing about the sport.

yea the BBC was great, I had to VPN and blan blah blah to watch their feeds

the US coverage is trash, its literally the worst sports coverage I have ever seen

 

[Brovane]

Nobody has the infrastructure in place. There are always lots and lots of building projects like athletes dorms and upgrading transportation is a big thing. The giant money pits are stadiums, they cost insane amounts and never ever generate a return on that investment,

A lot of Major US cities have the infrastructure in-place or readily adaptable to the Olympics because of the strong Pro and College athletic programs that exist in major US cities. As has been noted the LA Olympics made a profit, made good use of the Coliseum for both the 1932 and 1984 Olympics and hopefully the 2024 Olympics. Even after the Olympics the venues in US cities usually go on to either go back to their original purpose or they venues constructed for the Olympics continue to see use. Example the Centennial Olympic Stadium in Atlanta is now Turner Field used by the Atlanta Braves. The swimming pool for Olympic events is now used by Georgia Tech. You would be hard pressed to find a US Olympic venue not still being currently used long after the Olympics came through. The original swim stadium for the 1932 LA Olympics is still in use as a swimming pool.

 

[waggy]

A lot of Major US cities have the infrastructure in-place or readily adaptable to the Olympics because of the strong Pro and College athletic programs that exist in major US cities. As has been noted the LA Olympics made a profit, made good use of the Coliseum for both the 1932 and 1984 Olympics and hopefully the 2024 Olympics. Even after the Olympics the venues in US cities usually go on to either go back to their original purpose or they venues constructed for the Olympics continue to see use. Example the Centennial Olympic Stadium in Atlanta is now Turner Field used by the Atlanta Braves. The swimming pool for Olympic events is now used by Georgia Tech. You would be hard pressed to find a US Olympic venue not still being currently used long after the Olympics came through. The original swim stadium for the 1932 LA Olympics is still in use as a swimming pool.

only ones i have seen pictures of were a few bob sleeding courses. seems everything else is reused.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

A lot of Major US cities have the infrastructure in-place or readily adaptable to the Olympics because of the strong Pro and College athletic programs that exist in major US cities. As has been noted the LA Olympics made a profit, made good use of the Coliseum for both the 1932 and 1984 Olympics and hopefully the 2024 Olympics. Even after the Olympics the venues in US cities usually go on to either go back to their original purpose or they venues constructed for the Olympics continue to see use. Example the Centennial Olympic Stadium in Atlanta is now Turner Field used by the Atlanta Braves. The swimming pool for Olympic events is now used by Georgia Tech. You would be hard pressed to find a US Olympic venue not still being currently used long after the Olympics came through. The original swim stadium for the 1932 LA Olympics is still in use as a swimming pool.

Yes, some have stadiums. None have all the housing and the public transport volume necessary. Los Angeles was successful because it built no new venues and funneled almost the entire budget into housing and public transportation which are useful investments in the long run. And lots of other cities could do the same, use existing stadiums to avoid the big-ticket budget killers. But nobody has the ability to host the Olympics turn-key where they can get the bid and just hang up some banners. Even the most prepared sites would still require substantial building projects to work.

 

[Brovane]

only ones i have seen pictures of were a few bob sleeding courses. seems everything else is reused.

Looks like the Salt Lake City Olympic games one is still in use. Even with no ice.

http://utaholympiclegacy.org/activity/summer-bobsled-ride/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiv84ksh9Jk

 

[Imp]

I don't know if it's because I've been completely numbed by ESPN, non-stop sports stuff year round, so many other on-demand services to fill my time (Netflix, Amazon, ect) or what...

But I have lost any and all interest in the Olympics at this point. When I was a kid and we had 3 channels of TV and no internet the Olympics were something very different and special. Now...I'm just...meh.

Ameeeeeeeeeeeericaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!! Fuq, yeah!

Your sense of national identity is defined by how many medals people you don't know win playing sports you don't care about against other people no one knows who may or may not be drugged up!