Since working on the Olympics in ATL in '96, I have not watched more than 2 or 3 minutes of any Olympics games/ Opening ceremonies/etc...the graft,nepotism,incompetence and mismanagement i witnessed has permanently turned me off to any and all Olympics since...for context, i was in ATL from May 1 through Memorial Day 1996 in Production at the soon to be created Centennial Park...
Time and time again cities are left holding the bag for a bunch of otherwise unneeded facilities, homeless are swept away during the ' sanitation ' of the host city , everyday citizens lives are disrupted, there are more stories of Olympic structures falling back into disrepair, like the jungle reclaiming an abandoned village...for every Lake Placid there are a dozen broke down buildings that were raised or left to rot...
Now lets move onto privacy and security. Every city that hosts an Olympics gets a free security infrastructure upgrade, namely cameras , EVERYWHERE , never going away and after the Olympics turned on the very homeless and citizens that were driven out during the actual games.
I'll be watching but not as much as I used to. That is mostly because of American Olympics TV coverage that spends most of the time telling you the back story of the athletes third cousin who beat cancer rather than the actual sporting event.
I don't think Paris will suffer much from hosting the Olympics since they host global events all the time, but smaller cities that take it on get screwed like Athens. I lived in Munich for the infamous 72 Olympics and lived through the city being torn up to host. They put in an entire city subway system and a BART like regional system just for those games. That said those systems are still in place today so it was an improvement.
One of my favorite TED Talks is by an atheist who talks about things from religion that we should all incorporate, and one of those is pilgrimage travel. I think we all have experience being part of a group of people that descends on a city for an event. It's fun and there are Olympic Heads who never miss one.
I will probably watch some, especially tennis. I watch tennis now and I don't think it will be very different. The tennis players are excited about the rarer once-every-four-year wins, some of them moreso than the Slams.
I like watching some sports, I don't know how much I can take on our TV networks. I get very irritated by the USA-centric coverage. Years ago Eugene cable TV included the Canadian ABC (or whatever it was) the channel the Olympics were on. The Canadian broadcasts were so much more relaxed and global in focus. It was a lot like the Olympics were supposed to be.
> Interest has slowly fallen since the introduction of professional athletes and their inability to weed out roided up contestants.
I think another part of it is we don't watch things with others as much as we used to. When I was growing up, the whole family would sit down to watch the Olympics on the one screen we had in the house. I don't think that sort of thing happens very much anymore.
I think the opening ceremony will be spectacular with Paris and the river Seine and tour eiffel being the backdrop. I LOVE PARIS, but will watch on tv,the crowds and clusterfk of the whole thing seams already overwhelming! Oh and the prices do you all know they've doubled the price of the metro for this event?
I never go into these things excited, but I'll end up watching and I'll get drawn in, because despite all the multiple excellent reasons to not watch/not be interested in this, in the end it will still come down to brilliant, incredibly elite athletes who have dedicated themselves & sacrificed in countless ways to be there, giving every single ounce of themselves to win.
In those moments, none of the graft and greed and steroids and all the bullshit will matter to them. In the end it will be THE MOMENT for those brilliant few.
And those moments are amazing, and that's why I'll watch.
the surf comp could be incredible. it is being held in tahiti at Teahupo'o which is one of the gnarliest waves...however the judging platform that has been used for the last 2 decades is supposedly inadequate for olympic specs. They are trying to build a giant one and the locals are pissed about fucking with the reef....
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Zzzzzz
I care. Paris is a lovely
I care. Paris is a lovely town and have a few friends there. I'm hoping they can pull off the Seine opening ceremonies. Sounds super cool.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: MikePA
OK, sorry but far beyond
OK, sorry but far beyond uninterested..
Since working on the Olympics in ATL in '96, I have not watched more than 2 or 3 minutes of any Olympics games/ Opening ceremonies/etc...the graft,nepotism,incompetence and mismanagement i witnessed has permanently turned me off to any and all Olympics since...for context, i was in ATL from May 1 through Memorial Day 1996 in Production at the soon to be created Centennial Park...
