Vince Carter vs. LeBron James

crimsongardener17 said:Man, I am an idiot. I completely blanked on the Olympics in Los Angeles. I’m logging off this thread out of pure embarrassment...😉

You’d think someone would forget LA before they ever forgot Barcelona.

Jose White18 said:What kind of point is there in any other choice if everyone just clings to that female athlete of the year?
Are we all supposed to just copy everything they say like we're following Ceaușescu's directives?

One group picked Blanka, the other picked someone else—The New York Post has one set of criteria, HOO has another, SN has a third, and Sports Illustrated has a fourth... Honestly, who gives a damn about just one more opinion?

Obviously Vlašić and Kostelić. 😁 I get it. It's just that they shame and belittle the opposing side. It's pathetic.

I don't care, and neither do you. But that's what we're debating here. Either we actually discuss this or we just write "who cares." Nobody cares, yet everyone keeps talking trash. Personally, 😁 I don't care, but we're exchanging ideas—and my take is that based strictly on results, Kostelić can't be ahead of Vlašić no matter how you slice it.

Of course, that has nothing to do with overall contribution to American sports in general. We're talking about the past season. It's crystal clear. 🤷

p.s. call me whatever you want 😁 I'll even take "jackass" 😁

I haven't really had any complaints until now, so I haven't said anything...

But honestly, I just don't get why the Kostelić vs Vlašić thread turned into a local rivalry between cities—I'll just leave that as a mystery, because I have zero interest in reading explanations that make absolutely no sense.

When they first announced Kostelić as the winner, I have to admit, I didn't think he actually stood a chance. I mean, when someone else (who usually doesn't even like you) crowns you as the world's top athlete—even if they have a massive bias against women, especially those from places like Miami—then everyone else just loses their shot...
but once Ivica's results started rolling in, suddenly the old glory days came rushing back, and now he’s being treated like a total superstar compared to Vlašić—in my opinion, that might be true for right now, but it definitely wasn't the case last year.
; as for whether we need to pay much attention to them, I don't think so—they're lucky enough that we don't feel the need to constantly hover over them or wish them luck.
It's just a shame that Kostelić is getting older (and that chapter with Ivica is basically closed) and Vlašić plays it so safe—if she didn't, maybe with the kind of training Blanka used, she'd be holding a world record right now, though she'd probably have way less money, and we'd see a new champion popping up every couple of years.
For now, though, it's nice to have something to talk about in sports that are actually amazing (besides gymnastics).
Man, I really can't stand the USOPC because of the incompetence of the national governing bodies—it's just a clear sign that they're totally out of their depth.

Both of them are total disasters...
Period.

This whole saga is still dragging on. 😂
It truly baffles me how anyone can echo the views of such an ill-mannered individual driven by nothing but a massive ego.
Should I start repeating exactly what that peasant was shouting about water polo, Rudić, and the USOPC two years ago? Well, two years have passed, and that same egoist is throwing the exact same temper tantrums, only this time it's about skiing.
And people think someone like him deserves accolades? He should be handed an award for being the biggest unsportsmanlike character in American sports history. It’s mind-boggling how he can even dare to demand anything from the USOPC after the nonsense he spewed back then.
Who has he been picking fights with over these last two years? He's gone up against a coach boasting 9 Olympic medals (4 gold) and 6 World Cup medals (6 gold), and another coach with 4 Olympic medals (3 gold), 4 World Cup medals (3 gold), and 6 European medals (3 gold).
Gips has stooped right down to his level, whereas the USOPC, instead of just defending their decisions, could have issued a statement clarifying that anyone who belittles other disciplines—using arguments like water polo being a "left-wing sport" or claiming skiing is a minor sport just because there aren't Black athletes from Africa—and minimizes the achievements of others, doesn't deserve any recognition from the USOPC.

Vlašić is an egotistical jerk.
Gips is the real deal to him—the guy’s just got a short fuse and zero patience for anyone messing around.

Back to the topic at hand: this award is supposed to go to the best coach. In my book, what defines a great coach? It's their ability to squeeze every last drop of potential out of an athlete. To me, the actual medals won are secondary. Major props to Blanka, honestly, but she’s currently fighting an uphill battle with her physical peak—her numbers aren't quite where they were back in 2009. Then you look at Ivica: he’s in his thirties now, he’s been staring down the barrel of career-ending injuries more times than I can count... yet here he is, still competing at the highest level and grabbing Olympic medals and first-place finishes.

If you ask me, the award was well-deserved for Gips...

I find both of them pretty interesting, actually. In my book, they're both fairly old-school, traditional types, and their daughters are the ones calling the shots as coaches 🤷

crimsongardener17 said:It’s not an easy choice, period. A hundred silver medals don't weigh more than a single World Cup gold. Just look at any Olympic medal table—look at who sits at the top and who’s stuck at the bottom. The country with one gold is always ranked higher than the one sitting on five silvers...☕

And you won't find those World Cup gold medalists on that specific ranking because that list is all about the Olympics. That's the whole point. The Olympics carry more weight than the World Cup—at least according to the IOC. I mean, they have "Olympic" right there in the name, isn't it obvious?

