Winter Olympics - 2014

[Sjofn]

That's the worst part, I don't even like figure skating!

[Chimpy]

That's the worst part, I don't even like figure skating!

I hate it myself.

I want to watch skiing but NBC have decided ice dancing is what I get :(

[Fordel]

And someone has to tell you if that field goal was good or that home run was fair or foul.

EDIT: Actually, I think baseball is probably not a sport by this definition, because of ball/strike calls.

I've been telling you this for years now!

[Mithas]

I think a better argument would be any event that scores things based on choreography isn't really a sport. Anything with style points opens itself up for a LOT of interpretation.

[Paelos]

The point I'm trying to make is if the sport has an artistic element that requires subjective judgement to determine the outcome, I don't think of it as a sport.

[Nevermore]

 

[Bann]

Even fencing with its electronic scoring still needs referees.

This is so annoying. Some points are just clean, obvious touches. Most end up becoming annoying interpretations of whom had priority. The most fun I ever had fencing was the day the teacher showed up like 30 minutes late and we were jumping around the bleachers sword fighting.

On the other hand, the club I later fenced with pretty much went entirely epee just because it was the easiest/least complicated to score. (Epee rules are basically first touch scores, whole body is legal target.)

[Cyrrex]

Worst part about fencing?  The way they react in the moments after winning/losing.  Dudes, it's fencing....calm the fuck down already.  Nobody cares.

[Goumindong]

 

That wasn't a subjective call. The rules give priority to the offense in a simultaneous catch.

[KallDrexx]

I think people are mixing up referees and judges incorrectly.

With sports with judges (ties in MMA, skating, etc..), who wins is purely a matter of the judge coming up with an arbitrary score for how much they liked a particular act. 

Sports with referees are using referees not to determine a winner but to make sure the rules are followed and those rules define who wins the game.  That includes baseball with ball/catch calls because the rules clearly define what a ball/catch is but it's not the easiest thing to call correctly in the moment.   There might be some subjectivity on how rules are applied but it's the rules that define the winner not the referees directly.

I totally agree that the former are not really sports.

[Cyrrex]

True enough.  I think the original point here is you get something like Figure Skating, where interpretation plays such a huge role that nobody can really guess what a score should have been for a particular performance.  As opposed to something like boxing, the degree of interpretation is not as significant, because often times even a relative lay person can determine who is winning a fight or even a round.  That doesn't mean both cannot be equally corrupt, only that it becomes far more obvious in the latter cases, and therefore probably rarer as well.

Having started this conversation regarding the slopestyle competition, the contention that the local announcers made (and it passed my eyeball test as well) was that the tricks the Norwegian did, and did flawlessly, were harder than what the American guy did.  When the Norwegian kid's score came up, one of them yelled "Fucking Ridiculous!!", which I thought was a nice journalistic touch.  If there was anything positive to say about it, it is that the snowboarders themselves took it pretty well, and nobody throws a hissy fit.  They are all smiles and hugs, regardless of the outcome.

[Paelos]

Even if you think parts of the game are subjective to refs, and they are, the actual scoring system that defines the winner isn't subjective. It can be hard to determine at times due to camera angles or replays, but that's not the same thing. Ball goes in end zone, ball goes into goal, puck goes in net, guy crosses line first, that's what makes the winner in sports.

For other things like figure skating, gymnastics, diving, arial tricks, etc. Those are no different than beauty contests in terms of scoring.

[Cyrrex]

I think there are degrees, though.  Especially when there is an artistic component.  I have heard some really good gymnastic color commentary, where the lady was able to estimate quite accurately the scores that were eventually given...this is because there are certain rules for how much points a routine or a component of a routine is worth, and also rules for how much to deduct.  Not perfect, but more predictable than something like figure skating, where God only knows.  I think Diving is probably similar to gymnastics as well.

[Chimpy]

Figure skating was changed after the scandal several years ago and they have all kinds of scoring criteria like you mention for gymnastics etc.

