The Olympics

3242

What was the circumstances of Sonia’s inexactitude?

3243

I think it was when she was going back over the exploits of the Irish mixed relay team. “Oh shit, we have to run again.”

Darragh said “it’s alright, Sonia’s allowed it say it”.

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3244

Different class

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3245
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3246

The whole RTE production this morning was just brilliant in so many weird ways

  • Hugh Cahill on his own without a boxing colleague. Completely biased and caught up in the occasion and blows his load before the end. A bizarre RTE decision to have him on his own
  • Peter Collins, Egan and Donovan in the studio. Donovan getting a complete horn at the definition in Kellie’s arms. He must have mentioned it about 4 times.
  • Egan not really knowing what to say, whether to celebrate and be happy or try to remain professional and unbiased.
  • Peter Collins trying to steer the ship and bringing a very memorable occasion to a bizarre conclusion by just cutting straight to women’s basketball
  • RTE cutting to the ads straight after the national anthem and missing a lovely embrace by all 4 medallists which @Cheasty posted above
  • Joe Stack genuinely unsure what to ask Kellie in his interview after she got the medal
  • Marty, fucking Marty - he obviously lost his marbles not being close enough to a river or a camogie player
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3247

I have vague recollections as a 10-year old of watching celebratory scenes from Michael Carruth’s family’s sitting room on RTE after his gold medal. Did this happen? I might have imagined it.

3248

I don’t think you did

3249

I don’t even think there is a debate to be had. Kellie Anne Harrington is the TFK alright sort of the year

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3250

I’d say there were some awkward mixed feelings going through Egan’s head given that he was in the exact same position 13 years ago as Harrington was this morning, half the country getting up on the final morning of an Olympic Games in the far east to watch him fighting for gold, anticipating him winning, and it not quite coming off for him.

3251

He never had a hope. You don’t beat the Chinese in China. End of. Took it pretty well too.

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3252

Completely agree. They’d have been as well throwing him into the booth beside Cahill.

3253

Mick Dowling was a big loss to the RTE boxing coverage

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3254

You’d miss Jerry all the same and him casually excoriating the performances of some hapless Irish track and field athletes.

3255

Jerry only cut into those he felt had the ability to do more. He never hammered anyone who he felt was at the limit of what they were capable of.

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3256

There was a much bigger spread of boxing pundits in 2016. I think Dowling was still there then? Bernard Dunne and Kellie Harrington couldn’t do punditry this time for obvious reasons.

Andy Lee did the highlights this evening but I don’t recall seeing much else of him during the Games.

I’m sure Michael Carruth was in studio the odd time at previous Games.

Eric Donovan is very good but was largely left to carry the show by himself for the two weeks.

3257

I think Carruth and Dowling used to be the main men in studio when we started getting good at boxing, definitely 2008 and I’d say 2012 as well

3258

I wouldn’t have.

3259

It did.

I recall a glorious Saturday morning with cans and taytos after the night out before

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3260

When David May put himself in the position where he was lifted shoulder high after the 1999 Champions League final he was acting on advice from his father - “get yourself in the pictures so nobody forgets you”.

This advice was already long internalised by Irish politicians. It’s why everybody associates Stephen Roche winning the Tour de France and Ireland reaching the quarter-finals of Italia '90 with pictures of Charles Haughey.

And why Carruth winning his gold medal is inextricably linked in my mind with Gay Mitchell, and Mitchell patronisingly saying to Wayne McCullough “you didn’t win a gold medal, but we got you a special gold medal Wayne, there’s your gold medal”, and proclaiming that Dublin should host the Olympics.

The following Saturday Carruth was dragged off for an Irish model style photoshoot to a drag racing event at Rosegreen raceway in Tipperary. The glamour, oh the glamour of it all.

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3261

Except for the whole 2 years of raging alcoholism thing

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