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Published Monday, August 18, 2008

Phelps, Rigby and other Olympic ramblings

Over the course of the last few days we have had the Olympics on a number of channels at various hours depending on when we are awake or not.

So far Michael Phelps has lived up to his hype (and survived consumption of 10,000 calories) by winning a record eight gold medals while the current versions of Cathy Rigby et al. have flopped like some have expected in the world of gymnastics.

For those who are unaware of who Cathy Rigby is, this woman was a competitive gymnast who was part of the hype machine for the games that were in 1968.

However, the other competitors failed to receive the memo and aced her out of a medal and all of the riches that go with that little disc.

Rigby did manage to survive as a color analyst for ABC and acted in several plays that traveled the nation, but she did not get the endorsement bonanza she would have had she won the gold.

The 2008 version of Ms. Rigby is Shawn Johnson who like the aforementioned is a little pixie who has appeared in promos, on ads for products and anything else the hypesters could put her face on.

During the team gymnastic events, the United States women's team needed a few scant points to pass their Japanese counterparts for the gold medal.

Unfortunately, the USA was unable to pull the feat off as a variety of mistakes cost the team points and they had to settle for the silver medal.

Of course if you heard NBC announcers Al Trautwig, Tim Daggett (a gold medalist himself) and Elfe Schlegel (former Canadian gymnast), the young ladies committed grievous sins that were punishable by losing a body part or their first born as opposed to simply winning a silver medal instead of the big prize.

Fortunately we had Bela Karolyi at the "International Broadcast Center" to offer his opinion of the competition and he didn't act like the aforementioned, but he didn't sugarcoat why they didn't win the gold medal.

My view is that since Karolyi has coached the sport and has produced gold medalists like some girl named Comenci and some gal at the Atlanta games named Skrug, he is eminently qualified to say they stunk.

As for the rest of the Olympic Games, if I were to ask what events have been contested so far and who won, I don't believe I could get an answer much less one that was correct.

Outside of the USA basketball conquests for both genders as well as your erstwhile sports journalist has no idea what is going on with a few exceptions.

I will tell you that Jenny Finch was not at the top of her pitching game for the USA in softball in a win over Japan and I will tell you about one of her teammates who hits leadoff and drilled a home run off a set of bleachers in one game.

It appears that this club will come away with the gold medal in what is the last Games to feature softball and baseball as both have been dumped for the 2012 games in London.

After noticing that ping pong was being played as a medal sport this year, I am taken aback that a game my friends and I in our youth played in my parents' garage was shown on television.

Fortunately there is a slight chance that the International Olympic Committee in all of their "lack" of wisdom may return them to the roster for the 2016 games when the group meets next year.

In light of all of the negative press that track and field has received over the last couple of years, I doubt very many people know of any results.

Anyway, Angelo Taylor of Decatur won the gold in the 400 Meter Hurdles while the USA won silver and bronze in the event.

I would have more but I am missing the medal round of Scrabble on the NBC Olympic Game Network.