Rio Olympics 2016 discussion

[Butts]

Well the Paralympics have been running for a few days now with no comment being passed on this forum despite a plethora of Golds being won by our raspberrys.

Does this mean despite all the hype most members find it as exciting or noteworthy as womens football In order to be deemed progressive and politically correct do members affect enthusiasm for the Paralympics but fail to reflect this by enthusing on our teams progress in this forum.

 

[AM9]

Since attending the London Paralympics twice I have followed their progress. The atmosphere is different to the conventional Olympic Games but no less exciting. At the 2012 para games, the spectators were sympathetic to the acheivements of all competitors, - not just the nationlist fervour that seemed to grip the able-bodied games. You can see the sense of achivement on competitors' faces even when they fail to make the podiums. Every one of them is challenging their own difficulties, not just trying to beat somebody else.
Having said all that, it's good to see that the well planned, high quality training funded from the lottery also benefits the paras as is evident from our success in the first two days. The US's' relatively weak performance so far compared with their able-bodied games results possibly refelcts on their social priorities back home.

 

[richw]

Well the Paralympics have been running for a few days now with no comment being passed on RailUK Forums despite a plethora of Golds being won by our raspberrys.

Does this mean despite all the hype most members find it as exciting or noteworthy as womens football In order to be deemed progressive and politically correct do members affect enthusiasm for the Paralympics but fail to reflect this by enthusing on our teams progress in this forum.

I think the problem is a lack of televised coverage.
An old friend of mine is competing tomorrow, no TV coverage, and very little pre event reporting despite her having Won several world titles. My knowledge of her training and Rio is from Facebook.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I think the problem is a lack of televised coverage.
An old friend of mine is competing tomorrow, no TV coverage, and very little pre event reporting despite her having Won several world titles. My knowledge of her training and Rio is from Facebook.

The only television coverage seems to show that the media have learnt NOTHING from the recent Olympic Games by once again abasing themselves at the false deity called "Medal Table" at every possible opportunity.

All the personal striving of competitors, as a culmination of years of training and the making of personal sacrifices to enable this, seems just to be secondary to this media worship...

Am I the only one to appear to be utterly disgusted by this?

 

[Trog]

I feel exactly the same about both Olympics, no prejudice here.

I don't watch either and could not careless if they were never held again.

 

[richw]

Paul- I gather a lot of the Paralympians are also getting fed up with what little media they do get repeatedly calling them an inspiration. Apparently they feel it lacks equality as it wasn't said about the able bodied Olympians.

 

[Butts]

I think the problem is a lack of televised coverage.
An old friend of mine is competing tomorrow, no TV coverage, and very little pre event reporting despite her having Won several world titles. My knowledge of her training and Rio is from Facebook.

Could this be because coverage is mainly on Channel Four rather than the BBC? Although not nearly as exhaustive it is still on every day.

I think if the truth be known the printed media are trying to create an interest that does not exist, the same as with womens football which I used as an analagy.

The "I" is going semi-overboard with it's level of coverage in relation to what in public interest terms is a minor event - non-league football ?

 

[AM9]

The only television coverage seems to show that the media have learnt NOTHING from the recent Olympic Games by once again abasing themselves at the false deity called "Medal Table" at every possible opportunity.

All the personal striving of competitors, as a culmination of years of training and the making of personal sacrifices to enable this, seems just to be secondary to this media worship...

Am I the only one to appear to be utterly disgusted by this?

It happens on Channel 4's coverage but nowhere near as much as the BBC's continual updates. I think that Ch4 have taken a brave step bringing it to a main free-to-air channel, firstly in 2012 and now Rio. Pity the host nation only just managed to put it on a pay channel there thereby ensuring abysmal viewing.
'The Last Leg' is the jewel in their schedules. They have debunked all the 'pity' for the athletes' disabilities and made them feel like they should, normal competitors.

 

[richw]

Could this be because coverage is mainly on Channel Four rather than the BBC? Although not nearly as exhaustive it is still on every day.

I think if the truth be known the printed media are trying to create an interest that does not exist, the same as with womens football which I used as an analagy.

The "I" is going semi-overboard with it's level of coverage in relation to what in public interest terms is a minor event - non-league football ?

