See What You Haven't Seen Before at Winter Olympics

2/24/10--The end to the 2010 Winter Olympics is beginning to come into view and I'm curious if some of my observations sync up with yours.

Who knew that skater dudes had such an impact on the world, and the world of sports? It's amazing that what once began innocently on residential neighborhood sidewalks and driveways, then grew in popularity such that community rec departments built skate parks, has now crept its way into an Olympic version of the sport which is played out in an icy "half-pipe". Are these kids, who perform incredible acrobatic moves 20-feet above the side of the half-pipe while their feet remain attached to their board, talented? Absolutely! Are they courageous thrill-seekers risking serious injury while attempting these death defying acrobatics? Indeed. Are they traditional athletes, like the various competitors from around the world who train for four years to chase an Olympic medal in other sports...cardio training, strength training, long hours in the gym, diet...? Uh, not that I am not impressed, but no, I don't think so. Admit it though; they are entertaining.

On the surface, what might be sillier than the winter biathlon? In America, when we hear of triathlon we conjure up warriors who torture themselves while competing in a continuous chain of events--swimming, biking and running, all in warmer temps. The Winter Olympics biathlon is composed of cross-country skiing and riflery! Why do we want cross country skiers running around the the snowy, wooded mountain areas with weapons strapped on their backs? When you boil it down, seriously, this event is brutally tough. Skiers navigate their way on a cross-country course up and down challenging inclines only to settle at one of several shooting stations along the way where they step up to fire five shots at a target about the size of a grapefruit at 50 yards. The ability to aim a gun steadily, while their body's muscles are crying out with burning fatigue, cannot be appreciated until you see them. It's not just who is the master of the course as a cross-country skier. It's a strange combination of being an incredibly well-conditioned athlete with exceptional technique on skis, who can focus his attention attempting to steady his shaking body, and fire five accurate shots at the target before hitting the trail again. I have new-found respect for these guys just like I do the skater dudes, although in a much different way.

The classic ice skating/ice dancing competition has always been revered as a top winter attraction. Even in non-Olympic years our TV networks offer various world competitions to whet our appetite for the next edition of the Winter Olympics. Can I stay glued to all of the skating--men's, women's, pairs...short, long, free-style, etc.? No, but I do try to catch the finals, the best of the best.

Although it may not be totally strange, one thing that I did find a little hard to watch was the pairs competition when two Scottish skaters representing Great Britain skated through their routines. They are good, very good skaters who sell their character portrayal better than most others. I think we all agree that, to a large degree, pairs skating inherently projects some kind of a male-female relationship. I understand that not all skating pairs are actually "a pair", but some are and the others project that relationship as they skate, hoping to dance their way into the judges' hearts. Back to the Scotties. Their last name is Kerr, and as I said, they are very good. They are so good that unless you pay attention to wealth of background info on all of these skaters you would never sense that they are brother and sister. But, when you are educated to this fact, and you watch them work together as if they were not siblings, though fully knowing that they are...it's a little weird. They have to be very good skaters and even better thespians to pull that off, and for the most part, they do.

Tiger's Media Inferno Firing Up Again

2/18/10--Everyone get ready. The Tiger Woods media inferno, after calming down just a bit in the last couple of weeks, will be burning full blast again as we head into his “gathering” Friday, Feb. 19. It will burn well beyond that date with the extensive media over-play of whatever he chooses to communicate.

This is not a press conference. His agent, Mark Steinberg , and other PR handlers have crafted a way for Woods to tell us some things, hold back a whole lot more, and to make it a one-way communication. There will be no questions. The only attendees will be Woods and few close associates. A very small, select group of media members will be there just to take notes as Woods speaks publicly for the first time in months. A “pool” TV camera will provide a feed to outlets choosing to air this appearance.

