Popular Post Sir Rols Posted February 23, 2014 Popular Post Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Time I guess, to give our personal assessments of Sochi. Gotta say, not that easy at all for me - a great games but with very definite flaws and issues. Ceremonies - 9/10: Apart from a few minor technical deductions in the execution of the compulsory elements of the opening and a workmanlike but lacklustre short program with the medal ceremonies, truly top rate and pure class. On the whole, the showpiece opening was visually stunning, beautifully conceived and entertaining. Haven’t seen the closing yet, but a quick look through the news and posts here indicate Russia didn’t stuff it it up at all – looking forward to watching through the day some time. No need to inflate the marks for me to give them a gold medal in thi category. Look - 9.5/10: I always liked the look, from the moment the quiltwork was unveiled, and I’ve gushed over it in the threads here during the games. Memorable, evocative (both in its folk and typography elements), colourful and attractive. Only the original logo let it down, but that got sidelined to only a minor branding role during the games anyway. Bravo! Operations – 9.5/10: Efficient, smooth and unobtrusive (unless you were Pussy Riot followed by a film crew trying to make your point in front of a logo backdrop with nearby Cossacks looking on). Honestly, this is the first games I can remember without the traditional and inevitable “the buses got lost” story – I heard not one complaint about the transport or logistics. The sports all ran for the most smoothly, judging controversies aside and teething troubles for some tracks aside, and that’s quite an achievement for a beast like the WOGs so dependent on weather and the elements. A bit of fog the main disruption, as far as I can recall now. Quite remarkably efficient, really, but then again, old Vladimir wouldn’t have let them be otherwise, would he? Sports – 9/10: A feast! But this is the Olympics, it should be. Favourites fell, new stars rose, and the medals seemed to get shared around a lot more this time (though, personally, would have liked Oz to get a yellow-hued medal in its haul). Dope fails towards the end, a figure skating judging scandal (OMG – who would have thunk it!) and the odd bit of trash talk aside, remarkably free from major scandals (if anything, they could have done with a bit more spicy and sizzling scandal). Can’t get enough of those new sports like slopestyle – I think the attraction of the Winter Games sporting show is excellent shape following these games. Venues – 7/10: Yes, all very impressive in general from what I saw on the TV. The central park at Adler looked suitably top notch and state-of-the-art. I thought the unfinished woodwork on the parts of the sliding track looked a bit quick and cheap and there may have been a few snitty comments at the state of the halfpipe and slopestyle course early on, but that’s more nit-picking. Rosa Klebb Khutor was always a nice backdrop for the snow events as well. My main marking down comes from both locations just being all too centralised, isolated and almost hermetically sealed off from the Sochi and Russia proper. The games may have been in Sochi, but for all we experienced it on TV it could have been held in a gorgeously crafted and groomed outdoor studio setting bubble – the Olympic Truman Show. Indeed, about the only comments we got from outside the bubble were of unfinished or shoddy hotels or double booked cruise liner berths, brown water, worksites and all that hullabaloo. That was likely over-egged a bit, especially in the lead-up to the opening, but nonetheless reinforced the Potemkin Village feel of the venues to me. Crowds/Atmosphere - 6/10: This touches on the previous point. From inside the venues (apart from the usual sponsor seat no-shows) the crowds on TV seemed eager and enthusiastic and the numbers were indeed swelled by proud, vocal, good spirited and gracious locals. But again, it was the Trumanov Show - outside the bubble It didn’t see it touch to wider populace. Sure, it perhaps wasn’t ever going to be a Lillehammer or Vancouver like that, but I still thought there was a conspicuous lack of images of proud and celebrating Russians in the streets of Sochi or excitement in live sites across the country. That’s an important element of an Olympics for me – to touch and to be really taken in and embraced to the home of the hosts. I’m not saying it didn’t happen, but I’ve seen little claim or evidence to the contrary. Legacy – 5/10: Okay, so it’s hard to say how what’s on the ground in Sochi now is going to end up like. They’ve got the F1 and the WC to come up. And Sochi may well end up becoming Russia’s all-seasons answer to Ibiza, the Gold Coast or Orlando. But… $50 billion dollars!!!!!! Even if it’s counting a total transformation of a sleepy black sea resort town, it’s always a figure that will inextricably be linked to the 2014 Olympics. And that’s before you start talking about corruption and thing like forced labour and forced evictions in the name of Putin’s personal-presidential vanity project. Those to me are the biggest tarnishes on the Sochi legacy, and they’re pretty serious ones. IMO they’ve done more to damage the Olympic brand’s reputation and reduce its attractiveness to potential future hosts than any issues of recent games. Quite simply, it’s already led bidders