Why are athletics, cycling etc seeming to be more popular on TV than equestrianism...

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appaloosacaz

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I find it soo annoying, every interview, every little thing about the Olympics are always about the athletics, cyclists, gymnasts ahhhh just annoys me a little, what's everyone's views?
 
There are loads of 'Cinderella' sports - I used to be a competitive swimmer for GB it rarely got coverage or mentioned - water polo never gets mentioned:o

Diving and swimming are getting a bit of coverage thanks to having a few recent medallists in the form of Tom Daley and Rebecca Adlington:)

Frankly the amount of medals we win in any sport is incredible considering we have genrally poor facilities and until the lottery little or no funding for any of our athletes to pursue their sport in a professional manner.:o
 
It annoys me when they discuss which sports we're likely to win medals in and equestrian doesn't get a mention.

We have real potential to win multiple medals, even golds!
 
Feathered said:
It annoys me when they discuss which sports we're likely to win medals in and equestrian doesn't get a mention.

We have real potential to win multiple medals, even golds!
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Agree with this, I realise you can't give the same amount of time to each sport, but there are certainly sports that GB are medal contenders, but are always an afterthought.
 
I think some sports don't get enough attention as I need, not just equestrianism, but for example, they talk alot about track events, aqua events and the gymnastic events, but they're missing a whole chunk of events by ignoring the equestrian side :(
 
It does make me quite sad really as our sport doesn't really get the recognition it deserves. High chance of Gold in both Eventing and pure Dressage and yet neither are ever mentioned. Our past medallists, long-serving Olympians such as Mary, World No 1 WFP....none are ever mentioned!

I can easily have a long long rant about this but I'll refrain!
 
I thought they would have focused on the eventing a little with Zara in the team and Anne's past history seeing that it is in London. Seemingly I was wrong.
 
To be fair though, I always think when the Olympics rolls 'round, how many sports there are I've never even heard of! All those people are devoting their lives to those sports, too. I guess it's odd that riding doesn't get more of a mention here as it's so much a part of the culture and you have a good shot at medals but again, that's probably true of lots of sports!
 
I heard something on a radio show or something the other day that with equestrianism, it's still looked at as elitist to a degree. Yet nearly *everyone* in their lives has at one point run a race or ridden a bicycle - whereas that might not be the case with riding a horse. So people can or want to relate to something they can imagine doing.

Personally, I think in the UK where there IS a strong equine culture more attention should be given to it.
 
Does anyone else, while watching the smaller nations parade in, wonder what sport some of their athletes take part in? Some countries will have more of a culture in shooting, or track - but it's hard to not stereotype them. I love the Olympics for the fact that you do get some surprises too - obscure nations that come to the fore with a sport they're not normally known for...

Sorry, OT I know.
 
It truely amazes me that equestrian sports don't promote the fact that they are the ONLY sport in the olympics where men and women compete (individually) against each other, i.e. they go head to head, one-on-one...not mixed doubles...but compete on an even footing...no other sport...maybe this is why they don't get as much coverage!
 
I think it depends on the event though, jumping and cross country could have mass appeal but I think the non horsey will always struggle with dressage.

I just think thank you for technology, with 24 olympic channels on virgin and sky they can show uninterrupted coverage of lots of different sports.
 
It upsets me & annoys me a little too. Like the press confrence someone posted on here the other day where everyone just wanted to speak to Zara, the media were referring to WFP as "that bloke", yes it is quite funny but really I find it ridiculous that our country don't care about the world no1, a man who has a good chance of bringing us home a gold medal but instead Zara due to her "celebrity" status only.

Personally I think it's a shame that we don't put more emphasis on it, seems as its something we are actually good at rather than all the stuff that we are unlikely to ever do well in.
 
Sky is being really good to us Equestrian fans in New Zealand as the equestrian teams have won 10% of New Zealands medals over the past Olympics.

They are covering it all - every horse and rider. We won't have to watch a few minutes of legs trotting around and riders smiling - we get to see it all!!!
 
PucciNPoni said:
I heard something on a radio show or something the other day that with equestrianism, it's still looked at as elitist to a degree. Yet nearly *everyone* in their lives has at one point run a race or ridden a bicycle - whereas that might not be the case with riding a horse. So people can or want to relate to something they can imagine doing.

Personally, I think in the UK where there IS a strong equine culture more attention should be given to it.
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I've never ridden a bicycle but I used to be able to ride a horse!
 
You know I don't think it was always so. In the 1960s & 1970s Show Jumping riders & their mounts were household names. I remember all the coverage of Marian Coakes (Mould) & Stroller prior to & after the 1968 Olympics in Mexico; there was a prime time documentary about them on the BBC.

