The “McKayla Maroney is Not Impressed” Tumblr keeps on rolling! My latest favorites include McKayla being unimpressed with Jedi ghosts in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, Leroy Green getting the glow in The Last Dragon, and hanging with the Rat Pack. It’s websites like this that make me love the Internet. Check it out! Continue reading “More McKayla Maroney is Not Impressed”
Here’s a clip of the “Fierce Five” U.S. women’s gymnastics team from The Late Show With David Letterman. Dave asks McKayla Maroney about her famous “not impressed” look, while the other four ladies impersonate the face that has launched a thousand Photoshop gags.
The 2012 Olympic competition is over. London did a fantastic job with Olympics XXX, with classy venues, a great opening ceremony, and a fantastic closing ceremony. In between Mr. Bean and the Spice Girls, lots of great sports events took place. What were some of your favorite moments? Were you dazzled by the speed of Usain Bold? Did you gasp when Nicolas Batum ball-punched Juan Carlos Navarro? Perhaps Michael Phelps capping of his stellar Olympic career pulled on your heartstrings. I want to hear all about your favorite Olympic moments.
As for me, it was all about McKayla Maroney…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, devouring NY pizza, devouring NY bagels, or devouring NY chicken parm heroes, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
The 2012 Olympic competition is over. London did a fantastic job with Olympics XXX, with classy venues, a great opening ceremony, and a fantastic closing ceremony. In between Mr. Bean and the Spice Girls, lots of great sports events took place. What were some of your favorite moments? Were you dazzled by the speed of Usain Bold? Did you gasp when Nicolas Batum ball-punched Juan Carlos Navarro? Perhaps Michael Phelps capping of his stellar Olympic career pulled on your heartstrings. I want to hear all about your favorite Olympic moments.
As for me, it was all about McKayla Maroney. In general, I love watching Olympic gymnastics and figure skating; it’s awesome when they fall down and cry. You would expect a 16-year old girl like Maroney to cry after botching a landing that cost her a gold medal. Instead, she got pissed, started an internet phenomenon, and thoroughly embraced it. This girl is awesome and it was fun watching her blow up (and teach Jenna Bush how to “Dougie”).
Now it’s your turn! What were your favorite moments from the 2012 London Olympics?
My friend Barbara and RPadholic N8R showed me this awesome Tumblr page after I wrote about McKayla Maroney being my favorite 2012 American Olympian. It’s called “McKayla is Not Impressed.” It takes the dissatisfied look on her face as she was being awarded the 2012 Olympic vault silver medal and puts her in a bunch of…interesting situations. My two favorites (so far) are McKayla not being impressed by the explosion of the Death Star (above) and Muhammad Ali’s knockout of Sonny Liston (below). As a big nerd and a huge boxing fan, these are two of the most iconic images floating around my head…but alas, they’re not the least bit impressive to McKayla Maroney. Check out the page when you have a chance and let me know what “McKayla is Not Impressed” picture is your favorite (please)!
When Jordyn Wieber — reigning gymnastics world champion and favorite to win it all at the Olympics — failed to qualify for the overall individual finals, she cried. When McKayla Maroney — the favorite to win gold in the vault competition — botched a landing, bumping her down to a silver medal, she smoldered. She was pissed off. She didn’t cry from the disappointment. Her anger at herself for missing the landing was palpable. This is why she’s my favorite 2012 American Olympian (also because of the unintentional comedy, explained below).
You could feel Maroney’s competitive nature from the other side of the television. Her deathly glower reminded me of Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant — two guys that would (probably) knife their mothers (in a non-lethal way) to win a game of checkers. That killer instinct and that competitiveness caused some journalists to accuse Maroney of being unsportsmanlike at an event that’s supposed to be a global gathering centered around sportsmanship. Look at the clip below, for example.
That’s Maroney shunning a hug from Russian gymnast Maria Paseka, the winner of the bronze medal. On the surface, it looked like Maroney was about to say, “Bitch, get the f*ck off me.” I don’t think it was a case of her being a poor sport. I think she was so stunned by and angry at her failure that she was unable to process anything else. Along with extreme competitiveness, another trait many high-level athletes have is the ability to focus to an extraordinary degree. Unfortunately, that can lead to awkward moments like what happened in the video above and the picture below.
As time passed and the medal ceremony began, Maroney was still thinking about her missed landing. She knew that she was the best vaulter at the Olympics. There’s a reason why many people think that the Amanar vault (named after multi-medal winning gymnast Simona Amanar) should be renamed the Maroney. Normally, she does it better than anyone else that ever lived. Like Chris Jericho, she is the best in the world at what she does…on most days. Even though she didn’t have it when it mattered most in 2012, I love that her competitive nature has her staring down gold medalist Sandra Raluca Izbasa with a look that says, “That’s my god damned medal!”
Even when the attention was on her for winning the silver — a remarkable accomplishment — you could tell that she was completely dissatisfied with and incredulous about what transpired that day. Like Ricky Bobby, she believes, “You’re either first, or you’re last!” I just love her attitude! I’m sure that “only” winning the silver will take her training to a new level and she will attack the 2016 Olympics with a fiery determination. She’ll only be 20 then and (barring an unexpected pubescent growth spurt) she’ll be back with a vengeance!
