redfiona99

I am somewhere beyond angry with Ted Ligety.

I can understand not liking to lose (see also Marcel Hirscher's look of "I hate everyone" when Mario Matt crossed the line). No one likes to lose. But lose with some dignity, man.

It's okay to say it was a difficult course, adorable baby Norwegian that came third said it was, Mario Matt who won said it was. You'd not hear a word of anger from me.

But when Ligety claims that Ante Kostelic deliberately set the course so his son would win, he not only impunes the honour of a good man and a great ski coach and course setter, but he brings the entire Olympic movement into disrepute, along with the FIS. Because two different coaches from two different countries set the two different runs so that no one country gains an unfair advantage (because you're damn right the Austrians would try that trick).

Also, given that Ivica Kostelic only finished 9th, I don't think you really can claim that it was the perfect course for him. And Ivica is the only Kostelic still racing, unless Ligety is suggesting that Mario Matt is a missing Kostelic sibling.

It's the level of whinging it takes to say, "wah, I lost because the course was too tough, and it shouldn't have been so tough".

I'm with Marcel Hirscher when he says “We are looking for an Olympic champion, not a children’s champion.”

Glorious Austrian victory in the men's downhill

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/winter-olympics/26056243

Is he not just the most beautiful and lovely person right now :) (I am hideously biased. Ridiculously biased.)

I admit I'm more tickled pink because I'd totally written the Downhill off. I didn't even expect a medal, especially after I saw Graham Bell's ski-through yesterday. Because it looked very technical, especially the top section, and the snow looked like the hard ice you get on the Italian hills, which doesn't really suit the Austrians. Or so I thought, because I was thinking of Klaus Kröll and Romed Baumann who both belong to the Herman Maier school of "point skis down the hill, attack the mountin, win or bust" skiing*.

Because of this I was expecting Svindal and the Italians to do well. I think guessing 2nd and 4th place shows I wasn't too wrong, I was just working on out of date info about the Austrian skiing team.

Obviously this will be over-shadowed in the UK by Jenny Jones getting a bronze in one of the new events I refuse to acknowledge but I will spend lots of time on the Die Presse and Der Standard websites instead. The plus points of knowing other languages ;)

So far this weekend is going well sports-wise. Austrian victory in the men's downhill, Bjoerndalen victory in the biathlon (with an Austrian in second place :) ), Ireland beating Wales. All I want now is a Russian win in the team skating event and either a Kasai or A.N. Austrian victory in the men's 90 m ski-jumping. Scotland losing miserably to England has been the only thing that hasn't gone in a way that I could at least be happy with.

*Bodie Miller is also a member of this school. That was why he didn't like the look of the course. He was just getting his excuses in early.

Apparently Being Human, the US version, is premiering tonight. If anyone who watches it feels like telling me whether it's bad, good or indifferent, I'd be obliged. Being Human (UK version) is a show I love rather a lot, and I'm worried that a bad US version might sour people on the UK one. I have seen photos of the cast, and, I shall admit, it does not look promising. They seem to have missed something important with George/Josh at least, which is very sad-making because he is my favourite character. And they seem to have made Herrick/Bishop far too obviously evil. Herrick's everyday evil (imagine if the Mayor from BTVS was a Bristol policeman) was one of my other favourite things.

Have seen nothing about who won what at the Golden Globes, but a lot about Ricky Gervais. No, US, you're supposed to like him, because if you do, you'll keep him and I won't have to put up with him being everywhere over here. On the matter of Ricky Gervais, I want two things known. 1) He wasn't funny when he was on the radio and he's not funny now. 2) When invited to perform at the Secret Policeman's Ball, he turned it down. In an interview later, he said that, as a comedian, it was his job to entertain and therefore he didn't do politics. In that vein, as a viewer, it is my job to be entertained, and therefore, I don't do Ricky Gervais.

The Golden Globes did lead to me gaining a love for Robert Downey Jr ("Aside from the fact that it's been hugely mean-spirited, with mildly sinister undertones, I'd say the vibe of the show is pretty good so far, wouldn't you?") and Tim Allen and Tom Hanks (Tom Hanks - "We recall when Ricky Gervais was a slightly chubby but very kind comedian." Tim Allen - "Neither of which he is now.").

