Tag: 2012 Olympics

Spoiler Alert!

Acutally it’s been on live for a while now and streaming on the web, but I prefer to ‘enjoy’ it in the same manner as my readers, tape delayed.

Which I wouldn’t have minded so much if they’d just published an accurate schedule.

I got to see most of my weird and wacky favorites at least once and caught some of the pivotal moments though I didn’t let it dominate my life.  Title IX really showed its impact at these Olympics making up for some disappointments in areas of traditional strength.

In addition to being more entertaining, the men are grim relentless joyless competitors.

We are once again reminded that most subjective judging is thoroughly corrupt and that amateur umpires and referees make mistakes too often for all of them to be deliberate.  Again we see the demonstrated jingoistic bias and shallow understanding of traditional USA television, but…

Sometimes you get to see something surprising or inspirational or amusing that you’d be disappointed to have missed.  79 Nations got some medal, 50 got at least 1 Gold.

London 2012: A Gold Medal, or An Also-Ran?

The International Herald Tribune

August 12, 2012

There was anonymity. A U.S. shooter, Kimberly Rhode, 33, won her fifth medal at her fifth straight Olympics. No American has ever done that in an individual event, but almost nobody noticed. Her gun was stolen from her car after the 2008 Olympics, then she had a breast cancer scare. Is she on for 2016? You bet.

…

There were breakthroughs. Oscar Pistorius ran on prosthetic legs and Caster Semenya won the silver medal in the women’s 800 meters. And the Earth continued to spin on its axis. Women boxed for the first time. Three holdout nations – Qatar, Brunei and Saudi Arabia – finally gave up their gender apartheid in sports and allowed women to compete.

…

“The I.O.C. is making a huge fuss about her being here – their spin is that Olympic sports are opening the door for women, especially Arabic women. Which is kind of a joke,” the observer said. “I think these girls are being propped up by the I.O.C. as their token Islamic female participants.”

I’d really rather skip the Superbowl Spectaculars in favor of rewatching my dvred Bissel Kitty Halftime shows, but they’re not going to be talking about that at the coffee machine tomorrow.

Rule Britannia: Olympic closing ceremony explained

By JILL LAWLESS, Associated Press

22 minutes ago

Organizers say the ceremony will be a celebration of British music “from Elgar to Adele.” Many viewers will have heard of Adele, the big-voiced singer who won six Grammys with her album “21.” Edward Elgar was the composer of the “Pomp and Circumstance” marches and the “Enigma Variations.” His composition “Nimrod,” regarded as quintessentially English, was played at the opening ceremony of the London Games – one of several elements linking the first night of the Olympics with the last.

From there, the ceremony explodes in a kaleidoscope of musicians and eras – from 1960s Mods with The Who, to the 1990s “girl power” of the Spice Girls.

…

British humor has a big role in the closing ceremony, with an appearance by Eric Idle of iconoclastic comedy troupe Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Expect surreal visual juxtapositions as he sings “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” the jaunty but sardonic ditty from the film “Monty Python’s Life of Brian.”

London Olympics: Preview of closing ceremony

By Lisa Dillman, Los Angeles Times

August 12, 2012

Like the opening ceremony, much of what will happen is being kept under wraps. But a few details have trickled out, and some interesting people have been spotted around town, so we can make a few educated guesses.

How else can you explain the rumored appearance of Muse and One Direction?

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Annie Lennox, Kate Bush and Kaiser Chiefs, if they appear, could help the gala nudge into bronze-medal territory, up from the DNF zone.

…

Exact details are kept secret, but expected to perform are Adele, George Michael, the Who, Muse, Spice Girls, Pet Shop Boys, Annie Lennox and Fatboy Slim. No word yet if Sir Elton will be there.

There was one act I heard they were unable to book-

More Spoilers.

We close our final day of competition with the Men’s Volleyball Final.  We’ll be having a separate piece on the Closing Ceremony tonight.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

Well, I’m almost sure you’re not up to watch Taekwondo.

C’mon, sing along.  You know you want to.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Last  Day of competition starts at 6 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

Olympic losers – the misery of past hosts

Lee Wellings, Al Jazeera

August 6, 2012

The most senior Australian member of the International Olympic Committee, former Olympian Kevin Gosper has said the failure to win gold medals results from cuts to government funding of Olympic sports in 2009.

‘You’ve got to put money in there. That pays for coaches, it pays for international competition. It’s the difference between gold and silver.’

But Australia are not the only nation suffering funding cuts in these austere times.

