Baller harddock Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 With the exception of Cricket it seems like verything is available as an olympic sport. Not to belittle anyone that is competing in the olympics but there are some lame and boring sports that qualify. Do you think 3 event or even wakeboard/skate will ever become an olympic event? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Roger Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Do you see ANY motorized sport in the Olympics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member Than_Bogan Posted August 7, 2012 Supporting Member Share Posted August 7, 2012 No. Maybe synchronized waterskiing could, though! :) [Wow there really is some crazy stuff in the Olympics.] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skier2788 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Actually in 1908 they did have motor boating so it isnt unheard of..... I feel if you throw out waterskiing because of the boat you should throw out shooting and equastrian because it isnt all human powered or physics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller igkya Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Yes there are some crazy sports in the olympics, but if horse jumping is, then why not include NASCAR and Rocks, paper scissors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member Than_Bogan Posted August 7, 2012 Supporting Member Share Posted August 7, 2012 Olympic Rock/Paper/Scissors would rock. (Ouch on the pun.) But at the Olympics everything is bigger so I'd think Rock/Paper/Scissors/Lizard/Spock would be the way to go. (Google it if you must.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skier2788 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 They used to have tug of war so why not rock, paper, scissors? :) You could integrate that into the waterskiing.... thats how we decide who gets to go first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Killer Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 olympic speed walking....... sorry to those athletes, but what a joke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
londonskier Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 I believe British Waterski Assoc has lobbied the Olympic committee over the years to include waterskiing. The US I suspect has done the same and I honestly believe its something spectators would enjoy> We don't need football (soccer), the real stars wont play in it. We don't need golf (due in Rio) or tennis in the Olympics. Maybe someday we will see it. My non skiing friends would like to see it in the Olympics and it would transform our sport. Having said all that I'm really proud to be British right now and London is buzzing with Olympic Fever. I'm going on Thursday to see the mens decathlon, 4 x 100m relay and Pole vault; can't wait! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfennell Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Since apparently anyone can just buy their way into the sport with equestrian it seems that any sort of argument which is based on oh its a machine is pretty moot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member Than_Bogan Posted August 7, 2012 Supporting Member Share Posted August 7, 2012 @kfennell Except the Olympic Charter explicitly forbids motors! I seem to recall it is worded in some weird ambiguous way about "assisting" the athlete, which was apparently enough of a loophole to get in as a demonstration sport in 1972 (or was it 76?) and to be selected by Athens to be added in 2004. But Athens got crazy far behind on their prep and the IOC took the opportunity to say "No new sport for you!!" My opinion is the ship has sailed on that, but you never know. 32 years between opportunities, so maybe another will come someday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller sunvalleylaw Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Hmm, the skiing is not performed by or on a machine. The skiing is what the human does with the force produced currently by a machine, and transmitted down the line, in order to very athletically navigate the course. In downhill skiing, gravity supplies the force. It's not like super-dome style moto-x or anything. I think I saw pub darts being televised on Olympic coverage the other night. Sheesh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member Than_Bogan Posted August 7, 2012 Supporting Member Share Posted August 7, 2012 In about 2002, I actually briefly looked into where I might be able to basically purchase citizenship, as I would have been the #1 slalom skier in a whole lot of random countries at that time, even though I was about 200th in the U.S. Would have been an amazing opportunity to ski in the Olympics, but before I got too far into my research the IOC put the kibosh on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GAJ0004 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 There is no need to have water skiing in the olympics. It would be nice, but I doubt it will ever happen because you need boats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfennell Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Olympics = more participation = better resale on our lots and boats..... Plus more exposure means you don't have to explain what you do everynight to your friends and co-workers while they have very very confused faces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller ral Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Demo skiing was in 1972 I think. Than, in the old days anyone representing a country could go to the Olympics. I remember on my old swimming days (1984...), nobody from my country went to the Olympics. I was not the best swimmer here, but in the top 4-5. Several of the swimmers representing central american countries were 5-10 seconds over my PB in 100 and 200 back. Now, they have stricter qualifying criteria... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GAJ0004 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 I would be suprised our sport would make it into the olympics. The cost and the venue required make it very inaccessible. I still on occasion get people to scoff at the sport. They think there is not athletic ability, or athleticism involved. They think the boat does everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller ral Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Waterski is part of the PanAm games (not the waterski PanAms, the real ones). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller MattP Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 I knew this was going to come up at some point.. I will add more when I get the time. Princess ski club is right in London by the airport, perfect place to have done it. OR HAVE HOSTED A PRO EVENT DURING THE OLYMPICS! The club is struggling as is and it could have brought in a ton of money if marketed correctly as a waterski exhibition. I believe @marcusbrown is still the US liaison to the IOC for USAWS. Possibly he could chime in with his thoughts I know he is opinionated on the matter. The dream of olympics is what drove the creation of ZO. Waterskiing is in the World Games and Pan Am Games which is the step right below the Olympics that is governed by the IOC. Our "Pro" Athletes are required to do drug testing with the IOC at random times, in a sport where performance enhancement drugs will not make you better, ask the good Dr... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_n Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Best chance of 3 event ever being in the olympics is cable skiing. No boat, no potential driver error. Still mechanical drive force though. Cable slalom is so different from boat skiing it's almost a different sport. Reasonably popular in Europe. Probably of little interest to many on this site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToddF Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 I was wondering about the kayaking. The course is manmade. and is the water being pumped through the course a natural water source or does it have to be pumped through a pump? Looked like it was being pumped Seems they couldn't have that competition without machinery. At least not is a feasible location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller SkiJay Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1530989/Waterskiing/BOS/X%20Games.jpg Being part of the Olympics would be very cool, but IMHO, being part of the X Games would be even cooler. They obviously have no problem with internal combustion. They are open to admitting new sports that appeal to the world's youth, and their producers can make even skateboarding interesting to watch. Imagine how cool skiing would look after a well-funded professional video crew and MTV editors were done with it. The Olympics are still the biggest sports show on earth, but last year, TV ratings for the X Games increased 32%. That is a serious growth trend, and their target demographics are our target demographics. Even if water skiing was in both the Olympics and the X Games, I suspect we'd get more interest in our sport through X Game coverage than through Olympic coverage. Maybe we've been trying to hitch our wagon to the wrong horse. Has there ever been a bid made to include water skiing in the X Games? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller MattP Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 @dave_n A motor drives the cable... so why not just have a boat if they will let a motor do the pulling?... I would rather see no skiing than cable skiing in the olympics. Yes, there can be diver error but that is why there are the trained officials at world events watching the end of course video... @SkiJay Wake boarding was once apart of the X-Games, ABC had it taken out when they realized at the time that the cost of sending an entire second broadcast team out to the site was not worth it when one team could do all the other events in the centralized arenas in LA. Wake boarders thought they had found a home on TV, and the Jumpers were pushing for them to be next on the list. As they should. But the cost at the time was to much. I know MC still sponsors the Xgames and other moto cross events. I know there is/was a push for cable wake boarding to be an exhibition sport.... still would rather not see it than have it not behind a boat. If they were to allow boat driven skiing/wakeboarding(which belongs in xgames) I would say go ahead and add cable but not the other way around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Chef23 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 I believe kierIn is in the Olympics and that is a race where the riders are paced by a motor bike for the first few laps so there is a motor involved in an Olympic event. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller MattP Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 @Chef23 you are correct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skier2788 Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 As far as driver error is concerned i feel its a moot point. Gymnastics is judged somewhat subjectively. I can watch an end of course cam and see times for every bouy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller SkiJay Posted August 7, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 7, 2012 Judges can do way more damage in their sports than a boat driver covered in cameras and timers can do in ours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_n Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 @mattP No arguments from me. I'm a boat skier. But " rather see no skiing than cable skiing in the olympics " ?? Surely any skiing in the olympics would have an enormous impact on our sport. @SkiJay Good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller igkya Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 Wasn't barefoot jumping also in the X-games for a year or two? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller unksskis Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 I sincerely hope that resources stop going to waterskiing being in the Olympics, too much $$ and resources have been wasted at attempting this goal. What has it done at all for the ground level of skiing? You really need waterskiing to be in the Olympics for people to understand what you do? And cable (actually probably a System 2.0 and obstacle course like Red Bull Wake Open, which was televised live on NBC) wakeboarding will be in the Olympics by 2020, they've seen too much success and reach to the younger market with snowboarding in the Winter Olympics to not at least give it a shot. System 2.0 is cheaper than most boats, is mobile, and globally cables/system 2.0's are much more accessible, and make wakeboarding accessible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Ilivetoski Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 Official reason that waterskiing cannot be an Olympic sport is