On to happier things, an Austrian won in Wengen :D I now fully expect a Swiss skier to win in Kitzbuehel, but I'd love for Michael Walchhoffer to win there.

The Americans on my flist may like to know that Paula Radcliffe just dissed NBC for not showing the Winter Olympics live.

Other than that, I am confused as to why the curling starts with pipers playing Scotland the Brave.

When they decide to scratch and re-start the women's Giant Slalom, I shall declare a conspiracy against Austrian skiers.

But mostly, I am so very happy that Sweden won the 4 x 10 k in the cross country, if only for Johan Olsson, who, in the 30 k individual, tried to break away at 15 k, and almost stayed out until the end, but, and this is where he goes from awesome to fantastic, despite being caught within sight of the stadium, he didn't collapse and helped block the rest of the field from catching up with his team mate. So far, he's my man of the games.

So I'm not exactly happy with who won the downhill. I don't mind Didier Defargo per se, my dislike is nothing personal. It just means that an Austrian didn't win it and a Swiss skier did. Which is of the not good. I can only hope that either the women do better than expected or the Austrians get something in the Super-G.

Of course, having watched that in the lab (partly personal choice due to obnoxiousness of housemates), I get home in time to see the Swiss win another gold medal in the 15 k cross-country.

It's not good ;)

Anyway, the moment that was over, I was unceremoniously removed from the TV so my housemate, and his girlfriend, can watch their DVDs of Damage. I go and cook, and then eat my dinner upstairs while watching the snowboard cross which is by far my favourite of the new events (she says new, knowing that it's been there for 15 years). It was probably just as well I was watching it alone, given that I'd have to explain why I was killing myself laughing every time the BBC commentator was trying to pronounce Mario Fuchs's surname. They pronounced it to rhyme with Cuche, I think to avoid an unfortunate homophone that doesn't actually occur if you pronounce it properly.

~~~~

The man writing for the Times on the Winter Olympics is a fool who knows nothing. Apparently Didier Defargo was a skier of no note before this. The man has won at Wengen and Kitzbuehel, back to back. He is a known quantity and if I know that, why doesn't the man who is writing about him.

~~~~

However, the Times is temporarily forgiven, because they published this - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article7028242.ece

John Amechi writing much sense.

Lots of other things too, but mostly I'm enjoying being home and being able to watch the ski-jumping and the skiing and everything else.

They've decided to put photos of the participants next to their names when they stick them up. As per usual, they're terrible photos, particularly for the ski-jumpers. The ones where they don't look 15, make them look like mugshots, which is particularly bizarre as the mugshottier ones belong to some of the nicest guys on the tour. Dmitri Vassiliev's is particularly bad, which is odd because he's one of the better looking jumpers on the tour.

I found out that Janne Ahonen has retired which makes me sad, because, despite him regularly beating Austrians, he was brilliant and I'm fond of him. He's also the guy in the icon.

It has also lead to me finding out about an excessively attractive Südtirolese skiier (http://www.patrickthaler.com/). Shame he officially counts as Italian.

Ivica Kostelic won, and then they said that it was his first win in 5 years, which, well it has to be true, but I can barely believe it.

Other than that, I caught the end of Afterburn, which featured Jeff pwning Edge (and me cheering for him - I feel strange and unusual) and the usual Smackdown hijinks. Where is the Maryse/Michelle McCool femme-slash?

Then I caught ECW, and well, I was deeply amused by the Kofi Kingston, CM Punk and Ricky Ortiz and Tiffany/Eve/whichever one she is's present. CM Punk does a good impression of that friend of yours who regularly mocks you and yet you still like.

I have no words for the awesome that regularly is the Miz and Morrison. I <3 them and their heelish, cheating ways.

I liked Hornswaggle taunting Striker and someday someone will explain why WWE keeping having their evil monster heels reading poetry at us (although it did lead to Tony Atlas in raindeer antlers and nose).

In short, I enjoyed myself immensely.