I had the same exact thought as I was watching! I'm not sure why they included the competitors' height and weight, but I do know that those two measurements can affect ski length. Maybe it had something to do with that. Either way, it was an exciting competition! (Almost as exciting as the men's short-track speed skating last night.)
Yup and as you will see, different events that call for different body types have even larger weight ranges. Athletes aren't starlets. I always note that when I watch our school's gymnastics team. They look so much bigger and more jacked than the cheerleaders. Granted, to be a cheerleader at my school you must be below 5'3 and under 105 or no sauce.
It was exciting! I feel like the winter olympics is the "wipeout olympics." Between the short track where the two Koreans took each other out right at the finish, and all the falls in the moguls, I was at the edge of my seat!!
I was also watching the moguls! My sister and I are not big sports watchers, but we were both going "ooooh...oh no! Ahhh...oh my god! Thats gotta hurt, ive done that before..." xD I didnt notice the weights thing though! I wish i had. better watch some more!
I was looking at the stats of some of the athletes on the Olympics website (female hockey players) and I noticed the same thing. Great to see REAL women with real sizes/weights who are athletes.
redliss7 : gymnasts come to my mind too! I was in gymnastics (barely, haha!) when in grade school and managed a high school team. The girls are not super skinny, they are in shape but most still have a little extra and most of the time it's in their abdomen and thighs. Gymnasts are very talented athletes and need their entire body fit (but not necessarily thin/skinny) for the sport they compete in.
My boyfriend and I watched that all last night, and commented on how nice it was to see that these very successful women were not overly skinny twigs. Makes me feel so much better!
That's so awesome! I've always respected athletes more than starlets anyway. If I could choose any body I wanted, I'd choose a muscular, active, healthy athlete body over a stick-thin body any day. I wanna be strong and fit, not just skinny. (That's why I'm lifting weights as part of my weight-loss program!)
I noticed that too, but I was looking at a web site and noticed they don't have figure skaters' weights...I wonder why? I'm guessing their weights are pretty low...
I think the figure skaters might vary a lot - think Tara Lapinski's really muscular legs... you have to have some muscle in your lower body to launch yourself into the air!
Siblings from my church were US nationals pairs champions in 1999 and they were both short and muscular.
I wonder if they list it if it's supposed to somehow affect the way you play the sport?
When it comes to college and beyond a lot of female athletes are very healthy and strong. Not to say you dont see some with what appears to be an eating disorders every now and then. For the most part we (women athletes) are trying to get the recognition the men get in sports so we lift, eat right, and take care of ourselves to be the best we can be. Im speaking as a former college cheerleader who cheered with some of the best in the Nation (we won 4 National Titles). And majority of the girls on the squad were 115 and above depending on their position flyer or base.
I always see the soccer players at my school walking around in their little tight short-shorts, and those girls do NOT have skinny thighs. They have big thighs, but they are solid muscle. My thighs are their size, but jiggly, lol. I wouldn't mind having big thighs if they were muscley like that.
Healthy Women in the Olympics