in the last summer race and the current winter race to pledge against over-spending as their one of their chief messages and attractions, and scared off other, very suitable and responsible bidders. Hopefully, I don’t think the IOC’s been blind to this. Overall and general comments – 7.5/10: I think I’m always going to be a bit ambivalent about these games. On the one hand, there’s no denying these were visually very handsome and technically very slick games. Amongst the best of the best. On the other hand, I’m not re-assured they’ve left a positive impact on the Olympic brand considering the issues they’ve brought up. And it’s not the politics. I think hosting’s always a two-edged sword – you’re in it for the prestige and glory, but be prepared to have your dirty linen being given a dose of good hard glaring publicity and criticism. I believe issues like gay rights in Russia, Tibet, aboriginal treatment in Australia or environmental impacts in BC force more attention through the games than they otherwise could have hoped to achieve. But digress. The grotesque cost will always be footnoted against these games, and for all their shiny settings, smooth operations and great new sports, I still feel personally they were all just disconnected from the host city and country compared to others, and the cost???? Totally over-the-top in the worst possible way. Put it this way, I think future bidders will still try to subtly or overtly use the “we’ll give you another Lillehammer” pitch. I can’t see much public or IOC enthusiasm if someone tried to pitch themselves as the “next Sochi”. GamesBids Moments: “Belle Brockhoff – Teenage Lesbian Vampire Witch” for GBids meme of the games. Followed by Tony’s “I know my short track and I know what I saw”. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Totally agree with Ceremonies. Well, they are a very creative people, both in legitimate and clandestine stuff. Plus, they have such a rich culture to draw upon AND a bottomless budget. So that helps too. I imagine Konstantin Ernst will get Order of Lenin or so. BTW, who was the female writer singled out in the closing?? Anyone know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 (edited) agree with most - absolutely agree the coastal cluster was stale due to its compactness......got bored looking at same same park vistas repeatedly. what does this say about compact? missed "town/city" atmosphere except for the stadium and parts of park the LOOK KILLED IT ALL...............BRILLIANT....I LOVE YOU SOCHI-LOOK....I'M MOIST buble boy gives it 10/10 gay buble boy gives it 0/10 american gay buble boy gives it... "if you like your olympics you can keep your olympics"/10 typical humans: Look - 9.7/10Operations – 9.5/10Sports – 10/10 Jeremy Abbott - (-infinity)-10Venues – 8.5/10Crowds/Atmosphere - 8/10Legacy – 9/10Overall and general – 9/10 Edited February 23, 2014 by paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olympiaki-agones Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Totally agree with Ceremonies. Well, they are a very creative people, both in legitimate and clandestine stuff. Plus, they have such a rich culture to draw upon AND a bottomless budget. So that helps too. I imagine Konstantin Ernst will get Order of Lenin or so. BTW, who was the female writer singled out in the closing?? Anyone know? She is Anna Akhmatova a modernist poet. I think the russians did a great job despite all the scandals around the Sochi Games. Anyway, we all expected that as he'll hear more from riots in Rio and Kim Jong Un doing **** just before the games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Tower Bridge Fox Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Great Winter Olympics!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krow Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 is this the wrap up thread then? ok, my highlights and lowlights. i don’t much care to cover the same things rols did (ceremonies are fun to live chat, not to analyze), although i agree with everything he wrote in his overall/general comments. a fun games to watch that will always have a bit of tarnish on them, and that’s a shame. the ephemeral in this case outweighs the legacy, and that’s sad to see. + but on the other hand, i love the olympics and always will. no matter what, the athletes make their sports look easy (although i’m still sure i could do better than the australian ice dancers) and are a joy to watch and root for and against. the BBC xtreme commentators on the snow front were fresh and fun to listen to. ed something and some other guy. i actually laughed (i don’t laugh, btw, except at my own internet jokes) a few times. a delightful change from NBC’s PC snoozefest, where the jokes are so anodyne they’re not even worth telling. i’m just sorry i watched the CBC feed the first day. slopestyle, boardercross, ski cross, moguls, ski jumping, short track, hockey. all great fun. parallel slalom was a bad note to go off on, though. found it tiresome and fell asleep, disproving my once held theory that i could watch any sport as long as it was during the olympics (handball being a good example). tina maze. yes! gamesbids.com. i almost put this on the ‘-’ column because participation was lower than i ever remembered it for an olympic games. you can’t imagine how many people were on during salt lake (brag, i was on GB for SLC) and beijing. vancouver and london you all