Tuesday 16 February 2010

The Olympics and how I love it so

My love of the Summer Olympics is well-documented (well, it's documented), but I have been more coy about my love for the Winter ones. Mainly because I love them a bit less. But it really is only a little bit less. I know very little about any of the sports involved, so I have to turn myself into a semi-knowledgeable fan very quickly if I am going to enjoy them properly. Fortunately, I have the commitment to do so - real life goes on hold until the Olympics is over. Well, except my job - I still have to do that.

Anyway, my new grand passion as of last night and for at least the next two days until I get over the excitement is... Snowboard Cross. I watched the men's downhill ski-ing which was super and very exciting, mainly because of the crap snow and the terrible weather, and then I had my dinner and watched University Challenge (natch). And then, oh, then I discovered Snowboard Cross on BBC Three. It is one of the most mental sports I have ever seen - like the BMX racing at the Beijing Games, but crazier, faster, and on ice. I watched it all, and then I turned over to BBC2 and watched it again. It's so good I didn't care about the crap commentary, or about the fact that every time the commentator called it "Boarder Cross" my mind went straight to this song (which doesn't even have the words "border" or "cross" in it, so who the hell knows), I just watched and watched and watched.

Seriously. Watch the highlights. It's bloody brilliant.