All equestrian sports, horse racing as well were given a lot more coverage & they interrupted a quiz programme on a Sunday afternoon to show Nijinsky's failed attempt at the Arc de Triomphe; there was a documentary about Mill Reef too. Frankel is a superstar, the best horse to have raced here for years, can you imagine a TV programme being interrupted now to show him racing? Or a documentary on him?

It seems the media has a real downer on anything "horse". I think a lot of it has to do with a perceived connection with bloodsports as well as a misguided idea of elitism. I rode as a child & teenager & had a pony, my family were just ordinary middle class, lived in a semi & not fabulously rich. guess it would be harder today though.
 
I know for a fact that non horsey friends of mine would probably tune into athletics, cycling, swimming but not equestrian. And to be honest, most would have absolutely no idea what eventing or dressage was .... may just about understand the concept of show jumping ;)

Those of us on this forum obviously have a passion for equestrianism but are probably in the minority across the UK. The tv coverage will obviously focus on more main stream sport because that's what viewers will demand - personally I have no issue with this. I was able to watch as much of the dressage today as I wanted (interspersed with the cycling road race - very disappointed for Cav :() and have so far been impressed with the amount of varied coverage available
 
Honeylight said:
You know I don't think it was always so. In the 1960s & 1970s Show Jumping riders & their mounts were household names. I remember all the coverage of Marian Coakes (Mould) & Stroller prior to & after the 1968 Olympics in Mexico; there was a prime time documentary about them on ....
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Show jumping was high profile stuff.

HOYS, Olympia - televised on BBC 1 each night at 9pm. My mum used to come and get me out of bed to watch it. Harvey Smith, David Broome, Michael Whitiker was a newcomer..... Milton, Ryan's Son....

I still remember the names, and the names were known by everybody. Then it fell out of favour when horses became 'elitist' for what ever reason.
No tv coverage - nobody is interested.
 
I think eventing will get more coverage for x-c and the SJ'ing phases. Bottom line is, dressage is like watching paint dry to the uninitiated...and even people who are into horses, many will find it boring. The cycling and swimming a
provide real time action and somethingto shout at.

I'm sure come tuesday if we're still in a medal position then eventing will get some airtime.
 
I wonder if any of it is to do with the publics appreciation of the sport. Most of us in the country have riding a bike, go swimming, did some form of athletics at school and therefore people can appreciate how hard it must be to do that sport at an olympic level. Compare that to the number of people that have ridden a horse...and not just had a sit on one. I mean actually taken lessons. I think a lot of people just don't 'get' riding and how difficult it is what our competitors are doing.

My parents, bless them, are not particularly horsey but they watched all of team GBs eventing dressage tests. However, they lack the knowledge of what the movements should look like and therefore could not see how one person got one score and someone else got a worse score.

I think for the olympics, every sport should get the same amount of press and we should be encouraging people to take an interest in sports as a whole.

Horse sports are not alone though. There hasn't been much focus on the other not so common sports.
 
JAnette - I remember those days - the only times in my life when bedtime was not strictly enforced - Pat Smythe of course was my favourite, the D'inzao brothers, Harvey Smith who always managed to be close to be eliminated as he went too close to the jumps when he first went into the ring - his excuse just checking the pole was on securely!

Rambo - I can find nothing exciting about cycling races!

Elbie - I think that 'horse riding' to some people is for the wealthy snobby lot! most possibly the feelings of the person /people organising the programmes to be broadcast - or maybe they think we are all wealthy enough to take 16 days off work and buy a ticket for each day!

appaloosacaz - I love the running because of the all out speed they go at

In NZ we are very sport orientated so we do get good coverage - also for a nation of only 4.5 million people we do really well medal wise.

Yesterday a whole load of us got Sky to re asign a channel to broadcast the 2nd day of the Eventing Dressage - it had been put out on one of the channels that you could only view if you had MySky HD.

The power of ropeable equestrian fans!!! We've had ten channels dedicated to the Olympics, 8 show the competitions from start to finish, many live, one is a special Olympic news channel and the other is showing highlights that involve Kiwi's.

I'd love to see 'Mounted Games' added to the Olympic schedule - fast and skilful.
 
On this subject I see no mention in the Guardian this morning of the British riders' bronze position at the end of the dressage. All it mentions as an "aside" is something about Zara Phillips making a good start, & I thought her score would have been dropped. Just shows the lack of interest.
On the guardian comments there are the most vitriolic & ngative comments about the equestrian sports & a whole section ridiculing "toffs making horses mince" & things about "kids in council flats not having ponies".
Sorry, it makes me so angry. Are the "armchair Socialists" that make these comments going to give up their holidays in Tuscany then?
 
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