The 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver/Whistler

[Big Fo]

Oh shit, how did that happen? I was watching the bobsled.

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

Oh shit, how did that happen? I was watching the bobsled.

They just kept plugging away. Maybe the fans pissed them off a bit when they started chanting like it was already over.

[EagleFan]

Wow, what a chance he had to tie that game with seconds left and he missed.

[EagleFan]

Heck of a finish to that one. Demitra is going to be seeing that in his sleep.

[Pumpy Tudors]

Even though Demitra didn't get that last puck in, he really impressed me. He was the most lively player on the ice for the last few minutes there. That was fun to watch.

[MizzouRah]

Was a great ending to the game, I thought Demitra had that tying goal!

[Fidatelo]

I missed the game (had my own hockey game) but I've been semi-watching the replay on TSN right now. We are down to the last 10 minutes, so I'm looking forward to seeing all the end-game craziness.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

Oh shit, how did that happen? I was watching the bobsled.

Our top bobsled team was laying down excellent runs. It was like the Canadian team in the 2-man who set a track record their first 3 times out and cruised to victory. Oh that ours could do the same but the track is treacherous.

SI

[CrimsonFox]

oh boo-freaking-hoohoo, little apolo ohno gets dqed

[CrimsonFox]

There are lots of ways to fail in the olympics but the Kramer/Kemkers Inside lane DQ was the first time I've seen OCD be the cause.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by CrimsonFox

oh boo-freaking-hoohoo, little apolo ohno gets dqed

Sure does make some people upset when others have success.

I guess it makes people feel better to root against the people that work their ass off to have success.

The Envy Test - 3SmartCubes.com

[Peregrine]

I've been only flipping through the Olympic coverage for the few sports I want to watch in the last few days, but I find it funny that after all the initial hoopla about Canada wanting a gold on home soil, they are actually leading all countries in gold medals right now. And for all the media coverage talking about what a "failure" their own the podium effort was, they've done very well in these games.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

I dunno, that wasn't much contact watching it again. Harsh on Ohno maybe. And the Korean who got silver without finishing the race either fell on his own or was touched by Hamelin, who was not DQ'd, winning gold. Kind of a weird sport with shady judging really even though it is fun to watch.

My issue with this is that Hamelin knocked down THREE separate racers in three separate events, including Ohno in one earlier in these Games and Celski in another, without a single DQ. In the race last night, he stuck his arm out, pulled the Korean back, causing the Korean's hand to hit his skate and go down. I think Ohno was an iffy but justifiable DQ, but Hamelin's action was much worse with no DQ? Very shady.

[Big Fo]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

I've been only flipping through the Olympic coverage for the few sports I want to watch in the last few days, but I find it funny that after all the initial hoopla about Canada wanting a gold on home soil, they are actually leading all countries in gold medals right now. And for all the media coverage talking about what a "failure" their own the podium effort was, they've done very well in these games.

The whole thing about winning the first gold was overblown, it was always going to happen.

But Canada's goal was 30-35 medals. They didn't plan on being so far behind USA and Germany. They haven't owned the podium like they said they were going to.

If Canada wins gold in men's hockey and men's curling this weekend they'll be delighted even so I imagine.

[Oilers9911]

Originally Posted by Big Fo

The whole thing about winning the first gold was overblown, it was always going to happen.

But Canada's goal was 30-35 medals. They didn't plan on being so far behind USA and Germany. They haven't owned the podium like they said they were going to.

If Canada wins gold in men's hockey and men's curling this weekend they'll be delighted even so I imagine.

Nobody in Canada said we were going to own the podium. That was the goal and the powers that be thought it was possible but it certainly hasn't happened. That said, all will be forgiven if we win that hockey game on Sunday.

[Oilers9911]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

My issue with this is that Hamelin knocked down THREE separate racers in three separate events, including Ohno in one earlier in these Games and Celski in another, without a single DQ. In the race last night, he stuck his arm out, pulled the Korean back, causing the Korean's hand to hit his skate and go down. I think Ohno was an iffy but justifiable DQ, but Hamelin's action was much worse with no DQ? Very shady.

Please find any video where Hamelin knocked down Ohno or anyone else. Did you happen to see the one race where the Korean actually grabbed Hamelin's hand and pulled in backwards as he stretched for the finish line? In no way did he "pull back" the Korean guy yesterday. His hand did make contact with the Korean but if they DQ'd skaters for that nobody would ever win a race. And yes Ohno is acting like a little bitch whining about the big bad Canadians.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

I think Ohno was an iffy but justifiable DQ, but Hamelin's action was much worse with no DQ? Very shady.

I agree. Ohno's move was very similiar to Hamelins yet nothing for Hamelin.

