There is just one aspect about the Olympics in which the people
sitting at home have to work harder at than the athletes participating
in the events: keeping track of the million things that will go on
simultaneously for two hectic weeks.
Which is a pity. Because the Olympics are pure television gold. Thanks to the variety, the personalities, the expectations, the rivalries and the inevitable drama the Olympics almost always make for superb viewing for people of all tastes in sports. From athletics to fencing it is impossible to not find something or someone you want to watch from start to finish.
But the problem is if you’re someone who can’t tell your dressage
from your eventing where do you even begin planning your TV schedules,
iPhone apps, online research and the rigorous physical and mental
conditioning that is needed to watch a complete Olympic Games?
This is a eight-step programme to get you in shape for the big event in London.
Step 1: First print out a big A4-sized copy of the complete Olympics schedule. Printing out the chart in the official Wikipedia entry for the Games is highly recommended.
Step 2: Draw up a list of all the events you already know you want to watch. This might include essentials such as the Athletics sprint finals and Indian interest events such as Mary Kom’s boxing matches, the shooting and archery. Mark the event timings and finals on your chart. Detailed event timings are available on the Olympics website.
Step 3: Already you should see gaps on the schedule. Pack these in with other potentially interesting events. For instance events starring stars from Great Britain like Jessica Ennis and Philips Idowu should be pulsating to watch. Also look out for stories like Liu Xiang’s. The extraordinary Chinese hurdler pulled out of the 110m hurdles in Beijing in 2008 in front of a stunned home audience. But he promised to be back in London. The world smacks its lips in anticipation.
Step 4: If you are anything like us you still have no idea if you should be watching obscure events like sailing, canoeing, kayaking and fencing. Don’t ignore them completely. Instead first buy and read a copy of the excellent book ‘How to watch the Olympics’ by David Goldblatt and Danny Acton. The book is an eminently readable guide to all the events, rules, records and trivia. You may be surprised by how many events seem accessible now that you know what to look out for. Goldblatt and Acton also suggest their own list of sportspeople and rivalries to watch out for. The book should take you no more than two or three days to read. Once you’re done go back to Step 3 and fill in more gaps in your TV viewing schedule.
Step 5: Now it is time to couple your viewing aspirations with your viewing realities. While Olympic productions are normally smooth as silk, broadcasters do have a habit of cutting from the water polo the split second before the Hungarians score a goal. Thankfully between Doordarshan, ESPN and Star Sports you should have multiple video streams. Check if the broadcasters will put out schedules beforehand of what events they will be covering on which day.
Step 6: Chances are the TV broadcasters are going to be skipping some of your favourite ones. So keep an iPad or laptop handy. Because India is one of the 64 countries that will enjoy full Youtube streams of the events. Between all your TV and computers screens, and the recording function on your Set-top Box if you have one, you should be well set.
Step 7: Of course one must also go to work occasionally during the Games. And attend meetings and convene conference calls. No need to fret. You can still keep abreast of all your scores and news updates through this simple trick. First find an RSS feed of alerts and headlines for your chosen event. The NBC Olympics website has every single sport and every single nation. Now go to the If This Then That website (www.ifttt.com) and set up SMS or Email alerts for these feeds. Boom. Now every time a headline involving Table Tennis or Morocco (or both) comes up IFTTT sends it to your mobile phone or email inbox. Make the office jealous with your Olympics mastery.
Step 8: Bid farewell to your family. Tell them to pretend you’re going away on a two-week business trip.
Which is a pity. Because the Olympics are pure television gold. Thanks to the variety, the personalities, the expectations, the rivalries and the inevitable drama the Olympics almost always make for superb viewing for people of all tastes in sports. From athletics to fencing it is impossible to not find something or someone you want to watch from start to finish.
Workers construct satellite dishes for the world's media ahead of the Olympic Games. Reuters
This is a eight-step programme to get you in shape for the big event in London.
Step 1: First print out a big A4-sized copy of the complete Olympics schedule. Printing out the chart in the official Wikipedia entry for the Games is highly recommended.
Step 2: Draw up a list of all the events you already know you want to watch. This might include essentials such as the Athletics sprint finals and Indian interest events such as Mary Kom’s boxing matches, the shooting and archery. Mark the event timings and finals on your chart. Detailed event timings are available on the Olympics website.
Step 3: Already you should see gaps on the schedule. Pack these in with other potentially interesting events. For instance events starring stars from Great Britain like Jessica Ennis and Philips Idowu should be pulsating to watch. Also look out for stories like Liu Xiang’s. The extraordinary Chinese hurdler pulled out of the 110m hurdles in Beijing in 2008 in front of a stunned home audience. But he promised to be back in London. The world smacks its lips in anticipation.
Step 4: If you are anything like us you still have no idea if you should be watching obscure events like sailing, canoeing, kayaking and fencing. Don’t ignore them completely. Instead first buy and read a copy of the excellent book ‘How to watch the Olympics’ by David Goldblatt and Danny Acton. The book is an eminently readable guide to all the events, rules, records and trivia. You may be surprised by how many events seem accessible now that you know what to look out for. Goldblatt and Acton also suggest their own list of sportspeople and rivalries to watch out for. The book should take you no more than two or three days to read. Once you’re done go back to Step 3 and fill in more gaps in your TV viewing schedule.
Step 5: Now it is time to couple your viewing aspirations with your viewing realities. While Olympic productions are normally smooth as silk, broadcasters do have a habit of cutting from the water polo the split second before the Hungarians score a goal. Thankfully between Doordarshan, ESPN and Star Sports you should have multiple video streams. Check if the broadcasters will put out schedules beforehand of what events they will be covering on which day.
Step 6: Chances are the TV broadcasters are going to be skipping some of your favourite ones. So keep an iPad or laptop handy. Because India is one of the 64 countries that will enjoy full Youtube streams of the events. Between all your TV and computers screens, and the recording function on your Set-top Box if you have one, you should be well set.
Step 7: Of course one must also go to work occasionally during the Games. And attend meetings and convene conference calls. No need to fret. You can still keep abreast of all your scores and news updates through this simple trick. First find an RSS feed of alerts and headlines for your chosen event. The NBC Olympics website has every single sport and every single nation. Now go to the If This Then That website (www.ifttt.com) and set up SMS or Email alerts for these feeds. Boom. Now every time a headline involving Table Tennis or Morocco (or both) comes up IFTTT sends it to your mobile phone or email inbox. Make the office jealous with your Olympics mastery.
Step 8: Bid farewell to your family. Tell them to pretend you’re going away on a two-week business trip.
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