opening and closing ceremony for me.
How much time will you spend watching The Olympics?
- Thread starter spalding12
- Start date
Planning on watching as much as time allows, which unfortunately, won't be much.
The opening ceremony was nothing short of spectacular. The whole thing was one huge highlight reel! The London organizers for the 2012 Olympics have their work cut out for them!
The opening ceremony was nothing short of spectacular. The whole thing was one huge highlight reel! The London organizers for the 2012 Olympics have their work cut out for them!
china may be the ONLY country that would have the nerve to spend 300 million dollars (and get NO "FLACK" from their population) on the opening ceremony
the people of LONDON would NEVER allow that
i loved the ceremony, but.... as Bob Costas so eloquently put it last night...
"burn the record book after this ceremony.... 'cause you'll never see anything like it again"
now..... there's been a stabbing death there:
at a tourist site
in a city where crime rates are very low:
BEIJING -
A person briefed on the incident says the victims of a deadly stabbing attack at a tourist site in Beijing on the first day of the Olympic Games were the in-laws of the U.S. men's volleyball coach.
The person told The Associated Press that Todd Bachman, the father of former Olympian Elisabeth Bachman, was killed. His wife, Barbara, was hospitalized.
Elisabeth Bachman is married to U.S. men's volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon.
The attacker committed suicide.
The identities were provided by a person who was in a meeting when U.S. volleyball chief Doug Beal told players of the stabbing. The person requested anonymity because he had no authority to discuss it.
Another person with knowledge of the attack confirmed Bachman's father had died.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
BEIJING (AP) - A knife-wielding Chinese man attacked two relatives of a coach for the U.S. Olympic men's volleyball team at a tourist site in Beijing, killing one and injuring the other on the first day of the Olympics on Saturday, team officials and state media said.
The man then committed suicide by throwing himself from the second story of the site, the 13th century Drum Tower just five miles from the main Olympics site.
The brutal attack shortly after midday was all the more shocking because of the rarity of violent crime against foreigners in tightly controlled China, which has ramped up security measures even more for the Olympics.
The stabbing came only hours after what by many accounts was the most spectacular opening ceremony in Olympic history and it has already dampened some of the enthusiasm.
"They are deeply saddened and shocked," Darryl Seibel, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee, said of the volleyball team.
The U.S. Olympic Committee said in a statement that two family members of a coach for the men's indoor volleyball team were stabbed at the Drum Tower "during an attack by what local law enforcement authorities have indicated was a lone assailant."
One of the family members was killed and the other was seriously injured, it said, without giving details.
The official Xinhua News Agency identified the attacker as Tang Yongming, 47, from the eastern city of Hangzhou. It said Tang attacked the two Americans and their Chinese tour guide, who was also injured, at 12:20 p.m. on the second level of the ancient tower, then leapt to his death immediately afterward. The second level of the tower is about 130 feet high.
Seibel said the two Americans who were attacked were not wearing anything that would have identified them as Americans or part of the U.S. team. He could not name the coach.
"They were not wearing apparel or anything that would have specifically identified them as being members of our delegation" or as Americans, he told The Associated Press.
He said it is "too early to say" whether the U.S. delegation or athletes will require additional security.
U.S. Embassy spokesman Richard Buangan said it was aware of an incident involving two Americans and was working with Chinese authorities to find out more. He said U.S. officials were in contact with relatives of the two Americans who are in Beijing.
"Out of respect for the families involved, we can't say more than that," Don Q. Washington, another embassy spokesman, told reporters.
Police blocked off streets leading to the Drum Tower immediately after the attack and cordoned off the area with yellow police tape. Security officers were examining the scene on the tower and below.
Attacks on foreigners in China are extremely rare. A Canadian model was murdered last month in Shanghai, but police said that was because she stumbled onto a burglary.
In March, a screaming, bomb-strapped hostage-taker who commandeered a bus with 10 Australians aboard in the popular tourist city of Xi'an was shot to death by a police sniper.
Shanghai and Beijing are still safer than most foreign cities of their size. Punishments for crimes against foreigners are heavier than for crimes against Chinese, and police-linked neighborhood watch groups are highly vigilant. Chinese are not allowed to own guns.
Even so, the U.S. government now warns Americans against muggings, beatings and even carjackings, especially in the nightlife and shopping districts of large cities.
Built in the 13th century, the Drum Tower is one of the few ancient structures still in Beijing, and was used to tell time in imperial China for the city, using drummers who pounded their instruments to mark the hours. It is located on an important central axis of the city, to the north of the Forbidden City, the former home of the emperor.