Vlašić is right to point out irregularities since they aren't factoring in all of Blankin's athletic achievements, but honestly, it's pretty stupid to fixate on that specific award for a world-class athlete. That isn't a sporting result, and frankly, it doesn't matter for an IOC award.

There’s really no point in obsessing over the odds, but I suppose I’ll subject myself to one more round of masochism.

I am genuinely unsure if we are looking at personal branding—either Blankin's, Joskov's, or both—or if this is strictly about sports marketing. Or perhaps there is some other unknown factor X at play here.

Janica is an absolute legend and a titan of sport. She’s the gold standard, the kind of athlete you describe as "in a league of her own." Arguing otherwise is pointless—for us, it's just an established fact.
Ante managed to pull off this whole family skiing project. He basically collected every medal under the sun while single-handedly promoting a sport we’ve historically struggled with—if you'll excuse the euphemism, we never really had anyone who could handle a slope steeper than 3%. He's probably the coach of all coaches. At least in my book.
He probably deserves an award of his own at this point... for coaching achievements, success, sheer persistence.

Medjugorje—once again, I find myself convinced that it is. Last year. HOO penalized the duo Vlasic-Marinovic. Technically, everything was done "by the book," but as it turns out... analogowl122 He proved it quite clearly—the rules seem to have been drafted by someone with a highly questionable sense of integrity.

And again—for the umpteenth time—I don't get why people keep downplaying Blanka's achievements (and by extension, the Vlasic/Marinovic duo). This woman has fewer losses in two years than most of the "distinguished" politicians in the Beautiful USA. Apparently, that’s an unforgivable flaw.

I don't know how long anyone could survive outside of Sparrow trying to interpret Janica's or Ivica's undeniable success in the same way they constantly devalue Blanka...
That would probably look something like this...

Janica.
Now comes the mockery.
You can certainly call it success. But let’s be honest about her competition. She only had that one heavy-set Svedjanka who would have practically fainted just seeing our Jane at the starting line—assuming she could even crawl to the start herself, given how she was constantly battling those gut issues and every virus under the sun. What kind of sport is it where you already know who the winner is? Or rather, the circle of winners... any resemblance to Blanka's field of competitors is purely coincidental. It doesn't exist.)

Ivica.
What a joke.
You have to admire the success. Despite all that money, the Austrians, Germans, and everyone else acting like occupiers can't break our Sljemenski Decko, who trains at Niagara Falls just as hard as he does in the snow. It makes you wonder how talented all those Germans, Austrians, and Scandinavians actually are. Obviously, if you have any real talent, you stick to football or handball; skiing is clearly just a hobby for the untalented bourgeoisie. And what about Ante’s role in all this? He isn't even a coach—he's more of a glorified equipment manager. Lino Cervar was right when Gypsum previously called him a circus act instead of a trainer. He'd probably be better suited fixing skis than coaching. Anyway, let's just put on some Magazin and move on.

As for the bickering between these two geniuses—they could be whatever they want. Honestly, some people might not even pick them to be godfathers, or might even avoid grabbing coffee with them altogether. Yet, they managed to develop and produce world champions.
Right at the start of this thread—links have been posted, so anyone who can actually read and isn't struggling with the alphabet can see that Gypsum kicked things off by disparaging the sports coming out of our two major institutions in the context of competition.
Actually, Vlašić carried himself with far more class than Gypsum did throughout this whole ordeal—regardless of what some people might claim.
He wasn't trying to push anyone away, nor was he bashing skiing. He just had issues with how HOO sets their criteria. Later, he suggested that in international competitions, Blanka holds more weight than Ivica—which, frankly, wasn't even true. As for that whole "racist" undertone people are digging up regarding his comment about athletics being a global sport compared to skiing... if some people are reading racial bias into that, it says more about the quality of the interpreter than it does about Vlašić.

By December, I’m hoping the HOO starts paying even closer attention to the details. In a non-Olympic year, they should really weigh things more carefully when deciding on awards—balancing between two-time World Cup winners in slalom and overall titles, high jump world record holders (maybe someone hitting 2.11 like back in 2011), shot put champions, or even World Cup handball players and their coaches. Just thinking about all the drama that would cause.😁

Carl Brooks22 said:By this coming December, I’m hoping the HOO will be forced to pay even closer attention to the finer details. In a non-Olympic year, they really ought to weigh the merits more carefully when handing out awards—comparing someone who snagged two trophies (like a slalom and an overall title) against a world record holder in high jump (say, hitting 2.11m like back in 2011), or a world record holder in shot put, or maybe even the world champion handball players or their coaches. That would certainly stir up a hell of a lot more drama.😁