Spain’s Olympics so far has been grim – 39th in the medal table at the time of writing. I’ve seen and spoken to Spanish supporters in the Olympic Park and spirits remain high amongst people whose football team dominate the world.

At these Olympics their football team was eliminated without scoring a goal – summing up their first 10 days at the Games where no golds and just three medals came their way.

…

Which brings us to Greece. Hosts eight years ago they have just two bronzes to show for their efforts so far and are out of the top 50 in the medals table. They brought a team weakened to just over 100 members by the crippling economic problems and their modest performances are completely unsurprising.

So bad were their finances after the Athens games that the IOC have had to acknowledge the part of the Olympics in their demise. They told me the problems in Greece are less than two per cent because of them hosting. Less than two per cent of Greece’s debt amounts to a big problem.

…

Greece, Spain, Australia. Three of the last five Olympic hosts with one gold between them.

It’s a warning to governments in any host nation from Britain to Brazil.

The Elusive Economic Lift of the Olympics

By JOSHUA MILLS, The New York Times

August 10, 2012

Playing host to the Olympics rarely turns out to be an economic benefit for a country or city, and sports economists have convincingly documented how silly the expectations sometimes are, as Nick Watanabe of the University of Missouri did with regard to the London Games (“Yeah, so if we don’t include costs, there is a profit”).

Part of the faulty calculation is a disposition to focus on revenue and ignore many of the costs – particularly the indirect ones, needed to address increases in traffic and thus pollution; crime, littering and so on.

…

When the Bloomberg administration was pushing hard for New York City to get the 2012 Games, it insisted that a new Olympic stadium would need to be built on Manhattan’s West Side – despite the presence in the metro area of three major stadiums. It also wanted to build a multimillion-dollar equestrian arena on Staten Island (which would be used for what after the Olympics?) despite the presence of Belmont and three other horse-racing tracks.

…

Chicago, with the enthusiastic support of Barack Obama, pushed for the 2016 Olympics, and its officials said a new Olympic stadium was needed, despite two major-league baseball stadiums and Soldier Field, a football stadium (home of the Chicago Bears) that was recently renovated.

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Another piece of the faulty calculation of Olympic benefits is they often fail to acknowledge the displacement of other economic activity. The Greek government and Greek businesses invested billions of dollars to hold the 2004 Games – and while they drew full houses, tourism in Greece was down for the year, because so many people stayed away and many promised improvements were never made (though Athens did gain a much-needed subway system).

…

In effect, rather than creating new economic activity, spending is shifted from one segment to another. Sports economists have been documenting this for decades.

And that’s to say nothing of the cost overruns that come with almost every major construction project and the upkeep needed in subsequent years to keep athletics facilities clean, safe and functional. Sydney is spending millions each year. The wonderful velodrome built in London will undoubtedly be used by cyclists – but how many and how often and at what cost?

…

As public schools are increasing class sizes and dropping music and arts programs, firehouses are being closed and infrastructure is failing, how does being the host of the Olympic Games makes economic sense?

Gold in Women’s Water Polo and Football, UConn gets a scare.

Women power U.S. Olympic team

Aubrey Cohen, Seattle Post Intelligencer

August 9, 2012

U.S. victories Thursday in the women’s soccer and water polo finals followed a notable trend at this year’s Summer Olympics: American women are winning most of the country’s medals.

American women have hauled in more than one-third more medals than U.S. men, including twice as many gold medals. And that’s despite the fact that 10 percent fewer women’s medals have been awarded so far.

My memories of Flint are as a fairly substantial urban center with lots of Arenas and Halls put up by the Manufacturers and Unions and a ring of Factories (all GM).  Some dense housing but mostly 1 story brick ranches with barely a basement for storms.  Now of course Rabbits for Pets or Meat post-apocalyptic Road Warrior.  It is also flat, dry, and dusty.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 8 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

C’mon, sing along.  You know you want to.

They still have one game to play, but today we’ll be saying goodbye to Women’s Football and Women’s Water Polo where the ladies have Gold Medal prospects.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at a am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

Well the Olympics is winding down to Closing Ceremonies on Sunday which you can tell from the length and breadth of the coverage.  I wonder if we’ll have another unlisted Greco-Roman Final Monday and if so will anyone notice?

Yesterday I watched two really extraordinary contests and if they both happened to involve the USA team I must admit I’m not immune to the kind of jingoistic nationalism that pervades the Olympics (and international sporting in general, let’s talk Formula One).  However it’s also my philosophy that sports are more understandable and enjoyable if you have a rooting interest in the result.  Thus my scramble around Series time to find the team I hate least, goodness knows I’ll never see my Mets on that field but I’m not above picking based on cute mascots and jersey color.

