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2008 Beijing Olympics


drakos13

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nice job on the timing for the finals by china :tup:

make the basketball games at 4/7 in the morning or midnight for the whole western world :tdown: the volleyball too...

good riddens to bejing olympics, and london will be awful and uneccesary, but at least they are in a better timezone!

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nice job on the timing for the finals by china :tup:

make the basketball games at 4/7 in the morning or midnight for the whole western world :tdown: the volleyball too...

good riddens to bejing olympics, and london will be awful and uneccesary, but at least they are in a better timezone!

This is probably the most ethnocentric post I've ever read! :LOL:
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no offence to any yanks here but the batton relay dropping fiasco was hilarious, that is what the olympics is all about. Seeing people who have trained for 4 years day and night to completely screw it up in 0.1 seconds of stupidity.

Brain melt of the year would go to the USA women though, after seeing the men cock up in the PRELIMINARIES!!!!!! how could they mess it up too???

I bet the jamacan chicks did it on purpose so their USA friends didnt feel so bad, i mean they absolutely slaughtered them in the actual 100m race....

anyway i agree good ridance.....

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I don't think in the 4 years since Athens 04, Greece produced any NEW Olympics winner. Those who got the medals were veterans. So, what does this tell you?... :tdown:

But, honestly I've lost lots of interest in the Olympics. I don't think after the 1960s (maybe early 70s) there's been a true sportsmanlike Olympics. Doping, politics, money (lots of it), and lots of waste in investing for a venue that saddles the many with debts while a few make $$$$.

As for the medals, I think it's an overblown ad campaign. Except for a few exceptional athletes (and you never know who is trully legit) that make the news, very few people remember what country did what. Well, perhaps they'll remember for a few years that Greece got the white gold medal for most dopped "athletes" in the Beijing games.

The IOC is corrupt, the athletes take chances with drugs, others are officially abused (ie., underage Chinese gymnasts), and everybody wants to believe in the purity of the sport... Like, I want to believe there's Santa Claus. :la:

As for Fannie Halkia, come on folks, she was a "journalist" not an athlete just 2 years prior to showing up to win the gold in Athens! Same with Kenteris, Thanou, and, and.... Those who know how super athletes develop know that they are not comets--come out of nowhere, shine, and disappear. And, don't tell me this "secret" was not known to the Greek officials.

Same thing goes with countries that win medals consistently. They have a program, they show up and do well with rather small variations. They're not unknown and in 1 Olympiad they get 20 medals only to disappear the next. Any reasonable person would question this! ;)

Anyway, it's nationalism and big business (with big ad budgets) that keep the Olympics going, but I don't think for much too long. They'll become like ..Eurovision :LOL: mostly a big deal in Greece and other eastern-euro countries, oh, and Turkey.

In closing, I'd like to include a modest statement of the winner of the women's 400 hurdles in Athens:

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This crap is embarrassing. I'm not just talking about the Greek Olympic team, but everyone that dopes. Just because you don't get caught doesn't make it o.k.

What's even more sick is that this is allowed to happen, people turn their heads in the name of profits and nationalism and whatever else they can benefit from a doped up athlete winning gold.

I think being Greek makes me see it being worse than someone else. The beautiful history of inventing the Olympics. I remember as a little boy telling all my classmates "You know who invented the Olympics? The Greeks..." sounding like Mr. Portokalos from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. There was so much pride about watching the Olympics, even when there were no Greek athletes on the TV, just knowing that all these people are participating in an event that was created by your ancestors. How cool is that? :tup:

But now, being older and wiser, I see all the filth that has tainted the spirit of the Olympics. I mean the whole idea of the Olympics, bringing all these people together to compete peacefully, putting aside all the m****ies that divide us and seeing who is the best athlete.

Cheating and selectively punishing the smaller countries that aren't as strong, so you can collect as much gold as possible. Sounds more like dirty politics, something that has nothing to do with what the Olympics should be about.

The opening ceremonies, the moment when all the countries of the world march into one stadium, beautiful moment right? Should be. What do the commentators talk about for most countries? Population, famous athletes, historical facts, etc.

