I Love the Women

Let's start with the basics.  I am a heterosexual male, so yeah, I love women.  This is not newsworthy.


Today, I am not here to praise women for all their greatness.  It is hard to not praise women for all their greatness.  However, I will resist the urge to wax poetic about my overall love of women and stick to the subject at hand, the dominance of US women at the Olympics.


Dominance by US Women is nothing new.  In 2012, US Women won 29 gold medals, which would have tied Great Britain for third in the gold medal count.  US Men won 17 gold medals.  Overall, US Women won 58 medals, which would have been 5th in the medal count.  US Men won 45.  Since 1984, US Women have won medals at a higher rate than US Men for all but one Olympic games.  US Women win on the track, in the water, on the water, on bikes, in boats, on sand, on courts, on fields, as teams, in pairs, individually, and even, in some cases, with men.  Oh, I do love the women.


In 2016, so far, US Women are continuing where they left off four years ago.  The US Women have already won 16 gold medals, which would tie them with Great Britain for second most.  They have won 37 total medals, which would be 4th in the medal count.  These numbers do not, of course, include many of the team sport medals that US Women are destined to win, such as volleyball, volleyball, water polo and basketball.  Not to mention soccer, which is a virtual lock for a medal...what?  Really?  Huh?  Must have blocked that from my memory.


Setting aside soccer for the moment, our Women's Teams are crushing it.  Have you seen the dominance put on display by the Field Hockey Team?  This is a huge surprise and they are well on their way to a medal, too...WHAT?  Oh, man, I had this great blog post ready to go.


Again, we kid because we love.  I still love our Women's Soccer Team.  I'm a little shaky on the goalie.  I still have a new-found love for the Field Hockey Team, and I promise never to ignore them in another Olympics, as I did for the last 31.  I love even without dominance.  My love has no limits.


Our women are dominating from beginning to end.  The first gold medal of these Olympics was won by ... an American woman.  The last gold medal of these Olympics will be won by ... probably an African man.  Maybe I should have thought this out a little more.


Our women are winning young and...not so young.  Katie Ledecky is 19, she has 5 medals.  Simone Biles is 19, she has 4, with a chance for one more.  Virginia from Virginia is 19.  So is Lily King.  Lauren Hernandez, winner of a gold and a silver, is 16.  Kristin Armstrong is 43.  She won her third straight gold.  Kerri Walsh Jennings turned 38 yesterday.  She is going for her 4th straight gold.  Kim Rhode is 37.  She has 6 Olympic medals from 6 straight Olympics.


Our women are winning with kids.  Dana Vollmer has a son, to go with three medals from 2016.  Armstrong has a son, to go with 3 gold medals in a row.  Walsh Jennings has 3 kids, and is going for a 4th gold medal.  Rhode has one kid, to go with her 6 medals.


Our women are winning in long events (Ledecky, Leah Smith) and short events (Simone Manuel, Tori Bowie).  They are winning by jumping things (Emma Coburn), spinning on things (Madison Kocian), vaulting off things (Biles), throwing things (Michelle Carter) and lifting things (Sarah Elizabeth Robles).  They have won throwing other people around (Kayla Harrison) and stabbing other people (Sabre Team).  They have won on their back (Kathleen Baker and Maya DiRado) on their breast (Katie Meili) and on their butts (Genevra Stone, Women's 8).  Sadly, they did not win while showing a lot of butt, but they competed and there is still hope with synchronized swimming.  They won shooting things (Corey Cogdell, Rhode and Virginia from Virginia).  They won making history (Alyson Felix) and getting redemption (Aly Raisman).


If there is anything better than a woman, it is a team of women.  The US already has two Women's Team gold medals in gymnastics and rowing.  We have a silver in Team Pursuit (Cycling) and a bronze in Women's Sabre.  Our Women in swimming brought home two golds and a silver in relays.  Our women are so good, they managed to win a gold and a silver even when they had to compete with a man (Mixed Doubles Tennis:  Bethanie Mattek-Sands-Gold, Venus Williams-Silver) or an a team with a man (Equestrian Team Dressage -Bronze).