because we use an engine/motor. The idea is that in the Olympics the people need to do the action, not the machine. Well in skiing, we are 100% working against the boat. The boat is helping us in (almost) no way expet to get us the speed that we need. If they let waterskiing in, then people from other sports that use engines would say "wait, we cant join because we use an engine but waterskiing can? They use an engine" and these people would not necessarily know that we are not just simply pulling and the boat does the rest of the work. To the untrained eye it looks like we just pull and turn. Again, thats to the person who does not know what they are looking at. @unksskis why would wakeboarding be in the Olypics when there is the engine rule? Sucess of the sport has nothing to do with it. Nascar is more popular then wakeboarding and its not in the Olympics. The cables have to have a motor or else it couldnt move... Waterskiing in the Olympics is something though that we need to aspire to get. Do you realize how many people would be exposed to the sport? You wouldnt only see a growth in the US you would see an international growth. Thats what we need more then just a local increase. I do believe though that if waterskiing is allowed in it will start a lot of controversy from other sports using engine/motor saying "now you have to let us in". Thats my 2 cents on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller MattP Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 Few sports are as global as water skiing. With over 30 million active participants, 100,000 competitors and close to 100 National Federations, major international competitions have a United Nations feel to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Ilivetoski Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 @MattP true that not many sports are as international as waterskiing, but the problem is that you may have a hand full of skiiers in each country. We need MORE in each country. "100,000 competitors" thats not many. I was talking to a few skiers a few weeks ago who are about the age of my parents (50's) and they are saying they truely dont think competition skiing will exist when my generation are adults. The sad part is, I believe it. What we dont need to do is take our friends out who dont have boats... We cant expect them to go from no boat to buying a $40,000 tournment ski boat. What we as skiers need to be targeting are people on pulbic lakes, prefebly people already with ski boats who just dont compete. They have the equipment, they know the sport, just get them to travel to the sites for tournments. Wow I went off topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Drago Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 No, never. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller ToddL Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 If no motors are allowed in the Olympics then all winter sports skiers must walk their butts up to the top of the mountain! That MOTORIZED lift provides the potential energy of stored height against gravity which propels them down the mountain. FYI - Many of the complex and troublesome rules that we have in skiing today was partly due to the attempts to standardize and formalize the competition into a global competition in preparation for an Olympic bid in past years. @Marcusbrown I think blogged about how all pro water ski athletes are still to this day subjected to random drug tests (often at the most inconvenient times) because of the past attempts to bid for the Olympics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller bhs Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 This is an Olympic sport as of 2000 an involves a motor.... http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keirin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller A_B Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 How many people world-wide actually run their kayaks through wickets in 20mph rapids with major under-tow? Mass appeal? There are so many obscure events conducted, like artistic gymnastics, etc., that are not even shown on tv, it's a joke. We should stop wasting time and money on a pipe dream, if we haven't already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dscholfield Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 If getting waterskiing in the olympics is the goal, is trying to fight the IOC's requirments and constantly just asking to be let in "as is" a good approach? I think its agreeable to say cable skiing should not be the answer, it was possibly a step towards it, but in no logical way does it simulate a boat. If you consider the sports which involve motors, its not the motor that they want to eliminate, its the incosistency which can cause an unfair advantage to a certain athelete. How many times are there threads about poor driving in tournaments or practices? It's about eliminating margains of error, not arguing about the subjectiveness of current olympic sports. When designing something to simulate a boat, I think of the what the boat does(in the case of slalom only)...travels down a straight path, has to allow the skier to drop at each end and return the apposing direction, constanst speed attained within 100-200m, constant height of the rope off of the water. Given those criteria, its really not hard to build a rail(similar to rollercoasters for a visualization) and pole system which could be operated by an electric motor. You would have to have a generally flat bottom lake, that wasnt more than 10-15 deep, and it would be costly. But not impossible, giving you the pull of a boat with no cable stretch or awkward angles and the benefits of no wake. As an engineering student, this is something i really want to push further, atleast to design in the hopes someday ill find the funds to build something like this. How awsome would it be to never need a ski partner or driver? Considering even a remote you could where to bring the rope back when you fall. The possibilities are pretty exciting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller sunvalleylaw Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 Upon reflection, the only way it makes any sense to me is if the IOC accepts the logic that the athletic effort is not motor driven, but really just the use of the force created by a motor powered boat. As has been said, snow skiers (and other athletes in the games such as cyclists) use gravity. Snow skiers use motorized means to get up to