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Follow up
https://twitter.com/thechrisbuskirk/status/1420044175739809798
https://twitter.com/crousselle/status/1419994118126714881
https://twitter.com/itthatgirljess/status/1420050491652849664
https://twitter.com/maryalicepowell/status/1420064917642698756
https://twitter.com/JackWilson7543/status/1420051073193201665
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IMO if you root for America in sports that you have no particular interest in and that USA is the favorite in, you’re the freak.
Are you referring to non-Americans??
In sporting events where I have no particular interest I always root for whatever result will bring the most butthurt to the most people. Therefore I am almost always rooting against the USA in the Olympics.
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In those situations we usually root for the underdog.
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That’s a little bit like what happened to me in my final 800m race in high school, though I didn’t finish that far back. I was ok, just a middle-of-the-pack guy. It was regionals, top three made sectionals. I knew I likely wouldn’t finish that high, but I wouldn’t have kept competing, anyway, since baseball season was starting and that was my jam.
I was normally a front-runner to start because I didn’t like getting caught up in the pack. So there I was, leading after 100. Then 200, 300, and 400. At that point, I was feeling great, and was thinking I must be running really fast, as I was never in the lead at the halfway point. I was still leading at the 600m mark, at which point I couldn’t believe what was happening. I was kind of internally freaking out. AM I RUNNING OUT OF MY MIND RIGHT NOW? Then, halfway through the final turn, still leading, I heard someone behind me say to someone else, “Ok, let’s go.”
Oh fuck. That’s when I realized what was going on. The best runners were holding back because all they had to do was come in top three. They passed me at the start of the straightaway. I mustered everything I had, but my legs had nothing left. Felt like concrete. Four guys passed me and I finished fifth. Still ran my personal best and had fun. My dad and coach were near the finish line, with huge smiles on their faces.
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I’m referring to Americans.
I mean what percentage of Americans do you think actively root against American athletes, even if it’s sports that nobody watches? It’s got to be pretty small. 5%?
Edit: unless it’s against your native country or something like that
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Hey Chris, you shithead.
Medal for USA#1 if Kerry Struck did not do her last vault: GOLD
Apparently Bela did some bad math and thought they needed her to get a higher score.
My pony was in first at the two mile pole in the Kentucky Derby, took a bad step, and had to be put down.
Lighten up.
But I do believe it’s way more than 5% of Americans who will pick a non–American flag to root for in some random swimming event.
Any American who never roots for anyone other than the American athlete/team at the Summer Olympics is someone I’m going to assume is an excruciatingly boring person.
If I was Vladimir Putin I’d just change the name of the country temporarily to “Russian Olympic Committee”.
It is frustrating that NBC will refer to “Chinese Taipei” as if it’s a place and not just the name of the team.
Random fact: Chinese Taipei is translated differently in China and Taiwan. Taiwan uses 中華台北 Zhonghua Taibei and China uses 中國台北 Zhongguo Taibei. Both mean “Chinese” but China’s has more of a nation-state connotation whereas Taiwan’s is more ethnic/cultural.
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Those divers are amazing
Legit laughed when I got to the last line of his bio
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Haha I was just gauging how much of a freak I am, because if I don’t know anything about the athletes I’m reflexively rooting for the US. Maybe it’s that patriotism pounded in there since birth. Although If there’s a competitor with a cool backstory or the American comes off like a real douche then it’s different.
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I was just reading about the baseball teams and there’s a massive incentive for the South Koreans. All men in the country have to serve in the military, but that requirement is waived if you win a gold medal.
Shit could be life or death.
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Can I be anti-American exceptionalism in general but also root for American athletes at the same time?!
Anyway it’s not till next week, but I’m really looking forward to the addition of sport climbing and bouldering this year
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No idea, like all of you I watch these sports during the Olympics only, and then forget they exist until the next Games.
This for me. In Japan vs. USA situations where I have ties to both teams and Japan is inevitably the underdog, my default is to root for Japan.