Olympics - brief reports
Feb 28th, 2002, 12:52 PM
#1
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Olympics - brief reports
Can we have some brief reports of the experience? Maybe list events attended, where you stayed, interesting observations, etc. I was only there for 2 days, having made very last-minute plans, but here is my list.
Events: Men's 7.5K Biathlon Relay and Men's Nordic Combined K120 Ski Jumping
Stayed at the Econolodge in Provo and paid $250/night!!!!!
Observations:
1) There was much more of an international focus at the actual games than it seemed on TV. There were Americans waving Norwegian flags, and everyone cheered for a good performance regardless of nationality. People also cheered for the last skier in the relay to finish, just to encourage him. Before the relay, the announcer taught spectators how to yell encouragement in several different languages.
2) Although the whole thing was remarkably well-organized, it had a very casual feel, not the sense of all-importance that came through on TV. I felt like I was back at high school sports competitions.
Events: Men's 7.5K Biathlon Relay and Men's Nordic Combined K120 Ski Jumping
Stayed at the Econolodge in Provo and paid $250/night!!!!!
Observations:
1) There was much more of an international focus at the actual games than it seemed on TV. There were Americans waving Norwegian flags, and everyone cheered for a good performance regardless of nationality. People also cheered for the last skier in the relay to finish, just to encourage him. Before the relay, the announcer taught spectators how to yell encouragement in several different languages.
2) Although the whole thing was remarkably well-organized, it had a very casual feel, not the sense of all-importance that came through on TV. I felt like I was back at high school sports competitions.
Feb 28th, 2002, 01:47 PM
#2
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I've attended the past two summer Olympics and would add the following: events are very spread out for the Olympics (regardless of city/year) and there is not typically an all-encompassing feeling like "I'm at the Olympics" wherever you go. But that sense is definitely present in some places.
The Winter Olympics are always much more casual than summer, and attendance is much smaller, so that Super Bowl or Mardi Gras feeling is not evident by and large.
TV, of course, seeks to dramatize and intensify the Olymoic feeling. That feeling is definitely present at the games, but only in some places at some times. Ice skating is the signature event of the WO and if you'd been there, you'd have been wowed.
Track and field is a centerpiece for the SO, but preliminaries and such have virtually no "buzz" about them. Only certain contests have the Olympic buzz.
Just by huge coincidence we happened to be among only 2000 spectators (probably only 100+ Americans) to watch Rulon Gardner pull one of the biggest upset wins of the Sydney Olympics (heavyweight wrestling...same guy who got stuck in the Wyoming wilderness and almost died last week). The win was a staple on TV reruns, ads and montages for the Olympics, but if you'd have been there, you'd have had little or no sense of the history that was taking place unless you knew a lot about wrestling. No buzz at all (I went with a friend who was a big wrestling fan).
The Olympics, IMO, should be attended by people who love the sports being contested, and by locals who want to see whatthe Olympics 'look like' but who don't have to sacrifice much. They're not the Super Bowl or World Series.
But among the very few times I've ever actually had goosebumps at a sporting event, four of them were at the Olympics, which are an international treasure for me.
The Winter Olympics are always much more casual than summer, and attendance is much smaller, so that Super Bowl or Mardi Gras feeling is not evident by and large.
TV, of course, seeks to dramatize and intensify the Olymoic feeling. That feeling is definitely present at the games, but only in some places at some times. Ice skating is the signature event of the WO and if you'd been there, you'd have been wowed.
Track and field is a centerpiece for the SO, but preliminaries and such have virtually no "buzz" about them. Only certain contests have the Olympic buzz.
Just by huge coincidence we happened to be among only 2000 spectators (probably only 100+ Americans) to watch Rulon Gardner pull one of the biggest upset wins of the Sydney Olympics (heavyweight wrestling...same guy who got stuck in the Wyoming wilderness and almost died last week). The win was a staple on TV reruns, ads and montages for the Olympics, but if you'd have been there, you'd have had little or no sense of the history that was taking place unless you knew a lot about wrestling. No buzz at all (I went with a friend who was a big wrestling fan).
