OT: 2016 Summer Olympics - Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. GO CANADA GO!

[SeawaterOnIce]

No shame in losing to the world #2 player right now. Would have been a major upset if she won.

Yeah it was an unfortunate matchup. Canada is just getting unlucky with the matchups.

Same deal with Canada at the Rugby 7's. Blown out by Australia, but would have been a major upset had they beat them.

 

[Ace101]

I disagree as a swimmer he has a way more opportunity to win medals.

You can't run the 100 meter 4 different ways.

He is probably the greatest swimmer of all time( no idea on history of sport) and in the conversation for greatest Olympian.

If Usain Bolt wins his third 100 meter he will definitley be in that conversation as well.

Don't really know how you could disagree with him being greatness personified when he has the most gold medals and medals in general in something that's been held since 1896. He has the most medals ever by an individual but that 3rd most gold by a country thing is a lie. Bolt at most is gonna get 9 gold medals, Phelps like 21 or 22 gold medals. As a runner Bolt has just as many chances to win medals than Phelps. It's just that short distance runners aren't good long distance. While Phelps holds the world record for 400m, Bolt has never even attempted it at the Olympics. If he was good at it he could also be apart of the 400m relay for track but he isn't. Even if you only restrict Phelps medals to counting as one even if he won an individual distance like 200m multiple times different ways he still has 15 golds instead of his 19 (which still leaves him as the individual with most gold medals and medals in general) .

 

[Josepho]

Awesome comeback by the womens basketball team

 

[NoShowWilly]

i do not get judo but that intense to watch.

 

[VanillaCoke]

Where can one watch online?

 

[Josepho]

I'm sure CBC's website has legal streams.

 

[VanillaCoke]

Yeah I figured that but maybe there was a better option.
Thanks the cbc stream is hd too, doesn't work with chromecast from the app tho which is annoying.

 

[Lemmiwinks]

No shame in losing to the world #2 player right now. Would have been a major upset if she won.

Yup, it was a tough matchup for sure. Like the way she battled to win her second game of the set at the end there, but Kerber's serve is just too strong. Bouchard could only float them back in return.

Looking forward to the women's rugby game! I'll be honest, I never thought I'd say that

 

[Lemmiwinks]

Wow, they're killing it in the first half. 26-5 at halftime!

 

[The Iron Goalie]

That's not even close to being true. Like not even in the same universe.

That's not even true for swimming only, which you may have meant, in which he would be tied for 6th.

Haha indeed. Sorry for the tired fail post, but I edited it for accuracy.

 

[Lemmiwinks]

And the bronze medal in women's rugby goes to Canada!

 

[Fork]

so proud of canada!

 

[Bam19]

Don't really know how you could disagree with him being greatness personified when he has the most gold medals and medals in general in something that's been held since 1896. He has the most medals ever by an individual but that 3rd most gold by a country thing is a lie. Bolt at most is gonna get 9 gold medals, Phelps like 21 or 22 gold medals. As a runner Bolt has just as many chances to win medals than Phelps. It's just that short distance runners aren't good long distance. While Phelps holds the world record for 400m, Bolt has never even attempted it at the Olympics. If he was good at it he could also be apart of the 400m relay for track but he isn't. Even if you only restrict Phelps medals to counting as one even if he won an individual distance like 200m multiple times different ways he still has 15 golds instead of his 19 (which still leaves him as the individual with most gold medals and medals in general) .

The difference is he gets to swim multiple lengths with different strokes. He has golds for Butterlfy/Medley/freestyle you can only run 100m one way.

This is why swimming medal counts can be inflated and why my opinion is what it is. Looking at his gold medals

5 Butterfly
5 Medley (3 more with team)
1 freestyle ( 5 more with team)

So he gets multiple medals at the same distances because of different strokes.

 

[The Iron Goalie]

Ya guys the post I made about Phelps has be edited. I wasn't fully there when I posted it ( falling asleep), but it should make sense now.

 

[Captain Bowie]

That was an awesome Bronze medal match by the rugby team. I don't dully understand the game, but man is 7's fun to watch. It's like 3 on 3 hockey!

 

[hellstick]

Thanks the cbc stream is hd too, doesn't work with chromecast from the app tho which is annoying.

You sure about that, it works great for me.

 

[LeftCoast]

The difference is he gets to swim multiple lengths with different strokes. He has golds for Butterlfy/Medley/freestyle you can only run 100m one way.

This is why swimming medal counts can be inflated and why my opinion is what it is. Looking at his gold medals

5 Butterfly
5 Medley (3 more with team)
1 freestyle ( 5 more with team)

So he gets multiple medals at the same distances because of different strokes.

But each discipline in swimming has completely different technique. If there were equivalents in running there would be 100m backward sprint and 100m hop.

 

[Bam19]

But each discipline in swimming has completely different technique. If there were equivalents in running there would be 100m backward sprint and 100m hop.

That's my point though as a swimmer you have multiple events at the same distance there for you have more opportunities for medals.