And in my defense they are both distaff teams.  Men’s Basketball doesn’t need my help, their heads can fill a stadium.

In Water Polo the women advance after double overtime (it’s always a double overtime).  They scored 2 in the first overtime that went unanswered but the critical moment was a literal last second time out (which was idiotic and they didn’t need) called by USA and without clear possession.  The resulting penalty shot tied the game.

It’s the first time the USA Women’s Water Polo team will be in the finals in ages.

In Basketball it was Lady Huskies 2000 as Geno and the UConn All-Stars doubled down on Team Canada.  I’d pay good money to see them play the men, bet they’d kick their ass.

Back to the Women’s Football ‘victory’.  Canada is very depressed.  The game was sent into overtime on a penalty kick from a 6 second goalie holding violation.  Well, Team USA had been holding all day and it was never called.  Of course it’s Canada that’s being investigated for letting this slip to the public.

Finally from the halls of bad officiating.  It seems that despite getting his loss over turned, Spence fails to advance and the USA is sent home medal less for the first time ever.  Women’s team has two guaranteed.

Team USA Dressage was only able to muster a 6th place finish yesterday and Rafalca’s performance wasn’t good enough to qualify for individual competition.  This means they can strap her to the roof of the Gulfstream and have her back for the announcement of Consul any time.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 8 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

The talk of the town is the Women’s Football Team.  Now many of you know I consider Soccer confusing, low scoring, and slooooooooooooooooooooooooooo…ooooooooooooooooooooow.

Yesterday’s match, which I had the good fortune to catch from about 60 minutes in, was anything but.

4 Goals in 10 minutes!  Last minute score sends it to overtime tied with a 30 second remaining victory!

Almost as exciting as Baseball.

It’s been mighty confusing to see everything I really wanted to (NBC reschedules with no notice, I do the best I can) yet I must say that catching glimpses of the unique events like Fencing and Whitewater Kayaking makes me wish that there was a channel like the old ESPN which would show odd stuff like Lacross and Field Hockey.

Now things like Motor Sports and Shooting have several channels and I’d think narrowcasting the non major sports would find a market.

But then I like Rugby and Darts.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 6 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

More Competitive Armchair Olympics

Produced by CHRISTOPH NIEMANN and JON HUANG, The New York Times

• Lost
• Super Hit
• Go Britain
• Olympic Record

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 6 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

I saw these while looking for some offbeat coverage-

Competitive Armchair Olympics

Produced by CHRISTOPH NIEMANN and JON HUANG, The New York Times

• Twiddler
• Leaving for London
• The Underground
• Modern Triathalon
• Self-Defeating Badminton
• Flipper
• Road Kill
• One on One
• Sundowner

Today is looking like a rather light day in terms of variety.  Lots of medals being handed out, which means lots of sports we will no longer see, Swimming and Rowing for instance.  No more Tennis or Greco-Roman Wrestling or Badminton after today either

We have Women’s Boxing for the first time.  USA is expected to dominate, but that did the men no good.  I’ll probably watch some of the Water Polo and Handball while it’s still around.  The Equestrian feature is Team Jumping.  Rafalca won’t finish competing until Thursday (people ask).

My schedules are carefully transcribed but often do not match the broadcast.  I blame NBC.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 6 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

Williams Coasts to Gold, and a Career Golden Slam

By CHRISTOPHER CLAREY, The New York Times

Published: August 4, 2012

She became only the second woman to complete a career Golden Slam – a gold medal, plus wins in all four Grand Slam tournaments. The feat was first achieved by Steffi Graf in 1988 after she swept all four major titles that year. Williams can add the gold medal to her 14 Grand Slam singles championships, the most of any active woman.

…

She and Venus Williams won their doubles semifinal later in the day over Maria Kirilenko and Nadia Petrova of Russia and will face Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic in Sunday’s doubles final.

‘Blade Runner’ Oscar Pistorius has an edge, all right – his spirit

By Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times

August 4, 2012, 4:30 p.m.

Of course, it will continue to spark the most amazing of debates, springing from the power he seems to derive from his prosthetics. Does a runner with no legs actually have an advantage over a runner with two legs? Pistorius is no threat for a medal here, but some worry these legs are walking the sport into a tricky tug of science over skill.