I wasnt terrible upset about the DQ as Ohno didnt deserve to medal the way he ran that race but it was a very strange ruling none the less.

[mauchow]

nbcolympics.com is great for replays..

watch it over and over again.

Ohno's looks less and less DQ'able and Hamelin's looks more and more DQ'able.

That's my opinion.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

My issue with this is that Hamelin knocked down THREE separate racers in three separate events, including Ohno in one earlier in these Games and Celski in another, without a single DQ. In the race last night, he stuck his arm out, pulled the Korean back, causing the Korean's hand to hit his skate and go down. I think Ohno was an iffy but justifiable DQ, but Hamelin's action was much worse with no DQ? Very shady.

I thought the whole rule that they kept harping on during the coverage was that the guy in front has the right of way and it's the passer's job to not hit him. In at least 1 of those instances, he was in front and one of the others (Korea) tried to sneak by him and he caught them with an arm. But that's part of being in front- he still has to have room to skate himself- and when someone is trying to pass, that space is his by default, not the passers.

(That also helps point out what I think makes Ohno so good- he had one great speed burst in the 1500 semis, iirc, where he just blasted past everyone but in all the other races, he wasn't the fastest at all. He doesn't have the great speed he had before. But, man, he is the most savy guy out there on the ice for picking his spot and passing, usually seamlessly. He's that baseball cliche of a veteran pitcher who has gone from thrower to pitcher because he can't just get people out with stuff any more but he's learned how to do it with command and guile.)

SI

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Oilers9911

Please find any video where Hamelin knocked down Ohno or anyone else. Did you happen to see the one race where the Korean actually grabbed Hamelin's hand and pulled in backwards as he stretched for the finish line? In no way did he "pull back" the Korean guy yesterday. His hand did make contact with the Korean but if they DQ'd skaters for that nobody would ever win a race. And yes Ohno is acting like a little bitch whining about the big bad Canadians.

Video | Ohno disqualified in 500m | NBC Olympics

scroll ahead to 2:05. Same exact thing Ohno did. Better view at 4:45

[Galaxy]

Originally Posted by jbergey22

Sure does make some people upset when others have success.

I guess it makes people feel better to root against the people that work their ass off to have success.

The Envy Test - 3SmartCubes.com

He must not be an American.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

He must not be an American.

I kind of figured that. Athough Ive heard Americans ripping on Lindsay Vonn which pissed me off so its hard to be certain.

[Peregrine]

I don't rip on any Olympic athlete because of the crazy amount of work and effort and years of their lives they dedicate to what they do, usually (except for a rare few) for minimal reward. What I do sometimes rip on is the obsessively worshipful media coverage some of them get during the Olympics.

[terpkristin]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

I don't rip on any Olympic athlete because of the crazy amount of work and effort and years of their lives they dedicate to what they do, usually (except for a rare few) for minimal reward. What I do sometimes rip on is the obsessively worshipful media coverage some of them get during the Olympics.

+1. Plus NBC's coverage in general sucks. I enjoy the idea of the Olympics, but with very few exceptions, I hate watching.

/tk

[Oilers9911]

If any of you new curling fans want to try a curling game, I found this freebie.

SHOTSTONE - 3D Curling by Singularity Software

[Big Fo]

The AI was kicking my butt in that game even on the novice level.

Gold medal match in men's curling just started, c'mon the pants! Norway is so cool.

[DaddyTorgo]

trying to get the right weight on the on the rock in that game is KILLING me

[SirFozzie]

try the free demo of Granite2.. it has a "rock path" option to show you where your stone will end up (and if you use auto throw, it generally is good)

Granite2 Downloads

[DaddyTorgo]

cool foz!

[sterlingice]

10th end in the gold medal game is starting. Canada is up 6-3 but Norway has the hammer- it's only a faint glimmer of hope for them, tho.

SI

[sterlingice]

Aw: With 3 rocks to go for each side, the crowd broke out into "Oh, Canada". I could almost see a tear in Martin's eye (not really, but he cracked a smile towards the crowd which I'd never seen).

SI

[Celeval]

I liked how the Canadian second (is that the right term?) waited until O Canada was done before taking his rock.

[sterlingice]

Canada got the gold. Kevin Martin was just unbeatable this tourney. But their third, John Morris, was great as well. The whole team just dominated.

SI

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Celeval

I liked how the Canadian second (is that the right term?) waited until O Canada was done before taking his rock.

I think it was the third, but same difference. I loved that couple of minutes- it was just cool to see

SI

[Big Fo]

The pants couldn't get it done but they inspired millions. Norway <3

Great show from Canada throughout the tournament, 9-0 in the group stage and bringing home the gold. It was fun for me seeing the game played that well, having never really watched it much and suffering through most of the US team's group matches.

