Johnny Weir is such a showman, I like him. I also want to see Emily Hughes, I have tried to find out when the figure skating is televised. Also been watching the ice dancing, such cute couples.

The SWISS have actually WON games in hockey!!! WOW! Male and Female! We are celebrating tonight..(DH is Swiss)

What is up with Curling?!?!!? The only human that I know that gets excited about curling is my DH...his uncle played it. Why do the networks transmit so much of this sport? Is is really big in the US? Most people that I have talked to have never even heard about? I am truly puzzled at why it is getting so much coverage!

Marigross: My network CBC in Canada better be transmitting lots of curling.........out of a population of 32,461,100.00 in Canada, over 1.3 million participate in curling. Great sport with wonderful sportsmanship.

There's a curling club in Chicago. Only they use kitchen brooms instead of those funny little gizmo things they scrub in front of the sliding stone. Too, the men wear tam o'shanter hats, pretend they are Scottish, and do a lot of post-curling drinking. Looks like fun.

The broadcast schedule for NBC in the US can be found at

http://www.nbcolympics.com/index.html

I suspect Dick Button accurately reflects the attitude of the judges. They have so many athletes doing so many things right that they judge more by what mistakes they see, than by what is done right. I don't particularly like figure skating, or any other sport where one's appearance, rather than what one does, so heavily affects the judging. Besides, those figure skaters all show up at the rinks before the sun comes up, and mess up the ice so bad its hard to play hockey after they leave.

I think the level of play in the hockey events is better than I have ever seen it. Almost all the games have been aired, and so many of the teams that were lightly regarded have been doing so well, and some of the favored teams have been outplayed.

The opening ceremony was awesome, the best lighting of the flame I've ever seen. I also loved the acrobat dove. But I also could have done without Yoko.
Did anyone realize that the Ferrari was tracing out the Olympic rings? I didn't until I read it somewhere.
I watch the Olympics almost nonstop. Love the snowboarding and mogul skiing.

I wish I could watch games like these all year around. I absolutely love the winter games more than the summer games.

The stars of Home and Garden TV would cry they would miss me so much.

Although I like the Summer Games better, the Olympics is always great to watch.

IMHO, this years ice skaters and with the new rules in judging are staying so close to the technical that the artistic has suffered immensely. My Mom loves ice skating and broke her nose in the 1930's pretending she was Sonia Heinji (spelling?)- does anyone remember her? Anyway, she is wishing Dean and ? (terrific English couples team of the past) were back. Lots of the beauty and interpretations variances are now gone.

I'm posting for Shani Davis!!! Here's to a great kid, who did it his way against immense social pressure. I KNOW what it took to follow speed skating in his childhood. Loved exactly how he took that gold. And he wore his Sox cap too!

And I loved the way all the USA male speed skaters and short track Ohno too, refused to let the media foist a continued quarrel among them- regardless of endless tries to achieve that exact goal. All the guys were top drawer and not just in skating.

Shani's reaction to the female media "messer" was priceless. Way to go Shani, and not just for skating.

Congrats!

Torvill and Dean--yeah, they were awesome. I miss a lot of the great skaters of times past: I was big fan of Gordeeva and Grinkov, Brian Boitano, and Katarina Witt back in '88 Olympics. They replayed Katarina Witt's Carmen program on the Olympic Ice program a couple of nights ago--that's still an amazing program. She had so much artistry and charisma. Back then it seemed to be less about being a jumping bean and more about choreography and artistry.

I like Dick Button myself. He tells it like it is. I seldom disagree with his critiques.

I like Dick Button too.

Figure skating isn't the same now and it really hasn't held my interest this year. Usually I'm glued to it, at least in the Olympics. IMO, the new scoring system is an improvement, but many of the skaters, individual men especially, seem to interpret artistry as "waving your arms around and skating slowly". They just don't have the inspired routines of former Olympians.

