On 27 Aug 2008, at 16:35, Nick Arnett wrote: > On Tue, Aug 26, 2008 at 5:36 PM, William T Goodall <[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >wrote: > >> So why are the Americans counting total medals instead of golds for >> the olympics? > > > Who is doing this counting? I just searched Google News and what I > see are > headlines like "US pleased with Olympic medal count." I really > couldn't > find any of the sort of complaining you allege.
From the Houston Chronicle http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5963934.html "BEIJING — As China celebrated the end of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by gazing upon its pile of gold medals and dipping into Western culture to proclaim, “We’re No. 1,” the United States contemplated the glories of the socialist collective — and came up with the same answer. Taking individual event finals into account, the host nation was the runaway leader in gold medals, with 51 to 36 for the United States. But the United States led in total medals with 110 to 100 for China, 72 for Russia and 47 for Great Britain, host of the 2012 London Games. On top of that, as the country that introduced and perfected the concept of sabermetrical parsing, the U.S. came up with a way to finish on top in gold medals. Counting its dominance in team sports in the final week of the Games, “More individual U.S. athletes will carry home gold medals around their neck than any other nation, if you want to count it that way,” said Jim Scherr, U.S. Olympic Committee CEO. By that measure, the Americans routed the home team. Computing gold medals presented to each athlete on teams in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s volleyball, women’s rowing, beach volleyball and relay teams in track and swimming, among others, the U.S. claimed 125 total golds to 74 for China. In total medals awarded, the United States scored 315 to 186 for China." > > > >> And why the innuendo about Usain Bolt "as long as he's >> clean"? > > > I searched on that phrase and I got nothing. The only articles I > find about > this are some concerns that Jamaica only started a national drug- > testing > program after the start of the Olympics. Who's supposedly saying > this? The > news reports I'm reading say that the Jamaican team was tested > repeatedly > during the games. > > In short, cite please. > From the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/22/sports/olympics/22longman.html?_r=1&em&oref=slogin "As Records Fall, Suspicions of Doping Linger [...] I want to believe that talent and hard work and determination are not fossil fuels, that a human, unlike a car, does not need chemical additives to run at peak efficiency. Bolt is likable, as playful as he is fast. His speed is breathtaking. He is the first man to win the Olympic 100 and 200 meters since Carl Lewis in 1984, the first to set world records in both events at the same Summer Games. But when I want to fully believe, I feel a twinge of skepticism. It nags, like a strained hamstring." Plenty more in that vein in the American press. Cite Maru -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ "You are coming to a sad realization. Cancel or Allow?" _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
