The Gold, Silver and Bronze pro-Olympics Thread

[Flosshilde]

Is that a halo over his head?

It's his pal from outer space.

[Flosshilde]

I hope I don't come across as some raging feminist in dungarees and a bad haircut ........... !!!

Oh - you mean that isn't you in the photy?

[Bryn]

That's two of us then

but I guess we are missing the deeper meaning in running very fast ........................

one comment to me about the whole thing was

"It's not exactly Wagner, is it !"

Well that's one thing in its favour, I suppose.

[MrGongGong]

Well that's one thing in its favour, I suppose.

and the other is ?

[mangerton]

Hey mangerton, I am with you on the boxing

I'm delighted to see there's something we agree on.

And thanks to others for their support.....

[Old Grumpy]

Message for the Kernel:

We got the bronze, the silver and the gold - and you ain't got nuffin. :p

Not that we're any more cheerful for that, like!

[scottycelt]

The BBC seems to be on a feminist crusade for the Olympics. We have had Clare Baldwin giving the TV viewer an almost daily lecture on wimmins equality and as I type there is some guy telling us how much TeamGB has relied on the girls for gold medals even though the boys have won more.

I have to admit though that the girls have been the real stars of these games when it comes to media interviews, though I draw the line at them boxing.

Men swapping punches is stupid and pointless (albeit not literally). Women doing the same is repulsive and obscene.

[MrGongGong]

Girls ?????

I know your men in frocks have problems with women but "Girls" ??

[Lateralthinking1]

Just to return briefly to the subject of women ....... (sorry guys!) it was only for 2012 that the IOC allowed women to compete in all 28 disciplines and insisted that all competing countries also had to have women competitors. Saudi only named Sarah Attar in June of this year so, maybe they did choose someone with no hope of winning (and bringing huge embarrassment to them - can you imagine the dismay if she actually did well?)

IOC also increased number of medals available to women from 127 in Beijing to 140 for 2012. And another silver today for the gurlies in sailing (oh, and one for the men as well!) I hope I don't come across as some raging feminist in dungarees and a bad haircut ........... !!!

Edit: Re posts about Dave above, he's at the BMX today (now that's an odd sport - why cannot they have bikes that actually fit them?)

Has the Prime Minister done any work for the last two weeks? He seems to be on a permanent relaxation break.

Yes, well done to the women Olympians who have done exceptionally well. A special mention for Jessica Ennis; Katherine Copeland and Sophie Hosking who seemed refreshingly unaffected and genuinely shocked about their win in the rowing ; and Gemma Gibbons who after a difficult background has succeeded in judo. As I say, not a sport I like, but she came across in interview very well.

As for the boxing, I am really surprised at the range of people who are totally against it. That isn't my position at all. I thought that any doubts I had about that sport would receive a response that it was all great. So I'm very surprised by the contributions.

Incidentally, on mangerton's point, while I sympathise, I genuinely believe that the average cabinet member and multinational chief is twenty or more times sadistic than the average boxer. Probably a hundred times more. Many boxers are boxers because of earlier economic deprivation and in some ways they remain puppets of the same system until and unless they win big money.

[ahinton]

I was forced to box at school, despite having absolutely no wish to do so. I have loathed and detested it ever since. I think people who do it have mental problems - I mean before they start, as we know it turns the brain to mush - and those who watch it are even worse. Sadists every one.

It is neither a sport, a discipline, nor - God help us - a "science".

As I stated previously, boxing could be regarded as a kind of "discipline" only to the extent that it requires the development of certain techniques, but the value of its rôle as one, or as a "sport", or indeed as anything else worth bothering about in any of its manifold forms strikes me as broadly equivalent to that of the Euro once it's been bailed out once too many and collapses forever.

[ahinton]

Well that's one thing in its favour, I suppose.

You might think so. I don't!

[scottycelt]

Girls ?????

I know your men in frocks have problems with women but "Girls" ??

Yes definitely very much 'girls' to most of us here I reckon ... and you appear to have an unhealthy obsession about 'men in frocks', which rather suggests it's you who conceivably might have 'the problem'.

We often hear about 'our boys' in regard to our soldiers and we have female hockey commentators themselves referring to 'our girls'. I see nothing very extraordinary about my use of the word 'girls' here.

Ah well, boys will be boys, I suppose ...

[pilamenon]

We have had Clare Baldwin giving the TV viewer an almost daily lecture on wimmins equality

Clare Balding has been consistently one of the most well informed and informative of the presenters, drawing many plaudits. I have seen and heard plenty of her commentary and don't recall any such "lectures", but if you mean she is an advocate for women in sport, then I can wholeheartedly agree.

[scottycelt]

Clare Balding has been consistently one of the most well informed and informative of the presenters, drawing many plaudits. I have seen and heard plenty of her commentary and don't recall any such "lectures", but if you mean she is an advocate for women in sport, then I can wholeheartedly agree.

Her long 'lecture' was repeated several times daily at least during the first week of the event. It wasn't a 'commentary' but a special feature on previous discrimination against women competing in certain sporting events as long as a century ago. I can only assume this was considered appropriate because countries like Saudi Arabia were including women for the first time.

One of the highlights of the game for me was to see that brave Saudi girl happily come in last in her race just to be the first female athlete in her country to compete. A genuinely inspiring and heart-warming moment. This lass is a true heroine as far as I'm conerned (or hero, if you prefer)

I confess that the garrulous Ms Balding is not my favourite presenter and I continue to be deeply uncomfortable about women competing in 'sports' like boxing.

Nevertheless, some women clearly do wish to become as physically aggressive as the men, and, if that is their and Ms Balding's wish, so be it!

[amateur51]

Yes definitely very much 'girls' to most of us here I reckon ... and you appear to have an unhealthy obsession about 'men in frocks', which rather suggests it's you who conceivably might have 'the problem'.

We often hear about 'our boys' in regard to our soldiers and we have female hockey commentators themselves referring to 'our girls'. I see nothing very extraordinary about my use of the word 'girls' here.

Ah well, boys will be boys, I suppose ...

I know that scotty, give us a break eh?!

It's like being in a nursing home with Alf Garnett