Ireland gold medals going forward. Some bluesky thinking needed.

[sheamy]

The Basques love that. There's courts all over the place out there. There's a version played with a racket too. Euskaldunak verses the Irish. That sounds like the business.

[ardal]

Massive also in Navarra, La Rioja and the French Basque country; trying to avoid politics with that one. Total population of what, including Ireland? close to 10 million?

[Eamonnca1]

What is the obsession with being good at 'Olympic' sports only?  EG and his kindred spirit MNaG (amongst others) seem to have taken the rather foolish position of defining the sporting prowess of the Irish by our position in the Olympic medals table.

So what if we aren't top of the world in Kayaking, Taekwondo or Rhythmic Gymnastics.  We just happen to be very much top of the table in two of the fastest and most exciting sports in the world.  (IMO of course  )  The fact that we invented these games ourselves makes it all the more satisfying.

Also,  Eammonca1, I don't have any statistics to hand but I would be willing to take a wager that sporting participation as a percentage of population is much higher in Ireland than it is in America.

See what I mean about defeatism?

Who said we should "only" be good at Olympic sports?

What's wrong with wanting to get higher in the medals table?  What's wrong with winning?  What's wrong with proving ourselves to be a developed country that has its house in order?  What's wrong with wanting to get out of the lower regions of the medals table where banana republics, dictatorships and failed states belong?

What's wrong with being good at globalized sports as well as our own Gaelic games?

What's wrong with trying to do multiple things at the same time? 

What's wrong with wanting more people to turn the TV off and get out and participate in sports?

What's wrong with trying to succeed?

[Hardy]

What's wrong with refusing to perceive under-performance at trick cycling, horse-dancing and treading water with a clothes-peg on your nose as some kind of national failure?

[thejuice]

What's wrong with proving ourselves to be a developed country that has its house in order? 

Something actually has to be true to proven so.

Nothing at all wrong with what you are saying. Buy why hasn't it happened already?


How many of us didn't have the opportunity to prove ourselves at a range of different sports.

I and my peers alike, certainly had quite a menu to pick and I had a taste of them all.

[thejuice]

Never realised Portugal, Norway, Finland and Belgium were "banana republics, dictatorships and failed states" unlike China, Belarus, Kazakhstan and North Korea.

[Eamonnca1]

Nothing at all wrong with what you are saying. Buy why hasn't it happened already?

Because there's no concerted coordinated effort to make it happen. The only time we get medals is when a few exceptional individuals get there under their own steam, which is nice when it happens (as it did yesterday) but it's a bit too rare for my liking. 

Because there's too many people sitting in front of the TV all evening.

I and my peers alike, certainly had quite a menu to pick and I had a taste of them all.

I'm only going by my own experience here but in school you were in heaven if you liked indoor soccer, and in hell if you hated it because that seemed to be the only thing they "taught".  Lazy PE teachers didn't have to do anything because they assumed everyone already knew how to play, so they'd get three captains, get them to pick three teams, throw in the ball, and spend the rest of the lesson marking homework or doing other paperwork so they could have the evening to themselves when they got home.  I ended up boycotting PE by "forgetting" to bring my gear.

Sometimes they'd teach a bit of basketball or hockey or athletics and stuff and put in some effort, but there wasn't enough of that kind of variety IMHO. (We were never taught hurling no matter how many times I asked for it, it was always promised "next year".)  Plus there was no coordination with local clubs, no such thing as pointing young fellas in the direction of where they could go if they wanted to keep on playing these sports.  I think that's a bridge that could be built, between schools and local clubs.  Last day of the school year when nobody does anything anyway, have a sports Expo where all the local clubs set up stalls and catch people that might be interested in joining.  Doesn't have to cost a fortune.

[Franko]

What is the obsession with being good at 'Olympic' sports only?  EG and his kindred spirit MNaG (amongst others) seem to have taken the rather foolish position of defining the sporting prowess of the Irish by our position in the Olympic medals table.

