Vancouver 2010 (Or, why I think Winter Olympic Events Are Ridiculous)

2010 is a major sporting year. The Soccer World Cup, and Commonwealth Games are being held this year, as well as the Winter Olympics, currently being staged in Vancouver, Canada.

So my firsts thoughts on this are, has there always been this much hype and coverage of the Winter Olympics? Australia is predominantly made up of beaches and desert, and is currently experiencing the worst drought in history. In my entire 21 years of existance, i have seen snow exactly once, when I was 18, after a 4 hour drive to get there. I cannot remember there ever being so much propaganda for these games in the past, and even though we have a bobsled's chance in hell (pardon the pun) of making even a dent into the medal tally, there is a huge Australian continget on competitors and supporters in Vancouver currently.

How is there such a bandwagon for Aussie competitors? Hell, I'm shocked we even have competitors. Although, maybe luge-ing down a sand dune isn't all that different from ice. And I guess snowboarding translates easily enough to skateboarding. It was fantastic to see an Aussie win gold though, as Torah Bright has in the women's halfpipe.

A few other things, however, I have found as fairly ridiculous these winter games.

Countries such as Pakistan, India, Brazil, and even Ethiopia have competitors. Where are these people getting snow from?!? There are several countries with a grand total of ONE competitor. I mean, congratulations on getting into the Olympics, but lets face it, how many people in Ethiopia are in training for aerial skiing, or the downhill skeleton? Its like Cool Runnings all over again.

And now, what I find the most annoying, are the so called "sports" that are open for competition.

-The Skeleton: Some people may have heard my feelings on this before. For those who don't know what this is, think of the luge. Now turn over onto your stomach. Face down, head first, 150km/h plus, hurtling down a narrow halfpipe of solid ice. And the only thing slowing you down at the end is a 2cm thick PIECE OF FOAM. Need I say more? Yes? HOW IS THIS ENTERTAINMENT?!? Wait, scratch that, HOW IS THIS LEGAL?!? And WHO THE HELL INVENTED THIS?!?

-The Biathlon: Okay, so for those who don't know what the Winter Olympic biathlon is, may be thinking something along the lines of the pentathlon or decathlon in the summer olympics. And you're not far off. But the Winter Olympic biathlon is possibly one of the most mismatched and pointless sports out there. It combines cross country skiing (understandable, being the winter olympics) and, get this, RIFLE SHOOTING. What on Earth does Rifle Shooting have to do with snow? Its not like they're hunting deer, or polar bears, or something wintery, NO, they shoot a tiny pellet out of a rifle and aim for a hole the size of a golfball. I'm not sure about anyone else, but I'm still trying to figure out HOW THIS MAKES ANY SENSE.

-Curling: A sport invented by bored janitors, using brooms and urinal cakes on wet floors. This is the only logical reasoning I can come up with to explain this ridiculous sport.

I think the Winter Olympics really push it in terms of entertainment, and the 'events' that I'm not even sure qualify as real sports. However, because I am born and bred in this sport-worshipping country, I will continue to watch, no matter how ridiculous, my skiis in one hand, my rifle in the other.

explanations

I write this blog now because I find that writing things down is a great way of expressing things and clearing my head.

Why Pinball Wizard?
Pete Townshend of The Who explained the song like this:
"The whole point of 'Pinball Wizard' was to let the boy have some sort of colourful event and excitement. Pinball Wizard is about life's games, playing the machine - the boy and his machine, the disciples with theirs, the scores, results, colours, vibration and action."

"Its about life."

Even with all of this, its a pretty rockin' song, and one that makes me feel good about things.
So here's to our own games of pinball.