hockeyfan1
New member
Friday night, the town of PyeongChang, South Korea, a community of 40,000+ residents, welcomed the world to the opening ceremonies of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games at newly-built PyeongChang Stadium.
It was a ceremony that could be termed 'simplistic' yet hi-tech, complete with pyrotechnics that stunned, fire-dancers that twirled, etc,. lots of choreography interspersed with hi-tech effects that awed and stunned viewers and audiences alike. It certainly was a testimonial to the small-budget type of ceremony that carried not a dull moment with it's trimmed and admirable presentation.
Of course, there was the usual Parade of Nations, a throng that would never seem to end. Not that it should, since every country was present, with the flag bearers proudly displaying their respective nations' flags. Canada, whose athletes came in towards the ending of the parada of nations, had Scott Moir & Tessa Virtue as the official flag-bearers, and they were none the prouder, as Canada became the first country in Olympic history to have both a female and a male as flag-bearers at once.
Who can forget the Tongo's shirtless (and well-oiled) flag bearer, Pitas Taufatofua. Yes, him again. Something to get tongues wagging all right. Kudos to him for braving the cold!
But the moment the entire stadium was waiting for was the last country -- the host nation -- to march, and there they were, the two Koreas marching under the 'Unification Flag'. The IOC and the (South) Korean Unification Ministry agreed to commission and invite several North Korean athletes to cross the demarcation line and participate in these Olympic Games as a symbol of openness and dialogue.
Whether this strikes a chord with communist North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un remains to be seen, though several North Korean government delegates along with Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, were in attendance. Strongman Jong Un and his obsession with nuclear ballistic missile testing and his desire to annihilate the West (namely the United States) with his threats of war, has left the world (and particularly neighbouring Japan & South Korea) on the precipice of tension and uncertainty. By no means should this gesture of 'unity' be seen as making any inroads into a truce or peace initiative. What happens after all of this Olympic fanfare is over remains to be seen.
That said, there were violent protests in the streets in South Korea prior to the opening of the games where anti-North Korea protesters clashed with police, in disagreement with the North Korean invite. Many do not want the Communist state's values to encroach or tinker with the democratic and diversified South Korean nation. Many do not believe any of what has taken place nor what is to come (at these Olympics) will modify or soften strongman Jong Un's motives.
North Korea's athletes will be participating in only five sporting events -- one of them being the Women's Ice Hockey portion of these Olympiads. The North and the South will play as one team, one 'unified' country. It has been reported that Kim Jong Un's grandfather was a fan of the sport. Yes, you read it right.
For many cynics, the Olympics, whether Summer or Winter versions, represent cynicism, cronyism, and most of all, hypocrisy at the highest level. At the last Winter Olympics in
Sochi (Russia) in 2014, Team Russia became embroiled in a doping scandal of great proportions amid allegations of government-sanctioned state-wide doping.
Eventually forty-three Russian athletes were banned from participating in future Winter Games (such as these). They appealed to the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports) and of those, the bans were reduced to twenty-eight. From those twenty-eight, eleven appealed. To make a long story short, so to speak, the IOC upheld the ban of only thirteen and allowed the rest to participate. In fact, Team Russia was officially banned from engaging in these PyeongChang Games but, Russian athletes could still be present under the title of "Olympic Athletes from Russia" (OAR), with no official Russian flag nor anthem, neither of the two displayed or to be played. In other words, Russia's 169 Olympic athletes are unofficially participating but officially not representing Russia per se. Strange but weird piece of decision-making by the grand poobahs that is the IOC.
This flies in the face of upholding sanctions and rules/ethics, much to the frustration and consternation of ex WADA chief Canadian Dick Pound, and British IOC member Adam Pegully. What message it was supposed to send is anyone's guess, except for the fact that in theory, actually, in practicality, Russia is a participant.
For many in general, the Olympics, regardless of it's flaws and flouting of ethics regulations, etc., still represent the showcasing of the world's best in the faster, higher, stronger motto, no matter whether the idea of a level playing field is present or not.
If the PyeongChang Olympics are about unity, involvement, peace, and diversity, then these Opening Ceremonies resonated with that theme throughout, particularly with the singing of the Korean anthem by the Rainbow Children's Choir, a South Korean ensemble that prides itself on "multicultural diversity".
All in all, PyeongChang's world wide welcome hasn't disappointed. As the song stated, "...we are all one...'. Beautiful, imaginative, and...hopeful.
"Let the Games Begin!"
Hats off to you, South Korea!
