So Ryan wrote a great overview of the Olympics and it should absolutely be read before you read this article, but I thought it would be great to write one more in-depth analysis of the top stories of the biggest sporting event of the year. Personally, I'm more of a Winter Olympic person, but in general I am truly fascinated when the world comes together to show who is physically the mightiest, summer or wintertime. For those of you who are wondering where I got the number 30 from, rest assured it's not the age when they kill gymnasts. The significance of 30 is that these games marks the 30th modern Summer Olympic games. Although the first Olympics was recorded in 776 BC, the modern games started in 1896 and since it has evolved into the greatest sporting event that occurs every two years.
Enough rambling. Let’s get this started!
30: Mckayla Maroney (USA) is Not Impressed- Her unwillingness to appreciate a silver medal in vault went viral instantly. I must say that I like her hunger. She might be the best vaulter in the world and even won a silver medal but she knew that she was better than second and had no qualms about her inability to hide her emotions.
29: Robert Harting (GERMANY) IS the Incredible Hulk- This beast of the human might have had the best celebration in sports history. Robert Harting is happy. And you wouldn't like him when he's happy.
28: Ye Shiwen (CHINA): She is not a dope(r )- Look I always defend those being accused of doping until proven guilty. Ye Shiwen might just be a swimming prodigy as she shattered a world record in the 400 Individual Medley and 200 IM and swam a faster last 50m in the 400 than Ryan Lochte when he won Gold. She might be short and young, but they test like crazy and she has responded to her critics by explaining her intense training regimen. Personally, I think the question should be her sex and not the fact she used performance enhancers. Can’t we just be happy for her/him?
27: The Women’s Individual all-around Gymnastics: A story of smiles and tears; Gabby Douglass did everything she had to in order to win that gold for the women’s individual all-around competition, but her triumph was marred by the tears of Jordyn Wieber. Damn the rule that states that only the two best players from each team advances.
26: Basketball is as International as Any Sport: The US men’s team went undefeated throughout the Olympics, as predicted, but it was no easy task. While it was undoubtedly the US team’s Gold medal to lose, they barely escaped the clutches of Lithuania, got physically beaten up by Argentina, and didn't have an answer for the big men from Spain. This is probably the second best team in US Basketball history, but they still had trouble. Although the Dream Team would have pummeled this year’s Olympic squad, there's no question that international competition is stiffer nowadays.
25: Kayla Harrison (USA) Ain’t Nothin' to Fuck With: She won the gold medal in judo and is one of the best female fighters in the world, but growing up she contemplated suicide after being sexually abused by her childhood Judo Coach. Now she could probably beat the crap out of him.
24: Lopez Lomong (USA), a real “Lost Boy”- Ok, so he didn't medal, but he probably had one of the hardest upbringings of anyone. Born in Southern Sudan, he was abducted and kidnapped from his parents at age 6, forced to join the rebel militia, and almost died in captivity. Several years later he moved to the US. He ended up 10th in the 5000m final.
23: When the Olympics lost its Integrity- This is the most attention badminton has ever received and I have a feeling that they would've rather stayed out of the spotlight. 8 players, four women’s doubles teams, were disqualified due to blatantly tanking matches in Pool Play in order to be seeded against easier competition. Teams disqualified: two from South Korea, one from China, and one from Indonesia.
22-Holy Track and Field, Caribbean: The Islands of el Caribe continue their streak of dominating track and field competitions- Sorry US, you put up a valiant effort, especially the women, but at the pace they're going these small islands will eventually sweep every T&F event.
Mean’s 400 Meter Hurdles-
Gold Medal-Felix Sanchez- Dominican Republic, Bronze Medal-Javier Culson Puerto Rico
Men’s 400 Meter Run-
Gold-Kirani James-Granada; Silver-Lugeulin Santos-Dominican Republic, Bronze- Lalonde Gordon, Trinidad.
Men’s 400 Meter Hurdles
Gold-Felix Sanchez-Dominican Republic, Bronze-Javier Culson-Puerto Rico
Women’s Pole Vault-
Silver-Yraisley Silva-Cuba
Women’s 100 Meter
Gold- Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce-Jamaica; Bronze- Veronica Campbell-Brown-Jamaica
Men’s 4x100 Meter Relay
Gold-Jamaica, Bronze-Trinidad and Tobago
Women’s 4x400-Meter Relay
Bronze-Jamaica
Men’s Decathlon
Bronze-Leonel Saurez-Cuba
Men’s 200-Meter Sprint
Gold-Usain Bolt-Jamaica, Silver-Yohan Blake-Jamaica, Bronze-Warren Weir-Jamaica
Men’s Javelin Throw
Gold-Keshorn Walcott-Trinidad and Tobago
Men’s 110-Meter Hurdles
Bronze-Hansle Parchment-Jamaica
Women’s 200 Meters
Silver-Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce-Jamaica
Men’s 100 Meter
Gold-Usain Bolt-Jamaica; Silver-Yohan Blake-Jamaica
Men’s 4x400 Relay
Gold-Bahamas
21- Great Britain + Horses = Medals- This country still has a monarchy so of course they fancy their horses as these majestic creatures used to be a sign of prestige. They dominated Equestrian and medaled in most events. You know what? They can have equestrian.