Runners don't have the same.

This swimmer medal counts can be Inflated.

 

[LeftCoast]

That's my point though as a swimmer you have multiple events at the same distance there for you have more opportunities for medals.

Runners don't have the same.

This swimmer medal counts can be Inflated.

I wouldn't say medal counts are inflated. That would infer that it is easier to get multiple medals in swimming. I'd concede that there is some merit to this, but mostly because there are 4 different relays (Medley and Freestyle in 4x100 and 4x200 distances) compared to 2 relays (4x100 and 4x400) in track and field. But is it easier to dominate 1 technique or 4?

A runner such as Usain Bolt has to master 1 technique - sprinting, in 3 distances, 100m, 200m and 400m. As these are all sprints, there is very little strategy or approach; only pacing is different. Starting techniques are identical, relay take-overs are identical in both distances. To be equivalent to swimming, it would be like Bolt also had world records and multiple Olympic medals in 110m hurdles and long jump as well.

While there are more events in swimming, there are also more techniques to master. You also have to train and prepare for different events and generally beat different people in each event as most swimmers are specialists in only 1 or 2 strokes. In the swimming world, everyone can free style, but swimmers tend to specialize in Backstroke, breast stroke or butterfly - some only do free style competitively.

Backstroke has a unique starts and turn techniques, breast stroke and butterfly use touch turns, freestyle and backstroke use variations on flip turns and in IM, the back to breast turn is different again. Breast stroke and backstroke have unique underwater pullouts. The approach is also different. Freestyle, backstroke and butterfly are very much power oriented strokes where breast stroke is more of a finesse stroke where timing and streamlining make a lot of difference. Freestyle, butterfly and back stroke swimmers are now all over 6'4", where for breast stroke specialists height isn't quite as much of an advantage.

Michael Phelps is a butterfly and freestyle specialist, but his backstroke and breast stroke are good enough that he held the 200 IM (Individual Medley) world record from 2003 - 2008 and has held the 400 IM world record since 2002. Phelps backstroke was near world class at one point, just not on the same level as his fly and free.

TL;DR

Yes - more events does equate to more opportunities to medal in each Olympics, but it also means more techniques to master and a wider range of competitors to beat.

 

[The Optimist]

Yes - more events does equate to more opportunities to medal in each Olympics, but it also means more techniques to master and a wider range of competitors to beat.

In addition to all of this it is also worth considering the fatigue factor. By participating in multiple events Phelps swam in more than 1 race per day against specialists who only had 1 race. In theory this should reduce his chances in each race he participated in.

 

[Bam19]

TL;DR

Yes - more events does equate to more opportunities to medal in each Olympics, but it also means more techniques to master and a wider range of competitors to beat.

Perfect so we agree.

I'm not trying to discount Phelps in anyway what he has done is absolutely amazing.

I'm just saying you can't compare athletes by medal count due to imbalances in opportunity to win them.

I also feel that a race is a race get to the end as fast as you can. And while I appreciate that you must master multiple techniques in the end it's still swimming.

Phelps is an amazing athlete (greatest swimmer of all time?) however just because he has so many medals doesn't mean he is automatically the GOAT Olympian.

 

[RandV]

I wouldn't say medal counts are inflated. That would infer that it is easier to get multiple medals in swimming. I'd concede that there is some merit to this, but mostly because there are 4 different relays (Medley and Freestyle in 4x100 and 4x200 distances) compared to 2 relays (4x100 and 4x400) in track and field. But is it easier to dominate 1 technique or 4?

A runner such as Usain Bolt has to master 1 technique - sprinting, in 3 distances, 100m, 200m and 400m. As these are all sprints, there is very little strategy or approach; only pacing is different. Starting techniques are identical, relay take-overs are identical in both distances. To be equivalent to swimming, it would be like Bolt also had world records and multiple Olympic medals in 110m hurdles and long jump as well.

You know your swimming well but I'd say you're out to lunch saying there's 3 individual sprints a runner can medal in. Yes it's the same technique, but the difference in pace is enormous. Like Phelps, Usain Bolt is a complete monster in sprinting who absolutely crushes the competition, and that seems to be the main requirement to be able to compete and medal in both the 100M and 200M. The 400M however doesn't get touched.

Taking a quick glance at Olympic medals for world record holders there is extremely little crossover from the 100M to 200M, zero crossover from the 100M to the 400M, and a decent amount of crossover between the 200M and the 400M.

I think the point should stand, it shouldn't take away his accomplishments but there's certainly far more events for a dominant sprinter to compete in than there is a dominant sprinter.

 

[VanillaCoke]

You sure about that, it works great for me.

It works for 5 mins and then says Video playback failed, the format might not be supported.

 

[Nuckles]

 

[PM]

Rugby 7's is awesome, hopefully it sticks to the Olympics for good. I've been so out of touch with international rugby for the past 6-7 years, I need to find a cheap streaming service to get back into it. EA Sports actually had a great rugby game back around 2004-05.