So what if we aren't top of the world in Kayaking, Taekwondo or Rhythmic Gymnastics.  We just happen to be very much top of the table in two of the fastest and most exciting sports in the world.  (IMO of course  )  The fact that we invented these games ourselves makes it all the more satisfying.

Also,  Eammonca1, I don't have any statistics to hand but I would be willing to take a wager that sporting participation as a percentage of population is much higher in Ireland than it is in America.

See what I mean about defeatism?

Who said we should "only" be good at Olympic sports?

What's wrong with wanting to get higher in the medals table?  What's wrong with winning?  What's wrong with proving ourselves to be a developed country that has its house in order?  What's wrong with wanting to get out of the lower regions of the medals table where banana republics, dictatorships and failed states belong?

What's wrong with being good at globalized sports as well as our own Gaelic games?

What's wrong with trying to do multiple things at the same time? 

What's wrong with wanting more people to turn the TV off and get out and participate in sports?

What's wrong with trying to succeed?

Absolutely nothing wrong with any of those things.  Could you highlight where I said there was please?

What's wrong with taking a positive look at our sporting abilities intsead of the 'we're low ranked in the medal table at the Olympics so we must be a a nation of couch potatoes' attitude that some are only too happy to display.

Also, to keep a reality check on things... we are flat broke... so I wouldn't like to be spending money developing athletes to to compete in a range of sports, (which lets face it, we have a passing interest in at best) when there are far more pressing issues to be dealt with.

Also,  what about the little wager at the bottom... 

[the Deel Rover]

Nothing at all wrong with what you are saying. Buy why hasn't it happened already?

Because there's no concerted coordinated effort to make it happen. The only time we get medals is when a few exceptional individuals get there under their own steam, which is nice when it happens (as it did yesterday) but it's a bit too rare for my liking. 

Because there's too many people sitting in front of the TV all evening.

I and my peers alike, certainly had quite a menu to pick and I had a taste of them all.

I'm only going by my own experience here but in school you were in heaven if you liked indoor soccer, and in hell if you hated it because that seemed to be the only thing they "taught".  Lazy PE teachers didn't have to do anything because they assumed everyone already knew how to play, so they'd get three captains, get them to pick three teams, throw in the ball, and spend the rest of the lesson marking homework or doing other paperwork so they could have the evening to themselves when they got home.  I ended up boycotting PE by "forgetting" to bring my gear.

Sometimes they'd teach a bit of basketball or hockey or athletics and stuff and put in some effort, but there wasn't enough of that kind of variety IMHO. (We were never taught hurling no matter how many times I asked for it, it was always promised "next year".)  Plus there was no coordination with local clubs, no such thing as pointing young fellas in the direction of where they could go if they wanted to keep on playing these sports.  I think that's a bridge that could be built, between schools and local clubs.  Last day of the school year when nobody does anything anyway, have a sports Expo where all the local clubs set up stalls and catch people that might be interested in joining.  Doesn't have to cost a fortune.

The reason why i asked you how long have you been living in America Eamonca1 is because imo things have changed regards peoples attitude to training and the choices of games available to Kids. With regard choice of Games at national school that ain't going to happen the schools just don't have the facilities. However compared to when we were young the kids today have a great choice. Just speaking for my own kIds the play Gaelic during the summer , Rugby from September to May , and During the school term they have swimming and go to Martial Arts all of which they love .   

[Eamonnca1]

What's wrong with taking a positive look at our sporting abilities intsead of the 'we're low ranked in the medal table at the Olympics so we must be a a nation of couch potatoes' attitude that some are only too happy to display.

Also, to keep a reality check on things... we are flat broke... so I wouldn't like to be spending money developing athletes to to compete in a range of sports, (which lets face it, we have a passing interest in at best) when there are far more pressing issues to be dealt with.

I happen to think we are a nation of couch potatoes, and investing in sport would work out cheaper in the long run.  Which is cheaper, initiatives to get more people into sport plus investment at the top level to develop promising athletes?  Or leaving things as they are and then spending money on treatment of obesity-related illnesses, diabetes, and lost productivity from people dropping dead prematurely from heart disease?  I happen to think that prevention is better than cure, and sport can be a great preventative measure that pays off.

