These recaps have been so much fun, just like these Olympics overall. I have to hand it to the French, they pulled off this event with tremendous enthusiasm and joy.
Rodger, could we get a top 5 or 10 ranking of best moments from you? Mine would include Ilona Maher's Derrick Henry moment, Sifan Hassan winning medals in three separate events, Teddy Riner's overall awesomeness, US women's rugby's bronze medal winning try, Steph Curry's four consecutive three-pointers, and French handball blowing the game against Germany.
Bottom moment would be Canada's drone scandal, which didn't get nearly enough attention. Although, with some distance from the moment, it seems kind of hilarious now.
Here, here on the accolades, tremendous coverage. Glad I can help support you. I keep thinking what events would like I like to see in 2028 in person and am decided: handball, rugby and track.
My favorite moments I watched were the literal shoutout between the two American shotguns folks, the Quincy Hall 400m comeback from 4th place with a hurt leg, Mondo's world record and also that Denmark handball beatdown. I'm sad I didn't get to watch more indoor track cycling but I did watch whatever they call synchronized swimming for the first time and that was pretty awesome--but seems like way better on TV than in person with the great underwater cameras.
Hasan is incredible--she had to run the 5K twice since she had to qualify for the finals.
I’ve always loved the Olympics and these games felt special. I couldn’t tell if it was because there actually were more iconic moments happening than usual, more GOATs in signature events, or if it was because NBC finally figured out how to utilize technology to facilitate a truly immersive experience.
In the end I think both are true, and also to echo the sentiment that Paris is a magical place and the French nailed the entire process.
It obviously helped enormously that they already had the infrastructure in place to support the endeavor. I honestly think they need to just start rotating the games through the same half dozen or so locations instead of periodically bankrupting a new country. Who would complain if Paris hosted again in 20 years (except the Parisians of course)?
Thank for the all of your efforts! Truly enjoyed them and your enthusiasm for the games.
It is not a straight comparison (competition wise) to Hassan’s feat but at the Disney marathon at Magic Kingdom every January they have a medal for the Goofy runners, they run a 5k, a 1/2 marathon and full marathon in 3 consecutive days.
Beyond your writing, the key for me in enjoying these games so much was getting the subscription to Peacock (I've now canceled so I only have to pay for one month). This allowed me to see the sports I wanted to see and avoid all the useless blather on the main NBC broadcast.
Regarding the medal count, I think global sports is so much more accessible and horizontal than it was even 20 years ago. It's easier now for more people to get top level training even if they're from a country not known for investing in athletics. To take one example, how many great competitors from other countries live in or have trained in the United States? Marchand and Duplantis are just a couple of many who fall into that category. For women especially, sports has become more accessible in the past generation. All this means it's more difficult for the United States to maintain its traditional dominance of the medal table. And that's fine. It makes the Games more exciting for more people.
Thanks Rodger! This was the most helpful and fun thing I've read about the Olympics, and I looked forward to it every day (whenever it came, like a fun surprise!). And in part because of that, this was the most I've had watching the Olympics too.
Great job man. Really good stuff. Special thanks for highlighting Hassan and for recognizing how great the crowds were at every single event. I used to mock the French, but never again. They did an incredible job in every aspect of the games.
These recaps have been so much fun, just like these Olympics overall. I have to hand it to the French, they pulled off this event with tremendous enthusiasm and joy.
Rodger, could we get a top 5 or 10 ranking of best moments from you? Mine would include Ilona Maher's Derrick Henry moment, Sifan Hassan winning medals in three separate events, Teddy Riner's overall awesomeness, US women's rugby's bronze medal winning try, Steph Curry's four consecutive three-pointers, and French handball blowing the game against Germany.
Bottom moment would be Canada's drone scandal, which didn't get nearly enough attention. Although, with some distance from the moment, it seems kind of hilarious now.
Imma miss the hell outta these
Here, here on the accolades, tremendous coverage. Glad I can help support you. I keep thinking what events would like I like to see in 2028 in person and am decided: handball, rugby and track.
My favorite moments I watched were the literal shoutout between the two American shotguns folks, the Quincy Hall 400m comeback from 4th place with a hurt leg, Mondo's world record and also that Denmark handball beatdown. I'm sad I didn't get to watch more indoor track cycling but I did watch whatever they call synchronized swimming for the first time and that was pretty awesome--but seems like way better on TV than in person with the great underwater cameras.
Hasan is incredible--she had to run the 5K twice since she had to qualify for the finals.
I’ve always loved the Olympics and these games felt special. I couldn’t tell if it was because there actually were more iconic moments happening than usual, more GOATs in signature events, or if it was because NBC finally figured out how to utilize technology to facilitate a truly immersive experience.
In the end I think both are true, and also to echo the sentiment that Paris is a magical place and the French nailed the entire process.
It obviously helped enormously that they already had the infrastructure in place to support the endeavor. I honestly think they need to just start rotating the games through the same half dozen or so locations instead of periodically bankrupting a new country. Who would complain if Paris hosted again in 20 years (except the Parisians of course)?
Thank for the all of your efforts! Truly enjoyed them and your enthusiasm for the games.
It is not a straight comparison (competition wise) to Hassan’s feat but at the Disney marathon at Magic Kingdom every January they have a medal for the Goofy runners, they run a 5k, a 1/2 marathon and full marathon in 3 consecutive days.
Always enjoy the Olympics, but these recaps made the entire experience much more enjoyable! Appreciate the excellent work.
I was craving this content and absolutely happy to have it
Beyond your writing, the key for me in enjoying these games so much was getting the subscription to Peacock (I've now canceled so I only have to pay for one month). This allowed me to see the sports I wanted to see and avoid all the useless blather on the main NBC broadcast.
Regarding the medal count, I think global sports is so much more accessible and horizontal than it was even 20 years ago. It's easier now for more people to get top level training even if they're from a country not known for investing in athletics. To take one example, how many great competitors from other countries live in or have trained in the United States? Marchand and Duplantis are just a couple of many who fall into that category. For women especially, sports has become more accessible in the past generation. All this means it's more difficult for the United States to maintain its traditional dominance of the medal table. And that's fine. It makes the Games more exciting for more people.
Thanks Rodger! This was the most helpful and fun thing I've read about the Olympics, and I looked forward to it every day (whenever it came, like a fun surprise!). And in part because of that, this was the most I've had watching the Olympics too.
That Phil Wizard moment was so electrifying!!! (And the announcers did a good job contextualizing it!)
Great job man. Really good stuff. Special thanks for highlighting Hassan and for recognizing how great the crowds were at every single event. I used to mock the French, but never again. They did an incredible job in every aspect of the games.