2024 Summer Olympics - Paris • Page 3

Diving deep into researching Olympics stuff.

Crazy how insanely competitive the US has gotten in fencing the last decade. It was a big deal when Lee Kiefer won the individual women's foil in 2020 (she is still ranked #1 in the world and expected to repeat), and now the US both has the #1 and #2 ranked male foil fencers in the world in Alexander Massialas and Nick Itkin and they are both favorites to win the US it's first men's fencing gold since 1904.

 

I’ve watched a fencing match a while ago on TV, one of them kept celebrating like a soccer player after every hit because he thought he won the match, but the hits kept being disqualified so it was funny. He did win in the end though.

 

Another interesting thing that I really hope NBC's coverage makes a big deal of: The US women's water polo team won the gold in 2012, 2016, and 2020. If they fourpeat the US becomes the undisputed powerhouse dynasty in Women's water polo, and one of the most dominant Olympic programs outside of Basketball, Track, Swimming, and Gymnastics that the Team USA has.

 

Watched that Netflix track doc today, and now I am sufficiently hyped to seen if Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson can get it done in Paris. If Noah doubles in the 100/200 he is going to be Team USA's biggest new star coming out of this Olympics.

 

I am not planning on watching equestrian, but they also have one of the cooler venues/backdrops of this Olympics. The gardens of the Palace of Versailles.

 

Alright so I am just putting my week 1 (7/26 - 8/3) schedule of medal finals I am interested in/invested in watching here so I don't forget. I would do a list for the entire thing but that would take too long lol.

• Fri 7/26: Opening Ceremony
• Sat 7/27: Rugby Men's and Skateboarding Men's Street (to see if Jagger Eaton gets the US it's first skateboarding gold)
• Sun 7/28: Archery Women's Team, Fencing Women's Individual Foil (to see if American Lee Keifer repeats), and Skateboarding Women's Street
• Mon 7/29: Archery Men's Team, Fencing Men's Individual Foil ( because the US are currently ranked #1 and #2 in the world in this event), and Gymnastics Men's Team.
• Tue 7/30: Gymnastics Women's Team (for the "Redemption of Simone Biles" arc), Rugby Women's, and Surfing Men's and Women's
• Wed 7/31: Canoeing Women's Single Sprint ( to see if American Nevin Harrison repeats), BMX Freestyle Men's and Women's, and Gymnastics Men's All Around.
• Thur 8/1: Fencing Women's Foil Team and Gymnastics Women's All Around (Redemption of Simone part 2),
• Fri 8/2: Archery Mixed Team and BMX Racing Men's and Women's
• Sat 8/3: Archery Women's Individual (to see if world #1 ranked American Kacey Kaufhold takes the gold), Shooting Men's Skeet (to see if American Vincent Hancock fourpeats), Men's Shot Put ( to see if American Ryan Crouser threepeats), and Women's 100M Sprint (to see if current world champ American Sha'Carri Richardson takes the gold),

 

My tentative plan (in Paris time):

Basketball:

28 July, 17:15: Serbia vs USA
31 July, 21:00: South Sudan vs USA
03 August, 17:15: Puerto Rico vs USA
Other USA?
10 August, 21:30: Men's Gold Medal Game

Breakdancing:

09 August: 16:00 - 21:30: B-Girls Full
10 August: 16:00 - 21:30: B-Boys Full

BMX:

30 July, 13:25 Women's Park Qualification
30 July, 15:12 Men's Park Qualification
31 July, 13:10: Women's Park Final
31, July 14:45: Men's Park Final

Skateboarding:

27 July, 12:00: Men's Street Prelims
27 July 17:00: Men's Street Final
28 July, 12:00: Women's Street Prelims
28 July, 17:00: Women's Street Final
06 August, 12:30 Women's Park Prelims
06 August, 17:30 Women's Park Final
07 August, 12:30: Men's Park Prelims
07 August, 17:30: Men's Park Final

Tennis:

03 August, 14:00: Women's Singles Gold Medal Match

100 Meter:

02 August, 11:50: Women's 100m Round 1
03 August, 19:50: Women's 100m Semi-Final
03 August, 21:20: Women's 100m Final
03 August, 11:45: Men's 100m Round 1
04 August, 20:00: Men's 100m Semi-Final
04 August, 21:55: Men's 100m Final

Golf:

04 August, 09:00: Men's Round 4 (Final)

Women's Football:

25 July, 19:00: Germany vs Australia
25 July, 19:00: USA vs Zambia
28 July, 21:00 Germany vs USA
31 July, 19:00 Australia vs USA
31 July, 19:00 Germany vs Zambia
Other Germany/USA?
10 August, 17:00: Women's Gold Medal Match

Surfing:

31 July, 03:34: Men's Gold Medal Match
31 July, 04:15: Women's Gold Medal Match

Climbing:

08 August, 12:55: Men's Speed, Final
09 August, 10:15: Men's Boulder & Lead, Final - Boulder
09 August, 12:28: Men's Boulder & Lead, Final - Lead

 

Wish they had vert skating, would just be more spectacular than what they have now

 

I might check out clips of qualification/semi-final stuff here and there, but I don't know if I'll have time. I think I'm mainly going to focus on medal finals .

 

Yeah same, depending on what my days look like and what interest me

 

Rooting Mujinga Kambundji in the 100 and 200 meter

 

Both those are almost certainly going to be between the US and Jamaica but I wish your country best lol

 

@Ferrari333SP you rooting for your Norge countryman Karsten Warholm in the 400m hurdles? 2020 gold medalist, 2023 world champ, current men's 400m hurdles world record holder at 45.94. Probably Norway's biggest lock for a gold this year.

 

I always wondered if in countries that traditionally don't get a lot of medals. If someone automatically becomes a famous national celebrity if they win gold in any sport no matter how obscure.

I know it doesn't really work like in the US, as we're so hyper focused on the "big 5" sports of swimming, track, basketball, gymnastics, and wrestling that gold in any sport outside of those doesn't make a blip media attention wise.

 

Yeah he’s a lock for gold for sure; weird how he doesn’t run the open 400m too, which I think he’d do great at as well.

 

Hmm in Switzerland that’s only the case for Summer Olympics (Winter Olympics we punch above our weight), and it would probably have to be like one of the more major discipline.

Women’s soccer is also a big one for the US, no?

 

Oh true. US women's soccer was basically a dynasty at the Olympics with gold in 1996,
2004, 2008, and 2012 and it was a huge deal. The losses the last two Olympics though it feels like a much less of deal. I have hardly heard anybody talk about it.

The two main narratives leading up to this Olympics in the US media are the continued dominance of Katie Ledecky and the redemption of Simone Biles. There is some media hype around Noah Lyles, Sha'Carri Richardson, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone in track too. I have heard little hype about basketball because I think there is kind of an expectation in the US that we have it in the bag anyway (which is a dangerous attitude to have)

 

The amount of people hating on Noah Lyles for being unapologetically nerdy and making Yugioh/DBZ references on the track is making me want him to win the 100m and 200m even more.

I saw someone way "he is like a band dork that got blessed with the ability of near superhuman speed" and I think that is awesome.

 

He definitely set the bar way too high for himself though. Even if he gets gold in the 200m and the relay (both almost locks), he is still going to be seen as a failure if he gets silver/bronze against Kishane Thompson in the 100m.

Lyles was looking like the favorite until Thompson just did a crazy 9.77 in the Jamaican trials and that is going to be really hard to beat.

 

Best YouTube channel for updates/reviews of track events and races

https://youtube.com/@totalrunningproductions?si=o7rBmB1U4BpxOnYq

 

Victor is currently the favorite to get US a gold in Breaking. Currently the top competitive b-boy in the world. From Orlando FL. 2nd generation b-boy. This will likely his last competition before he retires.

One of the things I learned from this that is crazy is B-Boys/B-Girls don't know what song they're dancing to until it plays.