London 2012 Paralympic Competition

I'm half watching it as I'm at work, but one thing that struck me is in the swimming, some of them seem to have able legs. Don't they have an advantage over the people who don't? One of them just launched himself with his legs off the wall, while the others have no thrust or push from the start. Not watching it all I haven't seen if it's balanced in other ways or not.
 
Zarlak said:
I'm half watching it as I'm at work, but one thing that struck me is in the swimming, some of them seem to have able legs. Don't they have an advantage over the people who don't? One of them just launched himself with his legs off the wall, while the others have no thrust or push from the start. Not watching it all I haven't seen if it's balanced in other ways or not.
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They are all meant to be of the same ability in each class, they have a scale system called LEXI and it its meant to make sure that they all have the same chance.
 
Fair enough. I just saw them get to the other end as well and one could do that maneuvre where you spin and push off the wall with your legs, whilst some others couldn't. It strikes me as a huge advantage. You travel a fair distance without having to do anything.
 
Zarlak said:
Fair enough. I just saw them get to the other end as well and one could do that maneuvre where you spin and push off the wall with your legs, whilst some others couldn't. It strikes me as a huge advantage. You travel a fair distance without having to do anything.
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I did think the same has you , how can somebody with no arms swim against somebody with arms.
Thats why there is some many Finals, if you look at the 100m there is 38 Finals for all the different classes.
 
Getting into this now - the football this morning was intriguing, and now watching track and field. The women amputee sprinters are not much slower than 'able bodied'
 
Did anyone see the Chinese lady winning the 100m backstroke with no arms? I can't imagine how hard it must be to train your body to do what she did.
 
That Jody Cundy came across as a bit of a prick didn't he.

Instead, his shot at a sixth Paralympic title ended in a corridor beneath the boards, railing against judges who disqualified him in the most dramatic of circumstances.

As meltdowns go it was worthy of the biggest stage, and proof that for all the sentiment they have attracted, these Paralympians possess the fiercest competitive spirit.

With a shower of expletives Cundy, who lost his left leg when he was three, shook the 2012 Games out of their sugar-coated start and into the realm of fierce sporting controversy.

The world-record holder in the 1km time trial C4 class and six-years unbeaten, he was last to ride in his favourite event, knowing that a repetition of his best form would be good enough to beat Spaniard Alfonso Cabello’s time of 1min 05.947sec. His attempt lasted just five yards.

As the starting clock beeped down, he launched himself from the gate but suffered a huge wheelspin on his rear wheel. He immediately raised his arm to signal a restart, believing that the gas canister that opens the starting gate had failed to release his rear wheel fully.
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After an increasingly tense delay it became clear that the judges did not share his opinion. From the corner of his eye Cundy could see the timing clock was still running, and then the letters 'DNF’ appeared beside his name. Did not finish. The words triggered a spectacular loss of composure.

The velodrome commissaires have already proved the nemesis of one British favourite this summer, twice ruling against Victoria Pendelton, but the golden girl of Team GB never responded like this.

With boos ringing out and his coaches arguing in vain for the judges to review television footage, Cundy roared at the judges and attempted to reach them. “I’ve just wasted four f****** years of my f****** life,” he screamed, before being manhandled away by his mechanic.

He was bundled into a room beneath the stadium where, with the medals for his competitors, including silver for Briton Jon-Allen Butterworth, being prepared around him, he vented his anger against a decision that ended four year’s work.

“I fell out of the gate because the ------- gate didn’t open. Yet here I am, I can’t ride. Everybody else gets the f****** re-ride. If I’d known, we wouldn’t be in this f****** situation.

“Do you know what it’s like to dedicate four years of your life to doing a 1min 03sec and destroying everyone, and then never having the opportunity to do it? In front of a 6,000 home crowd. I’ll never get this opportunity ever, ever, ever again. Never.

“I just watched a load of people who I can beat by quite a considerable margin, I am in the shape of my life and I am not allowed to do it. When they hand out the medals it is over. It’s a joke.”

Shortly afterwards the medals were handed out, with the judges unrepentant at a decision that again exposed the ambiguity around the start rules in track cycling.

The judges refused a request to look at replays, saying that TV footage was inadmissible as evidence, despite it having been used to overturn a Pendelton victory in the first leg of her sprint final against Australian Anna Meares.

According to a statement from Canadian judge Louis Barbeau only a recognised “mishap” — a puncture, a fall or the “breakage of an essential part of the bicycle” — justifies a re-start.

Ultimately however decisions are down to individual commissaires, and in the morning session on Friday several cyclists, including Briton Laura Turnham, were granted re-starts after similar incidents.

At the Olympics Philip Hindes took advantage of the ambiguity, deliberately falling from his bike after fluffing his start in the team sprint heats before going on to win gold with Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny.

Cundy, who is appearing in his fifth Paralympics and won three gold medals as a swimmer before switching to cycling, got no such indulgence.

After he had calmed down, helped by girlfriend Christina Kelkel and British Cycling team psychologist Steve Peters, and issued a public apology for his language to the velodrome crowd and the UCI officials, Cundy again disputed the decision.

“I have started so many times in training, and only once in a blue moon that happens, purely because you are not focused or switched on.

“I have never been that focused than I was then. I was just concentrating on the beeps coming down to one, and then it was my moment to shine. But I only got five yards.”

His father, Alan, was more suspicious. “It is the only way the UCI have got of stopping him,” he said while the disappointment was still raw.

His son, who rides in the individual pursuit on Saturday, was eventually more circumspect. “It feels like someone has died, but they haven’t, it is just a bike race.”

Whatever the result today Cundy has already passed one test. He will be embarrassed by his conduct for some time, but if the measure of an elite athlete is how much defeat hurts, there is no question he belongs.

