As DRDR pointed out in the comments, the Olympic Committee's actions have been raising a few eyebrows, notably for their insensitive blaming of "athlete error" for a Georgian Luge athlete's death. As the sane world quickly pointed out, athletes frequently make errors, and almost never pay with their lives. Usually death occurs when athletes' natural human fallibility combines with unsafe conditions.
On top of that, DRDR mentions some blatantly sexist behavior on the part of the committee. They have refused to allow women's ski jumping to become an Olympic sport, despite a woman holding the world record (among either men or women) at the Whistler jump. From Time magazine:
In 2005, Gian Franco Kasper, FIS president and a member of the IOC, said that he didn't think women should ski jump because the sport "seems not to be appropriate for ladies from a medical point of view."
Ah the ladies, with their breasts and lady bits and things, so clearly unable to participate in dangerous athletic competition. Except for, you know, the rest of the Olympics.
And recently, the IOC has announced it's opening an "investigation" after photos of the Canadian women's hockey team celebrating their win with (gasp!) Champagne and cigars on the ice rink surfaced. There's an amusing video on ESPN (courtesy DRDR, once again) of commentator Skip Bayless absolutely wigging out about this "shameful" behavior, before the female anchor witheringly points out that men frequently spray chamagne on each other after sporting events, break out a stogie, and generally celebrate their victory without anyone dying of shock. Check out the pictures for yourself, and read the Daily Mail's breathless commentary. The celebration doesn't look particularly rowdy or undignified to me. Admittedly, the woman who is 18 (underage in BC, though not in her home province of Quebec) and shown drinking beer should have known better, but as Salon's Tracy Clark-Flory points out, most of the outrage over this incident has to do with plain, old-fashioned sexism.
I like how the Canadian officials tried to cover their backs by making it clear they did not provide the alcohol. These aren't girls in a boarding school! They're athletes! Let them have their moment.
Its rather laughable to ban women's ski jump from the Olympics for fear of their health, as if women have never and will never ski jump until the Olympics allows them to compete. Then again, from what else I've heard on this issue, the problem is that women could damage their reproductive systems while jumping (quit jumping, have babies).
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