Unless you're on their s**t list. Then you have millions of people hearing the commentator saying "their President said these controversial remarks" "this country's leader has been anti-this anti-that". Complete garbage. The Olympics, the opening ceremonies, should ONLY be about bringing people together to compete peacefully. THAT IS IT. Like I said, put your m****ies aside. NO POLITICS. NONE. Do that on CNN or Fox News, not on my ancestors cherished event, you selfish pricks with an agenda always on your mind (Yeah, I get pissed).

I've heard that the Ancient Greeks would stop war during the Olympics, or at least allow safe passage to all athletes traveling to the Olympics. And you got old men deciding to boycott the 1980 and 1984 Olympics. How selfish is that? A young man or woman practicing their whole lives for this moment, and guess what, cause some old rich and powerful guys want to "send a message" to the other country, their dream is crushed.

This is what the Olympics has become. Look at what we are talking about. This is a thread titled "Greek Olympic Team 2008", and half of the posts are about cheating, doping, politics, wearing diapers, etc.

It's just sad what the Olympics has become and it will only get worse. It wouldn't bother me as much if someone else invented the Olympics. I just feel like the ideals of my history are decaying in front of my eyes when I see what has become of the Olympics.

I hate to be so negative, is there anyone else that feels this way?

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nice job on the timing for the finals by china  :tup:

make the basketball games at 4/7 in the morning or midnight for the whole western world :tdown:  the volleyball too...

good riddens to bejing olympics, and london will be awful and uneccesary, but at least they are in a better timezone!

This is probably the most ethnocentric post I've ever read! :LOL:
ethnocentric isnt really the word id use..its an opinion, that Beijing put no thought into timing their events for the rest of the world who watches them - and its not like it would have come at the expense of their own viewers in Asia - whatsoever.

these events are DOMINATED by european and american teams.

there was absolutley no reason they couldnt have picked a better time for the basket finals, one that would be suitable for the 2 teams playing in it.

Tell me why Spain and USA has to start at 6 AM...Midnight USA???

That game HAD to be at 12 PM China time? it HAD to be that early in the day? BS.

I seriously have nothing againts British as hosts. But i do think London is a horrible place for the Olympics, its dangerous, its crowded transportation, expensive, and generally, the city does not NEED an Olympic games - its London. And so far, the ceremony that they had for London was bizarre/incredibly STUPID (the people running around dancing aimlessly, spending 10 minutes to have a little girl walk on some peoples backs to get on a bus?? WfT??? - what hte hell does that have to do with English culture? That Logo? its the ugliest logo in the games history.

Why not another British city?

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This crap is embarrassing. I'm not just talking about the Greek Olympic team, but everyone that dopes.  Just because you don't get caught doesn't make it o.k.

What's even more sick is that this is allowed to happen, people turn their heads in the name of profits and nationalism and whatever else they can benefit from a doped up athlete winning gold.

I think being Greek makes me see it being worse than someone else. The beautiful history of inventing the Olympics.  I remember as a little boy telling all my classmates "You know who invented the Olympics? The Greeks..." sounding like Mr. Portokalos from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. There was so much pride about watching the Olympics, even when there were no Greek athletes on the TV, just knowing that all these people are participating in an event that was created by your ancestors.  How cool is that?  :tup:

But now, being older and wiser, I see all the filth that has tainted the spirit of the Olympics.  I mean the whole idea of the Olympics, bringing all these people together to compete peacefully, putting aside all the m****ies that divide us and seeing who is the best athlete.

Cheating and selectively punishing the smaller countries that aren't as strong, so you can collect as much gold as possible. Sounds more like dirty politics, something that has nothing to do with what the Olympics should be about. 

The opening ceremonies, the moment when all the countries of the world march into one stadium, beautiful moment right?  Should be.  What do the commentators talk about for most countries? Population, famous athletes, historical facts, etc. 