Time and time again cities are left holding the bag for a bunch of otherwise unneeded facilities, homeless are swept away during the ' sanitation ' of the host city , everyday citizens lives are disrupted, there are more stories of Olympic structures falling back into disrepair, like the jungle reclaiming an abandoned village...for every Lake Placid there are a dozen broke down buildings that were raised or left to rot...
Now lets move onto privacy and security. Every city that hosts an Olympics gets a free security infrastructure upgrade, namely cameras , EVERYWHERE , never going away and after the Olympics turned on the very homeless and citizens that were driven out during the actual games.
so, yeah, NOPE...
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: skyjunk
Interest has slowly fallen
Interest has slowly fallen since the introduction of professional athletes and their inability to weed out roided up contestants.
i am looking forward to the games that allow chemically enhanced contestants across the board. I'm all about the level playing field
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: El Nino
I'll be watching but not as
I'll be watching but not as much as I used to. That is mostly because of American Olympics TV coverage that spends most of the time telling you the back story of the athletes third cousin who beat cancer rather than the actual sporting event.
I don't think Paris will suffer much from hosting the Olympics since they host global events all the time, but smaller cities that take it on get screwed like Athens. I lived in Munich for the infamous 72 Olympics and lived through the city being torn up to host. They put in an entire city subway system and a BART like regional system just for those games. That said those systems are still in place today so it was an improvement.
One of my favorite TED Talks is by an atheist who talks about things from religion that we should all incorporate, and one of those is pilgrimage travel. I think we all have experience being part of a group of people that descends on a city for an event. It's fun and there are Olympic Heads who never miss one.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Philzone Refugee
The hundred meter dash to the
The hundred meter dash to the air dropped rations is must-see tv.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: treat island
I will probably watch some,
I will probably watch some, especially tennis. I watch tennis now and I don't think it will be very different. The tennis players are excited about the rarer once-every-four-year wins, some of them moreso than the Slams.
I like watching some sports, I don't know how much I can take on our TV networks. I get very irritated by the USA-centric coverage. Years ago Eugene cable TV included the Canadian ABC (or whatever it was) the channel the Olympics were on. The Canadian broadcasts were so much more relaxed and global in focus. It was a lot like the Olympics were supposed to be.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: nevermind
> Interest has slowly fallen
> Interest has slowly fallen since the introduction of professional athletes and their inability to weed out roided up contestants.
I think another part of it is we don't watch things with others as much as we used to. When I was growing up, the whole family would sit down to watch the Olympics on the one screen we had in the house. I don't think that sort of thing happens very much anymore.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: TommyGutt
I think the opening ceremony
I think the opening ceremony will be spectacular with Paris and the river Seine and tour eiffel being the backdrop. I LOVE PARIS, but will watch on tv,the crowds and clusterfk of the whole thing seams already overwhelming! Oh and the prices do you all know they've doubled the price of the metro for this event?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Lance minimum goad Newberry
I never go into these things
I never go into these things excited, but I'll end up watching and I'll get drawn in, because despite all the multiple excellent reasons to not watch/not be interested in this, in the end it will still come down to brilliant, incredibly elite athletes who have dedicated themselves & sacrificed in countless ways to be there, giving every single ounce of themselves to win.
In those moments, none of the graft and greed and steroids and all the bullshit will matter to them. In the end it will be THE MOMENT for those brilliant few.
And those moments are amazing, and that's why I'll watch.
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: 2 Room Shack
the surf comp could be
the surf comp could be incredible. it is being held in tahiti at Teahupo'o which is one of the gnarliest waves...however the judging platform that has been used for the last 2 decades is supposedly inadequate for olympic specs. They are trying to build a giant one and the locals are pissed about fucking with the reef....
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Philzone Refugee
That sounds terrific. If
That sounds terrific. If they have a Surfing competition in 2028, would it held in Hawaii or California?
Top of Page Bottom of Page PermalinkFull Name: Woz
They still have Olympics?
They still have Olympics?
Zero interest here, the Eclipse was where it was at!