Dick Pound explains why the Olympics are still on.
By Liriel Higa Deputy Audience Director, Opinion |
I was planning to go to the Tokyo Olympics. I've always been an Olympics enthusiast, and after having the great fortune of watching a couple of friends win bronze medals in fencing in London, I got hooked on the live experience. |
Broadcast television may let you zoom in on McKayla Maroney's not impressed face, but there's nothing like screaming "monster block" with thousands of euphoric beach volleyball fans, or holding your collective breath with an entire arena as Simone Biles stares down the vault runway. |
So while I will be binge-watching the Games (starting with Friday's opening ceremony), I'm bummed that there will be no cheering crowds or spectators in Tokyo. Of course I understand the decision, and support these safety precautions. |
Some people wonder why the International Olympic Committee hasn't been more cautious by again postponing the 2020 Games or canceling them completely. Kara Swisher got to ask Dick Pound about this on today's episode of Opinion's podcast, "Sway." |
Pound, a member of the Olympic Committee, just flew to Tokyo, where he will be in a bubble, like the athletes. They will undergo Covid testing almost daily. |
I'm not very worried for the athletes, most of whom are vaccinated, but I do feel uneasy about the risks to the Japanese public and that their concerns seem to have been largely dismissed. They are understandably worried about a major superspreader event in a country where the vaccination rate has lagged far behind the United States and the Delta variant is surging. |
Kara also asked Pound about the controversy surrounding the suspension of Sha'Carri Richardson, a gold medal favorite in the women's 100 meters. Richardson was not named to the U.S. track and field team following a positive test for marijuana, which is a banned substance, even though scientific research shows no evidence that it enhances performance. This has caused an outcry from fans and notable people like Megan Rapinoe and Seth Rogen. |
Pound, the founding president of the World Anti-Doping Agency, said that he thought that marijuana should remain on the banned list, but that the penalties should not be as stiff as they are now. |
You can listen to the full episode here. Kara has never been much of a sports fan, so it's strange to hear her in a conversation with Pound, a global sports figure and 1960 Olympian in swimming (she has only ever used the catchall term "sports ball" to describe anything athletic in the years that I've known her). |
One of my favorite moments in the interview is when they discuss how sports need to evolve to keep our attention. Pound doesn't really bite when Kara suggests adding sharks to the pools, but he does offer up some ideas on paring down certain sports while new ones like skateboarding are added. |
I'd like to see parkour on the roster for Paris in 2024, but in the meantime I'll be cheering on gymnasts and fencers in Tokyo from my couch. |
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