What the official said

"To have a restart you have to have had a recognised mishap: either a puncture, a fall or the breakage of an essential part of the bicycle. There was nothing wrong with the gate."
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Footballers eh?
 
I have just watched Richard Whitehead running and OMG what speed he has.
His start was so slow I thought he would have no chance and bang, it was like he had a rocket on his back.
He looks very strange running but OMG he is fast
 
Have been really busy at work this work so haven't really been able to watch any events yet. Hopefully going to take in a fair few events this weekend though, and I'm going to the park on Tuesday for the first time, so looking forward to that.

How have we been doing? I've seen we've picked up a few golds, are we on course so far? Or are the fears about other teams having strengthened proved themselves to be true?
 
Agent Red said:
Have been really busy at work this work so haven't really been able to watch any events yet. Hopefully going to take in a fair few events this weekend though, and I'm going to the park on Tuesday for the first time, so looking forward to that.

How have we been doing? I've seen we've picked up a few golds, are we on course so far? Or are the fears about other teams having strengthened proved themselves to be true?
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we are 4th in the medal table so far, dont think we will get more than 2008, looks like quite a few teams are stronger than we thought
 
pauldyson1uk said:
Ellie Simmons is one fantastic swimmer.
The crowd at there games seem much louder than the able-bodied games and enjoying it more.
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I'm not sure if that's true in general, I thought the velodrome and athletics seemed a bit quieter. Aquatics maybe, probably because there are more British swimmers and they're getting more medals than their Olympic counterparts!

The vibe has been great at all events, but I think it will be hard to recapture some of those Olympic moments e.g. Farah's races
 
I watch brazil vs Gb earlier, ronaldo scored a goal done very little celebration and his own team mate just ran straight through him and headbutted him in the chin. Funniest thin ive seen for a long time
 
Agent Red said:
I'm not sure if that's true in general, I thought the velodrome and athletics seemed a bit quieter. Aquatics maybe, probably because there are more British swimmers and they're getting more medals than their Olympic counterparts!

The vibe has been great at all events, but I think it will be hard to recapture some of those Olympic moments e.g. Farah's races
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Aquatics crowd are really getting in to in ,I also thought that in the cycling too, but I do agree nothing can compare to that Saturday in the main games
 
pauldyson1uk said:
watching the swimming and some of them are just amazing , how some of them swim with no arms.
They would beat me out of sight
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Or half their legs!

Amazing people on the planet earth. I salute them... all of them not just the medallists.
 
Zarlak said:
I'm half watching it as I'm at work, but one thing that struck me is in the swimming, some of them seem to have able legs. Don't they have an advantage over the people who don't? One of them just launched himself with his legs off the wall, while the others have no thrust or push from the start. Not watching it all I haven't seen if it's balanced in other ways or not.
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You have to read the background of their respective disabilities. Some of them were born with no bones in their feet!
 
Zarlak said:
Fair enough. I just saw them get to the other end as well and one could do that maneuvre where you spin and push off the wall with your legs, whilst some others couldn't. It strikes me as a huge advantage. You travel a fair distance without having to do anything.
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I hear what you said, but it seems they do have other "disability" to make up for that... Those who have no arms (no forearms at least) have a huge disadvantage but they must have very strong legs, and it applies to those vice versa I guess.
 
lynchie said:
Did anyone see the Chinese lady winning the 100m backstroke with no arms? I can't imagine how hard it must be to train your body to do what she did.
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And also the China guy who swam to a bronze who has no left arm and only has half of his right arm. Incredible people, incredible athletes.
 
Starkie_1 said:
Not sure how he comes across as a prick at all? :confused:
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By Completely disrespecting all his opponents. He had no reason to say that, came across as an arrogant twat IMO.
 
I think the Paralympics have been great so far. We shouldn't really compare it with the Olympics. That's a whole different level due to all the well known and world class atheletes. These people deserve their moment for all the challenges they have to overcome in life though. In it's own right I don't think the Paralympics have ever had this much exposure before.

I've been impressed by Channel 4's TV/online coverage as well. They've really made an effort. Unfortunately for US viewers, NBC are up to their old tricks again. This really is quite disgraceful from such a major broadcaster. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...emony-live-broadcasting-half-hours-Games.html

pauldyson1uk said:
Think everybody is waiting for Oscar to run tonight
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That was some run. He really is the Blade Runner.
 
Raven Blade said:
I think the Paralympics have been great so far. We shouldn't really compare it with the Olympics. That's a whole different level due to all the well known and world class atheletes. These people deserve their moment for all the challenges they have to overcome in life though. In it's own right I don't think the Paralympics have ever had this much exposure before.

I've been impressed by Channel 4's TV/online coverage as well. They've really made an effort. Unfortunately for US viewers, NBC are up to their old tricks again. This really is quite disgraceful from such a major broadcaster. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...emony-live-broadcasting-half-hours-Games.html


That was some run. He really is the Blade Runner.
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Managed to miss it and I so wanted to see him, will check out 4od later.

I am also impressed by C4, they are doing an excellent job.
I like the way they are describing all the classes and how it affects the athletes
 
pauldyson1uk said:
Aquatics crowd are really getting in to in ,I also thought that in the cycling too, but I do agree nothing can compare to that Saturday in the main games
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The Aquatics crowd is amazing. I was among them at the Olympics and Becky's name was chanted the loudest and I almost lost my voice from that evening. Phelps also got some very deafening cheers from almost every nation in the spectators. :)
 
pauldyson1uk said:
I have just watched Richard Whitehead running and OMG what speed he has.
His start was so slow I thought he would have no chance and bang, it was like he had a rocket on his back.
He looks very strange running but OMG he is fast
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