Winter Olympics 2022

[BmillsSkier]

Just wait until Paris 2024 when a series of transpo, construction, and other labor strikes in conjunction with cost over runs and incomplete venues finally kills the Olympic games. Then you'll understand the IOC love for dictators.

We don't have to wait. We had it directly quoted in my post above. They just work better with dictators.

Preferably ones that can organize a cheerful flash mob of totally willing prisoners, er, citizens right outside the voting members' meeting.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

I actually think it's been the graft that drives the decision process.

[senior researcher]

https://youtu.be/sXLD5DPAqS0

[dunfree]

Oh yeah, that's all mentioned in the article above. Someone call ESPN a cab, cause they're clearly drunk; letting someone write this piece instead of towing the CCP line to protect their NBA partnership $$.

once I overcame my aversion to tmzspn and read it, yes, totally covered. I still think it notable that this was all out there. Nobody gave a fuck.

[BmillsSkier]

https://youtu.be/sXLD5DPAqS0

Something tells me Chairman Xi is not a fan of the Wu.

Or Henrik.

[BmillsSkier]

once I overcame my aversion to tmzspn and read it, yes, totally covered. I still think it notable that this was all out there. Nobody gave a fuck.

I'm honestly shocked that this piece is on tmzspn, and yes, I generally avoid it, but another ski buddy sent it to me this afternoon.

It appears the only people who gave a fuck when it was happening was Norway.

Maybe this is the article you were thinking about?

https://www.playthegame.org/news/new...s-and-the-ioc/

[Benny Profane]

Decent read on how we got to Beijing 2022:

https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/...-rights-crisis

Some of the more telling pieces to me:

"Once the coffee break began and the hallway filled, Wallechinsky said, hundreds of Chinese suddenly appeared outside the window -- as if on cue -- and banded together, waving signs and cheering about the possibility of hosting the Winter Games right in front of the voters.

"They had the organizational skills to orchestrate something like that," Wallechinsky said. "What other country would do something like that? What other country would want to?"

Um, I don't know. Maybe any other authoritarian regime that keeps their most popular and famous living in fear of being erased, much less the commoners?


And then there's this one from one in our own sport:

"Shortly after Beijing won the 2022 bid, Gian Franco Kasper, then the head of the International Skiing Federation and an honorary IOC member, told a Swiss newspaper that the choice of Beijing made perfect sense. "Dictators can organize events such as this without asking the people's permission," Kasper said. "For us, everything is easier in dictatorships."


Oh, that Olympic Spirit?

"Yang Shu, deputy director general of the Beijing organizing committee's international relations department, even invoked the revered "Olympic spirit" in a recent briefing by the Chinese Embassy in which he openly threatened athletes who spoke out against China while at the Olympics.

"Any behavior or speeches that are against the Olympic spirit, especially against Chinese laws and regulations, are also subject to certain punishment," Yang said, adding that those punishments could include ejection from the Olympics and even arrest."


I can't ever recall being so down on an Olympic games. This whole thing stinks; from the deplorable host nation to those bending over backwards so as not to get cross with its ruling party, to the insanely corrupt IOC, to the farcical location, to the look-the-other-way treatment everyone seems to be giving the glaring human rights issues that the athletes will be competing in the shadow of... it all stinks of shit.

Word, but, the optimistic look at it is that it will take place in Cortina in 26. Talk about a bounce back.

I'm with you, I refuse to watch this one. It's evil.

[PB]

I agree with all the condemnation, but will watch in hopes of a lone-individual-standing-in-front-of-a-tank moment.

[mcski]

Decent read on how we got to Beijing 2022:

I can't ever recall being so down on an Olympic games. This whole thing stinks; from the deplorable host nation to those bending over backwards so as not to get cross with its ruling party, to the insanely corrupt IOC, to the farcical location, to the look-the-other-way treatment everyone seems to be giving the glaring human rights issues that the athletes will be competing in the shadow of... it all stinks of shit.

I had a friend that worked for the IOC back in the 90s and went from sunny to sour pretty quick. I was pretty incredulous it was as bad as she said but now I think it is clearly worse. I lived for the Olympics as a kid, now I just wish it would die in a fire. I agree with BMills 100%. The whole thing is a shitshow from every angle

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

OK, the USA female curler is kinda cute.

Jeezus, I couldn't imagine playing a whole match without drinking at least one (or ten) beers, I don't care if it's for a gold medal.

[Ryan Cockring-Seagull]

Hello, I am American. I am posting this to announce that we have arrived in a beautiful and powerful China. Everyone here is very happy and healthy. I have a lot of respect here and I eat great every day. Rumors that my cell phone was confiscated by officials are not true!

[Kopi_Red]

Hello, I am American. I am posting this to announce that we have arrived in a beautiful and powerful China. Everyone here is very happy and healthy. I have a lot of respect here and I eat great every day. Rumors that my cell phone was confiscated by officials are not true!

Post twice in a row if you need help.

[Ryan Cockring-Seagull]

Everything is going fantastic!

[::: :::]

Just saw the practice run

[Ryan Cockring-Seagull]

This whole situation is tremendous!

[SirHeady]

Venues for this Olympics average zero snow each year so I’m sure conditions are epic. The IOC sucks but staging a Winter Olympics where it doesn’t snow is beyond fucking absurd. Might as well have the summer Olympics in Antarctica. Oh wait the government of Antarctica isn’t going to give the members of the IOC a crap load of money. Fuck China! Despite theoretically being “communist”, they’re actually a fascist nationalistic government. The Nazis and fascist in Italy where both firmly behind state controlled capitalism, which is exactly what China is. I feel bad for the athletes. US Olympic committee is telling them to not bring their phones due to spying. I’m sure the opening ceremony will be mind boggling in the coordination due to forced training.


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Gunning for Charlotte to win the 2030 winter games since NC Mountains at least get 50"-100" of snow every year

[BmillsSkier]

Team CAN Womens Hockey unis are MEAN!

[SirHeady]

was disappointed to not see at least 1 Chinese Downhillers eject off that big roller at the top . Still looked like total kooks negotiating the DH

[Svengali]

[BmillsSkier]

Qualifiers spoiler*******














US women looking good during these first round mogul qualifiers. Kai Owens took a nasty crash and will have to qualify on Sunday.

Does not look like the tightest bumps on this course.

[From_the_NEK]

Well apparently my Spectrum package that I pay a fuck ton of money for no longer includes NBCSports. It looks like NBC moved everything to suck my Peacock. So I can't stream the games through there without buying their streaming channel. I was only going to watch a few events. So I guess it is NBC. I'll watch the US vs Canada womens hockey game on CBC.

[BmillsSkier]

Dude, USA has a ton of coverage. I don’t think I’ve seen every skier in a qualifying round before on an American network, but so far that’s been the case today.

https://www.nbcolympics.com/schedule

[Benny Profane]

Most are on USA network. TDF and other NBC Sports events also moved to USA.

[ill-advised strategy]

It is frustrating, on a semantic level, that The Olympic Channel exists, it’s a thing, I have it, and it doesn’t have THE GOD DAMN olympics on it.

[Benny Profane]

Weird, right?

But, then again, they're holding the winter Olympics in a place where it never snows.