Team Jumping
Gold
Team Dressage
Gold
Individual Dressage
Gold-Charlotte Dujardin, Bronze- Laura Bechtolsheimer
Team Equestrian- Silver
20: Jonas Reckermann/Julius Brink (GERMANY) proved that Europeans Enjoy Volleyball Too: This German squad became the first Europeans to ever win Gold in beach volleyball. For a sport that exists in the sun, though, they're very pale.
19. Aly Raisman (USA): The Legend of the Jewish Gymnast- It's hard to believe that she's the first American woman to ever win Gold in the floor exercise. I mean did you see her first tumble? It was fucking brilliant. I have also never seen a crowd so pumped up listening to Hava Nagila. She also won a controversial Bronze on the Balance Beam and a Gold for Team All-around. Boom.
18. China Proves it’s Elite- Ok, so the Chinese Olympic program decided a few years back that they would begin a race for Olympic Glory. And it has proven effective. For the second straight summer Olympics, they appear to be US’s biggest rival. Let’s look at the statistics.
Year-Total Models-Power Rankings
1988-22 Medals - 11
1992-54 Medals - 4
1996-50 Medals - 4
2000-58 Medals - 3
2004-63 Medals - 2
2008-100 Medals - 1 (Most Golds and second in Total Medals)
2012-88 Medals - 2
17. Katie Taylor (IRELAND)- The Real Fighting Irish. Their economy is in shambles, their weather is usually terrible, but Katie Taylor winning gold in the lightweight boxing division finally gave them something to drink to in celebration, not depression.
16. Kim Rhodes (USA), the Most Underrated Olympic Athlete in US history- So maybe her sport doesn't exude athleticism, but it takes quick reflexes, and self-control, and unparalleled focus. Who is she? She's medaled in 5 Olympics, the first American to ever do so, which is 20 years of Olympic events. She took Gold in ‘96 in the double trap, Bronze in the same event in 2000, re-claimed gold in 2004 in that event, won Silver in Beijing in Skeet, then decimated the competition on her way to a Gold medal this year. Oh yea, and she's only 33. Her Olympic record numbers this year: 99/100 targets hit, 8 better than the silver medalist. Boom.
15. North Korea vs. South Korea: The Battle Continues- Someone screwed up royally and introduced the North Korean team next to the South Korean flag before a women's soccer game. Needless to say, these neighboring countries despise each other (remember, they had that whole war against each other, as shown on MASH) and the North Korean team stormed off the field and refused to play until this mistake was fixed. They delayed the match over an hour. I can safely say that these flags looking nothing alike.
14. Missy Franklin (USA): Will the New Michael Phelps, Please Stand Up- Missy Franklin has not started college yet, but the 17 year-old left London with four golds and 1 bronze. She also set two new world records in the process. She's currently experiencing the same meteoric rise as Channing Tatum.
13. Women of Saudi Arabia: Making Strides-
A) Sarah Attar
Although she finished way behind the competition, Sarah overcame the odds since she was coming from a country where woman’s rights are as lacking as British basketball skills. This is what the Olympics is all about.
B)Wojdan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani (Saudi Arabia)-
Wojdan not only has an extremely long name but is one of only two women from Saudi Arabia to compete in the Olympics. She was almost disqualified before she had an opportunity to compete since the Judo federation was trying to ban her from competition due to her hijab, which they thought to be unsafe. I thought the Olympic Committee handled this superbly by ensuring that she would be able to compete with a modified version deemed appropriate but the Judo Federation and the Saudi Olympic Committee. They were probably afraid she would find them and beat them up. I know I would be.
12: Mo Farah (Great Britain) Brings the House Down- The loudest reaction in these Olympic games were for Mo Farah, 10k runner from the host country, winning Gold. It was deafening to watch on TV so I can’t imagine what it was like in person. For some reason a country that likes long, dry humor loves and excels at a sport that entails long, boring running.
11. Manteo Mitchell (USA): Gold in the Tough Man Competition- Walking with a sprained ankle is hard, but how about sprinting with a broken fibula in the biggest stage against the best athletes in the world? That shit is crazy. Without a doubt he was the toughest man in the Olympics.
10. Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi (MALAYSIA)- Is shooting a rifle bad for a child’s ears? How about if the child is in a womb? Nur Suryani is one of only 2 Olympic athletes to ever compete while prego. Not only was she pregnant, she was over 8 months pregnant. Yea, training must have blown.
8-9. Who are the US Olympics Golden Girls?-Let’s take a look at the heated competition shall we? Caveat: I discuss May-Treanor and Walsh below, so they are out of the discussion. Plus, since I’m the author, I’m invoking “team” to represent more than two individuals. So for now, here are the competitors: the US Women’s Soccer Redeem Team vs. the Fab Five Gymnasts.
a) The US Women’s Soccer team, usually the best in the world, was considered this year’s redeem team as they finally beat the team who ended their reign in the World Cup. They secured a victory over Japan to win the Gold and that was not even their most impressive match. One of the top games of the entire Olympics in any sport was in the semifinals when the US team came back to beat a relentless Canadian team.
b) The Fab Five- These young gymnasts came out and dominated the team competition by winning the gold handily. Not only did the US dominate the team event, but Gabby Douglas won Gold in the all-around, McKayla Maroney winning Silver on Vault, and Aly Raisman won a Bronze in the Balance beam and a Gold in floor. It took five of them to dominate these games as it took 7 to do so in ’96. Even the legend himself, Bela Karolyi, who coached the “Magnificent 7” and who is now still close with US Gymnastic Association, stated that this year’s squad is better the famous team from ’96.
7. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings (USA): Untouchable- So not only are they the most dominating volleyball team in the sport’s history, they might actually be the most dominating team in Olympic sports history. The emotional squad won 42 of 43 sets en route to winning their third straight gold medal. It’s a shame they won’t go for a four-peat as May-Treanor is retiring. Actually, this might be the first time saying this in a positive light, but hopefully she'll pull a Favre.
6. Andy Murray (Great Britain) is the Hometown Hero- Good for Andy Murray as I feel, at his peak, he has simply been a bridesmaid to the likes of Nadal, Federer, and Djokovich. Not only did he overachieve and win the Gold over the legend Roger Federer, but he's seemed to overachieve in his love life. During every break, they should show his girlfriend instead of going to commercials. They can be the Posh-Beckham of tennis, although he might need to change that mug.
5. Olympic Coverage, I loathe you: This might have been not only the worst Olympic coverage I have ever seen, but possibly the worst coverage in sports history. Between commercial breaks that caused you to miss valuable points to the switching events mid-game, it was hard to keep track of what the hell you were even following. There were so many commercials that I felt as if they were the main events and the Olympic Games were the advertisements. NBC, you have some serious work to do if you ever want to televise athletics again.
4. Oscar Pistorius (SOUTH AFRICA), A true Cinderella Story- What an unreal show of overcoming adversity and if it wasn't for the fact that Usain Bolt proved he's the greatest sprinter of all-time and Phelps is the greatest Olympian, then this would be ranked higher. How fucking epic was it to watch the first double amputee compete in track and field at the Olympics? Sure, South Africa did not receive a Gold in the 4x400-meter relay, but goddamn did they prove something, as did “Blade Runner”.
3- Usain Bolt (Jamaica): Lightning in Human Form- I mean, how can a human be so fucking fast? It’s absurd and personally I would rather be considered the fastest person in the world than the faster swimmer. The Flash is better than Aquaman, no? Sorry Phelps. No one has ever been so dominant in the 100, 200, and 400 meter events; he makes running look extremely easy and just breaks records. Let’s add to his greatness that he has one hell of a personality and I foresee even more endorsement deals if anyone can catch up to him. Ryan Lochte should follow Bolt around so he can learn what charisma actually means.
2- Michael Phelps (USA) is an Olympic God- Growing up as a member of Meadowbrook swim club (home to the NBAC), I would spot him walking around the place as if he owned it. Now, he does. By not only beating the all-time medal record, but destroying it, he proved that he's worthy to be called the greatest Olympian of all-time. 22 medals, 18 of which are gold, goes to show that without question he is the greatest Olympian ever. He also probably broke the record for having the most water to end up in those dumbo sized ears than anyone else in swimming history so good for him.
1- US Medal Count
So once again the US flexes its muscles, winning the most medals of any country and regaining its spot at the top of the power rankings. While they won the most medals in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Chinese decimated the competition in the total Gold. While Olympic broadcasting usually revolves around personal stories of individual feats and persevering through adversity, the main theme can easily be forgotten. It’s the only sporting event that truly encompasses the world competing against one another. Except for war, that is.
This is MansAmbition signing off from London
- Kyle
No comments:
Post a Comment