winter olympics 2022

Thanks. Elton John himself appreciated Chen! Gosh I remember seeing Chen skate at age 10 and he was called a future Olympian!

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I have to be careful to avoid spoilers on the evening news. If I see the Olympic Rings I mute it or fast forward if I can. Part of the enjoyment is the suspense of whether one will qualify for the final group.

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I feel this way, too! It's an emotional experience for me. I love these incredible artists, & sometimes I wish all of them could win because they are so wonderful, just to have made it there, the best of the best.

Thanks so much for starting this thread!
Oh I love seeing what people can do with their minds and bodies in terms of pushing themselves to the very limit of what is humanly possible. It’s amazing!
And it can be so beautiful! The dedication, training and motivation is incredible.
And yes, the figure skating is stunning.
It certainly is a form of art.

Did any of you see Kamila Valieva? The best skater, amazing. She was going for gold. But then they found performance drug in her system. Still investigating. What a shame. By now they should know that these drugs aren’t legal. She is only 15 so it’s on her coaches and parents. What are they thinking???

I don’t normally watch the winter Olympic Games (I try and watch as much of the summer games as I can, though) but caught some of the downhill skiing at work, which was really enjoyable.

Kamila is amazing! She achieves perfectly flat angles and her spins last forever. But the poor girl is so thin. She is literally skin and bones. I remember when Oksana Bajul said, "now i can have a Snickers."

I am boycotting it because of the human rights abuses that the Chinese government have done

I am going to look at the highlights program tonight and see what's what on the ice.

Again, thanks for this thread Breaking Dawn! I have no one to talk to or anywhere else to post my comments!

I wasn't sure if I was ready for another Olympics so soon, while COVID rages on. Since 2020 Games was postponed until 2021, it was just months between the Summer and Winter Games, instead of 2 years as usual.

I'm kind of "Olympic-ed out", as I call it, as I watch hours a day and I'm behind on my reading as a result. Sometimes I'm not sure if I saw something since I watch coverage on both NBC and USA. The latter shows events in real time I think, and they cover more.

I found out the total weight of skis and boots on Olympians is almost 30 lbs!!! So skiing at 80 mph with that weight on you is really impressive. And I didn't know their skis are really different from recreational skis.

Races that are measured by speed in HUNDREDS of a second like luge or downhill skiing is brutal! Just being 1 second behind someone could bump you down to 15th place for example! ONE SECOND!

About Johnny Weir and Tara Lapinski again, their criticism of some skaters is so harsh (to me) at times that you'd think the skater isn't even good enough to BE in the Olympics! But they are and Johnny and Tara are not, not as competitors obviously and would think they'd have more empathy for mistakes skaters make.

Also, they aren't judges so I don't care what they think. It doesn't matter what they think.

Allegedly Tara said "We don't care" in response to the complaints about their constant chatter. Well, I don't listen. Thank goodness for the mute button. They must realize people can mute them. Unfortunately because they compete to music, I do have to suffer through some of it but mute it for seconds at a time sometimes....

What really impresses me too is that once you're on the Olympic team, you still have to qualify for the final group. I might have posted that before, but it's a whole new game to prove you're the best of the best. Then you compete for a medal. I swear I'd come unglued or buckle under that kind of pressure.

All those cameras on me, those eyes on me......

I don't think Kamila should have been allowed to compete. It's not fair to the others, no matter who gave her the banned substance. I know she's just a kid, but what kind of message does it send to allow her to compete anyway? The message to both her and all other competitors? It could set a precedent also, like if she got to compete, other athletes might attempt the same thing in skating or any other sport.

I agree about allowing Kamala to skate. She’s young enough to compete in 4 years. And then as an adult.

Don't you mean "not allowing", since she's young enough to compete again?

Oh well, it's already been done.

I like both summer and winter games, but selective about what I watch.

Snowboarding, big air and these modern sports don't do anything for me. Always liked skating (watching not participating) and downhill skiing (incl slalom). Like curling too as it's tactical. Watched speed skating relay earlier. 40+ laps of going round and round made me dizzy!

Biathlon is based on the days when food had to be hunted. Probably still happens in remote areas like inside the Arctic Circle. For some reason, really like bobsleigh (think it's all those rippling muscles) and ski jumping.

Can remember when the skaters' music was not shown on the screen. It was down to the commentators to identify. There's too much chatter on the BBC, with some coming from totally different sports. Steve Cram was a 1500 metre runner now commentating on curling.

Summer games bring different likes. Athletics, equestrian, rowing. A joke started during the London 2012 Games that most of the UK's medals came from sitting down sports, lol!

I enjoy the Winter Games more, since I enjoy almost all events.

They added new events, like monobob---one person bobsled. It used to be either 2 or 4 people. Aerials team event is new also, but I'm glad they still kept the singles aerials.

I'd never have the courage to do any of these sports, as they involve speed in some way. I'm scared to even drive fast!

I guess you mean you remember when they didn't show the title of the music on the screen? I think I remember that too.....

