What other sport is it feasible to win 8 gold medals in?

[trashpony]

Kudos to Michael Phelps But there are so many different types of event in swimming over similar distances that it seems that it's more feasible to win a higher number of medals (if you're a bloody marvellous swimmer obviously).

Could you do it in atlethics? Or cycling? Or sailing? I don't know enough about the latter two but was thinking you could get a medal in the 100m, 200m, 100m relay, and possibly hurdles but that'd be unlikely. So maybe 3 or 4.

 

[JTG]

Sailing you couldn't do it because you have to race multiple times so each event lasts a week

Athletics you could maybe add the other relay and a long jump to that list but it'd be near impossible to train for each discipline to the standards required. Rare enough to see someone double up to world standard (Carl Lewis for example) it'd be freakish to add more disciplines.

I think Swimming's more or less on its own for this

 

[strung out]

they could always do what swimming does and add other disciplines like 100m hopping, egg and spoon, sack race and three legged race. apart from that swimming is on its own with 36 medals to compete for. they were saying earlier its ridiculous that victoria pendleton could only compete for 1 medal at these games as they dont have the keirin and team sprint in womens cycling as they had to drop it to make room for bmx

 

[QueenOfGoths]

Michael Johnson was talking about this on BBC the other day - he was saying that it is impossible in athletics because of the different discipline needed for sprints and long distance running

It would be very possible to get three in 100, 200 and 100 relay - and of course Carl Lewis also competed in Long Jump and got gold in that - and I suppose someone could add another two i.e. the 400m and 400m relay to that, after all Michael Johnson did the 200 and 400 (but not the 100) however not sure that after that.

Don't know about cycling or rowing - are there as many races/classes to allow it?

 

[JTG]

Yeah, there's a definite pecking order of Olympic sports with athletics and swimming at the top and able to have almost as many events as they want with other sports having to squeeze their events in and drop some to add others.

What about equestrianism? With the individual, combined & team events could someone manage eight golds if they were head and shoulders above everyone else at every aspect of riding?

 

[JTG]

Don't know about cycling or rowing - are there as many races/classes to allow it?

if cycling could have as many events as they like then I guess it may be possible. Rowing definitely not - look at the scheduling - no way could you row just moments after finishing your last final

 

[strung out]

What about equestrianism? With the individual, combined & team events could someone manage eight golds if they were head and shoulders above everyone else at every aspect of riding?

chuck in the modern pentathlon too!

e2a we doing anything in that this year? pretty sure we won medals in it last time

 

[ScallyWag II]

they could always do what swimming does and add other disciplines like 100m hopping, egg and spoon, sack race and three legged race. apart from that swimming is on its own with 36 medals to compete for. they were saying earlier its ridiculous that victoria pendleton could only compete for 1 medal at these games as they dont have the keirin and team sprint in womens cycling as they had to drop it to make room for bmx

I'm happy to see bmx included, but don't understand why womens track cycling has to be compromised.

 

[ScallyWag II]

chuck in the modern pentathlon too!

e2a we doing anything in that this year? pretty sure we won medals in it last time

team and individual bronze i think

 

[JTG]

chuck in the modern pentathlon too!

e2a we doing anything in that this year? pretty sure we won medals in it last time

should do, we've owned it in the last two Olympics.

I'm happy to see bmx included, but don't understand why womens track cycling has to be compromised.

I think it's a scheduling thing. Cycling is only allowed so much time/so many events. Olympic politics probably. The men lost the kilometre time trial as well.

 

[QueenOfGoths]

I'm happy to see bmx included, but don't understand why womens track cycling has to be compromised.

Does seem silly doesn't it - can't they just extend the length of time the games run for?

 

[trashpony]

Yeah, there's a definite pecking order of Olympic sports with athletics and swimming at the top and able to have almost as many events as they want with other sports having to squeeze their events in and drop some to add others.

What about equestrianism? With the individual, combined & team events could someone manage eight golds if they were head and shoulders above everyone else at every aspect of riding?

You could get 6 if you were a brilliant eventer with a brilliant team - eventing, jumping and dressage team and individual. Those are the only events though (afaik).

 

[trashpony]

they were saying earlier its ridiculous that victoria pendleton could only compete for 1 medal at these games as they dont have the keirin and team sprint in womens cycling as they had to drop it to make room for bmx

I read an article about that before the games started. It's terrible (and sexist to boot)

 

[JTG]

Does seem silly doesn't it - can't they just extend the length of time the games run for?

cost comes into it though. Longer Games means a bigger bill for the host city!

 

[SpookyFrank]

IIRC the USA now has 18 golds under its capacitous belt, of which nearly half are from one bloke. Take Michael Phelps out of the equation and Britain would be in comfortable second place in the medals table. Not that I'm suggesting we should have Phelps killed or anything (although olympic swimming is now going to be as dull as ditchwater for the next 3 games or so) but the weight given to the swimming events does seem a little skewed. If there were eight cycling events for Chris Hoy to compete in for example...

 

[London_Calling]

I don't know enough about physiology, but the two issues are (a) recovery, and (b) number of available events - just don't understand how swimmers recover sufficiently to break world records on consecutive days for a whole a week.

 

[strung out]

though USA may well have won the relay golds without phelps of course.

i've just realised in fact that USA won 12 golds in the pool, take out swimming and they've only won 6 golds in total

 

[ScallyWag II]

chuck in the modern pentathlon too!

e2a we doing anything in that this year? pretty sure we won medals in it last time

team and individual bronze i think

ignore this, i'm tired , i thought you said equestrian.

modern pentathlon hasn't been done yet, although last time we did get a gold and a bronze.

 

[ScallyWag II]

chuck in the modern pentathlon too!

e2a we doing anything in that this year? pretty sure we won medals in it last time

team and individual bronze i think

ignore this, i'm tired , i thought you said equestrian.

modern pentathlon hasn't been done yet, although last time we did get a gold and a bronze.

Re the USA, they should get few more golds in track and field, although one of their "events" went to Jamaica, with the trong possiblility of the 200m mens sprint going to them as well.

 

[JTG]

Re the USA, they should get few more golds in track and field, although one of their "events" went to Jamaica, with the trong possiblility of the 200m mens sprint going to them as well.

not to mention the 4x100 relay

 

[SpookyFrank]

though USA may well have won the relay golds without phelps of course.

i've just realised in fact that USA won 12 golds in the pool, take out swimming and they've only won 6 golds in total

Well we're in charge of the next one; swimming is hereby officially banned from the olympics. It'll save us building a bloody great big pool as well, more money for the opening ceremony depicting the opium wars, the slave trade and the Peterloo massacre

 

[JTG]

I'm looking forward to the legions of pearly kings and queens with Chas n Dave performing Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit at the ceremony. Is this not going to happen then?