Michael Phelps, Michael Phelps, Michael Phelps, Michael Phelps, Michael Phelps, and Michael Phelps!

[ThatsMyBarack]

Lately the Olympics are all about him. I'm happy for all the well-earned medals he's winning every single night, but I fear what they'll do to his ego. :yoiks:

[marmar]

1. It just bugs me that the spectacular performance of the Chinese gymnasts is getting no play.....

.... No offense to Michael Phelps, but believe it or not, some Americans want to hear about more than just U.S. athletes.

[Bicoastal]

2. But the Chinese gymnasts are really really YOUNG....

...and everyone knows all Chinese kids are experts at gymnastics, then lose these skills as they get older--like baby teeth.

[alcibiades_mystery]

11. I never knew we had so many people with expertise in specialized diet for

Chinese adolescents until the US lost the team event. Then, suddenly, it became clear that this board was populated MOSTLY by experts in Asian adolescent development under specific diet regimes. It's amazing. And here I thought most people on this board were in some kind of non-scientific professions, with little to no experience estimating the ages of various adolescent girls who have been trained and fed specific diets for the purpose of maintaining particular size parameters. I was wrong! There are at least 600 members of this site who appear to have that specific sort of training, and aren't just spouting bullshit out of their embarrassing jingoistic asses! Remarkable!

;-)

[Sanctified]

15. I asked my wife how old she thought the girls were last night.

And she guessed 16-18 without knowing the controversy or what age you have to be to be a Gymnast in the Olympics. She grew up in Japan and when I met her she looked like she was 16 even though she was 25.

[MillieJo]

35. The Japanese Team Gymnastics team also look very young..

It is body type, extreme training and diet, they will grow when it stops, just like female swimmers get breast when they retire from swimming.

[theboss]

23. I have pants older than some of those girls

If that first chick on the uneven bars was a day over 12, I'm Lebron James.

[malaise]

3. I think the number of world records in the pool

makes a farce of the swimming this time. The advanced technology used in the pool and the NASA high tech swimming gear has really changed swimming for ever.

What this means is that unless other countries rebuild their pools, these records will remain for ages. There were six or seven WRs in swimming last night.

[Occam Bandage]

10. World records generally fall left and right in every Olympics.

There are constant advances in training, in equipment, and in the size of the pool of Olympic hopefuls.

[malaise]

13. There were seven swimming WRs in Athens

We've already had 14 here and swimming isn't finished yet.

[Warpy]

4. I watched some of their male gymnasts the other night

and they were pure poetry. Some of ours are no slouches, either.

All they showed were the US and Chinese performances. Surely there are other countries on the planet and surely some of their gymnasts accomplished equally good routines, but you'd never know it.

[ThatsMyBarack]

5. I hated not seeing those....

Guess I'll have to look them up on the Internets.

[MillieJo]

36. One of the benefits not winning to many medals is we do

get full coverage of competition in most sports.

[slackmaster]

8. They really kicked ass on womens' synchronized diving

The Americans, Australians, etc. just couldn't get in sync.

[Blue_Tires]

6. i actually thought this was going to be the return of

the "Olympics as a preview of the coming NBA season" angle -- but then i remembered NBC doesn't have the NBA contract anymore

[TwilightGardener]

7. Well, normally I'm as grumpy and contrarian as anybody when

there's too much fawning and hype going on over somebody, but his achievement is pretty spectacular. Hard to say the attention isn't justified in this case.

[flor-de-jasmim]

9. Yes, when you consider how long Mark Spitz' record has lasted.

[undeterred]

12. Michael Phelps is amazing

and the most fun is watching him win the gold medals with his teammates- he really appreciates their part in his success- and they appreciate his part in theirs. I think he's terrific and I love watching his mom too.

[Bake]

14. I'm a convert now. Phelps is the REAL DEAL.

I thought it was all hype, but I was WRONG. Phelps is the real deal.

By the way, in an unusual bit of irony, did you know his dad's name really is FRED? Not the same guy, of course ...

Bake

[ThatsMyBarack]

16. Just wait....

His ego will be blown right through the roof. He'll yet another alpha-male millionaire with a Barbie-doll wife before too long. :grr:

So what else is new? :eyes:

[Shell Beau]

18. Way to jump the gun there.

[Growler]

27. Lucky bastard....

[Dreamer Tatum]

31. You mean like all the swimming stars before him?

Please. This is his 15 days of fame. Three months from now, he will be a pleasant and distant memory.

Swimmers don't stay famous.

[Shell Beau]

34. He has stayed famous since the last Olympics.

[PVnRT]

37. Because he keeps breaking records and winning

When he retires, he's going to become a Trivial Pursuit answer.

[Shell Beau]

40. Maybe, maybe not!

Even so, not too shabby!

[npincus]

17. I don't mind if Tiger Woods gets bumped off his pedestal

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

19. I don't think he'll turn into Carl Lewis

though maybe he's earned some bragging rights.

I just hope he doesn't get caught by some as-yet-unknown drug test.

:thumbsup:

[Shell Beau]

20. He has already passed him on gold medals.

He is today's Carl Lewis.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

22. Yeah, but he hasn't caught Carl Lewis ...

in egomania. Not yet.

[theboss]

25. Carl's insanity was at least fun

He released albums for God's sake.

In Europe.

He was like a fast black Hasslehoff.

[Growler]

28. !

:rofl:

[theboss]

32. I was going to say a fast, black, gay Hasslehoff

But I think part of that was implied.

[MrCoffee]

21. Funny, I think he's getting less coverage than in Athens

I think the coverage seems more subdued with Ian Thorpe out. They don't seem to be pushing any sort of blood rivalry angle this time around.

[rocktivity]

24. I just hope that he doesn't forget that two of those medals

are courtesy of a pair of ass-kicking relay swimmers who weren't him.

Yep, we need a real hero who's an alternative to Obama--McCain can't do it, so the MSM is obviously giving Phelps the job.

:headbang:
rocknation

[Shell Beau]

33. Why would he forget that?

He hasn't come across as an ass or anything.

[Baclava]

26. I just can't stand that he's a Ravens fan

The Ratbirds suck.

Go Steelers!

[LSK]

29. who????????

:shrug:

[underpants]

30. He deserves all the accolades that he receives

we are witnessing an unfathomable individual performance.

[AlCzervik]

38. why are you making the leap that he'll be an egomanical asshole? I think you're being totally

unfair.

[Ezlivin]

39. He's so damned fast he can swim a lap and not get wet

Michael Phelps helps dolphins when they get in trouble.