The Women's Teams who are still competing are poised for greatness.  The Water Polo Team won their group with a ridiculous +20 goal differential.  They beat Brazil 13-3 in the quarterfinal match.  And you thought the Women's Swim Team was the most dominant US team in the water.  The Indoor Volleyball Team also won their group, with quarterfinals starting today.  In Beach Volleyball, all we have is a player going for her 4th straight Gold Medal.  You think the Men's basketball team was the "Dream Team"?  Think again.  The Women's basketball team has won by an average of 40 points.  Now if we could just figure out that Team Handball thing.


I love the Women.  I love them when they win.  I love them when they don't.  I love them for trying.  I love them for being strong and fast and powerful.  I love them for breaking molds and breaking stereotypes.  Until 1984 Women weren't allowed to compete in the Olympic Marathon, allegedly because they couldn't handle it.  Women still don't compete in the 1500 freestyle.  That makes sense since the most dominant athlete at these games is a DISTANCE SWIMMER.  They do compete in the 10,000 meter open water swim, so someone has taken their head out of the 18th century.  I love them when they are classy, and even when they aren't.


Women make up more than half the US Team, but not half of all Olympians.  There are some countries that had to be threatened with sanctions if they didn't enter women into the Olympics.  There are still women who risk physical harm, just by competing or even trying to watch the competition.  They still do it.  I love these women, because they love competing.  They just want to play.


Today's Olympic Story Line - US Dominance, or not so much.  Today is more of fun trivia, or not so fun trivia, then a story line.  Sorry, but I got back in the pool yesterday and have limited time and energy.  Yesterday was the first Summer Olympics day since day 12 of the 2008 Beijing Olympics that the US did not win a Gold Medal.  I think we all know that we didn't have enough women competing.

Reflections on What Has Happened (Focus for this will be on US sports and medals, but we will touch on other stuff as time permits) -

Two days, because I took yesterday off, and I have learned that a day off makes me forget a ton.

1.  Middle thinks diving at the end of a track race should be illegal.  Alyson Felix may agree with him.
2.  If you didn't see Sarah Elizabeth Robles celebrate after her last lift in the Women's Weightlifting Competition, you missed a pure expression of joy and class.  This big, powerful woman completed her clean and jerk, squealed, dropped to the ground and I believe kissed the floor, before standing up and doing a curtsey for the crowd.  Just.  Plain.  Awesome.
3.  Synchronized Swimming.  I am torn between amazement at the athleticism and lung capacity necessary to do this and the ridiculousness of the coordinated entry, plastered on make-up, cemented hair, flailing legs and sparkly suits that don't cover the butt.  It is possible I am also a little too obsessed with suits that don't cover the butt.
4.  US Women's Team Pursuit cycling team broke the World Record, and held that for about 5 minutes.  Then they won the silver.  A silver medal is an amazing accomplishment, but that has to hurt.
5.  Usain Bolt - GOAT.  Although for 60 meters I was fooled into believing Justin Gatlin was going to beat him.
6.  I just can't get in to wrestling.  Or boxing.
7.  I still need to see some sailing.
8.  The Canoe competition looks like the most painful thing possible.  Forget waterboarding, if you really want to torture someone, make them do Canoe racing.
9.  Kayak racing is, however, awesome.  I was watching the 200 meter kayak race and The Wife thought I was on fast forward.
10.  Great finish by Clayton Murphy in Men's 800.
11.  Simone Biles is human...who knew?

 Predictions Sum Up -

1.  Usain Bolt - Gold.  Like Phelps, when the GOAT is going, you ride him.  Yup
2.  LaShawn Merritt - Silver in 400.  WRONG! Bronze
3.  Walsh-Jennings/Ross don't lose a set.  Again.  Yup
4.  Emma Coburn - Bronze in women's 3000 Steeplechase  Yup  And I love me some Women's Steeplechase.

 Predictions -

1.  Walsh-Jennings/Ross don't lose a set.  Again.
2.  Jennie Simpson bronze in 1500
3.  Ashton Eaton wins gold in Decathlon (starts tomorrow, I have to get this in before it starts).
4.  Lithuania beats Australia in basketball
5.  US Men beat Argentina, by 7.
6.  Lexi Thompson gets silver in golf.

What to Watch for:
1.  Does this Blog violate US Trademark laws?
2.  You Are Beautiful, Part 2.
3.  BMX Cycling.
4.  Team Competitions ramping up.
5.  Decathlon.
6.  Gymnastics Gala and Gala II.  I'm not making this up.  According to the schedule, there are two Galas.  Two.  Do we really need two Galas?  Do we even need one?