I think when they show the medal table they should discount the swimming ones as they dish them out like sweets. There seem to be medals for 50 metres freestyle, breaststoke, backstroke and butterfly. Then 100 metres freestyle, breaststoke, backstroke and butterfly. Then 400 metres freestyle, breaststoke, backstroke and butterfly. Then add all the medleys and relays (plus any other distance I've forgotten) and no wonder it's possible for people to have hopes of winning eight Golds. Can you imagine if athletics did the same? You'd have the 100 metres; then you'd have the 100 metres skipping, the 100 metres jumping and the 100 metres running backwards. Then the 200 metres. Then the 200 metres skipping, the 200 metres jumping, etc etc etc. I suppose I should be grateful as the the plethora of golds has meant that Britain has actually won one! Normally our swimmers are rubbish - if you can swim a width without screaming for the lifeguard you can usually get into the British Olympic Swimming Team - but this time, for the first time since Anita Lonsborough in 1960 a British girl has won a gold medal for swimming! I can't remember her name but well done her!
Its no different really to the running events - 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1600m - then you have got all the long distance races, the power walking thing + all the relays.
Yeah, but like I say there's only ONE type of motion. In all those events the winner is the one who can cover the distance the fastest. Like athletics swimming has the different lengths (of race) but also all those different STYLES. So if you don't win the 100 metres freestyle you might win the 100 metres butterfly. In athletics if you don't win the 100 metres running you can't try again in the 100 metres kangaroo jumps.
yeh i a was thinking of this yesterday as well. Sure Phelps has a chance at eight...he's in 50 events geez
I'm with you - I say the same to anyone willing to listen (which is not many when I start a rant) Football only gets one medal and you have to play for ages to get it. Anyway, The World Cup is much better and you don't get people going on about world peace or "the little children".
Spot on! If you win the football or the hockey it should count as eleven golds in the medal table. Even the final, one match, lasts longer than about twenty swimming races. And you're right about the World Cup. Sod world peace, if we can get through a tournament without a major riot everyone's happy.
yeah have to say totally agree the running ones are the same, but they only have one per distance were as the swimming have one per distance and style, too many!!
There are a lot of swimming events, but there are also a ton of running events, so if you want to complain about one, you need to complain about the others as well. There are a few different types of categories for many events, but running and swimming by far have the most. My personal favorites judo, tae kwon do, fencing and archery are all very simple events with only a single event associated with them.
It's good that there are a lot of swimming events because US is good at swimming, just like china in diving. Phelps has 5 golds already, hope he gets 3 more because I wanna witness a record for golds.
I do too. I love to see him kind of hold back for a little bit, then explode down the last 50 meters...
I refer the honourable gentleman to the answer I gave earlier. There is only ONE 100 metres race. The winner is the person who can propel themselves down the track the fastest. If you think you can win by running backwards then you are welcome to try it. But in swimming there seem to be LOTS of races OVER THE SAME DISTANCE. The only difference is that there are different STYLES - including a race for swimming backwards. I'd be interested to know what races Phelps is entering / has entered.
You do have a point about the swimming. There are a ton of events. You should start an event for skipping jumping and running backwards.