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/winter-olympics/pyeongchang-2018-winter-olympics-opening-ceremony-a8203591.html
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2018/02/pyeongchang-opening-ceremony-olympics-2018/552902/
It was a ceremony that could be termed 'simplistic' yet hi-tech, complete with pyrotechnics that stunned, fire-dancers that twirled, etc,. lots of choreography interspersed with hi-tech effects that awed and stunned viewers and audiences alike. It certainly was a testimonial to the small-budget type of ceremony that carried not a dull moment with it's trimmed and admirable presentation.
Of course, there was the usual Parade of Nations, a throng that would never seem to end. Not that it should, since every country was present, with the flag bearers proudly displaying their respective nations' flags. Canada, whose athletes came in towards the ending of the parada of nations, had Scott Moir & Tessa Virtue as the official flag-bearers, and they were none the prouder, as Canada became the first country in Olympic history to have both a female and a male as flag-bearers at once.
Who can forget the Tongo's shirtless (and well-oiled) flag bearer, Pitas Taufatofua. Yes, him again. Something to get tongues wagging all right. Kudos to him for braving the cold!
But the moment the entire stadium was waiting for was the last country -- the host nation -- to march, and there they were, the two Koreas marching under the 'Unification Flag'. The IOC and the (South) Korean Unification Ministry agreed to commission and invite several North Korean athletes to cross the demarcation line and participate in these Olympic Games as a symbol of openness and dialogue.
Whether this strikes a chord with communist North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un remains to be seen, though several North Korean government delegates along with Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, were in attendance. Strongman Jong Un and his obsession with nuclear ballistic missile testing and his desire to annihilate the West (namely the United States) with his threats of war, has left the world (and particularly neighbouring Japan & South Korea) on the precipice of tension and uncertainty. By no means should this gesture of 'unity' be seen as making any inroads into a truce or peace initiative. What happens after all of this Olympic fanfare is over remains to be seen.
That said, there were violent protests in the streets in South Korea prior to the opening of the games where anti-North Korea protesters clashed with police, in disagreement with the North Korean invite. Many do not want the Communist state's values to encroach or tinker with the democratic and diversified South Korean nation. Many do not believe any of what has taken place nor what is to come (at these Olympics) will modify or soften strongman Jong Un's motives.
North Korea's athletes will be participating in only five sporting events -- one of them being the Women's Ice Hockey portion of these Olympiads. The North and the South will play as one team, one 'unified' country. It has been reported that Kim Jong Un's grandfather was a fan of the sport. Yes, you read it right.
For many cynics, the Olympics, whether Summer or Winter versions, represent cynicism, cronyism, and most of all, hypocrisy at the highest level. At the last Winter Olympics in
Sochi (Russia) in 2014, Team Russia became embroiled in a doping scandal of great proportions amid allegations of government-sanctioned state-wide doping.
Eventually forty-three Russian athletes were banned from participating in future Winter Games (such as these). They appealed to the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports) and of those, the bans were reduced to twenty-eight. From those twenty-eight, eleven appealed. To make a long story short, so to speak, the IOC upheld the ban of only thirteen and allowed the rest to participate. In fact, Team Russia was officially banned from engaging in these PyeongChang Games but, Russian athletes could still be present under the title of "Olympic Athletes from Russia" (OAR), with no official Russian flag nor anthem, neither of the two displayed or to be played. In other words, Russia's 169 Olympic athletes are unofficially participating but officially not representing Russia per se. Strange but weird piece of decision-making by the grand poobahs that is the IOC.
This flies in the face of upholding sanctions and rules/ethics, much to the frustration and consternation of ex WADA chief Canadian Dick Pound, and British IOC member Adam Pegully. What message it was supposed to send is anyone's guess, except for the fact that in theory, actually, in practicality, Russia is a participant.
For many in general, the Olympics, regardless of it's flaws and flouting of ethics regulations, etc., still represent the showcasing of the world's best in the faster, higher, stronger motto, no matter whether the idea of a level playing field is present or not.
If the PyeongChang Olympics are about unity, involvement, peace, and diversity, then these Opening Ceremonies resonated with that theme throughout, particularly with the singing of the Korean anthem by the Rainbow Children's Choir, a South Korean ensemble that prides itself on "multicultural diversity".
All in all, PyeongChang's world wide welcome hasn't disappointed. As the song stated, "...we are all one...'. Beautiful, imaginative, and...hopeful.
"Let the Games Begin!"
Hats off to you, South Korea!
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/winter-olympics/pyeongchang-2018-winter-olympics-opening-ceremony-a8203591.html
https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2018/02/pyeongchang-opening-ceremony-olympics-2018/552902/