But there was little interest in the football league until it was being covered in more details. Now its very popular outside of its own club supporters

 

[meridian2]

To be fair, the medal table only makes one appearance during the coverage, so I'd hardly say they're 'worshipping a deity'.
The paralympians' achievements should be recognised and celebrated, so it's a little disingenuous to say that broadcasters ignore this.

 

[LuSiVe]

I tried watching it but it was just people chatting around a desk and I got bored waiting. If there's sport on I'd rather be watching it than people talking about it.

 

[AM9]

I tried watching it but it was just people chatting around a desk and I got bored waiting. If there's sport on I'd rather be watching it than people talking about it.

There was plenty of chatting around desks in the Olympics as well.

 

[J-2739]

They should just treat the Paralympics like any other Olympic game so the disabled don't feel like a different species.

 

[LuSiVe]

There was plenty of chatting around desks in the Olympics as well.

Not when you watched it on the red button / BBC Sport app and got, for the most part, completely uninterrupted sport with just commentators (some not even British) and no talking heads at all.

Is there something similar for the Paralympics?

 

[dosxuk]

Not when you watched it on the red button / BBC Sport app and got, for the most part, completely uninterrupted sport with just commentators (some not even British) and no talking heads at all.

Is there something similar for the Paralympics?

The Channel 4 website has all the feeds that are being produced by the IPC.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I think that Ch4 have taken a brave step bringing it to a main free-to-air channel, firstly in 2012 and now Rio.

Agreed, it was a particularly brave step after the BBC refused to show any live coverage at all from the 2010 Winter Paralympics in Vancouver.

I think splitting the coverage of the Olympics and Paralympics was the making of the coverage to be honest. Channel 4's brought focus whereas the BBC's coverage always felt a bit grudging, like they were only doing it because they had to.

Coverage is reduced compared to the Olympics, but only because the IPC coverage isn't as comprehensive, mostly due to funding. We've seen that especially with the rowing, with them only using one or two fixed cameras rather than the tracking cameras and the boat cameras they used in the Olympics.

'The Last Leg' is the jewel in their schedules. They have debunked all the 'pity' for the athletes' disabilities and made them feel like they should, normal competitors.

Jonny Peacock in a tutu is a sight that will live long in the memory

 

[Howardh]

There was plenty of chatting around desks in the Olympics as well.

Not if you stuck to the interactive streams!

 

[dosxuk]

Coverage is reduced compared to the Olympics, but only because the IPC coverage isn't as comprehensive, mostly due to funding. We've seen that especially with the rowing, with them only using one or two fixed cameras rather than the tracking cameras and the boat cameras they used in the Olympics.

The IPC weren't covering the rowing at all. C4 brought their own cameras to cover it from scratch - hence no live stream, only a couple of cameras and no graphics.

 

[Butts]

Well we have now won 43 Gold Medals eclipsing the performance of the able bodied athletes yet no one is commenting on here.

No one is raving about Dame Sarah Storey winning her 13th Medal stretching back to Barcelona in 1992.

In my opening post I deliberately used the term "raspberry" to try and provoke comment. Normally this would ensure the wrath of the "PC Brigade" yet it barely raised a whimper.

Is the truth not that most people are not interested in the paralympics despite all the media hype yet fear being critical of it due to the perceived perception that we should all be jumping up and down in "right on" excitement.

 

[AlterEgo]

Well we have now won 43 Gold Medals eclipsing the performance of the able bodied athletes yet no one is commenting on here.

No one is raving about Dame Sarah Storey winning her 13th Medal stretching back to Barcelona in 1992.

In my opening post I deliberately used the term "raspberry" to try and provoke comment. Normally this would ensure the wrath of the "PC Brigade" yet it barely raised a whimper.

Is the truth not that most people are not interested in the paralympics despite all the media hype yet fear being critical of it due to the perceived perception that we should all be jumping up and down in "right on" excitement.

I've barely seen any of the Paralympics, even less than I saw of the Olympics.

I did catch a 100m sprint race last night, which was run by leg amputees. It was won by a chap who had one more leg than the rest of the competition.

I don't understand the para categories. In any given event some athletes seem much less able than others. Ellie Simmonds, a dwarf, competes against amputees and cerebral palsy sufferers. So from a spectator perspective it can be difficult to be satisfied the competition is between equals. Other events like goalball or blindfolded running are better to watch as blindfolds at least ensure the disability is the exact same for everyone.

 

[AM9]

I've barely seen any of the Paralympics, even less than I saw of the Olympics.

