Paralympics

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NATURAL ANKLING
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Paralympics

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
Just watching the men's time trial most of the guys have got just one leg.
They are using the motor racing circuit Fugi. C2
24K They're expecting to finish in 45 minutes.

Earlier saw a guy doing a 50 meter swim with no arms In something like 36 seconds, he won the race.
Not sure I ever did 50 m in anything like that, breaststroke.
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
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Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Tangled Metal »

Do you not think they're olympians too?
francovendee
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Re: Paralympics

Post by francovendee »

All credit to all of the athletes who are competing.
I think there will always be some difficulty of categorising the levels of disability and eligibility to compete.
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: Paralympics

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
Tangled Metal wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 6:36am Do you not think they're olympians too?
Of course they are.
I was just commenting on what people can actually do when they put their minds to it.
The hundred metres with Peacock in it, was a fantastic final, the first four were within 12 inches of each other on the line.
Peacock was always going to struggle on paper, But he managed to scrape in with a shared bronze.
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: Paralympics

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
francovendee wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 7:52am All credit to all of the athletes who are competing.
I think there will always be some difficulty of categorising the levels of disability and eligibility to compete.
understandable, I think what they have tried to do is lump several categories together so that there are enough people to make up the competitions.
Otherwise you might end up with just one or two in each category.
That was an explanation given by one of the commentators anyway.
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
francovendee
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Re: Paralympics

Post by francovendee »

NATURAL ANKLING wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 8:45am Hi,
francovendee wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 7:52am All credit to all of the athletes who are competing.
I think there will always be some difficulty of categorising the levels of disability and eligibility to compete.
understandable, I think what they have tried to do is lump several categories together so that there are enough people to make up the competitions.
Otherwise you might end up with just one or two in each category.
That was an explanation given by one of the commentators anyway.
I think it would be almost impossible to get every athlete into exactly the right category. I think it's something that just has to be accepted if we want competitions.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Tangled Metal »

NATURAL ANKLING wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 8:42am Hi,
Tangled Metal wrote: 31 Aug 2021, 6:36am Do you not think they're olympians too?
Of course they are.
I was just commenting on what people can actually do when they put their minds to it.
The hundred metres with Peacock in it, was a fantastic final, the first four were within 12 inches of each other on the line.
Peacock was always going to struggle on paper, But he managed to scrape in with a shared bronze.
Of that I never had a doubt! :D

It was a question to promote the idea that athletes are people pushing the boundaries of what humans can do. Whether you're fully able or disabled in some way the potential of all these athletes is achieved through the same dedication and hard work. There is simply no difference. The only difference is some have limitations due to medical conditions or accidents or other reason.

Aiui peacock was so much better than the people he competed with first time around. Now he's not and there are many paralympian athletes competing at that higher level. Perhaps certain countries once had advantages like the UK did, but now all developed countries can have potential paralympian winners. Now a paralympian winning multiple golds is no different from able bodies athletes. It's down to the development and acceptance of disabled sport. I think that's the big legacy of London 2012 personally. AIUI that was the first one which gave paralympian athletes equal status.

I must admit I have not watched much of either Olympics or Paralympics, but I completely appreciate the performance and effort needed for both.
Psamathe
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Psamathe »

I don't watch the Paralympics nor the Olympics but do see excerpts/reports and for some reason to me the GB medal targets/tally is particularly disappointing and puts me off the whole thing (particularly the Paralympics). Whilst I appreciate there is funding involved I see the results as an achievement by the competitor(s) not by the controlling body or Team GB (or whatever they call themselves).

And the local BBC East regional TV seems to now be maintaining a tally of medals from East Anglia as well and I can't see what difference it makes if you live in Bury St Edmunds or Newcastle - the competitor(s) has/have trained, developed their skills, etc. and achieved a good result and credit to them rather than the overall massed entrants from a country.

Ian
Tangled Metal
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Tangled Metal »

In believe in 2012 with the Olympics Yorkshire did that with their medal winners. I can understand that with Yorkshire as they're almost a country in their own right sometimes.
Postboxer
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Postboxer »

They did a tally of Yorkshire's medals but they counted medals earned as part of a team when not all the team was from Yorkshire, so it didn't really count. There is a medal target as they need to measure whether their funding is working, the sums involved are staggering. I'm surprised there isn't a price cap on technological equipment, rather than just the 'commercially available' rules, which seem a bit silly, surely the competition is to be the best athlete, not the almost the best but has a better bike/wheelchair etc.
Tangled Metal
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Re: Paralympics

Post by Tangled Metal »

Perhaps kieren type setup where all bikes are rigorously checked to make sure they're the same basic design. Same with trainers and clothing.
merseymouth
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Re: Paralympics

Post by merseymouth »

Morning all, One thing has irked me about the Para Cycling coverage has been the almost total omission of trike riders?
I know they are there, with tantalizing glimpses of a very few ! What people might not know is that a large proportion of the machines in use have been made by a small concern in Oxon?
With cost and transport of machines being an issue for many competitors actually use "Conversion Axles", which readily convert a readily available cycle frame into a competitive machine at an afford able cost.
The big money ticket of cycle participation must be of concern, which combined with difficulty of laying hands on equipment, must seriously make it a very limiting for many!
Even in able bodied cycling the mindless obsession with hi tech is a major issue?
But even when the big money comes in to a team it isn't always to actually say it works? At Rio the BC tricycles, titanium bling, were imposed on the chosen riders, over their regular machines. We never got to the root of the cost of the supposedly available frames & forks cost, but the mega concern that designed and made them threw the baby out with the bath water.
Un-rideable, medals that should have been possible were lost.. Not a nice experience for the athletes!
Big Bucks don't always make big bangs, titanium was a joke, design was worse, so let's apply sensible rules over cost and availability to ensure that any athlete can compete on a fair, equal basis, even the humble running shoe has been moved out of the reach of potential athletes ,sick :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: . MM
merseymouth
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Re: Paralympics

Post by merseymouth »

Hi all, I'm now informed that the BC Titanium Trikes cost £43k each :shock: :roll: :twisted: . Very poor VFM, even worse for widening the field of Para Cycling!
Throw in the cost of new "Super Running Shoes", which give more than marginal gains, and you have a cosy wealth in sport club! (I think a pair of laces for such a shoe would cost more than the entire shoes that I did my running in, which included lots of 1/2 marathons and even the Snowdonia Marathon!)
Back to Jim Royle - "My Ar*e!". MM
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