Olympics - in praise of the pole-vault

[nineveh_uk]

It's the Olympics! A year too late and still a year too early, but I'm watching anyway because I always love it. Today, the men's cycling road race, which allowed glorious views of Mt Fuji except for the cloud in the way. Alas, though the countryside was very pretty it was largely covered by trees and so quite samey. To be honest, I spend the first week waiting for the athletics to show up*, of which polevault and the steeplechase are the best. There is an atavistic streak to my sports-watching: I enjoy the hunt. Pole vault is not really a hunt, but it is absolutely nuts. In my early teens, my family went to my first live sports event other than my father playing cricket, the Summer Universiade/ World Student Games in Sheffield and on a glorious summer day in the giant bowl of the stadium we watched István Bagyula having the bar raised up and up and up en route to an event record. Though I myself lack the mentality - let alone the fitness - required to throw myself head-down over a bar substantially greater in height than a double-decker bus, it is a fantastic event live, and pretty good on TV.**

The same day, I also saw the men's steeplechase. Clearly 21st July 1991 was a formative day for me as a sporting sadist. Run 3000 metres and we'll chuck in some high hurdles and a dirty pool of water for good measure. There are many things I don't enjoy that I nonetheless can understand why others do, but the steeplechase is not among them. Incidentally, the women's event is the most recent athletics event added to the Olympic Games, in 2008. The WP expounds at greater length upon its dubious charms.

I, on the other hand, mowed the lawn yesterday before a weekend of forecast rain, and my biceps are killing me!

* And since I am spending most of the second week at antisoppist's, will also be spending it attempting to commandeer the TV at relevant times.

** In the Olympics, Women, 3rd and 5th August, men 31st July and 2nd August.

Comments

[mrs_redboots]

I think what I love most about the Olympics is the opportunity to watch the most obscure sports that are never otherwise televised! Obviously I love to watch all my favourite sports - cycling, equestrian, swimming, athletics, etc - but it's such fun when they show, for instance, baseball (last time it was in the Games I found a game being streamed behind the red button; they had obviously taken a feed from an American channel, so the commentators assumed you knew what was going on - it was fascinating!).

And I still think the Queen's arrival at the 2012 Games was far more stylish than the Emperor's at these ones.

[nineveh_uk]

I prefer my favourite sports, but finding oneself watching really random stuff can be fun. This morning it was judo, and I am determined to watch a handball watch on Eurosport before the end of the games, as I have never seen one.

Yes, most disappointing to simply walk in like that!

[caulkhead]

When I was ten, I would have been utterly delighted by the idea of the steeplechase - more by the jumping and, especially, the water than the actual running - though probably very bad at it. Today, I would much rather watch it.

[nineveh_uk]

A local running track had a water jump, which I found absolutely fascinating as a child, though never enough to want to do it. Running cross-country yes, getting my feet wet, no.

[pensnest]

I remember being *completely* charmed, watching the cycling in 2012, to discover there is a race during which the riders are culled from the rear. Was a bit disappointed to find there are no large nets or hooks involved, but still. Many sports are indeed bonkers, including pole vault indeed. (Whoever thought it up must have been a... very strange person.)

The only sport I've ever actually done was rowing, and sadly, the Olympics does not embrace the most bonkers rowing races, namely, The Bumps. But one cannot have everything.

[nineveh_uk]

There should be a graphic of a giant shark or pacman gobbling them up.

The bumps would be more entertaining with a sword strapped to the front of the boat...

[pensnest]

That would lead to armoured coxwains, and before you know it the stern would be so heavy, bow would be struggling to get the oar into the water! But it would certainly lend urgency to the proceedings.

[azdak]

At Cambridge the St John's Men's Boat Club is called Lady Margaret's Boat Club (after the founder of the college, Lady Margaret Beaufort) and I was told that this is because St John's was banned from the Bumpy for 120 years after an over-enthusiastic Bump resulted in the death of the other boat's cox when the prow crashed into him. I have no idea if this is actually true but St John's was certainly still Lady Maggie's in my day.

[nineveh_uk]

Though we are talking about the university that include 'The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge' known as Jesus College, so maybe just switching names is a Cambridge thing! (Though I also heard the same reasoning behind the boat club name.)

[antisoppist]

Last night I turned the telly on and watched the end of a report on women's cycling and then there was nothing else on so I watched the highlights on BBC2, which was the entire race of women's cycling. This made it less exciting as I knew what had happened but it was nice to see some Japanese trees.

This is a house of teenagers and the one who gets up before the afternoon is the one least interested in watching anything at all on the telly so I think you'll be fine.

[nineveh_uk]

There were a lot of trees. Very nice, but some additional mountain would have been a bonus.

I shall be bringing my Olympics radio times (am not kidding...)

[antisoppist]

We need your Olympics radio times! Though mostly Daughter and I are being cross that the BBC is only allowed to show us things like rugby sevens and not All The Dancing Horses. We are hoping for more cross country and show jumping.

[joyeuce]

I went to the World Student Games that year as well! Though I think it must have been a different day, as what I remember is the long jump.

[nineveh_uk]

I wave at you across the years! I hope your weather was equally nice.