Five years ago, studies conducted by track’s international governing body showed Pistorius expended less energy than an able-bodied runner and banned him from official competitions. He responded by remaining in the Paralympics, where he won titles and still competes today. However, a year later, that decision was overruled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and Pistorius was given another chance. When he met the Olympic standard qualifying time this year, South Africa added him to the team, much to the dismay of some.

New Zealand Field Hockey Eliminates U.S.

By LAWRIE MIFFLIN, The New York Times

August 4, 2012, 1:30 pm

The Americans had had high hopes of at least contending for a medal here, based on an improving offense, a notably rugged defense and one of the world’s best goalkeepers in Amy Tran-Swensen.

Oddly for this squad, it was defense that let it down, as New Zealand scored all of its goals from penalty corners. Of course, credit where credit’s due: the New Zealanders created all those corners in the first place, with skillful attack play that too often left American defenders kicking or stumbling on the ball.

Signs of encouragement for the Americans came in the way they improved their own attack, scoring two goals, and the way they kept up with the fleet New Zealanders, especially Anita Punt, and kept them from breaking away too often. Katie O’Donnell scored from open play for the United States, and the defender Claire Laubach scored on a penalty corner.

London Olympics: Changes coming as boxing endures another scandal

By Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times

August 5, 2012

Go down five times in one round in professional boxing and your fight will be stopped. Go down five times in one round in the Olympics, and you go on to the quarterfinals.

…

(B)oxing, once among the most popular and exciting of Olympic sports, has once again become mired in a controversy over scoring. The Shimizu decision was eventually overturned, with the Japanese fighter being reinstated and Ishanguly Meretnyyazov of Turkmenistan, who refereed the bout, being sent home.

A similar fate could await Denmark’s Lars Brovil, who refereed the bout U.S. welterweight Errol Spence was ruled to have lost Friday. After reviewing tape of the fight, officials with the AIBA, amateur boxing’s international governing body, overturned that decision too, ruling that Brovil failed to acknowledge eight holding fouls by Spence’s opponent, India’s Krishan Vikas, in the final round alone.

Koreans declare ping pong cordiale in London 2012 round of wiff-waff war

Marina Hyde, The Guardian

Saturday 4 August 2012

Of course, like every parlour game from tiddlywinks to consequences, table tennis always feels marginally more aggressive than bare-knuckle fighting, particularly if played with friends or relatives at Christmas. Banned substances include human growth hormone and Irish cream liqueur.

But when North Korea and South Korea are thrashing it out between the unforgiving lights of the ExCel, even a home counties family row can look amicable. I didn’t fork out a tenner for the headset providing expert commentary for any bemused spectators. But I’d like to think the ping-pong equivalent of Mark Lawrenson was glossing it with observations like: “Yeah, there’s a little bit of niggle here …”

…

Still, for all the ping pong cordiale, it wouldn’t do to totally downplay the Olympics’ association with overt and covert international strife. Do recall that the North Korean military rocket launched back in April to commemorate the birth of Kim Il-sung was blown up mid-air, with suggestions being that the humiliation was the work of a virus spawned by the United States cyberwarfare programme. The codename of that programme? Why, “Olympic Games”, of course.

London 2012: Kim Collins axed from 100m by St Kitts for meeting wife

Owen Gibson, The Guardian

Saturday 4 August 2012

Lane four stood empty during the final heat of the men’s 100m in the Olympic Stadium on Saturday after the former world champion Kim Collins was dropped by St Kitts and Nevis for spending the night in a hotel with his wife.

…

Earlier Collins had posted a message on Twitter, reading: “My fans. I won’t lie. Won’t be running later tonight.” Another message read: “Even men in prison get their wives to visit.”

The 2003 100m world champion, who is 36, carried his country’s flag at the Olympic opening ceremony just over a week ago. In detailing his punishment the team statement described him as “a national hero”.

And they say romance is dead.

A Valued Adjunct to the U.S. Sailing Team

By BARRY BEARAK, The New York Times

Published: August 4, 2012

Doug Charko is the meteorologist for the United States sailing team, which is no easy job here on the rainy and sunny, cloudy and clear, windy and still southwest coast of England.

…

In one of his forecasts for the sailing team, he said the port could “serve up a dog’s breakfast” of swirling wind “with big shifts and deep holes.” By that, he meant it was a good idea to expect anything and everything.

“Days like these, with the winds so variable, kind of take the pressure off me,” he said, letting a smile be his umbrella on an intermittently rainy day. “Instead of aiming with a dart, I’m firing a shotgun.”

The sailing team has 16 athletes, 9 coaches, 3 physiotherapists, a psychologist, a rules expert and Charko. In the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, he worked for the Brazilians. In 2008, the Canadians. Meteorologists are now a standard part of the world’s better sailing teams.

