The Rio Olympics

[Jon MW]

Suppose they have a point, we are fast to be cynical about other nations that seem overly successful...

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/16/british-cycling-head-coach-hits-back-rivals

It pretty much answers it in the article - we spend several millions more on cycling than everyone else.

The 'obvious' question isn't really why we're doing so much better in the Olympics when we weren't doing so in between London and Rio; it should be - why were we doing so badly in those intervening competitions?

[TightEnd]

the final standings in the velodrome

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[TightEnd]

the overall medal table with 5 days to go

hit the UK Sport target already, and the most successful overseas games

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[DaveShoelace]

I think we are on course to beat London's 65 medals too.

What price would you say that such a feat would be?

[TightEnd]

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[tikay]

the final standings in the velodrome

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My gut instincts tell me our cycling chaps & chapesses are squeaky clean, but if you were from another nation, all things considered, you'd definitely be thinking "how do they do it?". 

[TightEnd]

the final standings in the velodrome

Click to see full-size image.

My gut instincts tell me our cycling chaps & chapesses are squeaky clean, but if you were another nation, all things considered, you'd definitely be thinking "how do they do it?". 

they spend more money.

they focus on the one meeting every four years, and are prepared to lose world champs etc to peak for 2012,2016, 2020

marginal gains from superior science (eg they work with F1 teams on aerodynamics) and get small competitive advantages from the back room resources they put into it

there is also a slightly more level playing field on doping. ie its not as easy for state sponsored schemes like russia and china to get away with it so this reduces their tallies and increases ours, cycling included

i agree that its easy to have a double standard in scepticism, rest of world v GB athletes in any sport we clean up in we don't suspect when we do for other countries

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last night's derny rider goes back to his day job

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Vogl last night, who beat becky james to gold

my word, she had thighs like giant redwoods. immense power.

her back story i didn't know

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 the 88 medalists in the men's 100m Olympic finals since 1896 - racing 'together'

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http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/08/15/sports/olympics/usain-bolt-and-120-years-of-sprinting-history.html?smid=tw-share&_r=1

[Longines]

Jason Kenny and Laura Trott's flat is currently 10th in the medal table at #Rio2016

[TightEnd]

I think we are on course to beat London's 65 medals too.

What price would you say that such a feat would be?

we have 51 including today's guaranteed 1

we need 15 then in 5 days. we are ahead of the rate but most of our big hitting events are over

without going through and counting (Farah, nicola adams, bmx, relays, tom daley etc)...odds against maybe?

[TightEnd]

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