The Olympics, IMO, should be attended by people who love the sports being contested, and by locals who want to see whatthe Olympics 'look like' but who don't have to sacrifice much. They're not the Super Bowl or World Series.
But among the very few times I've ever actually had goosebumps at a sporting event, four of them were at the Olympics, which are an international treasure for me.
Feb 28th, 2002, 03:15 PM
#3
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Jack,
I have to disagree with you. We were in SLC for the last 5 days. We attended:
(1) Hockey: US v. Germany; Canada v. Finland; US v. Russia and Canada v. US
(2) Alpine Skiing: Women's GS and Men's Slalom
(3) Other: Medal Ceremony on Sat. night ('N Sync) and the Closing Ceremonies.
We rented a private condo in between Park City and SLC at $250/nt.
(1) We had an amazing time. We found that the there was a tremendous warm and community type feel to the games. Like everyone, no matter what part of the world they were from, was part of the same happy family (sorry to sound so mushy, but it's true).
(2) The skiing events felt much more international than the hockey games that we saw, but that was because there were competitors from more than just two countries. However, the hockey games were amazing to be at. We certainly felt at the gold medal game, like we were at a historic event.
(3) We felt that SLOC did an amazing job with organizing and arranging. The parking and shuttles were easy to deal with. If only the airport would have been as organized on Monday morning!
I have to disagree with you. We were in SLC for the last 5 days. We attended:
(1) Hockey: US v. Germany; Canada v. Finland; US v. Russia and Canada v. US
(2) Alpine Skiing: Women's GS and Men's Slalom
(3) Other: Medal Ceremony on Sat. night ('N Sync) and the Closing Ceremonies.
We rented a private condo in between Park City and SLC at $250/nt.
(1) We had an amazing time. We found that the there was a tremendous warm and community type feel to the games. Like everyone, no matter what part of the world they were from, was part of the same happy family (sorry to sound so mushy, but it's true).
(2) The skiing events felt much more international than the hockey games that we saw, but that was because there were competitors from more than just two countries. However, the hockey games were amazing to be at. We certainly felt at the gold medal game, like we were at a historic event.
(3) We felt that SLOC did an amazing job with organizing and arranging. The parking and shuttles were easy to deal with. If only the airport would have been as organized on Monday morning!
Feb 28th, 2002, 05:06 PM
#4
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We were there for the first weekend, arriving for the opening ceremonies. Security was terribly tight and seemed a bit disorganized, but I think they improved it as we stayed there so they probably had the drill down well by the second week. It was a wonderful experience, one we'll never forget. We didn't find it too crowded, although we stayed with friends in Park City at their condo. Went to the opening ceremonies, hockey Belarus vs. Ukraine, women's moguls, and ski jumping. Fantastic. Our friends went to something everyday for the entire two weeks. They are still trying to adjust back to a normal life.
Feb 28th, 2002, 06:22 PM
#5
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I was in SLC for the last 3days of the Olympics. We saw the skating exhibition and the men's slalom skiing. Everything was very well-organized and the people could not have been friendlier! We went to see the Mormon Tabernacle and arrived just in time to see a wonderful concert by the Mormon Tabernacle choir and the King's Singers.
Feb 28th, 2002, 08:49 PM
#6
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From a local resident's prespective, it was wonderful! Attended cross country at Soldier Hollow, women's downhill at Snowbasin (yes, the second day too due to weather postponement), skeleton at the Utah Olympic Park, ice dancing finals and men's slalom at Deer Valley. Even got to go to the medals ceremonies with Barenaked Ladies concert.
Even though security was present, it wasn't oppressive or inconvenient. volunteers, national guard & police were cheerful, watchful and efficient. Spectators were relaxed & took it all in stride.
It was a real treat to see sports that I wasn't familiar with - skeleton & cross country. When you see it in person, it just confirms how limited & biased NBC's coverage really is. At ice dancing there were actually 30 couples competing! Watching all 30 gave you a real appreciation of the different levels of ability between the medal winners and the less experienced.
