Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics - Official Chat Thread

DANNY DAVIS BLASTS THE CONDITION OF THE HALFPIPE

Photo: Chris Wellhausen

The IOC and FIS decided to go with Development Snowparks to build the halfpipe, rather than Snow Park Technologies, widely regarded as the best in the business. Many in the industry, including the riders themselves, have questioned the IOC’s motives for going with Development Snowparks. Apparently this decision has come back to bite them in the ass, with many of the athletes publicly speaking their minds about the sub-par halfpipe. Let’s hope they get the halfpipe in better condition before the competition begins. This is the Olympics after all. The athletes deserve better.

“It’s the Olympics. It should be flawless. What a lame showcase of snowboarding, and what a lame way to treat the athletes. The IOC probably didn’t want to pay the right guys to do it. I’m pretty sure what they’re focused on is keeping as much money in their hands as possible. That’s the shame of it all. All these kids, myself included, worked very hard to get here. And then the pipe is just no fun and boring and *****. Halfpipe is super fun. But riding a crappy pipe and having to perform in it is the worst. I just hope they can fix this one. Hopefully they can pull it together for a contest. The fact is, everyone will be shredding the same pipe. We all have the same thing to ride. We just want it to be good.” - Danny Davis

That f*king sucks! I’m glad riders are speaking out and giving the IOC/FIS a piece of their minds. We need to get the FIS out of snowboarding - now!

Whilst I agree it should be optimal: We have to consider that these are professional athletes and the pipe does meet Olympic standards, is any boarder going to gain an advantage? They are all riding the same pipe.
It might just level the field.

Torah was also vocal in regard to it not being the best.

I’m getting tired of hearing all the whinging and am beginning to feel the athletes should just get on with the job and make the most of what they have. See who can ride substandard courses the best.

There are plenty of events that have perfect courses, it’s about time the prove they are good enough when it’s not perfect.

World class athletes at a world class event should have world class courses/facilities. It’s pretty simple. It doesn’t matter which sport it is. Imagine the luge track had puddles and bumps in it, ice skating track etc. Why should snowboarding be subjected to negligence? Shitty courses due to cost cutting by the IOC/FIS is a joke. Of course they have a right to complain.

A poorly made pipe can be dangerous!!!!!

Stacks are good to watch, but think they should be avoided if possible!!!!!

I’ve only heard that it’s not perfect.

Do we really believe it’s dangerous?
I suspect the athletes are calling it shitty because it’s not perfect - not because it’s shitty. There is the media beat up to filter from the reports we are hearing.

Last night Torah said it had improved considerably from the day before. And now they’ve had another night to work on it. She chose her words carefully and agreed when asked if it wasn’t up to standard.

It takes time to build a good half pipe, it doesn’t happen on the first build.

A perfect pipe should be symmetrical!!!!!

I’m not sure if they could do anything else to fuck it up, other than not makin it symmetrical?????

If it can’t be easily read, and has a surface that is out of kilter (ie Not Symetrical), then it could be dangerous?????

Complain or make excuses?
Just saying that it’s a fine line when athletes choose their words carefully.
I’m not passing judgment.

The IOC are there to make money through entertainment and exploitation.
Russia are good at exploitation.

The modern Olympics is not a world class event - it’s just the most promoted.
Athletes are starting to recognise this; and I hope these Olympics are conveying the truth to the world.

I don’t know about you, but I want to watch these guys performing at their best. From what I understand, they would like to perform at their best as well. They train for years for this opportunity, they want to put on a show for their world and portray our sport in the best possible way. I think they deserve that. I think snowboarding deserves that.

Are you really trying to justify their negligence to save a few dollars?

Turning a blind eye to these problems, and athletes not speaking out about these problems, is what will keep the FIS in our sport for a long time to come. It’s time to rise up and call a spade a space. Just my opinion.

I hardly think they’re whingin just for the hell of it?????

Even the Saucehead has made somewhat of statement by pullin out of the slopestyle!!!!! And he has nothin against the FIS bein in control!!!!!

I completely agree.
My first post; “Whilst I agree it should be optimal”.

Organisers at least appear to be addressing athlete concerns. Monday morning’s training session was changed to the night, with course shapers expected to speak to athletes and work on the halfpipe.

Many of the top riders skip the FIS-run tour, preferring to compete at more-lucrative pro events. Those athletes also argue that facilities provided at pro events are far superior to FIS-sanctioned ones, and the Olympic Games would be better off using their course builders.

FIS sanctioned snowboard events aren’t world class. Yes they should be but they aren’t. Why does snowboarding have to be included in the Olympics (a substandard sports event for this discipline)?

Why? Because we want it to, the viewer. If the riders didn’t compete it wouldn’t get the ratings. If Torah pulled out of slopestyle it wouldn’t have been the highly rated show on Sunday.

I, in no way am defending the IOC. And I don’t chastise any athlete for pulling out of Olympics.

