Breakin' Two: Olympic Boogaloo

DJnVa

DJnVa

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I don't even know what to think.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/dec/08/olympics-branded-a-mockery-after-inclusion-of-breakdancing-for-paris-games
The squash folks are PISSED:

Australian squash great Michelle Martin says the Olympic Games have become a “mockery” after breakdancing was added to the program for Paris 2024.

Australia’s three-time world champion’s immediate reaction to learning squash had been overlooked yet again, this time in favour of breakdancing was “oh my god”.
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luckiestman

luckiestman

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Olympics used to have all sorts of crazy shit prior to WW1; sculpting for example. Imagine getting mad about this.
 
djbayko

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Yeah, the Olympics have things like rhythmic gymnastics and synchronized swimming. Is this really that far off? Some of the moves the pros do require significant athleticism.
 
scottyno

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No baseball or softball in 2024 either, I think it's more people getting mad that sports that everyone would agree are certainly sports aren't being included but breakdancing is being added
 
Philip Jeff Frye

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Its also such a transparent attempt to attract young eyeballs to justify mammoth TV deals. You can just imagine a bunch of crusty old IOC members sitting around a conference room in Switzerland saying, "Hey, you know what I heard kids these days like!?"

I'm closer to the crusty old IOC member demographic myself, so maybe I'm exposing myself as an out-of-touch old white guy by asking this, but is breakdancing even still a thing? It's not something I ever paid much attention to, but you'd occasionally see it referenced in the Simpsons or a movie or something, and it doesn't seem like that happens much anymore. It would seem even more "typical IOC behavior" to be a decade or two late to a trend when adding a "cutting edge" sport.
 
Preacher

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Philip Jeff Frye said:
Its also such a transparent attempt to attract young eyeballs to justify mammoth TV deals. You can just imagine a bunch of crusty old IOC members sitting around a conference room in Switzerland saying, "Hey, you know what I heard kids these days like!?"

I'm closer to the crusty old IOC member demographic myself, so maybe I'm exposing myself as an out-of-touch old white guy by asking this, but is breakdancing even still a thing? It's not something I ever paid much attention to, but you'd occasionally see it referenced in the Simpsons or a movie or something, and it doesn't seem like that happens much anymore. It would seem even more "typical IOC behavior" to be a decade or two late to a trend when adding a "cutting edge" sport.
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It has been 36 years since "Breakin'" was released.
 
johnmd20

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The Olympics have dressage and sailing.

I don't see how Break Dancing is objectionable in any way. Who cares? The Olympics are pure like the NFL is pure.
 
mikeot

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Apropos of something: years ago I knew a retired Disney animator who had a gold medal from the '32 LA Olympics for... drawing?
 
SumnerH

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djbayko

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scottyno said:
No baseball or softball in 2024 either, I think it's more people getting mad that sports that everyone would agree are certainly sports aren't being included but breakdancing is being added
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Then attack that. Why can't we have baseball AND break dancing? This is possibly the world's greatest cultural event. The more, the merrier, I say. They don't all have to get network TV slots, although I do prefer variety there.
 
Kliq

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SumnerH said:
I'd much rather watch breakdancing than squash.

Though this will make a mockery out of those old medals from when the Olympics was reserved for serious sports, like croquet and tug-of-war.
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I'm a big fan of the Tug-of-War as a massive event that takes place during the closing ceremonies. Make the rules so that you can only choose athletes who are there for another sport, make it four men and four women, set a limit of one athlete per sport (so teams can't just stack it with weightlifters) and set up weight classes that have to be represented so you are finding the strongest athletes at each size. Go all out with the production value; like you wouldn't turn that on if Team USA was facing Russia in a unified Tug-of-War battle?
 
SumnerH

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djbayko said:
Then attack that. Why can't we have baseball AND break dancing? This is possibly the world's greatest cultural event. The more, the merrier, I say. They don't all have to get network TV slots, although I do prefer variety there.
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And if we do have to choose, I'd rather get rid of things like baseball and basketball, hockey, golf, boxing, fútbol, golf, tennis, etc that already have plenty of televised coverage in other venues. Use the Olympics to highlight things that don't get a ton of play otherwise.
 
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