remember. most of the time it felt like i was talking to myself and faster, intoronto and fox were talking to each other (about canadian things). but would it really be an olympics without consulting GB three times a day? i don’t think it would. i now have a crush on mikey warren, my partner in crime for the late night events, and you’re all just going to have to deal with that, likely via several pricey therapy sessions (maybe just mikey), but he’s just so smart, and handsome, and interesting, and knowledgeable, and has a cute accent, and handsome, and his eyes do this little crescent twinkle thing when he smiles. and i’m sorry which way was the bathroom, again? and you have tissues in there, right? belle motherfucking brockhoff. oh my god, what a gift from the heavens she’s been. don’t even get me started on papa bear brockhoff or javier fernandez (he’s so jelly of mikey he’s lisping twice as hard). i think i got some good lines in these past 2 weeks. all my fans. (luv u!) who wouldn’t be jelly of mikey, though? boardercross. yes, lived up to the hype. - women’s slopestyle & ski jumping. did not live up to the hype. the weather. really too warm, and played an interfering role in some of the snow events, like halfpipe. i know that’s part of the thrill, but i’m not a fan of these warm weather hosts. women’s slopestyle was a mess. those girls did not look like olympians on that course and that was a shame, because i’m sure they worked kind of sort of hard, on weekends sometimes, and that one wednesday when they had an hour to kill. NBC. awful, and keeps getting worse. thankfully ratings weren’t through the roof toward the end. so there’s a chance they’ll reexamine some things and make some changes (we can dream, can’t we?) gamesbids.com. where were you guys? complaining about NBC and curling and canada the whole time. canadians. i love canada, and i even lived there a hot minute. but you guys complain too much and then pass off terrible excuses about “it’s all we have.” norway has like 1/7th of your population and they go toe to toe with russia is all i’m saying. the fact that the games were in russia. yuck. team USA. i really expected us to win the most medals (bronzes are people too). but we did well, despite shaun white mucking up an easy gold. can’t really complain, because that would make me canadian. the time zone. i watched maybe 50% of the olympics i usually watch because pivotal events were being held 3-5 am. i caught a few events in primetime on the replay, but i missed some speed skating and that kind of kills me. not really. in a year or so i’ll just youtube everything with a big glass of wine and start a sexy thread about it. as it turns out, there are only so many times you can watch people ski down that damn hill. mikey, who doesn’t even know i exist. yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olympian2004 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I'm a bit too tired to make such a detailed verdict like Rol. So here are my rather short two pennies worth: All in all, I enjoyed the Sochi Games more than I expected in advance - but they could have been better. I guess what influences me a lot is the weak performance of the German Olympic team in the second week of the Games. Sochi can't be blamed for that, of course, but invariably that performance will always come to my mind when I think back of the Sochi Games. The performances especially in biathlon and bob, two traditional German strongholds, were horrible (apart from the only two brighter spots, namely the silver medals by Erik Lesser and the male biathlon relay team). I'm fed up with the officials of the German sports federations. They expect far more medals than the German Olympic team apparently is able to deliver, so I ask myself on which planet they live. They made that mistake already before London, and yet they made it again now for Sochi. They definitely have to drastically scale down on their "Hooray, here come the Germans!" patriotism and learn that other countries have made huge advancements in their own development of sports (or maybe also the more clever doping methods ). Organisation-wise, despite the negative media reports in advance, the Sochi Games apparently went smoothly and professionally. Can't say a lot more about that, since I didn't hear or see any reports here in Germany that there were serious flaws. Security-wise, the Sochi Games were apparently a complete success - and I must say that I was a bit worried beforehand whether they could really keep those Islamist terrorists off. Well done! But, of course, they still have a serious test ahead: the Paralympics. But I'm certain that they will manage that as well. Atmosphere-wise: Hmmm, I got such and such impressions, judging by the reports here in the German media. Some reports concentrated on the Olympic Park which was surprisingly empty at times, in other cases I experienced an engaged and enthusiastic audience by the live TV broadcasts. Since I didn't have much time to read and hear all the reports, I'm not sure whether I saw "the complete picture". So I don't want to make a judgment there. The ceremonies were both entertaining and professionally produced. They certainly showed Russia from a grand and somewhat pompous, but also surprisingly self-ironic side. I think the organisers have done Russia proud in that regard. All in all, those were not Games on a Lillehammer level for me - but Lillehammer is simply very hard (if not impossible) to beat. They were professional Games with many special and even touching moments, the ordinary Russian people were the expected warm and friendly hosts, while Putin still is the prick he has been before the Games. And I must say that I felt some schadenfreude when the Sbornaja lost the ice hockey quarterfinal and Putin looked as if he had been punched in the belly. But I digress. In comparison with other Winter Games of the past 20 years, I would still rank Lillehammer #1, followed by Vancouver and Salt Lake. Then follows Sochi, quite well ahead of Nagano and Torino. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daze Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I'm a bit too tired to make such a detailed verdict like Rol. So here are my rather short two pennies worth: All in all, I enjoyed the Sochi Games more than I expected in advance - but they could have been better. I guess what influences me a lot is the weak performance of the German Olympic team in the second week of the Games. Sochi can't be blamed for that, of course, but invariably that performance will always come to my mind when I think back of the Sochi Games. The performances especially in biathlon and bob, two traditional German strongholds, were horrible (apart from the only two brighter spots, namely the silver medals by Erik Lesser and the male biathlon relay team). I'm fed up with the officials of the German sports federations. They expect far more medals than the German Olympic team apparently is able to deliver, so I ask myself on which planet they live. They made that mistake already before London, and yet they made it again now for Sochi. They definitely have to drastically scale down on their "Hooray, here come the Germans!" patriotism and learn that other countries have made huge advancements in their own development of sports (or maybe also the more clever doping methods ). Organisation-wise, despite the negative media reports in advance, the Sochi Games apparently went smoothly and professionally. Can't say a lot more about that, since I didn't hear or see any reports here in Germany that there were serious flaws. Security-wise, the Sochi Games were apparently a complete success - and I must say that I was a bit worried beforehand whether they could really keep those Islamist terrorists off. Well done! But, of course, they still have a serious test ahead: the Paralympics. But I'm certain that they will manage that as well. Atmosphere-wise: Hmmm, I got such and such impressions, judging by the reports here in the German media. Some reports concentrated on the Olympic Park which was surprisingly empty at times, in other cases I experienced an engaged and enthusiastic audience by the live TV broadcasts. Since I didn't have much time to read and hear all the reports, I'm not sure whether I saw "the complete picture". So I don't want to make a judgment there. The ceremonies were both entertaining and professionally produced. They certainly showed Russia from a grand and somewhat pompous, but also surprisingly self-ironic side. I think the organisers have done Russia proud in that regard. All in all, those were not Games on a Lillehammer level for me - but Lillehammer is simply very hard (if not impossible) to beat. They were professional Games with many special and even touching moments, the ordinary Russian people were the expected warm and friendly hosts, while Putin still is the prick he has been before the Games. And I must say that I felt some schadenfreude when the Sbornaja lost the ice hockey quarterfinal and Putin looked as if he had been punched in the belly. But I digress. In comparison with other Winter Games of the past 20 years, I would still rank Lillehammer #1, followed by Vancouver and Salt Lake. Then follows Sochi, quite well ahead of Nagano and Torino. I sign that. Could be my words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox334 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Ceremonies: Don't care for ceremonies Look: I prefer Vancouver's, but not by a lot. The only things I disliked about the Sochi look are the terrible logo and the cheap-looking podium. Operations: Nothing went wrong, really. Sports: As good as always. Venues: Mixed bag. The ice venues all looked amazing (I'd say only the Richmond oval looked better than its equivalent in Sochi) and the mountain backdrop looked amazing. But some of the venues where quite ugly, specifically the ski jumps and the sliding centre. Crowds/Atmosphere: Nowhere near Vancouver, London or Salt Lake City. Even Turin had more "passion". Sometimes I felt like the crowd only showed up when Russians where expected to win. Lots and lots of empty seats. Legacy: I'll tell you what: this is one bill I'm glad my country won't be picking up. Overall and general comments: They did it. Really, that's all I have to say. All things considered I don't think you could host better games in Sochi. Though maybe the next time the Russians bid for the winter games they could try somewhere a bit colder GamesBids Moments: The enthusiastic team GB support from some member(s). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StefanMUC Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I'm a bit too tired to make such a detailed verdict like Rol. So here are my rather short two pennies worth: All in all, I enjoyed the Sochi Games more than I expected in advance - but they could have been better. I guess what influences me a lot is the weak performance of the German Olympic team in the second week of the Games. Sochi can't be blamed for that, of course, but invariably that performance will always come to my mind when I think back of the Sochi Games. The performances especially in biathlon and bob, two traditional German strongholds, were horrible (apart from the only two brighter spots, namely the silver medals by Erik Lesser and the male biathlon relay team). I'm fed up with the officials of the German sports federations. They expect far more medals than the German Olympic team apparently is able to deliver, so I ask myself on which planet they live. They made that mistake already before London, and yet they made it again now for Sochi. They definitely have to drastically scale down on their "Hooray, here come the Germans!" patriotism and learn that other countries have made huge advancements in their own development of sports (or maybe also the more clever doping methods ). Organisation-wise, despite the negative media reports in advance, the Sochi Games apparently went smoothly and professionally. Can't say a lot more about that, since I didn't hear or see any reports here in Germany that there were serious flaws. Security-wise, the Sochi Games were apparently a complete success - and I must say that I was a bit worried beforehand whether they could really keep those Islamist terrorists off. Well done! But, of course, they still have a serious test ahead: the Paralympics. But I'm certain that they will manage that as well. Atmosphere-wise: Hmmm, I got such and such impressions, judging by the reports here in the German media. Some reports concentrated on the Olympic Park which was surprisingly empty at times, in other cases I experienced an engaged and enthusiastic audience by the live TV broadcasts. Since I didn't have much time to read and hear all the reports, I'm not sure whether I saw "the complete picture". So I don't want to make a judgment there. The ceremonies were both entertaining and professionally produced. They certainly showed Russia from a grand and somewhat pompous, but also surprisingly self-ironic side. I think the organisers have done Russia proud in that regard. All in all, those were not Games on a Lillehammer level for me - but Lillehammer is simply very hard (if not impossible) to beat. They were professional Games with many special and even touching moments, the ordinary Russian people were the expected warm and friendly hosts, while Putin still is the prick he has been before the Games. And I must say that I felt some schadenfreude when the Sbornaja lost the ice hockey quarterfinal and Putin looked as if he had been punched in the belly. But I digress. In comparison with other Winter Games of the past 20 years, I would still rank Lillehammer #1, followed by Vancouver and Salt Lake. Then follows Sochi, quite well ahead of Nagano and Torino. Good summary from a German perspective, just one thing: Given the results during the World Cup season, the medal expectations of around 30 were not unrealistic (unlike the ridiculous London goals they tried to keep secret). But in many sports, our officials were even less in shape than the athletes. Hello, DESG in particular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donutman88 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I've always been a fan on the Summer Olympics more but overall I think Sochi turned out well. The big problem I saw was that 1/2 of virtually every sporting match/venue (in the Coastal Cluster, can't tell about the Mountain Venues) were empty. I liked the look and loved the location. As an engineer this would be a dream to get a blank check and get to build a city from scratch just for the Olympics. (Not cost effective I know, but pretty cool) I have to say though that after about 3-4 days of action I got fairly bored of most of the sports, as I usually do at the Winter Olympics, so I can't say this is Sochi's fault. It's like watching the same thing over and over again for 2 weeks straight, no spacing out of the sports and disciplines. Overall though, a fun and certainly interesting Olympics. I doubt Russia will get the Olympics again until at least the 2040s, maybe 2050s, so I hope they enjoyed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob2012 Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 (edited) Ceremonies 8/10 Stunning visual set pieces and a "best of" Russian classical music, what's not to like? The opening glitch was made up for by the unexpected humour in the closing. The Pandemoniumesque Communist section was fantastic, and actually the whole thing was much more fun and human than I'd expected; a nice balance between Beijing and London in that sense. Points off for the lonely cauldron lighting and the closing which, whilst enjoyable, felt like Opening Ceremony-lite rather than something distinct. Oh, and the head of the organising committee declaring his the best Games ever? Really?! Look 8/10 The quilt pattern wasn't overbearing or too fiddly like I feared. The use of it inside the triangular grid worked really well. Like the fact they followed London and had each venue in a different colour so the overall impression was colourful and coherent. Points off for that bloody awful slogan being plastered everwhere (on the sliding track was where it annoyed me most) and the fact that they'd