I could care less about the scoring as I dislike figure skating, gymnastics, and diving. But I also think it is stupid to rail about how something is "not a sport". Especially for things like figure skating or gymnastics where the people competing have to train as hard and be in such good physical shape to be able to compete. They require incredible athletic ability and dedication to even participate in the olympics, and I am not going to take that away from them even if I dislike it.

[Fordel]

[Nevermore]

 

That wasn't a subjective call. The rules give priority to the offense in a simultaneous catch.

It was certainly subjective whether it was "simultaneous" or not.

[Speedy Cerviche]

So that crazy drunk/stoned Ukranian hijacker was wearing a Montreal Canadiens jersey... woot?

[Ceryse]

So that crazy drunk/stoned Ukranian hijacker was wearing a Montreal Canadiens jersey... woot?

Be more fitting if it was a Canucks jersey, though.

Still, I'll find it hilarious if these Olympics end with fewer deaths than the Olympics in Vancouver (where the Georgian bobsledder died, because of gross stupidity on a couple fronts) given the amount of time and effort the media has spent on portraying the Socchi Olympics as the most dangerous thing ever.

[Fraeg]

I haven't watched ice skating in about 20 years.  Is that a standard "trick" or is that as amazing as I think it is?

anyone know of a site that is streaming events.  The NBC coverage is driving me nuts.

[Fordel]

I want to say everything up until she turns into a drill bit is relatively 'standard'.

The last bit of the sequence where she attempts to bore into the floor is as amazing as you think it is.

[Cyrrex]

So THAT'S the spin they were talking about.  Yeah, I don't think that is a things humans normally can do.

[ghost]

Curling is badass.

[Sir T]

Agreed. Give me that over wall to wall soccer any day.

[Paelos]

Skeleton is insane, plus the helmets are cool.

[Fordel]

Skeleton is for people that went "Bobsledding? What am I a pussy?"

[Ginaz]

So, there's a beer fridge in Sochi that only opens if you have a Canadian passport.  If you have one, you get a free beer.  Pfft, and the Americans thought it was a big deal they had access to a free Coke machine. 

Canada 1 - USA 0.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1954801-team-canada-has-beer-fridge-that-only-opens-with-canadian-passport

[ghost]

Yeah, but do they have curling in Canadia?

[Ginaz]

Yeah, but do they have curling in Canadia?

Not sure if serious.

Curling is huge here.

[Cyrrex]

The coolness of slopestyle snowboarding seems to be perfectly offset by the lameness of slopestyle skiing.  That shit is boooooooring.  At least the women's was, not sure about the men's version.  Their best trick seems to be attempting to not fall down.

[Shannow]

I would think the trick in slopestyle is to not shit yourself when you launch off one of those huge jumps, those things are ridicolous. Also watching the Czech girl crash and knock herself out with a cracked helmet was not cool.

[Cyrrex]

Didn't see the crash.  In any event, the air achieved for whatever reason is far less than the male snowboarders.  It looks really tame in comparison (I have no doubt that it is scary as shit), from a viewer standpoint.

[Chimpy]

It is because speed is hugely impacted by the surface area in contact with the snow. Freestyle skis are short which decreases the speed you can go because they have less surface area to distribute the weight across. A snowboard has a lot more surface area.

[Goumindong]

It is because speed is hugely impacted by the surface area in contact with the snow. Freestyle skis are short which decreases the speed you can go because they have less surface area to distribute the weight across. A snowboard has a lot more surface area.

The surface area of the ski shouldn't matter. Less pounds per square inch yes, but proportionally more square inches. Half the weight, twice the frictional area = same friction. So long as the total area is large enough to float on the snow (rather than cutting into the ground) it shouldn't make a difference. Ski length mainly depends on the amount of control for the type of skiing you're doing

Women go slower because all things considered they weigh less and heavier people have proportionally less air resistance

[murdoc]

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