Before I wrap up last night's coverage, a side note--why do local NBC affiliates send their own "correspondents" to the games? They just do a standup there, then throw to pre-recorded material. Why do they think they can do a better job than the network with their billions of dollars? It makes even less sense when the network greatly reduced their staff on the ground at Beijing.
Anyway--I zipped through the final parts of last night's Opening Ceremony rerun. We got an "Americanized" version of QISEOC President Thomas Bach's speech (editing out the foreign language portions). They still skipped the oath ceremony for the athletes, officials, and volunteers--like they didn't have time to include a two minute item in a 3 hour broadcast. I even checked the Peacock coverage--nope. With all the controversies and commercialization of the games, a pure moment would have done a world of good. Drop The Rock!
Skipping to the next afternoon--Lowe, back in Connecticut, sends us off to Women's Skiathlon--a cross-country event involving two different styles. Seems like QISE marketing is trying to sell cross-country skiing as a spectator sport. This was followed by a classic "up close and personal" segment on Jessie Diggins--a cross-country skier who battled an eating disorder. Then it's Luge--sledding for maniacs. NBC has the production down to a science, cutting rapidly among 31 robotic cameras (I counted them) as they fly down the course.
Speedskating is all about technique and endurance--and a lethargic man firing the starting gun (Rrreeeeadddy....) With mostly empty stands, you can really hear the skates clicking on the ice. Then it's Biathlon--a throwback to the early games, when military vets of WWI would take advantage of their shooting skills. Now it's the mixed relay, with men and women handing off to each other. If you're applying for a job as a James Bond supervillain goon, you better have this on your resume. Then more moguls--meh. It's the least interesting of all the X-Game-y sports. We wrap up the afternoon with Women's Ski Jumping (aka "the agony of defeat sport"). With the top skier out with a positive COVID test (hopefully something I won't be writing a lot), it was an open race.
Onto Prime Time, with Tara Lipinski setting the stage. Torico, at the chalet, sends us off to Short Track. It's essentially Roller derby--ON ICE! The relay is even more crazy, with the US losing out due to a technicality (the US is not doing well overall so far). Meanwhile, there's a weird ad with QISE athletes v. dinosaurs--a hackneyed synergy with the next Jurassic Park film. Then it's more of the figure skating team event, and the first appearance of the women skaters we will learn a LOT about in the next two weeks. Of course, that will depend on how well the US does--and all indications are that the "not Russia" team will likely sweep the women's individual event. Tara and Johnny look fabulous, with the latter's Mickey Mouse-esque hairstyle (Terry Gannon continues to look like their chaperone). Meanwhile, the men's downhill skiing event, scheduled for later tonight, has been delayed due to high winds. I guess China's weather control technology is on the fritz.
More to come.