Ski jumping looks like they are FLYING! And they said if you stack the Statue of Liberty, Washington Monument, and Empire State building on top of each other, that's how high they are when they take off!

Certain countries dominate certain sports, winter or summer.

I like your username, is it from the Spice Girls?

Nonightowl, thanks for liking my username.

No, it doesn't come from Spice Girls, though I wish I had their money, lol!

Many years ago, I worked as a temp in an architects office. The boss tried to play down his persona, but insisted that I was posh. It's also a contradiction of my upbringing. Until the age of 11, I lived in a house with an outside toilet. The tin bath was brought in every Friday evening and filled with the kettle. Brother and I often shared the same water

Although I now have relatively high standards, I've never forgotten my upbringing, Hope this explains

Have just watched our men's curling team reach final by beating USA.

On the subject of that skater, can understand where other competitors are coming from with their objections. It's reported that one of the drugs found is "her grandfather's heart medication". So how did it get into her system? Did he spike her food/drink? Does this account for why she is so thin?

Hope the truth will out, as the saying goes

... my goodness, I still can't believe they don't get dizzy bouncing about like beachballs . I don't know why the Olympics do not have a minimum age for competitions. I think 17 at least ought to be the minimum age. The Valieva situation has turned into a sad spectacle indeed.

It was heartbreaking to see Kamila perform. I almost cried myself when she started crying afterwards. She's been made out to be a villain in the media, when the adults in her life play a role in this. I'd buckle under that pressure.

And just cause she was "allowed" to skate doesn't mean it's a good idea to do so! Her coaches or parents or other adults should have encouraged her to withdraw. It would spared her the pain of that aftermath, being scolded by her coach. I don't understand Russian but understand tone. Clearly she was being berated. Even the head of IOC came out and criticized the coach publicly.

Maybe Kamila was under pressure to skate anyway, and to win.

I felt just as bad for her teammates, winning gold and silver. Nobody around to even hug or congratulate them at first. They just stood alone, one with just a teddy bear to hold.

After all this, Kamila still placed 4th when I thought other skaters did better. Like Belgian skater Leona Hendrickx. Beautiful music and program.

I couldn't help thinking about Torvill and Dean, from 1984, when I heard "Bolero". Anybody else old enough to remember that? They had me hypnotized, and I remember even the commentators being mostly quiet. Crowd too.

Anyway, the adults in her life need to fess up and own up to their actions. Take the heat from the media, not that girl. And it's hard, but Kamila is old enough to know not to count on the adults in her life to have her best interests at heart. I'm glad she finds out now, rather than later. Personally I wish I knew that at her age. Adults can make bad decisions, and consequences be damned.

They don't "know best"; I speak from experience. Not as an Olympian, just as a daughter.

I get it. I like the dry humor you have about it.

I won't forget my upbringing either, regarding many things where my parents did wrong. (Referencing my above post)

This was mentioned during the broadcast. I think they said something like the IOC doesn't determine minimum age requirement, but each country's Olympic committee does. And even within each sport, maybe.

I've seen Olympians as young as 14 since I was 14 myself!

I agree that it should be 17 or 16 at the youngest. A year can make a big difference. I know some teens are more mature than others, but 15 is so young. I heard in gymnastics they compete so young cause their bodies change too much as they get older, like 19 or 20. That's "old" for a gymast! And I think it applies to the women only, not the men.

Ugh, that’s so sexist. I admire people’s ability to do the sports they do, especially older champions who may or may not still be in a sport where most of their peers have already retired. I don’t care how “sexy” they’re perceived to be.

I agree, esp. since I was never athletic or coordinated. The oldest competitor I know of in these games is 40. He's a snowboarder.

And the men can have music while doing their floor exercise in gymnastics, but just the women do.

And in the Summer Games, the men beach volleyball players wear tank tops and long shorts. The women wear bikinis. Why not make the men wear Speedos? If women show skin, the men can do so too.

If you notice, the girls competing in gymnastics generally don't have curves and appear even younger than they are. They are encouraged to starve themselves and over-exercise to keep their fat percentage low, which delays puberty. If they do develop and look like women, they are considered too old.

Sport being clean not only means drug free, but to me, competitors such as female gymnasts should be allowed to develop properly.

The point raised about beach volleyball is a very good one. A crop top and shorts more suitable than a skimpy bikini.

Whilst on the subject of men's sports attire. Without wishing to be too indelicate, can those participating in activities requiring the wearing of lycra, please learn how to "dress".

Well, today's the last day for competition events. Thank you all for contributing to this thread. It has been a pleasure to share this time in history with all of you.

I'm missing the winter olympics already. Anyone else feel that way? One person who sticks in my mind is Chloe Kim. She has such an adorable personality & seemed so happy to be there, & ecstatic about winning the gold again. I miss the amazing flying through the air & doing all those turns, snowboarders & skiers. And the beautiful figure skating. There was some sadness, too. I hope they'll be ok.