Sports you'd remove from the Olympics

Vertigo

Vertigo

Vertigo

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So what sports would you remove from the Olympics?

Personally I'm getting increasingly sick of the subjectively marked sports and think they should all be removed, unless an objective scoring system can be found for them. Some of the decisions have been very dodgy in my opinion and there's been a fairly constant air of suspicion about favouritism towards the Chinese athletes during these games.

I'd also kick out the three big "professional" sports - football, tennis & basketball as I don't believe they have any place in the Olympics. Quite apart from the issue of professional athletes competing, there's the issue of most of them not actually caring about the Olympics at all. A columnist on the BBC website hit the nail on the head when he said the definition of an Olympic sport was one in which the Olympics was the pinnacle of achievment. That simply isn't the case in these sports and so they should be ejected. This would also make space for more of the "minor" sports which get little exposure. Things such as Judo, Badminton, Fencing and so on are rarely aired outside the Olympics and this should be extended to other sports.

Finally, equestrianism. Just no! One of the guiding principles of the Olympics is that the human element should be the most important factor. This just isn't the case with equestrianism, it's mainly down to the fitness and obedience of the horse. Yes the competitor has to train and control the horse but this just isn't enough IMO. What's next, lion taming?

</rant> :D
 
I agree with removing the big three, they just aren't as exciting to watch when played at the olympics (although watching the USA, or what is essentially the NBA, destroy their opponents can be quite enjoyable). I think the main reason I do enjoy watching the olympics is because it consists of sports you rarely have a chance to see unless you are directly involved with them.
 
Vertigo1 said:
Finally, equestrianism. Just no! One of the guiding principles of the Olympics is that the human element should be the most important factor. This just isn't the case with equestrianism, it's mainly down to the fitness and obedience of the horse. Yes the competitor has to train and control the horse but this just isn't enough IMO. What's next, lion taming?
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I'd get rid of horse dancing, dessage or whatever they call it, but the other equestrian events demand a lot of still from the riders. Actually I'm sure horse dancing does to, but it looks so pointless.
 
Theres entirely nothing wrong with the "professional" sports being at the olympics, they are indeed professional sports, basketball and tennis ARE sought after medals and are very important, look whose turned up to the tennis and basketball every last one of the worlds best basically. The only reason no one cares about the football, is its at a silly time of year and the under 23 thing is utterly ridiculous. THe best footballers, from one very specific group, makes zero sense and its why no one cares. If you're the very best country in the world, think France 6 years ago, but 90% of the team isn't allowed to play and so France lose, its ridiculous. The sport is fine, the age limit should be lifted.

Basketball as said, is a GREAT competition and very hard fought and cared about at the olympics, the only thing is obvious is that you don't care for basketball at all.
Horses, as you said, have no place at the olympics.

Subjectively scored sports, who cares, people know the way they are scored before they compete so its not a problem, its not arbitrary, the only people that have problems with the scores, as several threads have shown, is people who don't know how/why they are scored and so think its unfair when they watch it. The competitors themselves aren't complaining, except a couple, but mistakes are made in everything, always, thats life.


Baseball is another, fairly wanted medal, probably out for 2012 because, not a soul in the uk would ever play baseball competitively so building a several million pound(probably close or more than 100mil) on a venue that will never be used after the olympics is ridiculous.


20km "walking" , and any other speed walking things, its just, very very weird.
 
Any sport for which the Olympics is clearly not the pinacle of international competition should be removed. Mainly tennis and football, though with football if they got rid of the over-23 quota and made a youth only torunament it may just scrape through. Don't agree with you regarding equestrian sports not being in the Olympics though. The training and control reasons you give I'd argue are why it is appropriate.
 
weringo said:
I think we should add snooker and darts to guarantee us some more medals.
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The damn johnny foreigners keep beating us at those sports as well nowadays.

If we want to guarantee a british clean sweep in the medals, we need to introduce whinging about the weather as a national sport :cool:

Or Coleen and co in a WAGS only Supermarket Sweep, stage it in Harods, they would clean up completely.
 
i agree, football definetlly has no place at olympics(i would like to point out that opinions may be bias due to no british team as south america take the olympic football very seriously) and the age ruule jsut means it s not the best teams competing.

equestrian also gets a big no from me due to the unfairness in which horse you get, i like athletes to be on level platying field

scoring sports is diffficult to disragard, although i hate gymnastics(due to the age of competitors etc. it is a big crowd pleaser and pinacal of the sport so it'd be hard to disragard)

i would personally like to see sports such as squash placed in the games. other sports id like to see would be snooker(as this is becoming a more recognised sport worldwide) and maybe pool, as many countries play. my only concern for snooker would be weather the medal would mean more then a world championship, but i cant think on any competitino bigger in pool.

EDIT rockclimbing would actually be my sport of choice, ewith the artificual walls etc - could have speed races and difficulty challlenges and would boost the sports rep incredibly
 
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If the age limit was dropped for the football then it would just turn into another world-cup and 90% of the other events would be forgotten about. I say drop it completely along with any other sport where the Olympics isn't the pinnacle of the sport.

Panzer
 
Why can't they just have 1 swimming event- they're all the same anyway.... and that way it would stop this Phelp-mania that's currently doing the rounds!
 
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