The buzz in the media and around water coolers seems to be centering on speculation of Woods issuing an apology. Who said he is apologizing? If he does, to whom does he owe an apology and why? In this writer’s opinion the only people owed an apology are Tiger’s family members, who have been shamed, and business associates that have contributed to his bank account throughout his career. I don’t know Tiger; we don’t have any kind of relationship. Therefore, he owes me nothing. If some people feel they have been cheated because he encouraged them to buy products he has endorsed, then they are silly for making the purchase based on the idea some popular athlete thought it was a good idea for them to do so.

The Tiger saga began a couple of months ago. But, it struck me recently, and the light bulb really illuminated, when I heard of this public statement occurring Friday. Where have Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Jr. been all this time? Don’t they always pop up in front of TV cameras when there is some fabulous story about someone being wronged or a crusade to which they would like to attach themselves?

I got it. If Tiger’s handlers really wanted to begin the road to public image recovery they should have hooked up with Lionel Ritchie and Quincy Jones. That way the world’s best golfer could be seen belting out a few lines in the newly re-made version of “We Are the World” music video benefitting the victims in Haiti. Can’t you see Tiger, golf cap crunched on top because of the recording studio head-phones, laying down a couple of solo lines of the ballad alongside Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand and Wyclef Jean?

Too bad. He missed a great opportunity.

Quick Hits From Early Days of Winter Olympics

The 2010 Winter Olympics began this past Friday night with the pageantry of opening ceremonies in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia. Here are a few quick hit observations which I noted while watching it in vivid, crystal clear HD.

THE BROADCAST--Is NBC's Lester Holt the hardest working man in TV journalism? The poor guy usually gets morning Today Show weekend host duties, then doubles back to host the evening news. Now they have him in Vancouver providing whatever is needed, including live morning reports as part of Today, which clocks in at 4 AM Pacific Time (7 AM EST). I know TV is a visual medium and looks are important, but Bob Costas looks younger now than he did 10 years ago thanks to some touch up work. The much darker than natural hair color he is using is just not believable. It doesn't take away from his quality work, but it certainly is distracting.

ALMOST "OH NO!" FOR OHNO--Saturday night short track speed skater Apolo Ohno was the beneficiary of some over-aggressive Koreans as he picked up a silver medal in the 1500 meter event, thus putting him in position to be the most decorated US winter Olympian ever if he earns one more medal. Heading into the final curve/home stretch Korea owned the first three places. But, the two battling for the second and third spots got their skates tangled and both went sailing into the protective padding as Ohno and fellow American, 19-year old JR Celski, crossed the finish line in those silver and bronze places.

MOGULS ANYONE?--This downhill skiing event, which combines speeding over almost 900 yards of bumps (moguls), two big aerial jumps, and subjective grades on technical execution from the judges, is growing on me. If you have seen it, you might agree how shocking it is to see the athletes navigate their way through the middle of this downhill speed-bump course, trying to safely kiss off the small, back-side of each mogul while not sacrificing time or speed. Their upper bodies must remain relaxed, yet still locked into the proper upright position, while the tremendous strength in the ankles, knees, hips and lower back absorb the shock of each mogul. The fury takes less than 30 seconds, but the entire journey is hair-raising. Count me as a new mogul fan. By the way, Hanna Kearney from Norwich, VT won gold for the US, defeating the favored Jen Heil of Canada.

PAIRS FIGURE SKATING--I just couldn't help but think of Chris Farley and his classic Saturday Night Live routine when I began watching this on Sunday night. There was the great orchestral music accompaniment blaring over the PA, the three-person broadcast team at rink side providing information and commentary, and the roar of the crowd. All we needed was Farley in his sparkly, sequin shirt--unbuttoned to show his chest hair--flashing a passionate smile while tossing his partner across the ice. We all know the real darlings of the ice skating world are the ladies in the women's competition, and that is usually saved until much later in the games' schedule. So, until then we have to be patient.

METEOROLOGY--While a good portion of the United States was suffering through cold temperatures that reached into the far south, the meteorological tidbit for the day was that the relatively mild temperature in Olympic host city Vancouver was 2 degrees higher than what we woke up to in the Tampa Bay area of Florida on Sunday.