http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com Fri, 22 Aug 2008 04:02:55 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en [caption id="attachment_171" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Talking with two native Beijingers"][/caption]       I’ve been out of Beijing for two days now. I’m staying with a friend in Hong Kong, where the large plasma screens all over the city have the Games on. Looking from the outside now it was quite an experience to be ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/20/a-beijing-insight-my-last-day-in-bj/ [caption id="attachment_164" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Watching Liu Xiang's race in the subway"][/caption]   I saw the group ahead of me as I walked down the stairs of the subway. They were all huddled around a large flat-screen. I stopped to see what they were looking at, and there was Liu Xiang’s face. He ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/18/liu-sing-it-pressure-injury-and-bad-luck/ There is a crucial cultural component to Chinese relationships- face. Face is like a form of currency, you can get it, give it and lose it. To receive face is extremely important in establishing a reputation and having a standing in society. In this respect, the Chinese government is a ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/16/so-much-for-one-world-one-dream/ [caption id="attachment_125" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Rulon Gardner (2000 Gold medal Olympian who beat Alexander Karelin, 2004 Bronze) and Me on the Great Wall"][/caption] I used to wrestle for Boulder High way back when (2000-2004). When at BHS I also wrestled for Colorado Team Excel, coached by Steve Knight. At the time Steve ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/16/a-walk-on-the-wall-side-the-us-wrestling-team-and-i-visit-the-great-wall/ [caption id="attachment_108" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Three Boulderites: Andrea Lagan (US Fencing), Theron Haan, and Me! (Check out our sweet US Fencing Pins)"][/caption] I went to my first Olympic event ever yesterday. My good friend, Theron Haan, whom you might remember from a previous post, gave me call and invited me to go ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/15/fencing-for-gold-boulders-connection/ After all these buzz-kill, serious posts I decided to do a warm and fuzzy one. I was on my way to watch my friend’s modern dance performance when I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. Crocs! Remember those rubber shoes with holes that everyone wore (still wears?) in ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/14/caution-chinese-crocs-ing/ I decided to show you in person the censorship issues in China. Here’s a quick example of how “sensitive” searches can kick you off sites like Wikipedia and Google. Pretty good all around example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bck3Zoattg [caption id="attachment_62" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Freetibet.org: IE Message of Doom"][/caption] (It took me many hours to put this ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/12/media-censorship-and-the-olympics/   I don’t know why this isn’t screaming across news headlines. Buried in a report I can no longer find on the BBC website (my search engine crashes when I look for it…) only 45,000 foreigners are here for the Olympics. (All I can find now is a BBC report that ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/11/why-no-one-is-coming-to-the-olympics/   [caption id="attachment_19" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Today, August 11th"][/caption]  Yeah, I know it’s hackneyed but I’ll write about it anyway. The first thing you’ll notice about Beijing is the pollution. The heavy fog, mist, smog, smist or whatever it is that drapes the city in a gloomy cloud really can affect your mood. ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/10/beijings-pollution-yesterday-at-278-microgramscubic-meter/ [caption id="attachment_9" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Before the Bird's Nest"][/caption]         (I wrote this the day after the Ceremonies, but didn't get a chance to post until today). China put on one of the greatest shows on Earth last night. I wouldn’t know, actually I have yet to see the Opening Ceremonies. I had ... http://spencerolympics.pmpblogs.com/2008/08/10/actually-being-at-the-opening-ceremony/