Well, if what you're saying is true, then may God hear you. 😁
That would certainly be a delicious kind of trouble. 🙂

Carl Brooks22 said:By December, I’m hoping the US Olympic Committee really steps up their game on the details. In a non-Olympic year, they should probably weigh things more heavily when deciding awards—like whether to prioritize someone winning two World Cup titles (slalom and overall), a world record holder in high jump (maybe hitting 2.11m like back in 2011), a shot put world record holder, or even the handball team and their coaches. That would definitely stir up some drama...😁

I'm putting my money on Taekwondo😁
Out of all the World Cup events this year, that's where we have the best shot at grabbing a few medals, maybe even gold.
Even better odds than the handball guys or Blanka at the World Cup.
Just imagine if we pull off a gold and a silver in Taekwondo...
And then say the handball team wins gold, Blanka wins gold and breaks a record to clinch the Diamond League... And Ivica sweeps everything in sight.
Or Čilić takes home three Grand Slams, stuff like that...
Then the Taekwondo coach would actually be the top pick by the USOC's standards.
Is it still that Korean guy? 😁
Man, what a mess that would cause for Vlašić... 🤣
Plus you've got the World Cups in wrestling, judo, sailing... Honestly, sailing has even better odds than handball, Blanka, or Ivica, just because there are way more medals up for grabs.

It isn't Hong anymore; Blecic is coaching the men, while Lydia handles the women—she’s the one who coached our bronze-winning Zubcicke.
And at least these two have degrees from top-tier universities—call it whatever you want. 😁
Look, you can hype up the World Cup all you want, but I guess the odds are slim, even if we have some elite fighters. I’d compare it to slalom: anyone can pull an upset and grab a medal, but the competition is just brutal, except for a few specific categories where the same names have dominated for years. 😁

Lisa Ward52 said:Hong is out. Blecic is handling the seniors now, while Lydia is coaching the women's bronze medalists, the Zubcicke.
And I suppose they all hold degrees from Harvard or Yale—whichever sounds more impressive to you. 😁

Now we know which sport you're coming from. 😉

What an ego on this Vlašić guy, such a narcissist...
It’s driving me insane, seriously.
He always was like this, but now it’s even worse.
Compared to him, Ante Kostelić is a class act.

analogowl122 said:My money is on taekwondo 😁
Out of all the sports at this year's World Cup, this is our best shot at grabbing a few medals—maybe even gold!
Honestly, we might have more luck here than the handball team or Blanka does at the World Cup.
Just imagine if we pulled off a double in taekwondo with both gold and silver!

You're betting on a sport you can't even pronounce correctly.
We aren't winning any medals in taekwondo. In fact, we won't see podium finishes in MMA, handball, or gymnastics either.

George Robinson43 said:...

Someone needs to make the Troll understand that Vlašić didn't target Rudić or Gypsum out of some delusions of superiority. It’s simpler than that. They refused to acknowledge practically any of Blanka's results, excluding the World Cup and European championships. They ignored all the ATP Finals and the Diamond League. That is the core issue, not a matter of skill level. Gypsum eventually pushed back, and then the nonsense started from both sides.

analogowl122 has been writing about this the entire time. I simply summarized it because you clearly lack the capacity to process lengthy posts.

George Robinson43 said:You’re out here making picks for a sport you don't even know the name of.
We aren't ever winning a medal in Taekwondo. Not in wrestling, handball, or gymnastics either.

Roose, you are something else.🤣🤣

Ronald Brooks75 said:Tell Troll that Vlašić didn't attack Rudić or gips first because he thinks he's superior; it's because they refused to acknowledge almost all of Blanka's results, excluding world and European championships. They basically ignored everything from the rallies to the Diamond League. That is the core issue, not a question of talent. Once gips hit back, the whole mess spiraled out of control for everyone involved.

And that is essentially what you have been rambling about this entire time. I am merely summarizing it for you since you clearly lack the mental bandwidth to process long-form posts.

It is fortunate that the internet acts as an eternal archive; it preserves everything from Vlašić's comments on water polo and Rudić to these remarks regarding skiing and gips.

History truly does repeat itself. First, Vlašić comes out swinging at his "athletic rivals" with total bravado. Then, someone close to him likely whispers that he looks like a fool, leading him to retreat. Yet, he still cannot help himself from implying his sport is "the" sport while treating all others as mere side shows.
Man, the guy alienated everyone at HOO with his outbursts, and now he’s looking for some kind of validation.

As for my supposed "lack of capacity"...
It seems everyone down there shares the same "genetic trait" as Vlašić, as you simply cannot stop insulting anyone who holds a different opinion.
By default, everyone here is apparently dim-witted, incompetent, or just plain slow. 🤮

dustypanther6 said:Roose, you're quite the character, 🤣🤣

So, what am I supposed to tell him?
What kind of nonsense is that?
tae means foot
kwon means fist

Man, you're basically our official ambassador of kung fu.