h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I haven't have the chance to see any 'Olympic coverage' today. Can someone tell me how many medals we Brits haven't won so far today?

I believe we are in 2nd place in the 3 day event - when is the show jumping? Tomorrow? Let' hope the horses aren't too heavy/fast/fit or they, too, will be disqualified.

The Rumanians have got it made; take drugs - so you're the best and then bribe your way back into the games = A gold medal??

What happened to the opening ceremony oath? They specially added a bit in about drugs, but forgot to mention the bribe option.

Showjumping is tonight - and I believe it is very tight. Only a couple of fences down between us and the Aussies so fingers crossed.

What I think is unfair is the riders get the medals and the horses get a pat and a rosette if they are lucky. I think they should get medals too and great bouquettes of carrots.

Just a thought.

The horses get a free holiday down under in luxury accommodation, they probably aren't too bothered about the medals. Although on a serious note, as many of the horses are not owned by their riders, it would be nice for the owners to have something aswell.

By tonight do you mean UK tonight or OZ tonight?

UK.

Gooday all,

Dinsdale you are absolutely right about the coverage, but let's hope it improves. I discovered early this morning that the 1.00am to 7.00am Olympics broadcast provides replays of all the less glamorous sports - handball (which looks like a cross between basketball and water polo without the water), dressage, soccer etc. Yes it is odd that soccer is being played as far afield as Adelaide, Melbourne and Brisbane, but then the rowing is at Penrith. And they got a crowd of about 90,000 for the Melbourne soccer. In the 1956 Melbourne Games, I think the equestrian didn't even take place in Australia.

In the latest development in the Rumanian weightlifters' farce, one of the weightlifters is now on a hunger strike and is also threatening to kill himself in public, probably because he figures the fast will take about two months to work and everyone will have long since gone home. Officials are reported to be taking the threat very seriously, although no-one else is, and you can imagine how many jokes the affair has spawned already.

Pity about Ian Thorpe, but he has done us proud and the Flying Dutchman swam superbly and thoroughly deserved the gold. A nervous wait now to see whether Madam Butterfly, Susie O'Neill, can cap her magnificent career with a win in the sprint.

Walter.

Abi I believe it is 2 1/2 fences in it. Mind you I watched teh intire Cross Country last night live

Yeah call me crazy but it's true.

Gooday Dinsdale,

I should have known better. I'm thinking "colon, hyphen, end bracket", why that's a smiley face on its side, but I want a little round yellow thingy like everyone else seems to have. So I am explaining to Moondancer and when the message gets posted voila!!, little round yellow thingy. So thanks cobber, and LOL .

Walter.

Gooday Demon Drawer,

You are definitely not crazy for watching the cross-country. I wish we could. I clocked the coverage on teev last night from 7.00pm until 3.30 this morning and never heard a mention of the equestrian, let alone any film coverage. I learned more about what happened in the dressage from this forum than from the TV broadcast.

Walter.

Firtunatley the BBc is covering it here, so they are using bith channels for a lot of the night to give a choice of coverage.

Was someone earlier asking for the mens beach vollyball? It's on my TV now. I thought the girls were more interesting to watch.
Talk about interesting when I watched the Opals against the Canadians, I thought they looked tremendous in their suits compared to the baggy shorts. I suppose that is helping to engender sexist comment, but I wasn't commenting on the shape of the girls, but on how their uniforms looked.

Moondancer

Gooday everyone,

No doubt in my mind that the women volleyballers are a better watch than their male counterparts.

NEWSFLASH: After Day 2 of the equestrian competition, New Zealander Vaughn Jefferis remains confident that NZ can take out the title. Said jefferis "The Australians have a couple of real donkeys when it comes to show jumping." NZ team management now fear that Jefferis' intemperate comment will ensure that the Wizards of Oz, who are currently leading the competition with NZ a distant somewhere, will make sure that their donkeys make asses out of the All Black Hacks.

Walter.

Ill just pick my self up off the floor after laughing so hard over that one. hahahahahahahah

I suppose he could always win in the bid mouth stakes.

Im sure i jsut heard "Aussie's win Gold in the 3 Day event"

All I can say is

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie.....
Oi Oi Oi!!!!!

Isn't it great how these games have made us all so patriotic! everywhere you go someone is talking about an event or commenting on how wonderful australia is and how good it is to be an aussie - gives you warm fuzzies really doesn't it.

Channel seven's coverage is making it really hard to get any study done tho!! (not that Im complaining)

(By the way any Aussies out there interested in an Aussie meet up?)

Oh, I now realise that I missed the beach volley ball (again), as it was on at 3.25 a.m. The Beeb has coverage throughout the day (for those who don't work) and in the early hours of the morning (for those who don't sleep), but for the majority of the country who work and sleep normal hours, there is nothing on from 5 p.m until midnight.
Great Shame!!

Am I right in thinking the NZ three-day event team was disqualified - oh, dear, they shouldn't have made those 'donkey' comments!!

Although I am English, it is very exciting for all you Aussies to be doing so well - it looks like you are well on the way to reaching your target of 60 medals If we can't win them, then you winning is the next best thing!!

Beach volleyball...

If London ever gets the Olympics again, where would this event be held? I have visions of the competitors standing on Camber Sands in fisherman's oilskins in a howling gale coming in off the Channel (this is Britain, after all). You couldn't even be sure of no rain in July, let alone September.

Gooday Dinsdale,

Beach volleyball in England. Where else but Southend and Clacton?

Walter.

Folowing an earlier point about not everything happening in Sydney, how about the beach volley ball being in Brittany?

Hi Walter
Having been brought up near Southend, the idea of beach volleyball there is causing disturbing chuckles (ie I am disturbing my office mate) Are they going to play on the shingle or wait until the tide goes out and play on/in the mud? As I type Nigeria seems to be beating Italy. Would that be soccer? seems unlikely

Camber Sands would be good, it's just that you'd have to have both the Men's and Women's entire tournaments in the 2 rain-free hours on one day that we get every summer. If you tried to have longer tournaments, you'd be doomed to failure.

Just look how much time we lose to rain in Test matches (except when rain would be to the England team's advantage, of course ).