orangeman

BOOM! Homerun!

Maybe a Sr/Jr situation?

Good start by Canada.

I live in Beijing and everything is pretty much normal here now, and has been for months (there was a little scare in February, something like 6 confirmed cases). I can see them barring international visitors, but there's no reason to postpone if Tokyo is going forward and they're in a much tougher spot. China has strict quarantine rules (3 weeks mandatory government observed quarantine) but they want to reopen borders with some countries. The issue right now is other countries accepting the Chinese vaccinations as legit. Postponing the Olympics would pretty much be admitting that the Chinese one is not legit. I'd be really surprised if they postponed it.

I'm just going to add one that I haven't seen yet (maybe I missed it): USA Softball

1. Men's rugby 7s. Wasn't sure if Bujold's appeal would work out. 2. Men's baseball after the first few games. You beat Cuba and then lose the rest? Men's basketball. They should be a medal favourite, but yet again the players underperform for the Olympics. Hey, congratulations to the Czechs. Hope they win now.

What I'm excited about, and your list reflects this, is the fact that Canada is finally competitive in the two largest events of Swimming and Athletics as well as multiple team sports. This began last Olympics, and while I will watch all the events regardless of Canadian content, it is exciting to see our athletes in the mix in the biggest sports. For far too long Canada was a non-factor in swimming/athletics except maybe one or two chances here and there, and the team sports were a barren landscape. Gymnastics is also a big one where Canada has become more relevant. Medal or not, it'll be nice to see the Maple Leaf around these venues in Japan.

We have found the quote for the last year and a half!

Great run by the Habs, no one expected this!

Re-reading my first post, I should have said "possible" instead of "expected". My prediction is probably the upper limit for total and golds.

For Canada, I think 24 total with 4-5 golds would be expected. This is probably the most unpredictable Olympics since WWII, even at the Games there could be an outbreak which sidelines half the athletes competing.

Men's basketball team's road to the Olympics is shut down. Very disappointing. A team of NBA "stars" lost to one without any. Canadian basketball players don't seem to have any drive playing for the national team. Very sad, they could be medal threats if they competed at the level they're capable of.

I know this is a "dream" choice, but the OC are on the 23rd. amd Formiga is playing on the 21st and 24th hours away from Tokyo. Otherwise, I'd like to see her there, too.

Great swim by Penny. That time would have been good enough for bronze in 2016, so she's definitely getting back to her standard. Liendo's time would get him safely into the final. Great showing by both.

Hi everyone. Long time no see. Long story short, I've had difficulty signing in here for about a year now, but I've been following along. Thank you to everyone here that is keeping everything up to date. Thank you to everyone recently who has been keeping me up to date on all the Olympic qualifying and summaries. It's been a crazy last few months (for everyone, I'm sure) so I haven't had a chance to look into things myself. This site is always a great source for everything Olympics. I'm living in Beijing currently, looking forward to the Olympics here next year. I live very close to some venues. But first Tokyo! Thanks again to everyone! GO HABS GO!

Yes, true. But who knows how this pandemic will affect decisions moving forward. Will owners who have lost millions with this and possibly already lost significant chunks of two consecutive seasons want to interrupt another season and risk injury to their players? I was doubtful before covid, I'm even more doubtful now. But if the last few months have taught me anything, it's that I can't predict what will happen in the future.

Most provinces in Canada are starting to very slowly ease some restrictions. Some provinces have had no new cases in a few days, so they are going a bit further. In my province (Ontario), some big open retailers like garden centers and car dealerships are opening up this week. It'll be another couple of weeks until anything else happens, though. In Quebec they're starting to allow some retail stores to open, and are talking about schools reopening (outside Montreal), but both businesses and school boards have said they have no intention on doing that any time soon. I used to live in South Korea and my friends there say it's almost back to new-normal now, posting pics at restaurants and such. However, there was just a report that a Covid19-positive person went clubbing in Itaewon, the popular foreigner area, last weekend. I also used to live in China and friends there say it's getting more normal now. You must wear masks and some things are still closed, but you can eat in restaurants and go to bars that are open. There is a strict tracking program in place, though, as you have to use the app wechat (like whatsapp) at police check ins around town and at every business. If you leave your province you have to quarantine for 2 weeks, and all foreigner visas have been put on hold indefinitely. I, of course, accepted a position in China for August because I like to live dangerously, haha. They're throwing money at anyone willing to go, and it's not like I'm doing anything else right now. If the visas are still on hold by then I've lost nothing. I the country opens back up and lets me in, I've gained a good contract. It's not like Canada's economy will be swinging any time soon.

Oh, yes, of course. In 2018 Canada was the best 2nd place team and made it to the quarters. So I mean I expect Canada to either do that again or make it through the first round no problem. But the quarters will get dicey, as they met Finland last time and squeaked out a win. But maybe the NHL will be so damaged by covid19 that they decide they need the advertisement of the Olympics and allows their players to play again. A boy can dream...

After last Olympics, I'm a bit scared of Germany being in Canada's group. The USA is a chief rival, and China is the host country. Not exactly ideal for us. Should obviously still make it to the quarters but a good chance Canada won't finish first in their group.

Reading and watching videos about this subject, I would love in 3 months we all look back and say it was an overreaction. I just lost my mother and my aunt (my closest relative) in the last year to cancer. Now I live with my dad who isn't super old, but is within the danger zone. To think of losing him to COVID now is painful. Moving the Olympics a year sucks because I was really looking forward to it as always. But priorities have shifted. I am a history teacher. It's not names and dates, it's the people. I always said this to my students, but now more than ever: We are history. What will they read about us? It's never been easier to be a hero. Literally, do nothing. And wash your hands! Stay safe, friends!

Just brought this to the Canada thread. Late as usual!

Happened a week ago, but Laurence Vincent Lapointe has been cleared by the International Canoe Federation of alleged doping from this past summer. She's a gold medal favourite in two events, so that's great for Canada and the sport. Always good to have the best compete, especially in a new discipline. https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/canoe-kayak/laurence-vincent-lapointe-doping-verdict-1.5441395

I used to live and work in China, and still have many local and foreign friends there. I lived near Shanghai, so not around Wuhan. It would be like New York City vs Oklahoma City. It is the Lunar New Year holiday there, so people are already traveling all around the country and beyond. Some of my Chinese friends cut their vacations short so they could get a flight back home before airlines/countries discontinued service. They're not too concerned besides now trying to deal with the closed borders. We're all in education, so teachers not returning after break and students staying home is the problem. Local governments have already extended the "holiday" by a week to see what happens, but most schools have started to set up online classes. Foreign friends cannot get back into the country. Maybe are working to extend "vacations". That might sound fun, but it's a mad scramble right now logistically. They left their homes thinking they'd be gone 2-3 weeks, and now are locked out for lord knows how long. Who knows if they'll get paid while this is going on, but they have to arrange flights and hotels and everything else. But the worst is the foreigners who had friends/family visit over the break. Now it's a dash trying to get them out of the country. Stories of Westerners with Chinese spouses and mixed children being torn between being evacuated by their government of staying with their families. Trying to get visiting relatives through checkpoints and to the the airports. All the same, China gets a bad rap but it's a pretty cool place. Sad to see this happening. Racists gonna racist, but the country is beautiful and the people are delightful. People blaming their way of life need to consider that 20% of the world's population lives in China. Chances are poop's going to start there.

She'll always have her bobsleigh bronze medal!

Canada's protest against the USA in the relay has been denied. I would still love to see a replay since everyone saw problems in real time.