De_Gambassi

Exactly when will be Midnight this New Year, it will be 30 years that Czechoslovakia ceased to exist and 2 new independent countries were created.
 
I found this vintage video from BBC and CNN news from the 1. January 1993
 

 
btw, I also learned today, that the very first sport person representing independent Slovakia was Michal Lepko jumping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen 4 Hills Tournament in 1st round the 1st January 1993 the 1st day of Slovakia (what about that) he and Martin Švagerko who jumped just after him, both represented former Czechoslovakia in Oberstdorf 3 days ago and then they were our first athletes who had the flag of Slovakia near to their name in a competition
 
Later in the evening in the Ice Hockey World Juniors a new team under neutral flag named Team Czech Republic and Slovakia beat Japan 14-2. Two days before the team had still its flag and anthem ! One of the biggest WTF in world sport history
 

 
 A team which started the Tournament on Boxing Day as Czechoslovakia ended the Tourney winning Bronze for a non-existing country anymore ...
 
This world is crazy
 

Janusz Jojko's own goal that resulted in Ruch Chorzów being relegated for the first time in their Ekstraklasa history (1987).
 

 
 

Varane and Konaté had a lunch with their teamates !!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
 
 

He was obviously referring to the gold medal in futnet.

He was obviously referring to the gold medal in futnet.

Right, the atmosphere during the French anthem makes it clear: go France, make every single booing and whistling loser (I assume a lot of the 13.000 holders of an entirely free ticket) go home disappointed  

Upamecano benched and Rabiot locked at the hotel...
 
Outside of these two, I'm very afraid a virus was going on in the french camp with half of the team being sicked (just like Switzerland against Portugal).

The second the temperature hits -0.1 anywhere in the country talk about this starts, every winter again  
 
We'd need at least the current temperatures (but getting closer to -10 would be better) and most importantly, we'd need them for a bit longer than we usually get...barely one week of cold nights and 0 degree days isn't really enough to freeze things over well enough for the thousands of people. It doesn't have to be 100% skateable by the way, there are always some passages around bridges or something where people have to get off the ice and 'walk' a short bit to get back on the ice. There's even a specific verb for this 'walking on skates', klunen.
 
Anyway, I doubt it'll happen this winter, but you never know. Often you don't see these kind of things coming from far away, who knows how long this current cold lasts and what January and February have in store. Last time was halfway in the 90's by the way  
 
If you've got nothing to do for a bit over seven hours, here's the main part of the broadcast of last time....  (definitely not all, I believe they started at 04:00 and the touristic riders had until midnight, if I'm not mistaken)
 
As you can see in the first minutes, they start with quite a bit of running from the start area to the ice, where they've got benches and such to put on their skates and really get underway.
 
One of the most dramatic moments in Dutch TV history is at 7:09.20 in the video. The last seconds before midnight, the finish is being closed, and right at the bell of midnight, one guy who is meters away from the finish comes into view....but nope. Rules are rules, the finish is closed. No cross (the medal) for him.
 
Johann Olav Koss of Norway is also shown at one of the stamp posts at 5:38 hours or so, it's not just Dutch skaters who want the 'Tour of Tours'  
 

We've had one or two nights below zero, some shallow waters have frozen over and of course that means one thing only: time for skates  
 
Speed skater Bart Vreugdenhil stepped on this ice this morning and is going for a world hour record on natural ice, which is apparently only 31km....set in 1928  
 
 

61 French players in 10 teams at this WC, papers say here
 
https://www.sport.pl/mundial/7,154361,29229505,niewiarygodne-jeden-kraj-wyslal-61-pilkarzy-na-ms-2022-graja.html

1. Kylian Mbappé, men's football
2. Kylian Mbappé, men's blind soccer
3. Kylian Mbappé, men's 110m hurdles
4. Kylian Mbappé, men's archery individual
5. Kylian Mbappé, men's C1 slalom
 

Personally I would do it this way:  
  
-12 groups of 4 teams each.  
-1st, 2nd and the best 8 3rd placed teams advance to a round of 32.  
-after the group phase all 32 teams that advance are ranked by their performance in group stage (like in the recent men's volleyball WCh) this creates an incentive for every team to do their best every match. 
-but you don't make the KO brackets just from that: you separate the teams into 4 pots and conduct another draw before the knockout stage. This is important in order to make sure you won't see teams trying to "pick" opponents by getting a specific result in their last group game. 
 
Knockout stage draw format:
 
Pot 1: Top 8 performing group winners. 
 
Pot 2: 4 remaining group winners + top 4 performing group runners up.  
 
Pot 3: 8 remaining runner up teams.
 
Pot 4: the 8 3rd placed teams. 
 
Teams from pot 1 can only draw teams from pot 4 in this draw. Teams from pot 2 only draw teams from pot 3. 
 
You also make sure all pot 1 teams are drawn into different Quarterfinal brackets (which is basically what we're doing in the current world cup format with the top 8 seeded teams before the tournament).
 
 
Convoluted? Yes. But this is the fairest thing they can do I think.

Not all football codes:
 
 

1. Kylian Mbappé, men's football
2. Kylian Mbappé, men's blind soccer
3. Kylian Mbappé, men's 110m hurdles
4. Kylian Mbappé, men's archery individual
5. Kylian Mbappé, men's C1 slalom
 

Next week is going to be the first  -  KO match ever (Euro OR WC)

I thought you had already stoped watching sport since the introduction of breakdancing ?

Next week is going to be the first  -  KO match ever (Euro OR WC)

Next week is going to be the first  -  KO match ever (Euro OR WC)

1. Kylian Mbappé, men's football
2. Kylian Mbappé, men's blind soccer
3. Kylian Mbappé, men's 110m hurdles
4. Kylian Mbappé, men's archery individual
5. Kylian Mbappé, men's C1 slalom
 

Not all football codes:
 
 

Not all football codes:
 
 

that was my first idea, but then I fell in love with breakdancing and now I can't wait to see the Paris 2024 events (I'm even thinking of trying to get some tickets and come to town to watch the B-girls and B-boys from the front row)... 

I thought you had already stoped watching sport since the introduction of breakdancing ?

Next week is going to be the first  -  KO match ever (Euro OR WC)

This will be something