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FWIW

Posted By: Chuck Bower
Date: Saturday, 23 August 2008, at 7:36 p.m.

In Response To: Papa needs a new pair of shoes (Bob Koca)

What NBC commentators have been saying is that he is the first male to win the gold medals AND set WR's in both the 100 m and 200 m dashes/runs in the same Olympics. And yesterday he and his Jamaican teammates break the ~15 year old (formerly held be US) 4x100 relay record by a convincing 0.3 seconds. (37.4 s --> 37.1 s). And they did it with mediocre exchanges, although if you've ever watched the US baton exchanges (not just this year but as long as I've been watching Olympics, which goes back at least to 1968), I suspect they did no worse on that IMPORTANT aspect of relay racing the 1993/4 US team that held the records.

And just to bitch a bit more (for those of you who haven't been watching), BOTH US mens and womens teams dropped the batons in the 4x100 meter QUALIFYING. The US coaches who are in charge of relays, assuming they have the authority to require the athletes to practice sufficiently (and that's probably a big 'IF') ought to be fired.

This reminds me of what has been typical amongst the US basketball teams over the last 12 years or so (with the exception of this year although I'm not even sure about that): "we're so much better than everyone else we don't have to practice teamwork."

Another example was in the womens 4x400 relay where the heavily favored Jamaicans dropped the baton on the last exchange. The Russian women (who, according to NBC, practice exchanges year round) took advantage to take home the Oro. I suspect if the four Jamaicans ran the four Russians in a straight 400 race the Jamaicans would finish 1-4.

To make matters even worse in that relay, the dufus 3rd leg Jamaican ran completely into the middle of the next lane, interfering so severely with the exchange of the British team that they couldn't continue. There is no 'protest' as there can't be a re-race -- they were just screwed, as guiltless as they were. (Well, the only 'guilt' you can brand the Brits with is the fact that they trailed Jamaica, setting up the possibility of interference. It's a cruel world.)

Messages In This Thread

• Papa needs a new pair of shoes
  Evan -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 2:34 p.m.
  • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
    bob koca -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 3:41 p.m.
    • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
      Evan -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 4:23 p.m.
      • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
        Stick -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 4:40 p.m.
      • BGM sucks to put it politely
        neilkaz -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 4:45 p.m.
        • BGM sucks to put it politely
          Stick -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 4:58 p.m.
        • BGM sucks to put it politely
          lucky player -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 4:08 a.m.
        • congress sucks
          garyo -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 5:53 p.m.
          • congress sucks
            neilkaz -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 6:09 p.m.
  • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
    Barry Silliman -- Thursday, 21 August 2008, at 11:20 p.m.
    • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
      Bill Riles -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 12:50 a.m.
      • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
        garyo -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 5:47 p.m.
    • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
      bob koca -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 4:23 a.m.
    • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
      Gregg Cattanach -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 2:30 p.m.
      • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
        bob koca -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 4:42 p.m.
      • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
        Bob Koca -- Friday, 22 August 2008, at 6:24 p.m.
        • FWIW
          Chuck Bower -- Saturday, 23 August 2008, at 7:36 p.m.
        • Papa needs a new pair of shoes
          Marty Storer -- Monday, 25 August 2008, at 8:50 p.m.