designed themselves a great woodmark but chose to have SOCHI 2014 written in bland captials everywhere instead. Sport 8/10 New sports a success and easy to follow. I've tried watching American fottbawwwll lots of times and just give up, but what's not to understand about people flinging themselves off a mountain, trying to do the best tricks and not fall on their arse. The fact we got a medal in the people flinging themselves off a mountain, trying to do the best tricks and not fall on their arse event is also a bonus. And Team GB's best medal haul since 1924. I'll take that! Some shocks helped move things along nicely (Shaun White and the Russian ice hockey team spring to mind). Points off for some judging controversies and short track which seems to lack any common sense. Venues 6/10 So you spent $50bn huh? Well the venues did look great and they worked, the Bolshoy espeically looked stunning. Errr...except the stadium which was kind of compromised for the ceremonies with a huge shed at either end. And there were some niggles with the half-pipe too. The main reason for only a six is the fact that I think there's a bit of a question mark over legacy, the amount of corruption said to be involved in building them was staggering, and the fact people nearby lost water supply or had their villages used as dumping grounds for waste materials....well, I needn't say anymore. The same happened in Beijing and it's sad that only six years on we get it again. Atmosphere 6/10 It had a lot to live upto with Vancouver four years earlier and for me watching at home it didn't hit those peaks. But it did better than I thought given that we'd heard about 30% of tickets being unsold, and in most venues there wasn't a lack of atmosphere at all. In fact, quite the opposite! In the curling arena our girls kept having to stop when the Russians on the other sheet scored such was the noise. In and around the park and the city, hard to say. It didn't come across like London or Vancouver, but perhaps people who were there will say otherwise. The fact that a significant minority felt shut out from these Games before they even started with Russia's discrimination laws (a huge self-inflicted wound) also doesn't help their score. Overall 7/10 Not perfect, but far better than expected. Very good, very well run, stunning if not flawless opening and closing shows, sport thrilling as always, atmosphere could be better but was good, bad taste in the mouth with overspending, corruption, anti-gay laws etc. What I will say is we'll probably never see the like again. I hope Russia (not Putin) got what it wanted from these Games, and I hope they don't end up leaving us on Gamesbids with fewer Games Bids to talk about! Edited February 23, 2014 by Rob. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intoronto Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 I've always been a fan on the Summer Olympics more but overall I think Sochi turned out well. The big problem I saw was that 1/2 of virtually every sporting match/venue (in the Coastal Cluster, can't tell about the Mountain Venues) were empty. I liked the look and loved the location. As an engineer this would be a dream to get a blank check and get to build a city from scratch just for the Olympics. (Not cost effective I know, but pretty cool) I have to say though that after about 3-4 days of action I got fairly bored of most of the sports, as I usually do at the Winter Olympics, so I can't say this is Sochi's fault. It's like watching the same thing over and over again for 2 weeks straight, no spacing out of the sports and disciplines. Overall though, a fun and certainly interesting Olympics. I doubt Russia will get the Olympics again until at least the 2040s, maybe 2050s, so I hope they enjoyed it. I disagree. The Winter Olympics provide by far a better selection of exciting sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gangwon Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Venues - 4/10: The buildings themselves look nice enough and the compactness was probably appreciated by some athletes but the Olympic Park was a terrible idea for television purposes. An aerial view of the Olympic Park gave me no view of anything else in Sochi other than the venues. It looked like the Olympics were held in Disneyworld, or some other theme park where you go from pavilion to pavilion. Compact is good, but not *this* compact. It's too artificial. Sports - 2/10: The judging was terrible and the hockey very underwhelming. From the very first day, the slopestyle snowboarders had no idea how they were being scored and that's unacceptable at the Olympic level. I felt terrible for Mark McMorris, but good for him, he took it like a champ. The figure skating was even worse, and very predictable from the start. Julia Lipnitskaia was proclaimed the early darling of the Games during the team event, and ended up with an undeserved 140 score in the team free skate. It was almost as if the figure skating judges were testing at the time how far they could get away with inflating Julia's scores without provoking an outrage. Well, there was no outrage because Russia was bound to win the team event, and Julia skated well enough to place first among the ladies in the team event. The individual ladies' event a week later was a travesty. Sotnikova was overscored by 20 points and Lipnitkaia by 10 points. Had Lipnitskaia skated cleanly, I'm sure she