Any chance the Oly trials will be on the tube or net this weekend?
I think I saw nbc tomorrow at noon. Not absolutely sure.
It's on MSNBC, June 22, 2008 (Sunday) 12 noon to 2pm Eastern Time (I think).
It's on now. This is going on the DVR. And it is on MSNBC. No doubt, in my mind, this is getting exposure on cable tv because of mma. Then again, I don't recall if wrestling and judo trials were ever on TV. I may very well be wrong.
Yeah, my DVR is recording it as well, will watch later tonight.
They 've shown the Olympic Judo trials on TV before - I remember watching the 1996 trials - they did a full hour on Judo only, profiled several athletes. I remember them mentioning how a heavyweight player (Rene Capo? Leo White?) would use tactics like wearing a stinky gi to smother his opponent in newaza and make them tap out faster!
I don't think Judo had trials for the 2000 Olympics and I don't remember the 2004 trials being shown on TV.
Around 2003-2004 there used to be these mini-Olympics shown on TV featuring combat sports (judo, taekwondo, karate ...) and others (weight lifting? shot put, etc) where select US players faced off against a few foreign athletes. I think they had two of these events leading up to the 2004 Olympics (or was it the 2000 Olympics? I'm getting old!) Anyways, that's also when judo got a bit of regular TV exposure.
And then back in the 1990s there was pro-judo on TV (a handful of times).