"The Olympics have arrived. Weekend Olympic Guide."
Views expressed in this U.S., World, and Geopolitical News summary are those of the reporters and correspondents. Accessed on 27 July 2024, 1242 UTC.
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Russ Roberts (https://trendsingeopolitics.blogspot.com).
July 27, 2024 |
Good morning. The Olympics begin this weekend. Here’s to becoming an instant fan for a fortnight.
María Jesús Contreras |
Golden opportunity
It has been only three years since the last summer Olympics: the 2020 Tokyo Games, you’ll recall, were held in the summer of 2021. Time has been slippery since the pandemic began, anyway, even without reliable milestones moving around. Three years feels simultaneously like an eternity (think of how much has happened in the last three weeks) and a heartbeat (I’ve been just about to check out this playlist of “frat rock” recommended by Bruce Springsteen … for the past three Julys).
Now the Olympics return with untold opportunities to geek out on sports you haven’t thought about for several years, or ever. This is my favorite promise of the Games: You can pick an event — Canoe slalom? Surfing? Breaking? — and get up to speed in short order on the rules, the athletes, the gossip, the stakes. You can become a superfan instantly.
Broadcast coverage of the Olympics makes this transformation easy. I’m a total sucker for a hyperemotional documentary featurette on that gymnast whose family sacrificed everything for her Olympic dreams. Take my attention and my heart, give me the thrill of sticking the landing and the agony of one tiny wobble on the beam. I’ll admit I haven’t been following the American swimmers that closely since Tokyo, but I’ve spent the past week reading up on Katie Ledecky’s preparation for Paris — she’s “trying to improve her kick” — so I can cheer her on with a fan’s zeal.
I never thought I could get excited about dressage, but after hearing the awe with which my colleague Alex Marshall talked about watching a gelding named Jagerbomb perform a move called a flying change, wherein the horse switches its lead leg in midair, I went straight to YouTube to see it for myself. “One of the strangest things I’ve ever seen an animal do,” Alex had told me, and I concurred. I’ll add that it is also strange and wonderful to see a horse perform such moves to a medley of songs by Tom Jones that includes “Sex Bomb.” Alex wasn’t a fan of dressage before he started reporting on it, but his enthusiasm was enough for me to add it to my roster of Olympic sports I’ll follow with interest.
I’ve tried to become a football fan for the Super Bowl, a basketball fan for March Madness, but there’s always so much lore to catch up on, so much multiseason intrigue I’ve missed that true instant fandom seems out of reach. The Olympics make it easy to get on board. There are so many events and so many teams competing that it would be impossible to be a completist; this density rewards the passionate dilettante and the aficionado alike.
The easiest way to become a fan fast? Ask a die-hard. My colleague Elisabeth Vincentelli played team handball as a child in France, and her knowledge of the sport is a little intimidating. But she gave me some rookie tips for how to get into it: As far as the mechanics of the game, think of it like dry water polo; keep an eye out for powerhouse teams from France and Denmark; watch the ball — players shoot it at the goal at an average of 80 miles per hour; and go to the bathroom before the match begins because the game moves so fast you won’t want to look away for a second.
Related: I spoke with Times reporters about how to become a fan of dressage, handball and artistic swimming. Have a listen.
WEEKEND OLYMPICS GUIDE |
In Paris. Chang W. Lee/The New York Times |
The first weekend has a fairly busy schedule. Because of the time difference, events will generally begin before most of the U.S. is awake and run until 4 or 5 p.m. Eastern, with prime-time events, like the swimming finals, taking place in the midafternoon U.S. time. Here’s what to look for (and how to watch):
Saturday
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Sunday
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More on the Games
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Read The Times’s full coverage of the 2024 Paris Games.
THE WEEK IN CULTURE |
Brat Summer
A Kamala Harris meme. via Aly McCormick |
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Music
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Art
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Other Big Stories
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THE LATEST NEWS |
Mexican newspaper headlines report the capture of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia. Rodrigo Oropeza/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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CULTURE CALENDAR |
🎥 “Trap” (Friday): What’s more frenzied: Murder or fandom? In the new thriller from M. Night Shyamalan, there are uvula-shredding screams — the sound of thousands of teenage girls seeing their pop idol in concert. (That idol, Lady Raven, is played by Saleka Shyamalan, M. Night’s daughter, who also composed the songs.) That concert is the backdrop to a serial killer plot, in which a doting dad (the former teen dream Josh Hartnett) with a very disturbing hobby begins to suspect that all that arena security might just be for him.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK |
Johnny Miller for The New York Times |
Peach Crisp
A bubbling, syrupy fruit crisp is the perfect way to make the most out of seasonal produce, and it’s an easy treat to throw together on a summer weekend. Yossy Arefi’s peach crisp is a paragon of the form, with a crunchy oat and brown sugar streusel covering the fragrant filling. Yossy calls for peeling the peaches with a vegetable peeler (no pots of boiling water needed) to ensure the silkiest texture. But feel free to skip that part if it seems like a step too many (I never peel my peaches); the crisp will still be excellent, skins and all.
REAL ESTATE |
Sierra Nguyen Marissa Leshnov for The New York Times |
The Hunt: She defied her parents and worked in art. Soon, she had enough money to buy an apartment in San Francisco. Which one did she pick? Play our game.
What you get for $3.3 million in California: A 1927 Spanish-style house with a guest cottage in Los Angeles, an Arts and Crafts bungalow in Sonoma or a four-bedroom home with a guesthouse in Torrance.
A diva of a staircase: After a lifetime of renting, they became buyers in London. See their home.
LIVING |
In Tasmania. Anna Pihan |
Visit: Tasmania, an Australian island with wild saunas and pagan festivals.
Bites: Avoid chiggers with these expert tips.
Breast cancer: A large study found that for most patients, having both breasts removed after cancer was detected in one made no difference in their survival.
Travel: Spend 36 hours in Nice, France.
ADVICE FROM WIRECUTTER |
The case for a backpack cooler
Coolers have come a long way in the last decade. As a result, there’s really no excuse for warm drinks or spoiled food. A well-insulated backpack cooler makes it even easier to carry your vittles long distances while keeping them cold. It may not sound like much, but being able to throw a pack of cans on your back and trek them out to friends far down the beach on a hot day can feel almost magical — a true act of kinship.
NOW TIME TO PLAY |
Here is today’s Spelling Bee. Yesterday’s pangrams were conductor and nonconductor.
Take the news quiz to see how well you followed this week’s headlines.
And here are today’s Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands.
Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. —Melissa
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