would've smashed all world records, very undeservedly. I could write a book on the judging but it's worth it. Thankfully, like Mark McMorris, Yuna Kim also handled it with grace and took it like a champ. The hockey was underwhelming, at least for the men. I can't think of a single Canadian men's game I enjoyed watching. The USA-Russia game was good, but that's about it. I give sports a low score because of the corrupt judging in what I consider the main event, which also happens to be the event I cared about most. I'd give the sports score a 1 but I enjoyed watching the Dutch speed skating domination, so I give sports a 2. Crowds/Atmosphere - 4/10: I can only go by what I saw on tv. The Russian crowd looked very rude and impolite. Everybody wants their home country favourites to win, but the Russians took it to another level. They cheered the mistakes of their opponents, barely acknowledged outstanding performances of non-Russian athletes if they were in direct contention with a Russian athlete, and chanted "Rossiya" when it was their opponents' turns to perform or compete. It was a big turn-off. Outside of the venues, I did not see any signs of people walking about and enjoying Sochi. The only time I saw a crowd outside the venues was when people were walking INTO the venues. Legacy - 2/10: Russia wanted these Games to impress the world and gain respect and prestige. The $50 billion corruption, the human rights violations and the crackdown of the press only scratches the surface for why Russia did not get any of the respect it wanted. You would've gotten more prestige by not hosting the Games at all. Sorry Russia, you blew it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zekekelso Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 All I can say is I had a blast in Sochi. The spectator logistics were fantastic. Everything went perfectly smooth, security managed to be everywhere but never intrusive. The only hiccups were the spectator pass validation at the park (luckily I got mine in Moscow) and that the otherwise ideal "high speed" trains ran awfully slow. Atmosphere? I'm baffled by all the observations here. What I experienced in Sochi was non stop fun and happiness. Russian crowds cheered load for Russians and for top competitors from other countries. Sport? Stupid post was my main grumble. America won a lot of medals, but had surprisingly few memorable Olympians, except the guy winning golds for Russia. Special mention to the weather. I know it caused issues for sports, but from a spectator standpoint it was glorious. If only London had been this warm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athensfan Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 My personal experience of these Games wasn't the greatest. For one, I've been pretty busy the past couple of weeks. That said, I think my Olympic love is waning. I was really much more interested in House of Cards than I was in the latest happenings in Sochi. There are several reasons. I was definitely disappointed in the results for team USA. It was a comparatively weak showing. I also just have no real love for Russia. The political backdrop (much as I tried to ignore it) really compromised my ability to enjoy the Games. The Ruskis' dramatic athletic improvement from 4 years ago was quite remarkable, but I can't say I was particularly happy for them. For me there just wasn't much to get excited about. NBC certainly didn't help. And I'm truly fed up with figure skating. The Technical Controller of the ladies' long program was Russian and obviously had double standards. Ceremonies, look, venues, operations were all fine. Atmosphere and legacy lackluster at best. I can't imagine anyone promising to be a second Sochi. These Games were not worthy of imitation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexjc Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 This is the first time Russia has singularly hosted an Olympics so, Venues 9/10...yes great for the idea of a cluster, but seem to lack soul. Ceremonies 9.5/10... although they fixed the Rings set with a wonderful act of self depreciation. This ruined a perfect Ten. The Locals 8/10...barely noticed them...but that was good, considering the negative publicity to the build up. Got a feeling the crowd s were sometimes "staged". Teams 10/10...Still that White Only domination but great to see teams from nations that make you go Huh? Vladimir Putin 4/10...starch and cold as always, barely stretched a smile, probably wondering when to invade Ukraine later this week. New Zealand's performance 5/10...overrated for a medal again...too many close but no cigar moments, still there is hope but we need to get back to basics...enough of this X Games stuff. Russia hosting the Summer big one 7.5/10...most likely in the thirties onward, and will need a whole new direction in political prowess. Overall, not bad, but Vancouver still leads for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athensfan Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Having just read zeke's post, I'm inclined to trust his take on live atmosphere. Perhaps I should say the long-distance "vibe" was lackluster. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
