The Olympics Thread

[Broken Wing]

There are some very good people getting good results, but we can't even try to copy them with 1/100th the budget for some sports.

There is a tiny percentage getting excellent results. Apart from the boxers the rest are pretty average to poor at Olympic level. And if it was simply down to funding then i'm sure some philantropist or notable sponsors would have come on board long ago.

That's not true though. We got a non boxing medal too. There were some strong placings in sailing too. Annalise Murphy was very unlucky, she could have won gold. The Star had a best ever finish in their event. Men's and women's hockey have improved hugely and almost qualified for the tournament.

Also Rob Heffernan finished 4th in the 50Km walk and Natalya Coyle finished a career high 9th in the modern pentathlon.

[Sauvignon Blank]

There is a tiny percentage getting excellent results. Apart from the boxers the rest are pretty average to poor at Olympic level. And if it was simply down to funding then i'm sure some philantropist or notable sponsors would have come on board long ago.

That's not true though. We got a non boxing medal too. There were some strong placings in sailing too. Annalise Murphy was very unlucky, she could have won gold. The Star had a best ever finish in their event. Men's and women's hockey have improved hugely and almost qualified for the tournament.

Also Rob Heffernan finished 4th in the 50Km walk and Natalya Coyle finished a career high 9th in the modern pentathlon.

We are an Island nation and won nothing at sailing, go figure.

I don't consider showjumping an exciting sport, my opinion, not to offend any enthusiasts out there but i find it hard to jump(pardon the pun) up and down for a horse leaping fences.

I don't even like boxing yet was thrilled by katie taylors win. A deserved winner who obviously has the technical skills and devotion/mindset required to win a gold.We need more of her type to emerge, winners.

The athletics performance was abysmal, truly abysmal. How many finals did our athletes make? let alone even contend for a medal. I'd be interested to hear Eamonn Coughlans views and Sonia O'Sullivan.

Not an olympics fan by any stretch, just a casual observer but by jaysus it was embarrassing to see so many athletes fail miserably on the so called world stage. Whoever heads up Olympics Ireland needs to be shown the door ASAP.

'Almost qualifying' means jack sh!t in my book.

[ror]

All the talk will be if Katie will go Pro. I doubt very much this will happen, so here are the cons.

She will lose her 40k and have to privately fund her coaching team.
She has never been boxed in the face without that giant helmet.
She could get hammered from pillar post.
She would have to go up to 70kg to make the big bucks.
If she doesn't win marketing appeal goes way down = less money
She will have to move to USA

Anyone wan to have a go at the Pros?

[Dexter]

All the talk will be if Katie will go Pro. I doubt very much this will happen, so here are the cons.

She will lose her 40k and have to privately fund her coaching team.
She has never been boxed in the face without that giant helmet.
She could get hammered from pillar post.
She would have to go up to 70kg to make the big bucks.
If she doesn't win marketing appeal goes way down = less money
She will have to move to USA

Anyone wan to have a go at the Pros?

A 6 million dollar contract??

[Broken Wing]

She has never been boxed in the face without that giant helmet.

That helmet offers a lot less protection than you seem to think. I've often taken a full glove to the face while wearing one and it's not fun.

She could get hammered from pillar post.

She could but it's highly unlikely. The skills she has now are perfectly transferrable to the professional game. Of course there's a change of tactics but there are plenty of amateur boxers, including John Joe Nevin, boxing in the World Series of Boxing which uses professional boxing rules/scoring and no helmet while allowing boxers to remain amateur.

[Ulster's Best]

Maybe I'm wrong but the reaction here to Katie's gold seems a little more muted / less enthusiastic than in most corners of the mainstream media/internet over the past 10 days? I was lucky enough to be there right in the middle of the madness and it was an incredibly emotional occasion with an atmosphere second to none - I've never experienced anything like it in Lansdowne Road, Croke Park, anywhere. Don't think that really came across on TV at all because of the nature of the arena. Were any of you there? How does it rate against a Leinster HEC final win?

[Lar]

Wasn't there but was at Swimming events in the Olympics one evening and was amazed at the atmosphere given that it wasn't just two teams playing each other, there were numerous countries represented. Mad Stuff. Maybe the indoor nature of the stadium made it more vocal and noisy but I really enjoyed the whole thing. Can't imagine what it would have been like had an Irish person been in with a chance of a medal. The Excel must have been bonkers for the Katie Taylor Gold.

[claire_m]

I've been to a few events - swimming, athletics and cycling - and any time an Irish athlete was mentioned, the crowd went nearly as mad for them as they did for the Brits! They have been well supported and I've enjoyed every second of the games. Come Tuesday when it's all over (there's an athletes parade on London I'm going to), I'll be bereft. I'll have to find something else to do with my life!