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Rockman

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Stoneage
Why is Sir Michael treated like a dignitary here?

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Max'sKansasCity

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latebloomer
My apologies if this has already been addressed, I haven't been keeping up with this thread. The New York Times has an article about how the Olympics have been an economic dissapointment for London businesses. Is this getting any press in London? I would think that even if it's been a disaster econonically, Londoners are still proud of the job they are doing hosting the games.

[www.nytimes.com]

Interesting story, but I am betting in the long run London (and Londoners) will be very happy they held these games. It is expensive, but I think the goodwill created from successful games goes a long long way... and from what I understand London has learned from other cities when it comes to the how to handl;e the Olympic venues themselves.

This article tells about how most venues were inexpensively built with the plan to dismantle them afterwrds... as opposed to letting them rot like they have in other cities...
[sports.yahoo.com]
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....."The Olympics will not crumble here the way they did in places such as Athens and Beijing, cities where spectacular structures were hailed as architectural feats only to deteriorate when the Games ended and there proved no need for a gigantic Olympic stadium or an outdoor high diving board. Things like London's basketball arena, field hockey stadium, and water polo stadium were intentionally built not as great structures but as unappealing temporary facilities that will be easily ripped down, their parts to be used elsewhere.

This was the plan for London, which has spent more than 9 billion pounds to put on these games and could not afford to wind up with a park of wasted buildings surrounded by yards of security fences. So the plan was to always have a series of buildings that can be quickly destroyed.

"We don't need a 12,000-seat basketball arena," Tudor said. "We don't need an outdoor hockey arena."

London has a master plan for the site. The plan is detailed and has strict deadlines. The plan envisions a gigantic neighborhood rising in a section of town once dominated by factories, dumps, and marshland. The plan has the basketball arena gone by next year, replaced with winding lanes, apartments, and houses with gardens in a village that will be called Chobham Manor.

The plan says the area surrounding Olympic Stadium is going to become a mixed-use area of stores and restaurants and bars and will be named Marshgate Wharf.

By 2014, the Olympic Park will look completely different......"
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That seems really really smart... compared an contrast to this story about Athens rotting Olympic venues

[summergames.ap.org]
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""...There's still one group that loves the training pool for athletes at the former Olympic village in Athens' northern fringe.

Frogs.

They appear to delight in sitting on debris that floats on the half-filled pool's murky waters.

The athletes village itself has fared somewhat better, turned into housing for workers.

Eight years after the 2004 Athens Games, many of the Olympic venues Greece built at great expense remain abandoned or rarely used. They are the focus of great public anger as the country struggles through a fifth year of recession and nearly three years of a debt crisis that has seen a surge in poverty and unemployment.

At the southern Athens venue for softball — a sport unknown in Greece and already out of the Summer Olympics — the occasional weed is all that remains on the dried-out field.....""
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Good for London for being so smart.

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Stoneage
And another question: Why is Sir Michael treated like a dignitary here? He has no background in sports and has no official position and, furthermore, doesn't even pay taxes in Great Britain. Maybe some Briton feels compelled to respond to these, I'm afraid, rather silly questions?

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Green Lady
London has been bombarded with publicity for months in advance telling us to avoid public transport, work from home, don't come into Central London, don't drive in the special Olympics lanes - and like good little citizens we have done as we were told. result: a fantastic traffic-free London for the Olympics guests and a drop in business for some people. Personally I think that the hotels who tried to charge five times their usual prices have got what they deserved.

Anyway: three more cheers for Brownlee 1 and Brownlee 2 (Gold and bronze in the Triathlon). Doesn't seems fair to have not one good triathlete, but twins!

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Green Lady
London has been bombarded with publicity for months in advance telling us to avoid public transport, work from home, don't come into Central London, don't drive in the special Olympics lanes - and like good little citizens we have done as we were told. result: a fantastic traffic-free London for the Olympics guests and a drop in business for some people. Personally I think that the hotels who tried to charge five times their usual prices have got what they deserved.

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Green Lady
Anyway: three more cheers for Brownlee 1 and Brownlee 2 (Gold and bronze in the Triathlon). Doesn't seems fair to have not one good triathlete, but twins!

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Rolling Hansie
Just watched the finals of Men's horizontal bar, part of the gymnastics. As the picture, posted by Mathijs, already showed, Flying Dutchman Epke Sonderland won the gold medal after a truly magnificent performance. That was great to see.
But what really warmed my heart was the wonderful sportsmenship of the other contestors. Right after Epke's performance he was congratulated by the other sporters and coaches. No rivalry, no nationalism, just true sportsmenship. Absolutely fabulous.

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Rolling Hansie
Just watched the finals of Men's horizontal bar, part of the gymnastics. As the picture, posted by Mathijs, already showed, Flying Dutchman Epke Sonderland won the gold medal after a truly magnificent performance. That was great to see.

But what really warmed my heart was the wonderful sportsmenship of the other contestors. Right after Epke's performance he was congratulated by the other sporters and coaches. No rivalry, no nationalism, just true sportsmenship. Absolutely fabulous.

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

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kleermaker

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Rolling Hansie
Just watched the finals of Men's horizontal bar, part of the gymnastics. As the picture, posted by Mathijs, already showed, Flying Dutchman Epke Sonderland won the gold medal after a truly magnificent performance. That was great to see.

But what really warmed my heart was the wonderful sportsmenship of the other contestors. Right after Epke's performance he was congratulated by the other sporters and coaches. No rivalry, no nationalism, just true sportsmenship. Absolutely fabulous.

Totally agreed Hansie. This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

Fantastic to see. I also like Epke Zonderland's haircut: he's a true rocker (without the coke).