I think Shani David is an excellent competitor and I'm very pleased he is doing so well. However, I think his mother should butt out and let her son deal with his own life. Also, I don't see any reason why he should not have to comply with the same rules regarding endorsements that all the other US skaters have to.

Sorry, his name is Shani Davis. My fingers must not be completely awake yet!

I missed it, what did Shani Davis overcome?

I had to laugh at "skating slowly and waving their arms". I did like when Weir wore the red glove to symbol the beak of his swan outfit. Makes things interesting.

So far, my favorite events at this year's Olympics have been the snowboarding (and not just because the U.S. teams are doing so well) and the biathlon, both men's and women's. The snowbard cross races were lots of fun to watch! I don't snowboard but so far, the Olympics have made it look very appealing.
Agreed with the assessments above about the skating. I would like to see fewer "ooh" jumps and more artistry. There have been too many falls this year.
One thing I have noticed this year is that the quality of the video is SO much sharper than in previous years. Hooray for technology.
We're back in Belgium now, so I'm watching the live events on a German channel. Can't understand everything the commentators say, but it's good TV anyway. Ganz toll!

Barbara, totally agree with you about Shani's Mom. But declined to comment because someone on Fodors always misinterprets. But yes, she needs to make it a whole lot less about her.

What Shani has overcome is hard to explain. Spend your first 10 years in Englewood commuting to Hyde Park (South Side Chicag)to ice skate and I could begin to detail because then you would have some context. Staying out of the gangs is one thing, but excelling in something like ice skating!! He must have had to wear armour.

And he also had to overcome the background of immense animosity between his skating authorities in the various skating organizations that direct that sport- and his Mother, who constantly fights with everyone and plays the race card if everything isn't to her liking. After that and the team skate rigamarole with the media stirring the pot constantly, its a miracle he did it. What focus!

The man should get work as a diplomat after his skating days are over.

I thought of Torvil after I posted. Dean and Torvil, they were the best ice dancers I have ever viewed.

We have decided that part of the trouble in the ice dancing is not just the new rules as in the regular skating programs, but in the salsa beat changes of the last few years. That venue of music has increased its speed and become more quick, a cross-over tempo. It's too frenetic and frantic for ice dancing, all told. You can absolutely tell that Dick Button thinks the music choices are not good for that reason. Notice how the slow parts are so much more actualized for artistic excellence.

Snowboarding is hard. I'm tried it. Especially since when you do fall there's little you can do because you can't even move or separate your feet/stance. You can try to grab your board as she did, but it mostly doesn't work.

The event I'm most interested in now is the 1500 speed skate tonight. If either American wins, or if both get medals, regardless- they are all three/both a real class act.

Has anyone heard an update on the Canadian ice dancer who was taken to the hospital last night after that nasty fall? I felt bad for all who fell, but especially for the Canadian lady who was hurt. I really hope she'll be able to skate tonight.

No, and I tried to listen in the car. She looked like she was really in pain. I hope her hip wasn't broken. She was a good, good skater.

The Italian girl who fell, I too felt bad for her. In that case the music was not good, way too fast- plus her partner was not up to her standard in skating or in lift strength.

How horrible to be in such pain with the cameras upon you, besides the heavy disappointment. She had no meat on her bones to sustain that kind of fall and not break, I'm afraid. I hope she didn't break it.

What a horrible fall that was! I haven't heard anything yet on her condition.

Boy was the skater from Italy was PEEVED at her partner!! I don't know how long they have been skating together, but there sure wasn't any chemistry between them. And I agree, he was not strong enough for that lift.

The Americans were fun to watch. Very sassy. Which one just came to this country? I haven't kept up with all the Olympic news, but I know someone just became a citizen in January.

Gosh, I should really proofread before posting. Sorry.

Hi, stw, the lady just got her US citizenship on Dec. 31, 2005. She's originally from Canada.

Hi PM! Thanks. That's kind of odd that she had to come to the states to skate. I guess she couldn't find a partner in Canada.

YES, yes, on Torvel and Dean! My all-time favorite ice dancing performance, ever! No one has come close, IMO.