The audiences at all the events cheered for all the competitors, not just the Americans. The spectators appreciated great performances regardless of nationality. One of the biggest cheers at the men's slalom was for the Iranian skier who was having a great run & very competitive time - before missing a gate at the end of the course!
It was fun to rub shoulders with the teams at the grocery store, post office and even shopping. While taking my guests to the Factory Stores, we shopped with the Chinese, Russians, Italians, Croatians, Bulgarians and even one man from Kazistan (SP?).
Had the pleasure of helping a family from Bern, Switzerland (who were pouring over their SLC map) with transportation directions to/from the hockey venue.
Spectators even thanked the bus drivers as they disembarked.
All the loaner buses couldn't change their electronic signs. So, we were getting on buses that said "Denver", "Cleveland" (a few jokes about that one). One even said "Lover's Point" - we liked that one!
I could have easily gone on another two weeks at least. It was a wonderful experience & I can't wait for Torino in 2006. Great excuse to go to Italy again!
Even though security was present, it wasn't oppressive or inconvenient. volunteers, national guard & police were cheerful, watchful and efficient. Spectators were relaxed & took it all in stride.
It was a real treat to see sports that I wasn't familiar with - skeleton & cross country. When you see it in person, it just confirms how limited & biased NBC's coverage really is. At ice dancing there were actually 30 couples competing! Watching all 30 gave you a real appreciation of the different levels of ability between the medal winners and the less experienced.
The audiences at all the events cheered for all the competitors, not just the Americans. The spectators appreciated great performances regardless of nationality. One of the biggest cheers at the men's slalom was for the Iranian skier who was having a great run & very competitive time - before missing a gate at the end of the course!
It was fun to rub shoulders with the teams at the grocery store, post office and even shopping. While taking my guests to the Factory Stores, we shopped with the Chinese, Russians, Italians, Croatians, Bulgarians and even one man from Kazistan (SP?).
Had the pleasure of helping a family from Bern, Switzerland (who were pouring over their SLC map) with transportation directions to/from the hockey venue.
Spectators even thanked the bus drivers as they disembarked.
All the loaner buses couldn't change their electronic signs. So, we were getting on buses that said "Denver", "Cleveland" (a few jokes about that one). One even said "Lover's Point" - we liked that one!
I could have easily gone on another two weeks at least. It was a wonderful experience & I can't wait for Torino in 2006. Great excuse to go to Italy again!
Mar 1st, 2002, 01:18 PM
#8
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We attended the World Figure Skating Championship last year in Vancouver, and we too were amazed at the number of competitors! You never see them on T.V. or even hear about them. BTW, saw Jamie Sale and David Pelltier win their first major competition, and in their home country too. Canadians were thrilled.
I personally feel that NBC has MTV'd the Olympics to a point that is nauseating. Wish ABC would cover it again. I look forward to watching the competitions, not the sob stories or the posing athletes in photo shoots or the graphics with the pounding music or the endless talking heads. How about more sports and less filler crap? BTW, do you suppose Hannah Storm would be able to broadcast if she was forced to eliminate the term "gonna" from her vocabulary? "We're gonna...I'm gonna..." Great command of the English language there. NBC doesn't seem to require much of its commentators.
You could always tell if Americans were going to win medals because they focused coverage exclusively on them. That plus the incessant "medal count," the rah rah USA attitude and the constant references to all the "EMOTIONS" was stomach turning. Glad to read about the actual experiences from those who attended.
I personally feel that NBC has MTV'd the Olympics to a point that is nauseating. Wish ABC would cover it again. I look forward to watching the competitions, not the sob stories or the posing athletes in photo shoots or the graphics with the pounding music or the endless talking heads. How about more sports and less filler crap? BTW, do you suppose Hannah Storm would be able to broadcast if she was forced to eliminate the term "gonna" from her vocabulary? "We're gonna...I'm gonna..." Great command of the English language there. NBC doesn't seem to require much of its commentators.
You could always tell if Americans were going to win medals because they focused coverage exclusively on them. That plus the incessant "medal count," the rah rah USA attitude and the constant references to all the "EMOTIONS" was stomach turning. Glad to read about the actual experiences from those who attended.
