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Controversy Over Miller's Olympic Mask


Lanny

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Posted

This is bugging me so I thought I would put it here. I guess there are various forms of individualism allowed in the Olympic Games and Ryan Miller's mask has fallen into the area of Corporate Sponsorship. However, how is this individualism worse than figure skaters representing their countries on an Olympic stage wearing costumes? Why is figure skating in an athletic competition anyway? If they are going to wear dresses and snake covered leotards, they should not be allowed to be in an Olympic competition. I have no problem with people who tell me that what they do it tremendously athletic, but they should all wear common uniforms like the rest of the athletes that represent their countries. The curlers do it, the snowboarders do it, and the figure skaters should do it. TV ratings be damned! Sorry for the rant.

Posted

This is bugging me so I thought I would put it here. I guess there are various forms of individualism allowed in the Olympic Games and Ryan Miller's mask has fallen into the area of Corporate Sponsorship. However, how is this individualism worse than figure skaters representing their countries on an Olympic stage wearing costumes? Why is figure skating in an athletic competition anyway? If they are going to wear dresses and snake covered leotards, they should not be allowed to be in an Olympic competition. I have no problem with people who tell me that what they do it tremendously athletic, but they should all wear common uniforms like the rest of the athletes that represent their countries. The curlers do it, the snowboarders do it, and the figure skaters should do it. TV ratings be damned! Sorry for the rant.

DonBob,

Sorry, I don't quite understand. Your beef w/ figure skating isn't that it has no objective criteria to determine the winners, but that the competitors don't wear country specific uni's? :huh:

 

The ONLY remotely redeeming quality to figure skating is the fact that the women think it's "pimps and hookers" night and are dressing appropriately. Sorry, but what works for a 105 lb female figure skater doesn't work for a 195 lb female curler who likes daffodils and goes by the name of 'Ralph'.

Posted

DonBob,

Sorry, I don't quite understand. Your beef w/ figure skating isn't that it has no objective criteria to determine the winners, but that the competitors don't wear country specific uni's? :huh:

 

The ONLY remotely redeeming quality to figure skating is the fact that the women think it's "pimps and hookers" night and are dressing appropriately. Sorry, but what works for a 105 lb female figure skater doesn't work for a 195 lb female curler who likes daffodils and goes by the name of 'Ralph'.

 

you leave ralph out of it, she's very talented. She throws rocks like it's her hobby.

Posted

you leave ralph out of it, she's very talented. She throws rocks like it's her hobby.

:w00t:

 

But, if she's an olympic curler, isn't it her vocation by definition? Unless of course she's a Yank, which after watching them play the Krauts, I'd have to agree w/ you that it is much more of an avocation.

Posted

DonBob,

Sorry, I don't quite understand. Your beef w/ figure skating isn't that it has no objective criteria to determine the winners, but that the competitors don't wear country specific uni's? :huh:

 

The ONLY remotely redeeming quality to figure skating is the fact that the women think it's "pimps and hookers" night and are dressing appropriately. Sorry, but what works for a 105 lb female figure skater doesn't work for a 195 lb female curler who likes daffodils and goes by the name of 'Ralph'.

The lack of objective scoring criteria is also present in the diving events during the summer, as well as the freestyle ski and snowboard events. These are athletic competitions mixed with art/dance, but how else could a winner be declared? They do perform "required elements" during heir routines. So, I guess that the scoring system does not bother me as much as the fact that the competitors are appropriately dressed for "Pimps and Hookers" night. They represent their nation, not Vera Wang.

Posted

DonBob,

Sorry, I don't quite understand. Your beef w/ figure skating isn't that it has no objective criteria to determine the winners, but that the competitors don't wear country specific uni's? :huh:

 

The ONLY remotely redeeming quality to figure skating is the fact that the women think it's "pimps and hookers" night and are dressing appropriately. Sorry, but what works for a 105 lb female figure skater doesn't work for a 195 lb female curler who likes daffodils and goes by the name of 'Ralph'.

 

Didn't stop that one Danish curler from dressing like a schoolgirl, did it? (If you watched the match yesterday, you know which one I mean.)

Posted

Talk about overanalysis. Any coversation about figure skating should begin and end with it being a terrible misuse of ice.

 

11, they really need to show more of the sisters during that match. That and the damn announcer need to criticize shots less, or at least explain what the hell he was talking about.

Posted

Talk about overanalysis. Any coversation about figure skating should begin and end with it being a terrible misuse of ice.

 

11, they really need to show more of the sisters during that match. That and the damn announcer need to criticize shots less, or at least explain what the hell he was talking about.

 

Nah, it's perfectly valid performance art, just like modern dance. Not Olympic material, IMHO. Anything that is *solely* based on judges scoring falls into that category. What's interesting (to me at least), is that figure skating used to be more objective in that a large part of the competition was actually skating 'figures' on the ice. As in, who can make the most perfect figure-8 pattern, for example. As a friend of mine pointed out, that doesn't make for good TV and by the 70s is was gone.

 

EDIT: it hung around until 1990, apparently, in diminishing importance.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compulsory_figures

 

 

On Curling: the US teams just appear to not be very good. How many times can Shushter blow last rock and give the other team the win? He's up to four straight now. I say we put together a team for 2014, how hard can it be? :)

Posted

The lack of objective scoring criteria is also present in the diving events during the summer, as well as the freestyle ski and snowboard events. These are athletic competitions mixed with art/dance, but how else could a winner be declared? They do perform "required elements" during heir routines. So, I guess that the scoring system does not bother me as much as the fact that the competitors are appropriately dressed for "Pimps and Hookers" night. They represent their nation, not Vera Wang.

And, while diving, freestyle skiing, skating, etc, are athletic; they are not "sport." They are popularity contests, "oooh, the judges really, really like me."

 

Actually thinking some more about your point on the costumes, you are right, they should wear unis; but there is no way in heck that someone who only watches figure skating (and would actually much rather be watching Dances w/ the Stars) would stand for the IOC to dare to take the "competitors" frou-frou wear away. And as previously mentioned, IMHO, the ladies of the evening wear costumes are the only redeeming feature of the exhibitions. ;)

Posted

On Curling: the US teams just appear to not be very good. How many times can Shushter blow last rock and give the other team the win? He's up to four straight now. I say we put together a team for 2014, how hard can it be? :)

 

"Blow last rock." Great expression. Reminds me of Miller. "Miller blew last rock in overtime, as the Sabres lost for the 27th time in 38 games."

Posted

 

 

On Curling: the US teams just appear to not be very good. How many times can Shushter blow last rock and give the other team the win? He's up to four straight now. I say we put together a team for 2014, how hard can it be? :)

 

Seriously. I have made some of those shots. How the hell did this team qualify?

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