Unless you're on their s**t list. Then you have millions of people hearing the commentator saying "their President said these controversial remarks" "this country's leader has been anti-this anti-that".  Complete garbage.  The Olympics, the opening ceremonies, should ONLY be about bringing people together to compete peacefully. THAT IS IT.  Like I said, put your m****ies aside. NO POLITICS. NONE. Do that on CNN or Fox News, not on my ancestors cherished event, you selfish pricks with an agenda always on your mind (Yeah, I get pissed).

I've heard that the Ancient Greeks would stop war during the Olympics, or at least allow safe passage to all athletes traveling to the Olympics.  And you got old men deciding to boycott the 1980 and 1984 Olympics.  How selfish is that?  A young man or woman practicing their whole lives for this moment, and guess what, cause some old rich and powerful guys want to "send a message" to the other country, their dream is crushed.

This is what the Olympics has become.  Look at what we are talking about.  This is a thread titled "Greek Olympic Team 2008", and half of the posts are about cheating, doping, politics, wearing diapers, etc.

It's just sad what the Olympics has become and it will only get worse. It wouldn't bother me as much if someone else invented the Olympics. I just feel like the ideals of my history are decaying in front of my eyes when I see what has become of the Olympics.

I hate to be so negative, is there anyone else that feels this way?

I feel the same way

Its all BS, I feel like too. Its not supposed to be political. But it still is......

Beijing was step one I feel. London is next, and seeing the ceremony, the city, the logo etc.....You get a feeling of how cheap and slutty the Olympic Games have become. Theyre no longer about the honour etc, its about the show, the money,

The Olympics, are a copmlete waste of resources. In "helping the world acheive peace" or whatever - they have spent trillions - on absolutley nothing. A baseball stadium in Beijing. A whole simulated Kayaking slalom in Athens....Useless crap. Environmentally its simply AWFUL affect on the world, becuase its so damn inefficient. Building the same stuff OVER AGAIN every 4 years? If you look at in a broad scale, of spending, impact environment etc, its absolutley a joke.

These new events, are a ###### joke. I watched rythmic gymnastics the other day.....I have to say wow.......Those girls are amazing, and belong in a circus. Giving somebody a GOLD MEDAL and hailing them as a Champions for circus tricks and acrobatics????? Stupid. Table Tennis? Equestrian? Synchronized Swimming? Air Pistol? BMX Biking? Trampoline?

Since the Olympics are private they are fair game to competition. I would love somebody to start up a REAL Olympics. REAL team sports, real individual sports. In the nature of the Olympic Games for a change.

Edited by drakos13
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I have to agree with the above, the olympics has become too dominated by money!!!! and greedy corperate filth that waste millions and billions on advertising!!!!! it has become a corperate circus and the true meaning was lost about 2100 years ago....I think that the olympics should remove the medals (well at least the bronze and silver), make it be about the honour of competing and not for a "prize". people now are too consumed with winning medals than anything, a good example would be NZ rower mahe drisdale who literally had the shits (beijing belly) when he competed in the final and got bronze he said "im up set i didnt get the gold" ffs mate you had the shits!!!! f*** if i had been spewing and shitting my guts out and won bronze i would be a happy camper..

i dont think I 'll watch the london games, im sure by 2012 i wont be able to afford a TV hahahaha

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I have to agree with these posts. Unfortunately. Its become a "win no matter what" ego trip with money and politics and bulls hit. Sporting events like baseball, softball (thankfully being eliminated in 2012) equestrian, ping pong, bmx, shooting, handball,and for gods sake volleyball, do NOT belong in the Olympics. But they are there because it just means more air time and more money. And if thats the bottom line for these morons at the IOC, maybe they should piss off and find something else to do. These Olympic games definitely left me a bit sour, especially with the Chinese nonsense (underage athletes, favoritism). It was as if they needed to show how "superior" they were to everyone. I hope one day it will become a bit more "pure" but that doesn't look likely anytime soon. The highlight for me: Jimmy Page at the closing ceremonies! :tup:

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Cute, Cyber. I was just reading this article on how the facilities that were built for the 2004 games are locked up, unavailable and covered in graffiti. As a result the money spent is lost. What kind of crap is that? Why can't they keep these places open so athletes can train? Isn't that the positive side to hosting? They can't get they're s hit together?

