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Ski jumping
Jan. 25th, 2010 01:20 pmSo in a couple more weeks it is entirely possible that this blog will undergo one of its rare forays into, gasp, sports. Nope, not because of the Superbowl, which, as per long tradition, I will not be watching, but because of the upcoming Winter Olympics.
The Summer Olympics intrigue me because of all the generally obscure sports that I never ever see outside the Summer Olympics and that I can never do or have never done. (I did do a bit of archery, in the sense that I pulled on the bow several times and completely missed the target every time, and shot a rifle once and fell flat on my back, and I have a magnificent record of losing at swim meets, but to put it mildly I was abysmal at gymnastics, volleyball, basketball, tennis and track and field events and my knowledge of horses can be summed up in the following sentence: "Oooh, that horse is pretty." And so on.) So it's like watching an exotic or hated (gymnastics! Volleyball! ) series of sports, in between watching television cameras focus on the men's speedos in the diving competition. Yay! And ping-pong. (The internet and live streaming of the more obscure Olympic events, without the focus on Sports Americans Are Winning made the entire thing considerably more entertaining. Memo to NBC: I cheer on Americans much more loudly if I have the chance to see their competition. Thanks muchly.)
The Winter Olympics thrill me because for the most part (except curling) these are sports that I've participated in or at least tried out once or twice, and was sometimes even decent at (although a couple of tries at luge was enough – that is one terrifying ride). Which means that with the exception of some of the more technical aspects of figure skating (I really can't tell between a salchow and a toe loop and a lutz and whatever – as far as I can tell, the skater just jumps into the air) I know what's going on.
Which is a long introduction to discussing women's ski jumping – one Olympic event that I haven't tried.
And one event that once again, will not be open to women.
In theory, this decision has been made on "technical grounds." The technical grounds are largely dismissed here, but come down to one point: men competitive ski jumpers outnumber women competitive ski jumpers.
But this statement inevitably creates a chicken and the egg issue. Training for most Olympic sports is expensive. At the very least, time spent training is time that cannot be spent at, say, a regular job. Back when I was a varsity swimmer, for instance, I trained for two hours daily – and always, without fail, lost. The winning swimmers trained for at least four hours daily (this includes weight lifting, diving practice, jogging/walking, and sometimes yoga or tai chi). Swim meet days were pretty much useless for anything else; they meant taking a bus and doing warm-ups and cheering on teammates and racing and cheering and then heading back; sure, I always intended to study but it never worked out that way. This was all time that could have been spent on a part time, income earning job, which is why so many college athletes depend upon scholarships – trying to train, study and work isn't impossible, but it's difficult. And, important point, swimming is a comparatively cheap sport. With skiing, you have to add the costs of transportation and equipment. In college, I was never more than a five minute walk or fifteen minute bus ride away from the pool; I was an hour away from the nearest ski slopes, which certainly didn't have competitive ski jumps or freestyle slope training opportunities; really training would have meant a long car ride or airplane ride. Skis, ski boots and snowsuits cost more than swimsuits. Lift tickets usually cost more than pool access. And while it may look easy enough to just crouch and swoop down a competitive ski jump and fly through the air, accomplishing that without risking utter knee destruction requires additional weight training. Your knees won't survive without surrounding muscle and strong ligaments.
Which means that athletes need sponsors. Fair enough, but as the woman in the first article notes, if she hasn't a hope of competing in the Olympics, she can't get a sponsorship. Or, for that matter, a scholarship – these are tied to Olympic or popular sports.
Which is why I have an issue with the "we don't have enough women ski jumpers." My guess is, many potential women ski jumpers have turned to other thrilling ski sports such as downhill and freestyle because there they can get the financial support they need. Turn women's competitive ski jump into an Olympic event, and I'll bet anything you'll find plenty of women who want to compete in it.
The Summer Olympics intrigue me because of all the generally obscure sports that I never ever see outside the Summer Olympics and that I can never do or have never done. (I did do a bit of archery, in the sense that I pulled on the bow several times and completely missed the target every time, and shot a rifle once and fell flat on my back, and I have a magnificent record of losing at swim meets, but to put it mildly I was abysmal at gymnastics, volleyball, basketball, tennis and track and field events and my knowledge of horses can be summed up in the following sentence: "Oooh, that horse is pretty." And so on.) So it's like watching an exotic or hated (gymnastics! Volleyball! ) series of sports, in between watching television cameras focus on the men's speedos in the diving competition. Yay! And ping-pong. (The internet and live streaming of the more obscure Olympic events, without the focus on Sports Americans Are Winning made the entire thing considerably more entertaining. Memo to NBC: I cheer on Americans much more loudly if I have the chance to see their competition. Thanks muchly.)
The Winter Olympics thrill me because for the most part (except curling) these are sports that I've participated in or at least tried out once or twice, and was sometimes even decent at (although a couple of tries at luge was enough – that is one terrifying ride). Which means that with the exception of some of the more technical aspects of figure skating (I really can't tell between a salchow and a toe loop and a lutz and whatever – as far as I can tell, the skater just jumps into the air) I know what's going on.
Which is a long introduction to discussing women's ski jumping – one Olympic event that I haven't tried.
And one event that once again, will not be open to women.
In theory, this decision has been made on "technical grounds." The technical grounds are largely dismissed here, but come down to one point: men competitive ski jumpers outnumber women competitive ski jumpers.
But this statement inevitably creates a chicken and the egg issue. Training for most Olympic sports is expensive. At the very least, time spent training is time that cannot be spent at, say, a regular job. Back when I was a varsity swimmer, for instance, I trained for two hours daily – and always, without fail, lost. The winning swimmers trained for at least four hours daily (this includes weight lifting, diving practice, jogging/walking, and sometimes yoga or tai chi). Swim meet days were pretty much useless for anything else; they meant taking a bus and doing warm-ups and cheering on teammates and racing and cheering and then heading back; sure, I always intended to study but it never worked out that way. This was all time that could have been spent on a part time, income earning job, which is why so many college athletes depend upon scholarships – trying to train, study and work isn't impossible, but it's difficult. And, important point, swimming is a comparatively cheap sport. With skiing, you have to add the costs of transportation and equipment. In college, I was never more than a five minute walk or fifteen minute bus ride away from the pool; I was an hour away from the nearest ski slopes, which certainly didn't have competitive ski jumps or freestyle slope training opportunities; really training would have meant a long car ride or airplane ride. Skis, ski boots and snowsuits cost more than swimsuits. Lift tickets usually cost more than pool access. And while it may look easy enough to just crouch and swoop down a competitive ski jump and fly through the air, accomplishing that without risking utter knee destruction requires additional weight training. Your knees won't survive without surrounding muscle and strong ligaments.
Which means that athletes need sponsors. Fair enough, but as the woman in the first article notes, if she hasn't a hope of competing in the Olympics, she can't get a sponsorship. Or, for that matter, a scholarship – these are tied to Olympic or popular sports.
Which is why I have an issue with the "we don't have enough women ski jumpers." My guess is, many potential women ski jumpers have turned to other thrilling ski sports such as downhill and freestyle because there they can get the financial support they need. Turn women's competitive ski jump into an Olympic event, and I'll bet anything you'll find plenty of women who want to compete in it.