micheal_warren Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Ceremonies 8/10 A glitch in the opening but I liked how they made up for that in the closing. Look 8/10 I thought it was colourful and bold. Was never a fan of the logo though. Sport 9/10 Really enjoyed the new sports that were introduced. A lot of fun with chaos as well... Gripping viewing. Venues and legacy 5/10 Some excellent venues but how sustainable are they? Not very in the long term I think. White Elephants? Repeat of Athens.... Atmosphere 5/10 Could have been better. The olympic park looked sparse from where I was. Empty seats in some venues. The speed skating atmosphere was pretty good... Helped by the Dutch and their vocal supporters. Overall 7/10 The sport was good... Thats the major reason you have the games.... Issues around curroption and the amount spent will linger. Russia got the games and have done a good job.... Better than Vancouver: No. Although New Zealand had their best results since 1992 but still no medal. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexjc Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Having just read zeke's post, I'm inclined to trust his take on live atmosphere. Perhaps I should say the long-distance "vibe" was lackluster. yeah...good way to put it, felt the same, must be that time zone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Rols Posted February 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 (edited) gamesbids.com. i almost put this on the ‘-’ column because participation was lower than i ever remembered it for an olympic games. you can’t imagine how many people were on during salt lake (brag, i was on GB for SLC) and beijing. vancouver and london you all remember. most of the time it felt like i was talking to myself and faster, intoronto and fox were talking to each other (about canadian things). but would it really be an olympics without consulting GB three times a day? i don’t think it would. Well, we didn't have a core base of Canucks or Brits waiting on everyone's impressions and sensitive to criticisms. Scotguy was about the only one who put in a hand at standing up for Mother Russia. Maybe someone should have done a JJ and gone over to SSC to round up a posse of abrasive Russkis to liven things up here. And I'm sure Danny and co will do good service in 2016. It also was a pretty sh!tty timezone for nearly everyone, wasn't it? Edited February 23, 2014 by Sir Rols Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zekekelso Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 Having just read zeke's post, I'm inclined to trust his take on live atmosphere. Perhaps I should say the long-distance "vibe" was lackluster. But the fact is, the Olympics are largely a made for TV event. It's clear the atmosphere in the streets didn't make it to TV. LOCOG said they were going to "solve" the empty VIP/NOC seats by making sure the cameras weren't pointed at them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faster Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 They were the Olympics. Russia deserved their chance to host, did it their way and it turned out mostly alright. The sports were fun to watch, Canada did pretty well. The ceremonies were better than expected. I am not that crazy about the look, it was so artificial and not Russian. I still prefer Torino's look out of everyone. The medals were interesting, but not my favourite. The most telling for me is that I am usually really said when an Olympics end, these have only made me excited for Korea. If the Russians are happy, that is all that matters. It was their money and their party. Onwards to Rio. 6.5/10 (5th place overall for Winter Olympics I've watched and 10th place for both). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gangwon Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 My personal experience of these Games wasn't the greatest. For one, I've been pretty busy the past couple of weeks. That said, I think my Olympic love is waning. I was really much more interested in House of Cards than I was in the latest happenings in Sochi. There are several reasons. I was definitely disappointed in the results for team USA. It was a comparatively weak showing. I also just have no real love for Russia. The political backdrop (much as I tried to ignore it) really compromised my ability to enjoy the Games. The Ruskis' dramatic athletic improvement from 4 years ago was quite remarkable, but I can't say I was particularly happy for them. For me there just wasn't much to get excited about. NBC certainly didn't help. And I'm truly fed up with figure skating. The Technical Controller of the ladies' long program was Russian and obviously had double standards. This looks like it could have been written by me. I was also busy with work, but I found the time to sneak in some tv and video when it mattered. I was really hoping for a spectacular Russian Games and was happy for the Russian athletes at the beginning, but the way these Games ended really turned me off the Olympics at large. And that's saying something, as I've devoted so much time and energy learning about the Olympics and defending Pyeongchang at the bidding stage. Only someone so into the Olympics could devote that kind of time and energy, and I felt that was me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul Posted February 23, 2014 Report Share Posted February 23, 2014 (edited) I still prefer Torino's look out of everyone. Torino is #1 look! Edited February 23, 2014 by paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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