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While some of the 2004 Olympic facilities are indeed locked up, I get the impression that most of them are actually in useQ

OAKA complex (Olympic stadium, Olympic sports hall, aquatic center, tennis center, velodrome, etc.): all in use

Peace and Friendship stadium: in use

Hellinikon basketball stadium: in use (Panionios home court)

Faliron coastal zone stadium: in use (I believe it's become a concert space and exhibition hall)

Hellinikon baseball stadium: converted to a football pitch and is in use by Ethnikos

Galatsi indoor stadium: Was in use until recently by AEK in basketball, not sure why they switched back to the OAKA

Olympic Village: converted to apartments and sold

Olympic Media Center: Exhibition space, I believe

All of the football stadiums: still in use

Goudi Olympic complex: became a theater

Nikea Olympic center: convention hall

International Broadcast Center: being converted to retail stores

Markopoulo Equestrian Center: I believe they permanently moved the horse racing here from Faliron, where it was located for years

Not to mention all of the infrastructure improvements which took place in Athens in the years leading up to the Olympics, which the city is benefiting from today....the Attiki Odos, the Metro, the tram, the new airport, etc. So I do feel the positives have far outweighed the negatives, even looking back after 4 years.

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That's what happens when you read the Daily Mail...You only get half the story. Athens leapt into the 21st Century thanks to the 2004 Olympics but the English press keeps on about doom and gloom for London in 2012.

Btw, the Daily Express is even worse!

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Guest TheLegend

what an average opening ceremony but he closing ceremony was even more surprising

ABSOLUTE GARABGE

the only nice part of the closing ceremony was the greeek flag hanging alone

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I have to agree with these posts. Unfortunately. Its become a "win no matter what" ego trip with money and politics and bulls hit. Sporting events like baseball, softball (thankfully being eliminated in 2012) equestrian, ping pong, bmx, shooting, handball,and for gods sake volleyball, do NOT belong in the Olympics.

Volleyball are you kidding me?!!!? in the same category as the rest? seriously? Volleyball is a major worldwide team SPORT. Of course it deserves to be in Olympics. Beach Volleyball....not so much. But, it is a lot of fun at least, and it is a sport. Shooting air pistols and rythmic gymnastics/riding horses over obstacles arent sports. BMX, is just bull. Theres enough cycling events.

Handball too. Its a great sport, and it is atheltic and competitive. You might as well toss out basketball and football then.

The Olympics without the team sports, would be boring. Lets be honest. Have athletes and teams be able to compete. Handball, Basket, Polo, Volley are team sports. They require athleticsm. Olympics shoould only allow SPORTS.

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BMX and Surfing are more of an olympic sport than most as it is won by the fastest competitor, like the running. Events may prove athleticsm and stregnth but if you go on the ancient way then BMX is more olympic than...gymnastics, diving, horse riding (in most cases) all team sports, shooting etc

was it not,

FASTEST

STRONGEST

FARTHEST

that determind a sports "olympic-ness"

anyway who cares, my vote is for poll dancing in 2016!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thats a sure bronze for Greece

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Volleyball are you kidding me?!!!? in the same category as the rest? seriously? Volleyball is a major worldwide team SPORT. Of course it deserves to be in Olympics. Beach Volleyball....not so much. But, it is a lot of fun at least, and it is a sport. Shooting air pistols and rythmic gymnastics/riding horses over obstacles arent sports. BMX, is just bull. Theres enough cycling events.

Handball too. Its a great sport, and it is atheltic and competitive. You might as well toss out basketball and football then.

The Olympics without the team sports, would be boring. Lets be honest. Have athletes and teams be able to compete. Handball, Basket, Polo, Volley are team sports. They require athleticsm. Olympics shoould only allow SPORTS.

The Olympics were conceived by the Greeks to display "Polemikes technes", so how can you justify saying that Equestrian shouldn't be in, but Volleyball should?

