The Winter Olympics start today, but I’m unlikely to watch that much of it; I’m not that interested in many of the events. Neither is Washington Post writer Paul Farhi, who notes in this column that most of the world can’t relate to these sports. “What the Winter Games are not is a truly international sporting competition that brings the best of the world together to compete, as the promotional blather would have you believe. Unlike the widely attended Summer Olympics, the winter version is almost exclusively the preserve of a narrow, generally wealthy, predominantly Caucasian collection of athletes and nations.” And he recommends that the name of the games be changed to “The European and North American Expensive Sports Festival.”
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
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14 Comments
There will always be someone who dislikes something enough, they have to write a column about it. I’m sure that someone, somewhere, will write a column about the summer olympics having too many countries in it.
I wonder if this is the last Winter Olympics to be held so near the equator (and yes, I know that Turin is nowhere near the equator).
Thanks to global warming, I can see it now: the Ross Ice Sheet Winter Olympics of 2014 (formerly the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica).
The biggest fight on the Winter Olympics so far is to call it Turnin or Torino.
Every event in the winter olympics has to be played on ice or snow.
So that means tremendously popular sports like baseball and bowling are out and incredibly arcane sports like the “biathalon” (a combination of cross country skiing and rifle shooting) are in.
But, heck, let the Canadians have their gold medals . . .
I finally can get my 2 man luge fix.
Paul Farhi needs to experience the “agony of defeat” (a reference to the opening of “ABC World of Sports” where the ski jumper flails out of countrol).
Reading Paul Farhi is agony enough.
The USA Olympic athletes are heros that sacrifice much to represent the USA! Most all other nations passionately support their nations athletes. The level of competition, endurance, and strain is not comprehended by most mortals. I guess if your name is not “Bubba” and you don’t wear a “NFL” or “NBA” logo clad garment and get paid a million dollars and loot stores and rape other Americans …… you do not qualify to represent America in sports?
Well I for one realize how much sacrifice our U.S.A. Olympic athlets make! For What? Personal best efforts or a chance to represent their country, even if it is only the USA where you only get athlete status if you are a professional paid thug? No wonder other nations hate us? I for one stand up and applaud our U.S.A. athletes, the U.S.A., and the Olympic ideal of World peace through human sports competition and friendship!
Uncle Sam
Uncle Sam – sorry to hear about inferiority complex.
No, olympic athletes are NOT heroes. They do NOT sacrifice their lives for our freedom. If you think they are heroes, your antenna is bent.
Secondly, olympic athletes who are successful often are heavily rewarded with money and fame through product endorsements. Spare me the sob stories.
I suppose it is a racist plot that Hispanics and Blacks traditionally live in countries that don’t have snow/ice?
Makes it difficult to compete in winter Olympics when you live somewhere it never snows.
Oh well, like JM said, somebody will find something to complain about , no matter what…
Todd
You sound to be either a typical so-called American sports fan that idolizes so called professional athletes. The ones that you always read about driving their Mercedes and wearing their bling as taey exit the scene of a rape (latest – Kobe Bryant) but take your pick or assulting someone usually a girl friend outside a club.
Maybe you are a geek and specialize in down-hill blogging? Perhaps, you recieved a bent antenna in your backside while crouching over to watch your favorite 2 man lunge event?
The reality is 1)few Olympic athletes recieve sponsorship 2) Most Olympians participate in a sport that 98 per cent of all other humans can’t do at all. 3) Olympians as a result of hard work, dedication and drive are the very best at what they do. 4) Most of all when an USA Olympic athlete wins ….. all of America wins ….. these guys and ladies DO REPRESENTS THE USA. Perhaps, if they do not qualify as heros who represent their country you either know little about them or you feel that you are more qualified as being an official two man lunger?
“Todd
You sound to be either a typical so-called American sports fan that idolizes so called professional athletes. ”
You must be some kind of clairvoyant idiot savant to glean that sentiment from my post. I didn’t mention pro athletes at all. But don’t let the facts get in your way, smart guy.
Secondly, are you trying to tell me that Sarah Hughes, et.al., haven’t cashed in on those gold medals? You’d have to be an idiot to think so.
The only American Heroes I know of are the ones that are or have been serving their country and in some cases giving their lives in defense of our freedoms.
I love the winter Olympics. Even more than summer Olympics, they bring together all the “sports” that hardly anybody cares about and gets them over with in a few short days every 4 years. Bravo!
Anyway, Farhi is a racist. Period.
Janet got that right!