The bear won bronze at the Sydney Games
Getting a lot of attention are the removal of softball and baseball from the upcoming 2012 Olympics, but how great would the return of tug-of-war (1900-1920) be? A feature of thousands of company picnics and grade school field days, this would be significantly more relatable for the average viewer than watching the weightlifting events. Taking a cue from the beach volleyball strategy of attracting viewers, they could force the women to wear white bodysuits and have the losers fall into a pit of water. Good times!
Another great sport that has appeared once as a medal sport and three times as a demonstration sport is basque pelota, or jai-alai (1900). As anyone who has ever bet the Arregui-Oyarbide quinella at the Dania Jai-Alai can tell you, jai-alai is the most fixed game of all time. And it's perfect for betting - how much happier would the average viewer be if their $20 bet on the Cuban pair paid off 15-1 when they won gold?
To quote Kenny Banya (thus fulfilling our stated duty): "It's gold, Jerry, gold!"
Finally, croquet (1900) appeared in one Olympic games. What, Jarts wasn't invented yet?
It's enough to make an Olympic viewer yearn for the return of Silly Walks an event that the British dominated through much of the early 1900's.
Britain's dominant silly walker warms up.And, apropos of nothing, it's The Bishop!
1 comment:
Oh, but how could you overlook the 1904 Olympics, which had Roque as an event.
From Wikipedia:
Roque is an American variant of Croquet game (the name was derived by removing the first and last letters).
It is played on a rolled sand court surrounded by a permanent boundary wall off which balls may be played, much as billiard balls are played off the cushions of a billiard table; the wickets are permanently anchored in the court. The mallets with which the ball is struck have a shorter handle (approx. 24 inches) and the ends of the mallet are faced with stone.
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