I'm watching the womens 20k right now and they're all lifting! It's really obvious from the super-slow motion replays. I say we ditch this event it's not walking, it's a very crappy modified running style. Discuss
I'm watching the womens 20k right now and they're all lifting! It's really obvious from the super-slow motion replays. I say we ditch this event it's not walking, it's a very crappy modified running style. Discuss
this was always clear. it was a question of whether the officials caught them. so the result was always in doubt until the very end because the catch could take place at any moment, no matter the lead.
I can't help but think of Monty Python when I see it.
The replays show that they are all lifting all the time so they should all be DQ'd and the event should be DQ'd from the Olympic movement for being a load of old shite.
I support this contention as well. Race walking is not walking at all. I can't believe they still try to pass it off as something legitimate. It would be okay if they could put a camera on each participant and verify the winner was actually walking.
Too bad.
BickfordSchmeckle wrote:
...It would be okay if they could put a camera on each participant and verify the winner was actually walking.
Too bad.
I disagree.
Another bunch of replays on the BBC showing that all the worlds best walkers are breaking the rules. Stuart Storey getting fed up, Jackson saying they should change the rules!!
We ought to combine racewalking with the shooting events. Get rid of these race-"walking" disgraces to humanity for once and for all.
notdoped wrote:
I'm watching the womens 20k right now
Why? ;)
Ok I'm not actually watching all of it the BBC just keep flipping over to it occassionally to show another ridiculous slow-mo. I'm actually watching the open water swimming which is awesome!
CNBC or maybe USA network (or one of the other the stations showing olympics coverage) here in the US showed the entire men's 20k racewalk, which i thought was strange.
I was also completely surprised at how obvious it was that all the participants were lifting.
you would think they could wear instrumented shoes to make sure they stay in contact with the ground...
Baseball and softball are out of the Olympics in 2012, but race walking remains? Give me a freakin' break.
That's because a lot of countries have 'athletes' who train for race walking. No one outside of the US, Japan, Cuba, Dominican Republic and maybe one or two more care about baseball / softball.
The rules do not state that you must actually maintain contact with the ground at all time, they state that a loss of contact must not be perceptible to the naked eye. Looking at them at normal speed the eye cannot tell they lose contact with the ground. Just how the sport is.
The Truth777 wrote:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hi4DEdUmA6Anotdoped wrote:I'm watching the womens 20k right now
Why? ;)
THESE CLIPS ARE TOO FUNNY - A MUST SEE.
We should get rid of Race Running, all this stupid Track and field events over 1500M.
a miler wrote:
The rules do not state that you must actually maintain contact with the ground at all time, they state that a loss of contact must not be perceptible to the naked eye. Looking at them at normal speed the eye cannot tell they lose contact with the ground. Just how the sport is.
If that's the rule, then Abdi should enter the race walk.
My annecdote on race-walking:
Ran in a reasonably competetive conference in division 3 for college. One guy, Phillip Dunn, ran for Carleton and was a solid, but not great runner. If memory serves a guy that would be racing for spots 4-6 in the 10k in track, never a threat to win it. After college, no idea how he endes up there, is a race-walker. Local media covers him for making numerous national and olympic teams. All I can think of is the 20+ guys in front of him at the conference cc meet, and the likely 100+ d 3 runners with better 10k times, let alone all the d2 and d1 guys. Either he has one hell of a knack for walking that does not translate well to running, or race-walking is a sport where an average d3 runner can make the olympic team. I vote for the latter. Moral of the story- if you really want to make the olympics, and are a 32 minute 10k runner who thinks walking looks like fun, go for it.
The Truth777 wrote:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hi4DEdUmA6A
You do realize that this is how distance runners are perceived by the rest of the world, too, right?