The White House saidPresident Bush, who is in Beijing for the opening days of the games, was informed of the incident, and his heart goes out to the families of the victims. It said the administration and the Beijing U.S. embassy have offered those families any assistance they need. Also, U.S. officials have been speaking to Chinese authorities about the incident.
at a tourist site
in a city where crime rates are very low:
BEIJING -
A person briefed on the incident says the victims of a deadly stabbing attack at a tourist site in Beijing on the first day of the Olympic Games were the in-laws of the U.S. men's volleyball coach.
The person told The Associated Press that Todd Bachman, the father of former Olympian Elisabeth Bachman, was killed. His wife, Barbara, was hospitalized.
Elisabeth Bachman is married to U.S. men's volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon.
The attacker committed suicide.
The identities were provided by a person who was in a meeting when U.S. volleyball chief Doug Beal told players of the stabbing. The person requested anonymity because he had no authority to discuss it.
Another person with knowledge of the attack confirmed Bachman's father had died.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
BEIJING (AP) - A knife-wielding Chinese man attacked two relatives of a coach for the U.S. Olympic men's volleyball team at a tourist site in Beijing, killing one and injuring the other on the first day of the Olympics on Saturday, team officials and state media said.
The man then committed suicide by throwing himself from the second story of the site, the 13th century Drum Tower just five miles from the main Olympics site.
The brutal attack shortly after midday was all the more shocking because of the rarity of violent crime against foreigners in tightly controlled China, which has ramped up security measures even more for the Olympics.
The stabbing came only hours after what by many accounts was the most spectacular opening ceremony in Olympic history and it has already dampened some of the enthusiasm.
"They are deeply saddened and shocked," Darryl Seibel, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee, said of the volleyball team.
The U.S. Olympic Committee said in a statement that two family members of a coach for the men's indoor volleyball team were stabbed at the Drum Tower "during an attack by what local law enforcement authorities have indicated was a lone assailant."
One of the family members was killed and the other was seriously injured, it said, without giving details.
The official Xinhua News Agency identified the attacker as Tang Yongming, 47, from the eastern city of Hangzhou. It said Tang attacked the two Americans and their Chinese tour guide, who was also injured, at 12:20 p.m. on the second level of the ancient tower, then leapt to his death immediately afterward. The second level of the tower is about 130 feet high.
Seibel said the two Americans who were attacked were not wearing anything that would have identified them as Americans or part of the U.S. team. He could not name the coach.
"They were not wearing apparel or anything that would have specifically identified them as being members of our delegation" or as Americans, he told The Associated Press.
He said it is "too early to say" whether the U.S. delegation or athletes will require additional security.
U.S. Embassy spokesman Richard Buangan said it was aware of an incident involving two Americans and was working with Chinese authorities to find out more. He said U.S. officials were in contact with relatives of the two Americans who are in Beijing.
"Out of respect for the families involved, we can't say more than that," Don Q. Washington, another embassy spokesman, told reporters.
Police blocked off streets leading to the Drum Tower immediately after the attack and cordoned off the area with yellow police tape. Security officers were examining the scene on the tower and below.
Attacks on foreigners in China are extremely rare. A Canadian model was murdered last month in Shanghai, but police said that was because she stumbled onto a burglary.
In March, a screaming, bomb-strapped hostage-taker who commandeered a bus with 10 Australians aboard in the popular tourist city of Xi'an was shot to death by a police sniper.
Shanghai and Beijing are still safer than most foreign cities of their size. Punishments for crimes against foreigners are heavier than for crimes against Chinese, and police-linked neighborhood watch groups are highly vigilant. Chinese are not allowed to own guns.
Even so, the U.S. government now warns Americans against muggings, beatings and even carjackings, especially in the nightlife and shopping districts of large cities.
Built in the 13th century, the Drum Tower is one of the few ancient structures still in Beijing, and was used to tell time in imperial China for the city, using drummers who pounded their instruments to mark the hours. It is located on an important central axis of the city, to the north of the Forbidden City, the former home of the emperor.
The White House saidPresident Bush, who is in Beijing for the opening days of the games, was informed of the incident, and his heart goes out to the families of the victims. It said the administration and the Beijing U.S. embassy have offered those families any assistance they need. Also, U.S. officials have been speaking to Chinese authorities about the incident.
i didn't post this to be political, by the way
just bringing news ABOUT THE OLYMPICS.... to THIS thread
just bringing news ABOUT THE OLYMPICS.... to THIS thread
Geez, I thought I was a cynic around this joint.
The opening ceremony was spectacular. I will be watching quite a bit of the Olympics.
I own a TV- I enjoy watching it. We live in a wonderful age of mass communication. There is a lot of crap that spews from the box, but there is also a wealth of information and entertainment as well. I guess it depends on how you look at things. :smile:
Couldn't agree more on all counts. I once had a brief discussion with a couple my age about TV. The gent bragged that they kept the TV in the most inconvenient place in the house and how worthless it all was. That means he missed hundreds of hours of Discovery, Travel channel, National Geographic, World Cup, Olympics productions along with numerous timely documentaries on the various regions and great people of China.
