Waste your time and watch the Olympics

If you are one of those enthusiasts that could not switch off the television after hours of live coverage of the Olympic Games because the women's archery quarterfinals were stilll to come, then you were probably speechless when your friends could NOT tell you who had won the silver medal in the men's point race on the cycling track.

Photo: Lena Wenz www.youthphotos.eu

The early bird catches the worm

The Olympics are a typically ambiguous broadcasting event, with a minority of hardcore fans that gets up at four in the morning to watch the women's 100m Freestyle heats and another group who only become aware of the Olympics on the day of the closing ceremony. Given that the Olympic Games do not attract that big a crowd any more, is it possible that we have reached saturation point when we are offered 300 hours of coverage by broadcasters. Are spectators fed up with all the hype that is made of gold, silver and bronze?

What is the prize for the two weeks of satisfaction the television spectator gets while looking at the medal table? Not only was he put on a tough schedule being offered coverage from 3:00 in the morning until 18:00, pressurising friends, family and co-workers all day long to show some interest in the upcoming women's 58 kg weightlifing qualification round. Worst he had to avoid being observed while sitting in office with four colleagues and trying everything not to miss the livestream broadcast of the men's horizontal bar final. (Just for the record, I managed to see it without anyone noticing it!)

But worse still, in a time when even amateur sports such as rowing have become so challenging that to even have a chance of compete in the Olympics let alone winning a medal requires years of intense dedication and hard practice, the excessive use of resources in pursuit of momentary glory is questionnable. Young gifted men and women undertake hours of hard pracitse and cut back on time which could be dedicated to their schooling with only one goal in mind: appearing on the Eurosport broadcast to win that one damn medal for the nation. The societal reward: warm words by the mayor of your home town, an appearance on the late-night programme of a regional broadcaster and an invitation to a talk in a local shopping centre. Two weeks later nothing remains but a short note in the Olympic record books, and for those who finish in forth place, there is not event a footnote.

Photo: Moschner Sarah www.youthphotos.eu

The winner takes it all

Whenever the Olympic Games are used either to entertain the nation or as a source of national pride, the massive use of resources is at least questionable. In a time when news stories have a lifespan of 2-3days, the media coverage fails to honour the personal dedication, the aesthetic beauty of the athletic competition and the true unifying character of the Olympic Games. Just watching ten hours a day of Olympic competitions is not enough to distil the original character of the Olympic spirit.

But hey, one question is still open: the silver medal in the men's point race on the cycling track was won by twenty-two-year-old Roger Kluge of Germany. And I can tell you, seeing him on the track was awesome and definitely memorable, full stop.