Today is the ‘scandal ridden’ Badminton Women’s Doubles Final, 1:30 pm on MSNBC.

Broadcast Schedule

All this is sourced through the NBC Olympics broadcast schedule.  Competition starts again at 6 am tomorrow.  

Competitions designated by (Medal) will award winners that day.  ‘all’ means not specified.  Sometimes NBC especially does mashups and doesn’t include event or competitor information.  Elimination means no round robin, one and done.

These schedules are a place for you to make sure you don’t miss a sport you like and share your observations.  Have fun today!

Saudi woman is first to compete in Olympics

By Liz Clarke, Washington Post

Published: August 3

Clad in a white judo uniform and snug, black headcovering, 16-year-old Wojdan Shaherkani stepped onto a judo mat here Friday to enthusiastic applause after being introduced as “the first woman ever from Saudi Arabia!”

Eighty-two seconds into her competition, Shaherkani’s Olympics ended in defeat; the repercussions of her participation may be far more wide-reaching. As the first Saudi Arabian woman to compete in an Olympic Games in any sport, she has been vilified by some and quietly cheered by others in her country.

…

Shaherkani’s participation in London, along with that of fellow Saudi Sarah Attar, a U.S.-based runner who’ll compete in the 800 meters next week, has been hailed as a diplomatic coup by the International Olympic Committee, which pressed all competing nations to include at least one woman on their teams.

The three that had historically refused – Saudi Arabia, Brunei and Qatar – relented.

Track athletes enjoy some fast times at London Olympics

By Helene Elliott, Los Angeles Times

August 3, 2012, 5:45 p.m.

When Britain’s Jessica Ennis set an Olympic heptathlon hurdles record Friday morning, she also set the pace for the opening day of track and field competition.

…

In distances short and long, with hurdles to conquer or nothing between them and the finish line but raindrops, athletes covered ground in astonishingly fast times Friday. “It felt nice,” Cheruiyot said of conditions in the stadium. “The wind was very quiet. I enjoyed it.”

…

“It’s a very fast track. I love it. I loved the crowd,” said Kerron Clement, whose season-best 48.48 in the first round of the 400 hurdles led all three Americans into Saturday’s semifinals. “The crowd’s great on the first day. I’m pretty impressed by that.”

With an overturned result, US men’s boxing avoids total elimination from Olympics

By Associated Press

Published: August 3

A few hours after the U.S. men’s boxing team thought its London Olympics were over, amateur boxing’s governing body decided Errol Spence deserved to fight on.

The AIBA overturned Spence’s loss to Indian welterweight Krishan Vikas late Friday night, five hours after the defense-minded Vikas had apparently clutched and grabbed his way to a 13-11 victory.

After the American team protested the result, AIBA’s competition jury reviewed the bout and ruled Vikas had committed nine holding fouls in the third round alone. He also intentionally spat out his mouthpiece in the second round, which should have resulted in at least four points of deductions.

…

Spence felt he had won the bout afterward, expecting his hand to be raised in the ring, but wasn’t terribly surprised when Vikas got the nod. The welterweight from Dallas already was the last U.S. man standing after his eight male teammates lost in the previous five days, including three-time Olympian Rau’shee Warren’s 19-18 loss to France’s Nordine Oubaali an hour earlier.

Spence stopped the eight-fight skid, but must beat Zamkovoy to save the most successful country in Olympic boxing history from its first medal shutout and its worst showing at any games – although three U.S. fighters are in the first Olympic women’s boxing tournament, which begins Sunday.

Olympic Viewing: NBC’s Poorly Timed Commercial

By DAVID BAUDER AP Television Writer

August 3, 2012

NBC says no offense was intended by a poorly timed promotional ad featuring a monkey on gymnastics rings that aired on the network directly following a commentary by Bob Costas on Gabby Douglas’ gold medal inspiring other African-American girls to take up the sport.

The gymnastics-themed ad for the upcoming NBC comedy “Animal Practice” was specifically timed to run late Thursday night following the women’s gold medal competition. NBC said it was scheduled to run before the network knew about Costas’ commentary.

“Much of America has fallen in love with Gabby Douglas,” Costas said. “Also safe to say that there are some young African-American girls out there who tonight are saying to themselves, ‘Hey, I’d like to try that, too.'”

Then NBC switched to the commercial with the small, widely grinning monkey on the rings. Blacks in the past have been disparagingly referred to as monkeys to the point where it is considered a common slur.