Former NY mayor Bloomberg had a suggestion:
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/21/mike-bloomberg-income-inequality-116622
I have a feeling this wont be the case in LA in 4 years
People underestimate how many events are on at the same time with teams nobody cares about. Getting tickets for swimming is impossible. Getting tickets for group stage field hockey between 2 countries that won’t make it out of the group stage is easy. Especially since a lot of tickets get sold before the groups are known. Scalpers buy tickets for all matches and make bank on selling Australia vs Holland tickets and dump the others sometimes below face value right after the match started.
11 degrees lol I’d blow my brains out and give up my Olympic dream to stay out of a sweat box.
Giannis is going to be the flag bearer for Greece in the opening ceremonies.
Now that Jordan is on the Caitlin Clarke bus I wonder if they’ll put her on the team? As her numbers continue to improve they look worse and worse for not doing so in the first place.
Were any of this year’s rookies selected for the Olympic team?
Not this year, but they have been in the past. They keep trying to not make it about race and sour grapes but it is pretty clearly a combination of the two. Clarke is a generational talent who unfortunately doesn’t look like the majority of players in the league. That is pissing off a lot of the old guard and isn’t a very good look.
I think it’s a big stretch to say her exclusion is about race. The primary player she would have replaced is likely Taurasi, who is another white player. I do think it’s fair to say it’s sour grapes (although I wouldn’t define it as that, more just paying your dues before getting a spot).
I also think you need to show your work that her race is what’s pissing off the old guard (again the primary old guard cited is usually Taurasi who made some negative comments). There have been plenty of white stars in the WNBA - including MVPs and prior #1 picks that were white, and none of them have gotten this reaction. I think it’s mostly just a bunch of players that felt overlooked for years being upset that a new player comes in and is declared the savior of the league, when they think it’s their efforts that have gotten the league where it is.
I do think her race plays a role in the media coverage/popularity.
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I think this is pretty much spot on. I do think some players are also pissed because of the combination of the two things: they have been around and been good, but now a big reason the media is paying attention to her is because she’s white.
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Fencing is prob the most disappointing event. Sounds like it should be awesome, but then you tune it and it’s just both fencers mashing the attack button and it’s over in 1.3 seconds.
I agree it is players who think they are getting overlooked, but the biggest reason I say this is about race is because if CC wasn’t white I don’t think she gets the same reaction. I wouldn’t expect the holders of college records she broke to deny she really broke them because of bullshit reasons. You wouldn’t see the league leave her out of a series of spotlights they are doing on rookie players. CC has been raising interest and awareness in women’s basketball for a while, you’d think the WNBA would take advantage of that and move her to the spotlight. Granted, her popularity may not have been as apparent when the team was picked, but FFS CC has moved attendance ahead by 10 years compared to its slow, steady growth over the past few years.
Its a sword fight where nobody gets stabbed, ie, not worth anyone’s time.
Don’t forget money. Most estimates say that her NIL deals as a college senior were worth more than the WNBA team salary cap… And yes, I mean she was making more than the combined payroll of a full roster. While some players might view CC as a rising tide that could lift the whole league, that amount of financial inequality is also going to put a big target on your back when some folks feel like you haven’t earned that check yet.
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This seems like a classic don’t hate the playa, hate the game situation.
That phrase has been around for years, but, alas. playa hatin’ continues. Jealousy might be irrational, but it’s still a super common human emotion. So are notions about paying your dues, waiting your turn, etc. I’m not saying it’s right, but those dynamics exist in so many places, I’m not shocked to see them play out here.
When fencing was great
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I was thinking of this exact scene