How famous is Kevin Martin in Canada? Like as famous as say Lebron James or Peyton Manning are in the US?

[Fidatelo]

Martin is pretty famous, but not in the same sense as James or Manning. For example, you don't see Gatorade commercials or whatever involving Martin. That said, most Canadians probably know who he is. I would wager he is the most famous curler for sure, at this point.

[johnnyshaka]

Great to see Martin win the gold...he, and his team, certainly deserved it as they were machines throughout the entire week and a half.

[FrogMan]

anybody ever tried Free multiplayer Curling game - Play Curling? It's an online multiplayer flash game. Played a few ends and it's kinda cool. You have to sign up and it tracks your record so we could almost set up some sort of FOFC league although I don't think they manage it from within the game.

Let me know if you want to play a few ends.

FM

[JonInMiddleGA]

Horrendous error in the latest AP piece on the status of the medal counts, basically about the US record haul & the Canadian record gold haul. Early in the article it mentions how the men's hockey final will add to at least one if not both of those marks. And then it ends with this gem

There are only two events on Sunday, the hockey game and a 50-kilometer men's cross-country race. Americans and Canadians are long shots to get medals in either event.

Umm ...

[Big Fo]

Yay, NBC finally showed the USA gold medal in 4-man bobsled. That win puts USA at 36 medals, with #37 coming tomorrow afternoon they will set a new record for most medals at a Winter Olympics.

It's a great achievement, and the US has surpassed expectations by around 5-15 medals from what I remember seeing from the pre-Games predictions. And it's only the second time the US has topped the medal table, the first time on foreign soil (Lake Placid 1932 being the other time).

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Horrendous error in the latest AP piece on the status of the medal counts, basically about the US record haul & the Canadian record gold haul. Early in the article it mentions how the men's hockey final will add to at least one if not both of those marks. And then it ends with this gem

"There are only two events on Sunday, the hockey game and a 50-kilometer men's cross-country race. Americans and Canadians are long shots to get medals in either event."

Umm ...

Maybe they should have read that one again before sending it out. I mean that's just poor. Unless they have the inside scoop on some doping scandal, both teams are going to be DQ'd, and the Finland-Slovakia game going on right now will decide who gets gold.

[CrimsonFox]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

My issue with this is that Hamelin knocked down THREE separate racers in three separate events, including Ohno in one earlier in these Games and Celski in another, without a single DQ. In the race last night, he stuck his arm out, pulled the Korean back, causing the Korean's hand to hit his skate and go down. I think Ohno was an iffy but justifiable DQ, but Hamelin's action was much worse with no DQ? Very shady.

Having watched a bunch of the skating so far I haven't found either Hamelin or Ohno to be cheating or bumping or anything. The Koreans are the ones I see swatting and pulling and elbowing and clotheslining and all kinds of crap. I kind of think the judges are right, that both skaters really just fell on their own accord, or more likely fell trying to put out an arm or foot or something to try and get the edge at the end. Ohno's didn't look like a push really. But he sure looked guilty after the race even before it was announced. THe other one totally just looked like he fell without any help.
Of course the Canadian judge is going to be a little bias especially with all the hype about gold. It's their turn. Yay Canada.

[Celeval]

Slovakia looking pretty solid right now.

[Celeval]

Or not. Knotted up at 3 now.

[Galaxy]

So they present all the medals (in hockey) after tomorrow's game?

[FrogMan]

this is currently one of the headlines on vancouver2010.com. I'm sure that apostrophe will make many people around here cringe...

FM

PS: really, really happy for Anderson btw. He looked absolutely speechless right after his win. He came back from 0.76 sec behind to win it by 0.35 in some really crappy conditions...

[MikeVic]

Pretty awesome that Canada has 13 golds right now!

[FrogMan]

Originally Posted by Galaxy

So they present all the medals (in hockey) after tomorrow's game?

starting today, all medals were being presented on site, I think. BC Place is being prepared for the closing ceremony or something like that. Also, they did present the medals for Women's hockey right after the game...

FM

[CrimsonFox]

Oh man, bobsled is just insane. Would not want to tip over in one of those. Sandpaper face anyone?

So if a team tips over, it's all the fault of the person in front? That's what the announcers kind of were saying by blaming it on that one US guy. If so why are four people needed then?

[Fidatelo]

Good for Finland, it was nice to see Teemu with another medal. I feel a bit bad for the Slovaks though, they played a hell of a tournament and it would have been nice for them to get their first medal as well.

[Pumpy Tudors]

Originally Posted by CrimsonFox

So if a team tips over, it's all the fault of the person in front? That's what the announcers kind of were saying by blaming it on that one US guy. If so why are four people needed then?

Driver, brakeman, and two pushers.