the top, thereby creating the potential force to carry them down. If that logic is not accepted, and it has not been, then I say forget it and find a different world stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller harddock Posted August 8, 2012 Author Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 The motorized aspect would come into play if each skier had their own or a boat choice. If all competitors are pulled by the same boat, same driver, with timing and cameras would be difficult to favor a particular skier. It doesn't seem to be a problem in all other waterski.wakeboard events. Our sport gets very minimal press and it could introduce alot more recreational skiers and never before skiers to the sport. As for Nascar, it's not amatuer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leopold Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 We were quite near in Athens 2004. Usually the host Country recommended a new sport to be added and the IOC always accepted it. Greece recommended Waterski. The IWSF organized and exhibition of three event and IOC members were quite impress by our sport (I was there). But at the end they said NO to waterski because the Olympics were too big, too many sports… they didn’t want a new one. Later the IOC dropped baseball and softball to allow two new sports to be in. As said before, Keirin is a sport with a motorbike but the engine is not an issue to win or lose the competition, it’s the same for all the competitors, same thing in waterski. http://www.awsaeast.org/graphics/seville.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller eleeski Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 I thought this thread was about Jonathan @Horton performing in gymnastics in the Olympics. Although he didn't medal, it was an impressive performance as were all the performances. Waterskiing is not a spectator sport, it is a participation sport. Olympic waterskiing is not well suited to the Olympics. Although any sport is better than boxing. Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller unksskis Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 I don't really believe the motor aspect is the valid reason for not being allowed, seems like something that someone once said or was told and it's been classified as the "reason". @ilivetoski in cable/2.0 wakeboarding is about the obstacle, is a performance-judged aspect rather than quantifiable "score" like in slalom, jump, and even tricks where there are set trick values. It's more about the the excitement and as eleeski stated, the spectating. You might not personally, but the majority of society would rather watch double flips and 1080's than people go around buoys and jump 200ft, it's just the way it is. I also question where the numbers ever come from, because it's a known fact that IWSF and USAWS use all the other segments of the waterskiing umbrella in their "numbers" and membership volumes. Split out just 3 event and see what the numbers look like, and then compare that to wakeboarding globally, wakeboarding is bigger, as well as more accessible due to cable parks. Good things have come out of the pursuit of IOC approval, such as Perfect Pass and what speed control has evolved to, but it still seems like a waste of resources to keep trying. Look at some of the other threads such as the sandbagging, and the what is Nationals for threads, many of those issues are centered or have stemmed from waterskiing trying to get into the Olympics. $160 for an event, why? because we have to pay increased governing dues, and all these submissions to attempt at Olympic approval and fly people around the world to wine and dine. That doesn't help me skiing here at all, and it's my money. I also have no desire to go and do any sport that I've seen on the Olympics that I never "knew" about, and I don't get this whole exposure thing, it's not like we're hiding on private lakes in the middle of nowhere, not letting people have access to it or anything...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skidawg Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 A combo of a boat driven by a human coupled with lack of $$$ to give the IOC means no skiing in the olympics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller unksskis Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 http://wakeboardingmag.com/videos/2012/07/19/video-red-bull-wake-open/ I bet Red Bull has a better chance and more influence at getting a sport in the Olympics than IWSF at this point. And they've had global qualifying events, which is one of the basic requirements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Roger Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 People need to stop using Keirin as an example here. The motorcycle is the pace vehicle (not tow vehicle). The competition itself is not under power from the cycle. So for us, the boat would pull us up to speed and then we let go of the rope and run the course??? Look at the photo on the right of the linked page: Keirin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller harddock Posted August 8, 2012 Author Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 With that logic Wakesurfing could be a new olympic sport because once you let go of the rope the boat is just making a wave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Roger Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 Hard to argue with that :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skifreak Posted August 8, 2012 Baller Share Posted August 8, 2012 @Dscholfield - Honestly, I'd probably stop skiing if I didn't have the driver/friend interaction that having a cable system eliminates. If I can't get/give shit-talk (ok, or coaching for that matter) while sitting at the end of the lake waiting for my next pass, what's the point? It's not always about your actual passes but about the lifestyle. I suspect the social interaction will strongly limit the popularity of that kind of system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dscholfield Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 @skifreak That is definitly something i did not consider you would lose...I do think that type of system would only work in a high level competition like the olympics where the boat was the problem. I guess there is something to consider selling the lifestyle like has been discussed in other threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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