I think they both should be in, I'm just saying I don't understand your logic. Rogge wants to ban boxing from the Olympics too. That's stupid! All the Ancient games should be kept in: Equestrian, Archery, Track & Field, Boxing, Wrestling, etc. Shooting is a modern evolution of Archery so that should stay in too... maybe I'm a bit biased though with regards to shooting because Cyprus are so good at it :P

And how dare you undermine beach volley? All those beautiful girls diving around in their bikinis... I refuse to let you take that away from me!

Some of these sports just need a revamp: boxing needs to bring in a new points system because this one is a joke and enables too many "fixes".

The sports that should be eliminated are: BMX racing, baseball & softball, that's it. Keep the rest.

But you know there's a rule which enables the host of the Olympics to propose a new sport? Well rumours in the UK are that the new sport will be Cricket or Rugby! :LOL: That really would kill the Olympics!

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BMX and Surfing are more of an olympic sport than most as it is won by the fastest competitor, like the running. Events may prove athleticsm and stregnth but if you go on the ancient way then BMX is more olympic than...gymnastics, diving, horse riding (in most cases) all team sports, shooting etc

was it not,

FASTEST

STRONGEST

FARTHEST

that determind a sports "olympic-ness"

Don't undermine skill events re file. Athelticism is a celebration of nature, skill events are a celebration of nurture.

anyway who cares, my vote is for poll dancing in 2016!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thats a sure bronze for Greece

And a gold for Russia! :LOL:

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Guys, has anyone seen this ridiculously blatant article by Martin Rogers of Yahoo Sports? It is so ridiculously blatant in its assertions against Greece that it's truly mindblowing.

Here's the article:

http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/news?slug=ro-beijinglegacy082408&prov=yhoo&type=lgns ://http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/ne...yhoo&type=lgns

Beijing trumps Athens … and then some

By Martin Rogers, Yahoo! Sports

Aug 24, 11:29 am EDT

BEIJING – It is the biggest buzz word in Olympic circles, and the promise of it can dramatically sway the bidding process for future Games.

Legacy.

These days, any hopeful city with Olympic aspirations must not only show its ability to provide venues and infrastructure of the highest standard, but also prove there will be a lasting positive effect on the local community.

The 2004 Olympics in Athens showed how to get it embarrassingly and disgracefully wrong. Over the past 16 days, Beijing has shown the world how to get it magnificently right.

Four years since the Athens Games, a Greek tragedy is taking place. Incredibly, 21 out of the 22 Olympic venues now lie abandoned and in various states of ruin.

Gypsy camps have sprung up in the shadow of stadiums where the world

Edited by PurelyAcademic
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I found an excellent response to this article at www.gamesbids.com, where a poster by the name of "Savas" posted this amazing overview of the status of the Olympic facilities in Athens.

It seems to me that a lot of progress is being made. Here is what savas posted, verbatim:

Faliron Olympic Complex:

The Faliron Marina

Has become the National Nautical Centre. Belongs to the Hellenic National Sailing Federation

The Faliron Gymnasium

Has become the International Convention Centre of Athens

The Beach-Volleyball Stadium

Has become an Open-Air Theater for music concerts, art performances and theatralical plays

Faliron Delta and Esplenada

The walking area will be connected with the Faliron Delta where the New National Opera, New National Library and Cultural Centre of Stavros Niarchos will be built by famous architect Piano Renzo

The IBC (International Broadcastin Centre)

Belongs to private Investor Lamda Development and will open this year with the name "Golden Hall" as a Mall. Part of the IBC will be the Athens Olympic Museum

The Olympic Press Centre

Has become the new Office Centre of the Hellenic Ministry of Health and Social Solidarity

The Goudi Equastrian Centre

Has become a multipurpose area for cultural and athletic events and a place for young artist to create culture

The Olympic Badminton Hall

Has become the ultra modern Badminton Theater

The Markopoulo Shooting Centre

Belongs today to the Hellenic Police as the National Training Centre

The Olympic Equastrian Centre of Markopoulo

Belongs today to the Hellenic Equastrian Federation and serves the needs of training and staging equastrian sport events

