Olympic sports get coverage if there are potential medalists. BMXing and Curling are never on TV (except maybe on a sports channel at 3am for a few minutes when nobody is watching) in the UK. But when the Olympics come round all of a sudden our medal contenders are famous for another 15 minutes. The biggest single TV market (the USA) would take an interest because they will always have 3 players (assuming it is 3 entrants per nation as in many other sports) who have a chance of winning gold in any pool variant.
Petition for Olympic Billiards
- Thread starter victorl
- Start date
I think they had another channel available for the last Olympics, but pretty much 95% of the audience watches the one channel.
As I was a decathlete and had friends who've competed in the Olympics, I've watched a heck of a lot of coverage since my early teens. Some years there would be less than 3 minutes coverage of the decathlon and the same is true of field events in general.
It comes down to whether or not a countryman of the broadcaster is in contention. If not, then get ready to watch 3 hours of a hockey semi-final with your country having a medal chance.
The event is a rip-off for all but a few athletes who are the mega stars. The rest pretty much dedicate years toward their sport at their own expense. Olympics does not lead to the professionalization of sports. In fact, it makes bureaucratic controlling organizations more powerful in their attempts to squash entrepreneurs who might professionalize the sport.
Pool Is A Game Not a Sport
I concur about some of the Olympics events being bizarre but let's be candid and truthful with each other on the Forum......defend as hard as you will.....argue to the bitter end.....but pool isn't a sport......stationary objects to shoot at......there's definitely skill involved but the Olympics is about athletics not gamesmanship.
Where does it stop? It's already gotten out of hand and the notion of pool or video games is just absurd. Stamina and endurance required to play marathon pool matches does not qualify the game to be in the Olympics. Just imagine 9 ball as an event where sometimes luck can play just as big as a factor as skill........pretty sad.
Pool is a game and so start an Olympics format tournament for games......chess, checkers, pool, poker, and alike but arguing that pool deserves to be in the Olympics is pretty inane to me.......and I am a dye hard pool buff......but the Olympics is just absurd.
Matt B.
I concur about some of the Olympics events being bizarre but let's be candid and truthful with each other on the Forum......defend as hard as you will.....argue to the bitter end.....but pool isn't a sport......stationary objects to shoot at......there's definitely skill involved but the Olympics is about athletics not gamesmanship.
Where does it stop? It's already gotten out of hand and the notion of pool or video games is just absurd. Stamina and endurance required to play marathon pool matches does not qualify the game to be in the Olympics. Just imagine 9 ball as an event where sometimes luck can play just as big as a factor as skill........pretty sad.
Pool is a game and so start an Olympics format tournament for games......chess, checkers, pool, poker, and alike but arguing that pool deserves to be in the Olympics is pretty inane to me.......and I am a dye hard pool buff......but the Olympics is just absurd.
Matt B.
Anybody know what is up with the jacket efren wore at dcc?
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=389967
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=389967
The results for the 1st selection stage for Tokyo's recommendation for an Olympic sport for 2020 were released today. It was a long shot for billiards/snooker and unfortunately they didnt make the cut, but somehow bowling did...
The list:
1. Baseball/softball
2. Bowling
3. Karate
4. Roller Sports
5. Sport Climbing
6. Squash
7. Surfing
8. Martial Arts
Given the popularity of baseball in Japan, I can't imagine them choosing anything else.
The list:
1. Baseball/softball
2. Bowling
3. Karate
4. Roller Sports
5. Sport Climbing
6. Squash
7. Surfing
8. Martial Arts
Given the popularity of baseball in Japan, I can't imagine them choosing anything else.
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Almost nobody plays baseball in Europe, but we play a lot of pool. Strange.
Man, screw bowling.... you can do so much more with a cue ball on a pool table. Not to mention the strategy involved. What strategy does bowling have? Oh wait, knock all the pins down... real creative.
Sorry for the mini rant. Bowling is fun and all, but I can't take it seriously.
Sorry for the mini rant. Bowling is fun and all, but I can't take it seriously.
Actually, it is called the Olympic Games. Straight Pool would be the better for the Olympics than the luck games. Though Simonis has made even that require less skill than the foregone years.
No Korf Ball? WTF?????
http://www.prosnookerblog.com/2015/06/22/snooker-looks-to-2024-olympic-bid/
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson has highlighted female participation as one of the areas that the sport ‘needs to work on.’
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson has highlighted female participation as one of the areas that the sport ‘needs to work on.’
Cue sport participation in the World Games (under the WCBS which was not mentioned by Ferguson) has been in the events men's 9 ball, women's nine ball, men's 3-cushion, men's snooker and men's two-man team snooker, IIRC. With 16 in each event, that comes to perhaps 1/5 to 1/4 women. Women snooker players have been playing at the World Games but they have been playing pool.