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

You like events that are judged by a panel more than those won on the field with no judging? So maybe next world Cup, they can just judge who wins by how the teams practicie, no need to actaully play thae games??

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

You like events that are judged by a panel more than those won on the field with no judging? So maybe next world Cup, they can just judge who wins by how the teams practicie, no need to actaully play thae games??

If even a layman can see that someone is the very best of a field full of Olympic, world and European champions and the decision is totally indisputable and the reactions of the public, participants and coaches are obvious I have not any problem at all with a panel.

See and enjoy this form of art which sport sometimes can be (video included):

[www.nrc.nl]

Look especially at the way he lands. Unbelievable.

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Max'sKansasCity
Watching the great Usain Bolt runs the prelims for the 200.. and sheesh... wouldnt it be interesting if there someone, anyone, who could push this man?... he never seems to be pushed/forced to finish hard... he is always so far out in front that he coasts into the finish.

Dont misunderstand, I am not complaining or bashing, I am simply saying that I have seen him run a lot of races and he always seems to coast at the end... even in the finals. I wonder how fast he could run if he had someone to worry about?

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

You like events that are judged by a panel more than those won on the field with no judging? So maybe next world Cup, they can just judge who wins by how the teams practicie, no need to actaully play thae games??

If even a layman can see that someone is the very best of a field full of Olympic, world and European champions and the decision is totally indisputable and the reactions of the public, participants and coaches are obvious I have not any problem at all with a panel.

See and enjoy this form of art which sport sometimes can be (video included):

[www.nrc.nl]

Look especially at the way he lands. Unbelievable.

I didnt dispute his win, I am not a nationalistic zealot like you and Mathiest... I dont ONLY post good words here when my country does well. I enjoy seeing all the athletes from all the countries do well.

I just find it interesting to hear that you want all sports judged by a panel versus actually playing the games. I understand that some ice skaters feel the same way. [sports.espn.go.com]

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shortfatfanny

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Max'sKansasCity
Watching the great Usain Bolt runs the prelims for the 200.. and sheesh... wouldnt it be interesting if there someone, anyone, who could push this man?... he never seems to be pushed/forced to finish hard... he is always so far out in front that he coasts into the finish.

Dont misunderstand, I am not complaining or bashing, I am simply saying that I have seen him run a lot of races and he always seems to coast at the end... even in the finals. I wonder how fast he could run if he had someone to worry about?

hey,he just don´t want to run a world record by mistake...

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

You like events that are judged by a panel more than those won on the field with no judging? So maybe next world Cup, they can just judge who wins by how the teams practicie, no need to actaully play thae games??

If even a layman can see that someone is the very best of a field full of Olympic, world and European champions and the decision is totally indisputable and the reactions of the public, participants and coaches are obvious I have not any problem at all with a panel.

See and enjoy this form of art which sport sometimes can be (video included):

[www.nrc.nl]

Look especially at the way he lands. Unbelievable.

I didnt dispute his win, I am not a nationalistic zealot like you and Mathiest... I dont ONLY post good words here when my country does well. I enjoy seeing all the athletes from all the countries do well.

I just find it interesting to hear that you want all sports judged by a panel versus actually playing the games. I understand that some ice skaters feel the same way. [sports.espn.go.com]

Man, I'm not nationalistic at all. You are, with your USA!USA!USA! yells all the time. I enjoyed this whole finale. All gymnasts were fantastic. The last name of the winner is Zonderland, which means 'without land'. Well, how international do you want it to have?

BTW: you seem to have nothing learned about football from Hansie and me. Why? Because you say you love that sport. But for a big part it's also a 'panel'-sport: there's namely a referee, which we call in Dutch 'arbiter', and his decisions are often disputable. Think of the match you reported here between the USA- and Canadian women.

This winner is also very modest, nice and calm. If he was German of French or whatever I would respect him just as much. But you are still rancorous. Let it loose, man. Relax and have a beer.

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker

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Max'sKansasCity

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kleermaker
This is sport at its very best: it's simply a form of art and much more interesting than 100 meters running or swimming as fast as you can.

You like events that are judged by a panel more than those won on the field with no judging? So maybe next world Cup, they can just judge who wins by how the teams practicie, no need to actaully play thae games??

If even a layman can see that someone is the very best of a field full of Olympic, world and European champions and the decision is totally indisputable and the reactions of the public, participants and coaches are obvious I have not any problem at all with a panel.

See and enjoy this form of art which sport sometimes can be (video included):

[www.nrc.nl]

Look especially at the way he lands. Unbelievable.

I didnt dispute his win, I am not a nationalistic zealot like you and Mathiest... I dont ONLY post good words here when my country does well. I enjoy seeing all the athletes from all the countries do well.

I just find it interesting to hear that you want all sports judged by a panel versus actually playing the games. I understand that some ice skaters feel the same way. [sports.espn.go.com]

Man, I'm not nationalistic at all. You are, with your USA!USA!USA! yells all the time. I enjoyed this whole finale. All gymnasts were fantastic. The last name of the winner is Zonderland, which means 'without land'. Well, how international do you want it to have?

BTW: you seem to have nothing learned about football from Hansie and me. Why? Because you say you love that sport. But for a big part it's also a 'panel'-sport: there's namely a referee, which we call in Dutch 'arbiter', and his decisions are often disputable. Think of the match you reported here between the USA- and Canadian women.

This winner is also very modest, nice and calm. If he was German of French or whatever I would respect him just as much. But you are still rancorous. Let it loose, man. Relax and have a beer.

This does not even makes sense.... maybe you have had too many beers