Some quotes about the Sochi pipe:

The issues with the halfpipe are not safety related, but athletes feel that the quality of the venue will hurt the strength of competition on the sport’s biggest stage.

“The first day, the walls were a little over-[vertical], so everybody was doing airs, and then landing like pretty flat,” White said. “Today, they made the walls better so everybody lands [correctly], but in the flat bottom, where they cut it, it’s like a bump, so everyone is riding along and then hits the bump, and that’s really not very good.”

And about judging criteria:

the Olympic judges know a good portion of viewers watching the halfpipe contest won’t care about snowboarding again for another four years. He sees how they’re almost obligated to give more credit to the big, TV-friendly tricks than the technical ones.

“We’re a little like a snake biting its own tail,” Canadian rider Crispin Lipscomb said. “It will take people like Danny Davis or the top five athletes to slow it down and work on some style stuff to change what the judges do.”

Its the Olympics, which is supposed to be the top level of competition (even though we know its not the case for snowboarding).

Whats the point of having athletes riding a below standard course and not being able to display and compete with the level of tricks they are capable of.

Olympic Half Pipe - Who can land the sketchiest frontside air and 540? Or try harder and destroy their career and sustain possible life long injuries?
What a load of bullshit.

Pipe needs to be brought up to world class standard

BEN BRIGHT GIVES THE FIS A PIECE OF HIS MIND

Full article on SMH here.

The brother and coach of defending Olympic snowboard champion Torah Bright has launched an extraordinary attack on the standard of the halfpipe at the Sochi Olympics, branding it “f—-ing retarded”.

It is dangerous at the moment. You’ve got a mixed event going on - moguls and halfpipe together - so it’s f—-ing retarded.

Having watched his sister crash in her final training run ahead of her title defence on Wednesday night (AEST), Ben Bright predicted it was only a matter of time before a competitor was seriously injured - and then laid the blame solely at the feet of the International Federation of Skiing.

Bright said: “I’ve come to the point of being diplomatic, but it’s actually very shit. It’s come down to the final hour, the final minute. The men’s contest is going live to the world and the Federation of International Skiing has let ego get in the way of a good contest. They barely got it [right] in Vancouver [at the Olympics in 2010] and they haven’t got it here. So f—. Surprise surprise.”

Asked if the course was dangerous, Bright said: “It is dangerous at the moment. You’ve got a mixed event going on - moguls and halfpipe together - so it’s f—-ing retarded.”

Asked if he thought it would take a serious injury to convince organisers something needed to change, he said: “What does it take? It’s a shame. I’ve gone from being mellow about it to, ‘What the f—- is going on?’”

The issue with the halfpipe is specifically with its middle of section.
“The flat bottom is completely chewed up,” Bright said. “It’s incredible how they were even getting through there in training.”

The men’s competition - which features Australians Scotty James and Nate Johnstone - starts on Tuesday (AEST) night, with Torah Bright and Holly Crawford spearheading Australia’s chances in the ladies’ competition the following night.

Torah Bright crashed on the final run of her final training session. While she wasn’t concussed, she was promptly ushered through the mixed zone and back to the athletes’ village accompanied by team doctor Peter Braun.

While her brother and team officials did not blame the standard of the halfpipe for her fall, and she is no risk of missing the halfpipe competition, it did raise more concerns about the standard of facilities heading into the men’s and ladies’ competition.

The consequence is competitors have clocked very little training time in preparation for the biggest competition of their lives.
Indeed, there has been much consternation behind the scenes about the IOC and FIS using an inferior construction company to design the facilities at Extreme Park. American snowboarders, including two-time defending Olympic champion Shaun White, have been particularly critical.

They, like the Bright camp, believe the US company Snowpark Technologies, which is used for the US Open, X Games and Dew Tour, should be used because it has “the best reputation”.

Ben Bright believes a Cold War-like mentality has prevented FIS from using Snowpark.
“They wanted to show that they could do it better than old Uncle Sam,” he said. “That’s what’s on everyone’s tongues. That’s what is coming out of the athletes’ mouths. It might be time to give snowboarding back to the snowboarders.

“The governing of these events in the Olympic games will have to change, otherwise you definitely won’t have people returning. The Federation of International Skiing chose the wrong construction crew to build the halfpipe for the calibre of athlete and the magnitude of the Olympic Games. FIS thought they could do it bigger and better than the best in the snowboard world.

“For all of these athletes, who do it for a career and a living, and that’s how they put food on the table, they all knew coming here that they didn’t choose the best in the business to deliver the courses so they could show what they could do.”

FIS Snowboard race director Uwe Beier conceded the conditions were not up to standard, but was confident they would improve.

“The pipe conditions were not ideal at the first two trainings,” he said. “This is why we decided to reschedule today’s training to tonight in order to give it more time after the measurements that had been taken last night to fix the issues. The weather conditions and a mix of other issues [machinery, maintenance, etc.] seemed to have made it difficult. However, we are ensuring that the team working there is doing everything possible to solve the situation as soon as possible.”

Dangerous they say?????