So yeah, McKayla Maroney didn’t win the gold and some sports writers have accused her of being bratty, but she also won the hearts of many fans that like their athletes to have an irrational sense of competitiveness. And in case you were wondering (I know some of you were), she turns 18 on December 9, 2013 (not that it’s marked on my calendar or anything). Go Team McKayla!!!
NBA player Baron Davis has started a company called 5 Balloons Interactive. The company’s first game, Getting Buckets, is available for iOS. It’s a Temple Run-style game that has you literally collecting buckets. The twist is that it stars basketball players Baron Davis, Steve Nash, Rajon Rondo, Brandon Jennings, and Candace Parker.
As for 5 Balloons Interactive, the company site says that it, “was created in 2012 to offer celebrity talent meaningful opportunities to extend their brands into the digital space through engaging and entertaining gaming applications.” The initial focus will be on mobile games.
Athletes forming videogame companies isn’t a new thing. Baseball player Curt Schilling started 38 Studios, which was off to a promising start before it hit numerous financial problems. Perhaps jumping into the big-money and ultra-competitive world of console games wasn’t the best idea for 38 Studios. Perhaps Davis is taking the smarter approach by going with mobile games; it’s the hottest segment of gaming at the moment and the costs aren’t as high.
Do you think Baron Davis will be successful with 5 Balloons Interactive? Any of you interested in Getting Buckets?
The opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in London started with a video featuring James Bond (Daniel Craig) and Queen Elizabeth II. It climaxed with Britain’s top spy and QE2 jumping out of a helicopter and into the arena. Millions of women around the world go gaga over Bond, but my favorite part of the opening ceremony featured Rowan Atkinson reprising his role as Mr. Bean. The opening theme from Chariots of Fire + Mr. Bean = Awesome.
Personally, I would have preferred it if Mr. Bean was featured in the entire ceremony. Check out the clips below and let me know what you think (please!).
[Update 11:32PM PT]: Meh. The International Olympic Committee doesn’t understand the Internet and is reporting all embedded YouTube clips. That makes me less likely to watch Olympic events. Here are direct links to the James Bond and Mr. Bean clips.]
Triple-jumper Voula Papachristou was booted off Greece’s Olympic squad for a racially insensitive comment posted on her Twitter account. Here’s the deal according to the NY Daily News:
While gearing up for her first Olympic games on Sunday, Papachristou commented on the reported influx of West Nile mosquitos in Athens. She tweeted in Greek, “With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!” Her tweet provoked a bevy of ill responses, and many Greeks called for her dismissal from the Olympic team.
The reaction her tweet garnered is a testament to the power of social media. I’m sure many Olympians have cracked many questionable jokes over the history of the Olympics, but a tool like Twitter shares inappropriate jokes with the world and leads to expulsion. Giving athletes — many of whom really shouldn’t be addressing millions of people — a platform can be a powerful thing. In Papchristou’s case, a powerful platform led to her demise.
To be completely honest, I had a hard time concentrating on this article. It should be about the power of social media and questioning if Papachrisou’s punishment was just…but the women is stunning! I lost at least an hour “researching” photos of Voula Papachristou. She triple-jumped her way into my heart. *snicker*
Shortly after the NBA Board of Governors approved advertising patches on player jerseys, MLB commissioner Bud Selig was asked if baseball players would become walking billboards in the near future. Ever the traditionalist, Selig said no. He told ESPN:
You learn never to say never, but you know, with us, uniforms are really important. They’re history. You can close your eyes, and that Cub uniform, my goodness gracious, I can remember (that from) when I was 10 years old, and that’s a long time ago. And there’s the Yankee pinstripes, and the Red Sox and so on and so forth, so I’ve been pretty consistent on that.
I usually disagree with Selig on many things (not increasing the use of instant replay, expanding the playoffs, etc.), but I’m totally with him here. The major American sports leagues — NFL, MLB, and NBA — shouldn’t put advertising on their jerseys. Yes, there are millions of dollars to be had, but it’s not like that money will be used to lower ticket prices or make small-market teams better. This is one area where I’m (unusually) a traditionalist. Props to Selig for saying no on uniform advertising. It would pain me to see a Yankee jersey with a hot dog ad.
What do you think of Bud Selig’s stance on uniform advertising?
The NBA Board of Governors has agreed to increase the use of instant replay and allow sponsorships on team jerseys. The former is just common sense; if you have the tech to get calls right then it should be used (see tennis, for example). The latter is a polarizing issue. Many people love that uniforms in major American sports are free of advertising (aside from the garment manufacturer). It seems traditional and pure. Capitalists have long wondered why American sports have ignored this lucrative revenue stream while several football teams in Europe took in millions from sponsors. According to ESPN, NBA team jerseys will be allowed to have small advertising patches starting in the 2013-2014 season.
As a sports fan, I don’t like the move. I love the (mostly) unsullied uniforms in (most) American sports. My big fear is that the NBA’s move towards sponsored uniforms will pave the way for future New York Yankees players looking like NASCAR drivers. I honestly have this nightmare.
As a gamer, I can’t wait for an NBA team that’s sponsored by a videogame publisher. I loved the Manchester City kits that were sponsored by Eidos and the Arsenal kits with the Dreamcast logo. If an NBA team had a Square-Enix patch on its jerseys then I would be forced to become a fan of that franchise.
What do you think of NBA jerseys getting sponsorship patches? Hot or not? Please use the comments system to match up your favorite videogame company with an appropriate NBA team.