Also,  what about the little wager at the bottom... [about how the proportion of sports participation in Ireland is probably higher than in the USA]

You might be right, you might be wrong.  But I don't think it's particularly relevant.  Even if couch potato-ism was at, say, 20% in America and 15% in Ireland, would it still not be better to reduce it further in Ireland?

[Eamonnca1]

The reason why i asked you how long have you been living in America Eamonca1 is because imo things have changed regards peoples attitude to training and the choices of games available to Kids. With regard choice of Games at national school that ain't going to happen the schools just don't have the facilities. However compared to when we were young the kids today have a great choice. Just speaking for my own kIds the play Gaelic during the summer , Rugby from September to May , and During the school term they have swimming and go to Martial Arts all of which they love .   

Well I'm glad to hear it.  And when I talk about schools I tend to think of high schools which have the facilities, I wasn't considering primary schools at all.

If what you describe is true across the country, and with the Irish Institute of Sport in place, it sounds like a lot of the ingredients for success are already there.  I don't think it would take al that much to push us over the line into having a systematic approach that creates more successful athletes on a more consistent basis.

If, for example, we're going to build more velodromes around the country (and velodromes don't have to all be all-singing-all-dancing Olympic standard facilities like in Manchester, you can have outdoor tarmac tracks like at Orangefield that cost considerably less) the government doesn't have to foot the entire bill.  Government or the people who dispense lottery funds can say to the sports governing bodies "raise x amount of money towards your project first, and we'll provide matching funds up to a certain level."

[Eamonnca1]

Never realised Portugal, Norway, Finland and Belgium were "banana republics, dictatorships and failed states" unlike China, Belarus, Kazakhstan and North Korea.

That's why I said that such states belong at the bottom of the table.  Didn't say they all were, didn't say that developed countries don't hang out at the bottom at all.  In any case countries like Norway tend to do a whole lot better in the winter Olympics for fairly obvious reasons. They came 4th in the total medals table in 2010.

[Orangemac]

At present we have at least 1 Gold, 1 Silver and 3 Bronze. When the final table is calculated and you look at it per capita this will have been a very good performance. We should have a had a few more (Joe Ward absolutely done in qualifiers (before results started being overturned), Annalise Murphy dropping the ball) so I'd argue things are getting better. The past is the past.

I'd agree that for the current games it's not a shabby return. The aim should be now to ensure that "Team Ireland" wins at least one gold and at least five medals in total in future games from Rio 2016 onwards.

I'd say if someone could work out a medals per head of population table Ireland would be quite high on it.

In terms of support and conditions though this was as close to a home games as Ireland will ever have so it could be looked at as a missed opportunity in some respects.

[Jonah]

Fionntamhnach is spot on.  Every sport has its own appeal.  I'd never denigrate any sport (not even NASCAR), I'd never insult the competitors or fans who take it seriously.  I always remind myself of how stupid people look when they complain about the "boringness" of sports that I happen to enjoy and understand, while they clearly neither enjoy nor understand them.  Like the idiot who wrote an article in some American paper about how he could win the Tour de France just by riding a lighter bike.

If I ever find anything "boring to watch" it's usually because I don't know the rules or skills involved.  Once I know the rules and what's involved in competing then it becomes a lot more interesting.

You dont apply the same criteria to peoples faith though 

Thought the same thing myself when I read it 

[armaghniac]

With regards to Gaelic Handball, it might be worth trying to seek in the short term getting it added to the World Games. It's being held next year in Columbia but it's too late I think to try and get it added on to the calendar. The one after that is 2017 in Worclaw in Poland. The main obstacle is that the host city isn't supposed to build any new facilities to accommodate sports that take place, so a quick foothold to getting the 40x20 game played there should be a priority.

This seems a good plan. Get the local Poles involved in handball here and get it going in Wrocław.

As for the general situation, Austria has no medals, which puts things in perspective. Hungary has a rake of medals, there are probably pubs in Sopron or wherever where this difference is greatly appreciated!