2016 Olympics awarded to Rio de Janeiro

[mkrishnan]

First city in South America to get the games.

With all my love for Chi-town and my South Side loyalty (Obama's not the only one who lived in walking distance of the proposed site) I'm really glad for Rio and for South America -- it's about time.

Now we can focus on the real issues in this city, and King Daley can't use this as a diversion anymore.

I LOL'd. 😉

 

[savoirfaire]

As a Chicagoan, I'm extremely relieved we're being spared the Games. Now we can focus on the real issues in this city, and King Daley can't use this as a diversion anymore.

I second that emotion. I can't imagine what traffic in Chicago would have been like for those 2 weeks either.

 

[skye12]

I knew Rio when probably win given no Olympics has been in South America before. Anyway, the Barcelona games in 94 weren't that long ago.

 

[11800506]

Let's not forget that the US hosted the games only recently – in 1996 of course. While a twenty year gap seems like ages, it really isn't that long in terms of an event held once every four years – a fact that may have been on the minds of those choosing the host for 2016.

That certainly is true but do remember that LA hosted the Olympics in 1984, so it's a similar distance (although the Winter Games were also hosted in Salt Lake City, which changes things). I certainly wasn't expecting Chicago to win, but I, like many (judging from an article I read about it) expected Chicago to have at least more of a chance.

Rio de Janeiro will be good though since it will provide an opportunity for the city to further develop into a "real" developed city.

 

[gkarris]

As a Chicagoan, I'm extremely relieved we're being spared the Games. Now we can focus on the real issues in this city, and King Daley can't use this as a diversion anymore.

I know someone who works for the CTA, and he said it would've been great for our infrastructure.

But hey, I think Rio deserves it more... 😀

 

[kymac]

i hope espn doesn't get the rights.. i feel they would show certain sports in a bias manner. like.. bmx.. basketball etc. the traditional olympic sports will be pushed to the side. i just know it.

 

[LynnW]

The United States has hosted four Summer Games. No other country has hosted three, although with the 2012 games in London, the UK will have three. The US has hosted four Winter Games. Only France has hosted three. We get more than our fair share of them.

 

[MadeTheSwitch]

I second that emotion. I can't imagine what traffic in Chicago would have been like for those 2 weeks either.

Probably better then it normally is. Back in 1984, everyone was warning of dire doom and gloom gridlock for Los Angeles. They scared people so much that everyone who live there left town or stayed home and the freeways were pretty much wide open. It was NICE!

Unfortunately once the games left the traffic went back to normal and now we sit in gridlock still to this day. And it's worse then ever. Maybe the Olympics should come back to LA! We could use the traffic relief!

 

[Rodimus Prime]

i hope espn doesn't get the rights.. i feel they would show certain sports in a bias manner. like.. bmx.. basketball etc. the traditional olympic sports will be pushed to the side. i just know it.

Something needs to be done about the sports though and ESPN I think would do a MUCH MUCH better job than like NBC would. They would be hope to have sports coverage 24/7 with ESPN. Something that I hate about TV and the Olympics is they like to show those intersted and back story on the athletes. I do not give a damn about that. I want to see the events.
In the this day of cable they could easily have 4-5 channels going 24/7 showing as much live coverage as possible. Plus showing events that many people would like to see but are not main stream

Lastly the Olympics need to start doing live streaming video of all the sports because while most people would not like to watch lets say archery. There are some people who really want to see it.

 

[electroshock]

Lastly the Olympics need to start doing live streaming video of all the sports because while most people would not like to watch lets say archery. There are some people who really want to see it.

Yeah. But kinda depends on how the broadcast network who paid billions to land the contract plans on monetarizing their large investment.

For the 1992 Summer Games, NBC had a three-tier pay-per-view package (red, blue, white channels) which badly flopped. Dropped the idea for subsequent games. With the most recent (2008 Summer Games), they aired over 2200 hours of 25 different sports live on their website without commentary. Apparently they're using commentary as a 'hook' for luring folks to watch on TV.

I imagine there'll be more web coverage for this and subsequent Games, but it's not clear if there'll be any free vs. pay tiers or if the offerings will still be different between TV and online (e.g. with/without commentary).

 

[Jaffa Cake]

That certainly is true but do remember that LA hosted the Olympics in 1984, so it's a similar distance (although the Winter Games were also hosted in Salt Lake City, which changes things)...

There you go then – even more reason to choose another nation. 😉

Case in point – the Games are coming here in 2012, despite bidding to host on other occasions the last time we held them was 1948. That's ages.

 

[GSMiller]

I just hope I have ESPN in HD by 2016.

 

[Nickygoat]

Rio? Sweet. Topless women's beach volleyball. 😀

Not likely; my Brasilian missus says that its not the done thing to go topless. Miniscule bikinis definitely but topless? Never.

That certainly is true but do remember that LA hosted the Olympics in 1984, so it's a similar distance (although the Winter Games were also hosted in Salt Lake City, which changes things).

You're aware that Brasil is about the same size as the US? If you knock off Alaska (and who wouldn't 😉) then Brasil is larger.

 

[william sire]

Rio? Sweet. Topless women's beach volleyball. 😀

🙂🙂🙂That’s something I’m looking forward to. I’m going to be pulling for the Brazilian female models team.😛

 

[RayStar]

I guess SA has never hosted the Olympics so I think it is a good thing.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I guess SA has never hosted the Olympics so I think it is a good thing.

Agreed. I'm glad that Rio got the games.

 

[Don't panic]

Something needs to be done about the sports though and ESPN I think would do a MUCH MUCH better job than like NBC would. They would be hope to have sports coverage 24/7 with ESPN. Something that I hate about TV and the Olympics is they like to show those intersted and back story on the athletes. I do not give a damn about that. I want to see the events.
In the this day of cable they could easily have 4-5 channels going 24/7 showing as much live coverage as possible. Plus showing events that many people would like to see but are not main stream

Lastly the Olympics need to start doing live streaming video of all the sports because while most people would not like to watch lets say archery. There are some people who really want to see it.

AMEN.

networks coverage of the olympics has been beyond bad in the last 5 editions (summer and winter). i still remember the 100 dash in sidney being shown with an almost 24 hs delay to fit in perfect prime time, with all the 'production' around it. The 100 dash! How many people didn't already know the result by then? only those who couldn't care less.

And they keep wondering why audience gets worse and worse at every games: because you show crap instead of sport, you geniuses.

Away with all the sappy stories, the background stories, the inspiring stories, the against-the-odds stories, the patriotic stories. And with synchronized swimming.

Show me the sports events.
All of them.
Live.
And without too much homerism.

And I'll follow you like a puppy.