Schinias Rowing Centre

Is used by the Hellenic Rowing and Canoe-Kayak Federations for training and competition. It is also one of the official training centres of the International Rowing Federation FISA

The Ano Liosion Arena

Has to become the National Digital Archive and Centre of Cultural Academies

Nikea Arena

Is today the Academic Centre of the Pireus University

Pancretian Stadium

Is today the national Stadium of Crete and serves the training needs all proffesional and amatuer athletic clubs

but also for the training and competition of schools.

Patras Stadium (the Panpeloponnisian)

Belongs today to the National Ministry of Athletism. A cooparation between the Ministry and the Municipality of Patras has been signed. The University of Patras is also involved in this cooperation.

Volos Stadium (the Panthessalian)

Is the National Stadium of Magnisia, Volos and Nea Ionia and serves training and competition. It will be the main venue of the Volos 2013 Mediterranean Games for the Opening and Closing Ceremony and athletics.

Galatsi Olympic Centre

Sierra Charagionis S.A. has earned the usage rights for the next 40 years as a Mall.

Agios Kosmas Sailing Centre

Has become a touristic and leisure site. It serves the need of hosting 1000 luxurious yachts. A new romantic walking area at the sea-front has been created with restaurants, plams and benches.

Hellenikon Olympic Complex

The complete site will become the Athens Metropolitan Park until 2012. The park of 783.000 square meters will be europes biggest Metropolitan Park.

The venue of Canoe Kayak Slalom will become the Athens Hydropark. At this moment the venue of Baseball is the home of the Hellenic National Football Team

OAKA

The Athens Olympic Sport Complex existed before the Games. It was renovated by the fantastic Santiago Calatrava. Today it is one the masterpieces of architecture in Olympic history. All venues are in use ni the same frequence as before the Games.

The Athens Olympic Stadium is home of Superleague Panathiniakos and AEK Athens. It hosted the UEFA Champions League Final, and the superb Acropolis Rally of World Rally Championchips. All venues of the OAKA are in use and the Olympic site can be visited by organized tourists groups. In September Madonna will perform in the Athens Olympic Complex in a sold out concert. Bjork had her concert in the Olympic Indoor Hall in July. The Agora and the Wall of Nations hosted this July the Fly Beeyond Festival and the Fashion Walk of Nike. The Velodrome staged the Panhellenic Cyclin Championchips in Juni and the bacardi-b-live party in July.

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This is a fantastic letter P_A. Good to set the record straight. Nice to know there are proud Greeks around to defend the honour of our nationality and our country of origin against such viciousness and hatred. This guy should be suspended, and the Yahoo site should do a better job reviewing things before they go to 'press'.

But then print news is the same anyway. It's just too out of control, and besides they like to stir up controversy in their reckless, take-no-prisoners fashion. Is this guy American? I'd like him to do a post mortem of the tacky, disgusting, profane 1996 Coca-Cola Olympics.

Beijing was cheesy too. The win-at-all-costs attitude was obscene. The 'throw everything you got' opening and closing ceremonies came off as a desperate effort from a country with a big chip on its shoulder.

Greece coolly proved all the naysayers wrong with an ironical twist too (the last-second hammering of a nail to really stick it in to the haters). China hosted an Olympics that only China could (and that only China cared to) host. Is there another country in this world as obsessed with their own image and their own self-styled status of heir to the USA as the #1 nation, who would go through as many hoops (at so much inconvenience and torment to their own citizens) to host an Olympic games? China didn't want to merely host the Olympics, they wanted to obscure all previous hosts.

This is why China has yet to win hearts and minds as they find their place in the world: they always try too damn hard, when really nobody cares that much...

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Bravo guys, good to see some action taken against this pathetic Martin Rogers clown. I'm embarrassed at the fact that I took the article seriously, BUT I did read an edited version of it on the Phantis sports section; why was it even on a Greek news web page to begin with?

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