Not planning on watching the olympics; 1) not much of a spectator sport fan and 2) not very happy about China's treatment of their people.
My sympathies go to the family of the folks killed and injured in the attack. It's a shame that someone would do this kind of thing.
My sympathies go to the family of the folks killed and injured in the attack. It's a shame that someone would do this kind of thing.
The premiership starts next Saturday (16th). There, to all intents and purposes, endeth the Olympics for praise the Lord, the football season will have started.
Plan? Zip - couldn't be less interested. Bring on the winter olympics, the summer is a bore.
I will watch both men's and women's marathon. I will watch the longer track distances if they are shown and I know when they are on.
I'll watch quite a bit, probably too much. It's my first summer games in HD and have already ooh'd and aah'd during the introduction preceding the opening ceremony. Of course, I saw the last winter games in HD too, but it's not the same thing...
I wonder if all the people saying they are ignoring the Olympics because of China's treatment of their people (and Tibet) are also ignoring Wal-Mart because it ships their jobs to China... or if the wallet does all the talking in the end.
I wonder if all the people saying they are ignoring the Olympics because of China's treatment of their people (and Tibet) are also ignoring Wal-Mart because it ships their jobs to China... or if the wallet does all the talking in the end.
i'm glad you mentioned the HD issues, Philippe...
THAT is one thing really making the olympics much more enjoyable to me
and.... i've always loved them
THAT is one thing really making the olympics much more enjoyable to me
and.... i've always loved them
Probably not alot but I heard this a/m and just caught snippets of what was and probably will be the grandest opening ceremony ever!
I'm skipping the Olympics for a couple of reasons. I have not recovered from the last Olympic "coverage" - Too much pontification from the news folks, and the sports were edited to the point where I could not follow what was leading up - much like reading the last page of the novel first. That, and it seemed only USA was playing - This is an international spectacle, and yes, I am proud to be an American, but, sheeze, I want to see everything.
The other thing is the attention being given to the situation outside the olympics - what China has or has not done is not, in my never to be humble opinion, pertinent. It seems, though, that I'm in the minority.
frank
The other thing is the attention being given to the situation outside the olympics - what China has or has not done is not, in my never to be humble opinion, pertinent. It seems, though, that I'm in the minority.
frank
I have a projector and 100" screen and it was magnificent. Completely circling the entire Bird's Next stadium to light the flame was a bit over the top....and long....but ingenious nevertheless.
You aren't in a minority; I think politics has no place in the Olympics. It's about the athletes and their striving that matters.
100"
wow
that is awesome
72" with my projector/not permanently set up
what were you using for sound, rich?
Denon 7 channel receiver with Vandersteen speakers. Sanyo PLVZ5 projector.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
By the way some great shots here http://www.nbcolympics.com/photos/galleryid=186037.html
Not too much of them, probably. I think the last Olympics I watched with any enthusiasm was in Lillehammer in '94.
I've become very skeptical and jaded by all of the politics, and moreso by the absolutely idiotic TV announcers covering the events. I think the Olympic Ideals are wonderful (a la the ideal of the amateur athlete). However, those days of respecting those ideals are several decades behind us and gone, sadly. :frown:
(hey, you asked!) :biggrin:
However, if Rich wants to host a movie night at his place, I'm there!!!
I've become very skeptical and jaded by all of the politics, and moreso by the absolutely idiotic TV announcers covering the events. I think the Olympic Ideals are wonderful (a la the ideal of the amateur athlete). However, those days of respecting those ideals are several decades behind us and gone, sadly. :frown:
(hey, you asked!) :biggrin:
However, if Rich wants to host a movie night at his place, I'm there!!!
Truly a first rate setup you got there... I'm currently limited on room size. My house is setup with an open downstairs containing my living room, dining room, and sitting room all open to eachother with the living room in the middle. So I have a total depth (wall to wall) of about 11 feet with open space on both sides. I have a 55" SXRD with a Pioneer Elite 7.1 receiver running in 5.1 with a set of older timbre matched set of JBL HLS speakers and a Klipsch sub.
Nothing overly fancy, but I enjoy it. Definitely having quality video and audio have made this olympics (especially the opening ceremonies) quite enjoyable.
It's completely insane having 6 HD channels with HD Olympic coverage.
Denon 7 channel receiver with Vandersteen speakers. Sanyo PLVZ5 projector.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
By the way some great shots here http://www.nbcolympics.com/photos/galleryid=186037.html
awesome setup
i bet that there is no better place to see the olympics, than in beijing
wonderful picture
thanks for the reply and shot
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