A Sea Of Red

Who do you think the most conditioned athletes are competing in the Olympics?



My vote goes to Water Polo....that's crazy endurance and not to mention the punishment your body takes from elbows and punches

Fencing!

Where is Josh Cox to speak up for his buddy Ryan Hall?

The road racing cyclists could make a case as well.

I watched some of the US/China water polo match and I have to agree...those guys are incredible with how conditioned they are.

Yeah it's not like they're playing in 3 feet of water! These guys are hitting each other and trying to throw a ball all while keep above water!

male or female swimmers in the 800m freestyle. the 400m IM is pretty incredible, too, for all the muscle groups it touches.

I've seen those swimmers train for the Olympics and the amount of time they spend in the water is unbelievable.

The one thing I seriously don't get about swimming is how many times the world records are broken. How is it that they are getting so much faster each year, and even faster every four years.

Example: In the 4x1 freestyle last night (Frenchies stink), the top 5 teams all broke the previous world record, which was set the day before by the US "B" team. Huh? How is that possible?

By the way, I am not insinuating drug use or anything. I'm just wondering how it is possible.

01LUGrad wrote:The one thing I seriously don't get about swimming is how many times the world records are broken. How is it that they are getting so much faster each year, and even faster every four years.

Example: In the 4x1 freestyle last night (Frenchies stink), the top 5 teams all broke the previous world record, which was set the day before by the US "B" team. Huh? How is that possible?

By the way, I am not insinuating drug use or anything. I'm just wondering how it is possible.

Differences in pools, suits, and techniques. All that is combining, in addition to improved training methods, to make the sport just explode.

Basketball

ToTheLeft wrote:

01LUGrad wrote:The one thing I seriously don't get about swimming is how many times the world records are broken. How is it that they are getting so much faster each year, and even faster every four years.

Example: In the 4x1 freestyle last night (Frenchies stink), the top 5 teams all broke the previous world record, which was set the day before by the US "B" team. Huh? How is that possible?

By the way, I am not insinuating drug use or anything. I'm just wondering how it is possible.

Differences in pools, suits, and techniques. All that is combining, in addition to improved training methods, to make the sport just explode.

Yes, and the LZR suits are the biggest difference. The potential marketing effect of Michael Phelps has caused companies to put a lot more attention toward the sport, which in turn has led led to all the things TTL mentioned. It's been a domino effect over the last 2 to 3 years.

Archery

So, um, the suit gave them a 4 second advantage over the world record?

Technology has also improved greatly in track (new surfaces, better shoes, uniforms), but outside of the men's 100m, you VERY rarely see a WR.

I just don't get it.

Water Polo

01LUGrad wrote:So, um, the suit gave them a 4 second advantage over the world record?

Technology has also improved greatly in track (new surfaces, better shoes, uniforms), but outside of the men's 100m, you VERY rarely see a WR.

I just don't get it.

the suit was almost banned, because as soon as it came out, WR's were dropping everywhere. It actually increases a swimmer buoyancy and aerodynamics in the water. And its not hard to realize (you seem to have some track knowledge) that if a racer is lighter and more aerodynamic, they're faster. But TTL was right in that other things have improved dramatically in the last 2-3 years. The suit, though, has been by far the most talked about.

it alos takes 20+ minutes to get the thing on...

handball
table tennis - no joke, those people are ripped, especially the legs

The pool they are swimming in is made for more speed. They knew that records were going down in "The Cube."

how can you make a pool for speed? Is it possible to make water less dense?

I'm pretty sure they make the water colder. It's the same reason that high school swimmers get in the hot tub before they swim. It makes the pool feel colder which makes them swim faster.

I believe this was written well before the Olympics:


Olympic Trivia: The Water Cube is built for speed
Comment8 Comments
The National Aquatics Centre, known as 'The Water Cube', will be one of the most dramatic and exciting venues to feature sporting events for the Beijing Olympics in 2008 -- and surprisingly it won't be just because of the athletes.

It's a "Fast Pool"

To promote the breaking of swimming world records, the Chinese have optimized their Water Cube pool for speed by: (1) Keeping the water at 80.6 degrees, the temperature considered optimal for swimmers; (2) pumping 'microbubbles' into the pool to break the water's surface tension; (3) building the pool to a depth of 42.7 feet, which prevents water-temperature interference; and (4) introducing a ventilation system that whisks chlorine fumes off the surface of the water, allowing the athletes to breathe clean air.

As "UnManly" as it seems I will tate gymnasts. They hvae to have both Aerobic and Anaerobic conditioning, eye hand coordination, deal with pain (have you seen the parallel bars OUCH) So with speed, quickness, strength, enduance, pain tolerance and coordination they win hands down.
The water polo foks ARE quite buff, but what athletes arent now adays. They have GREAT endurance and strength but speed? Eye hand coordination? They may be lacking there
Fencing? Don't diss people who are armed!! Plus, they have some HOT chicks. That could be a new thread Hotties of the Olympics (Men and Women)

My vote goes to Gymnastics...to hold yourself on the rings parallel to the ground like they do has gotta take some serious arm strength.

How about the decathletes? These guys are pretty much the greatest athletes in the world.

Hold My Own wrote:I believe this was written well before the Olympics:


Olympic Trivia: The Water Cube is built for speed
Comment8 Comments
The National Aquatics Centre, known as 'The Water Cube', will be one of the most dramatic and exciting venues to feature sporting events for the Beijing Olympics in 2008 -- and surprisingly it won't be just because of the athletes.

It's a "Fast Pool"

To promote the breaking of swimming world records, the Chinese have optimized their Water Cube pool for speed by: (1) Keeping the water at 80.6 degrees, the temperature considered optimal for swimmers; (2) pumping 'microbubbles' into the pool to break the water's surface tension; (3) building the pool to a depth of 42.7 feet, which prevents water-temperature interference; and (4) introducing a ventilation system that whisks chlorine fumes off the surface of the water, allowing the athletes to breathe clean air.

They also made the pool ten lanes wide instead of eight, with the two outside ones being used as wave buffers. Or something, I don't know.