Sports and such

Wow, wasn't the Olympics fantastic this year?! So many amazing athletes and exciting races, so many great events. The summer Olympics are my favorite because gymnastics is by far my favorite event, plus the swimming, diving, and track and field events are so good too. I just spent hours in front of the tv because it was just so exciting.

Oh wait! No, that wasn't me. I must have been dreaming about seeing the Olympics. Because, even though I am just one time zone away, even though I could have watched the Olympics in real time, I didn't see any of it. Not one single event. Not one flip, not one relay race, not one breathtakingly close finish. Why you may ask? Because Indonesian cable did not carry the Olympics this year - too expensive is the reason I heard. So while you were all glued to your tv sets watching the US of A take home the most medals of the Olympics (although China took home the most gold) I was here languishing in my pathetic pity party wishing that I too was enjoying the sacred Olympics. So alas, I will have to wait another 4 years before I get my fill of Olympic fever (winter Olympics doesn't do it for me nearly as much). Boo hoo hoo!

NBC has exclusive broadcasting rights in America to the Olympic games and pays dearly for this right - 600 million dollars! This amount makes up 40% of the total Olympic committee's budget. I'm not exactly sure what Indonesia would have had to pay, but I think it's about 1 million US$. Definitely not pocket change, but you'd think they would be able to make it up in advertising, especially considering Indonesia's favorite sports are represented in the summer games.

On to some little tidbits of sports trivia. Indonesia took home 5 medals this year. Two of these medals (both bronze) were in weightlifting. The other 3 (a trifecta - gold, silver and bronze) were in badminton. Had no idea, did you? Indeed, Indonesians are brilliant badminton players. They have won a gold medal in badminton ever since the sport became an official event in the 1992 Olympics. They also regularly win championships in badminton around the world, such as the All England Open Badminton Championships, the Thomas Cup, and the Uber Cup. I have yet to see a game here, but hopefully I will before we leave.

Indonesians also love soccer and it is the most popular sport. The Indonesian team has always qualified for the Asian Cup but has had only limited success. I don't think the Indonesian soccer team has ever made it into the Olympics. They also play Australia Rules Football here, although only in Australian clubs. No Indonesian team has ever played in the Australian Football International Cup.

And evidently they are good at weightlifting - that was news to me. There are a few stables around Jakarta and I know there's a polo team so equestrian sports is somewhat popular. When we went to Bandung a few weeks ago we saw a bunch of cyclists riding up the mountain, so I think cycling is somewhat popular here as well. Then of course there's golf. There are tons of golf courses in and around Jakarta, and really all over Indonesia. It's a popular sport, although I don't know how popular it is with Indonesians. The courses are pretty cheap too, so if you're a golfer this is a good place to come!

Course at Bali Golf and Country Club, rated one of Asia's 5 best courses in Fortune magazine