I did catch a 100m sprint race last night, which was run by leg amputees. It was won by a chap who had one more leg than the rest of the competition.

I don't understand the para categories. In any given event some athletes seem much less able than others. Ellie Simmonds, a dwarf, competes against amputees and cerebral palsy sufferers. So from a spectator perspective it can be difficult to be satisfied the competition is between equals. Other events like goalball or blindfolded running are better to watch as blindfolds at least ensure the disability is the exact same for everyone.

Your post reads like a comment that Paralympic competition belongs in the too 'difficult category' so why bother. I can understand anybody who forms that opinion after a short dip into a sample of the events, but it is much more than a watered-down version of the Olympics for less able people.
The complicated system of ability classification is there to equate one disability against another in the context of the actual event. It is based on medical evidence and is supported by all atheletes who participate. The classification system is regularly reviewed as experience of operating it grows which understandably can disrupt athletes already established in a particular classification, but most just accept the new challenge and continue to develop their sport.
The upside of the system is not only that it creates fair competition within a practically limited number of events, but as has become very noticeable in Rio, every competitor benefits from their efforts. By that I mean that although the media generally focuses on the headline medal winners, unlike the Olympics (and many other sports), where the runners-up are considered as failures and just slink away maybe to return another day, all Paralympic competitors and their supporters see their effort as an achievement worth celebrating.

 

[AlterEgo]

Your post reads like a comment that Paralympic competition belongs in the too 'difficult category' so why bother. I can understand anybody who forms that opinion after a short dip into a sample of the events, but it is much more than a watered-down version of the Olympics for less able people.
The complicated system of ability classification is there to equate one disability against another in the context of the actual event. It is based on medical evidence and is supported by all atheletes who participate. The classification system is regularly reviewed as experience of operating it grows which understandably can disrupt athletes already established in a particular classification, but most just accept the new challenge and continue to develop their sport.
The upside of the system is not only that it creates fair competition within a practically limited number of events, but as has become very noticeable in Rio, every competitor benefits from their efforts. By that I mean that although the media generally focuses on the headline medal winners, unlike the Olympics (and many other sports), where the runners-up are considered as failures and just slink away maybe to return another day, all Paralympic competitors and their supporters see their effort as an achievement worth celebrating.

Well, it's a spectator sport, so if the perception is it's "too difficult" to watch then the sport will fail.

I have in the past been a para footballer following a debilitating stroke (from which I am mostly recovered but I still have a DSB railcard and receive PIP), so I'm not completely alien to para sport.

The purpose of sport is to see winners and losers - it's visceral and emotional. Everyone is a winner at the Paralympics as you say, but that makes it less watchable, and less talked about.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I don't understand the para categories.

This is where C4's coverage is good, the LEXI graphics they use are really informative and clearly explain why some people are competing against other people who superficially have a different disability.

You mention Ellie Simmonds. The reason why she competes in S6 against some amputees is largely due to limb length and swimming stroke rates, although people with cerebral palsy competing in this class is more controversial.

I also don't think it matters about the categories as much as you imply. You can enjoy the sport without getting hung up on it.

Is the truth not that most people are not interested in the paralympics despite all the media hype yet fear being critical of it due to the perceived perception that we should all be jumping up and down in "right on" excitement.

People aren't as interested in the Paralympics, although I think the time difference to Brazil has had a lot to do with it this time. I didn't watch much of the Olympics either as I was in bed.

You can be disinterested in something without being critical of it. Unless it's golf. Golf is not a sport.

 

[AM9]

Well, it's a spectator sport, so if the perception is it's "too difficult" to watch then the sport will fail.

I have in the past been a para footballer following a debilitating stroke (from which I am mostly recovered but I still have a DSB railcard and receive PIP), so I'm not completely alien to para sport.

The purpose of sport is to see winners and losers - it's visceral and emotional. Everyone is a winner at the Paralympics as you say, but that makes it less watchable, and less talked about.

The experience of both London and Rio has been that many who were unsuccessful in securing tickets for the Olympics turned to the Paralympics where they found that it was not too difficult to watch at all. My comment was an observation on your post, not what thousands of Paralympic ticket buyers might have felt.
The Paralympic Games have come of age with a steady trend of increased interest, (despite the slow start of Rio no doubt influenced by the host country's desperate economical position).