The Olympics, which have ended another year in their long, illustrious history. have come to a close, but I think we need to be honest and admit that not all the sports being represented in it garnered interest from American television viewers.  Some of them were, frankly, hardly worth staying glued to the set for, others could use some of the magic of sports that are a bit on the violent side, like mixed martial arts, for example.

You may have your own individual dislikes, as far as Olympic sports offerings are concerned, but the following ones were those I found especially inane:

Volleyball

I know that it’s supposed to be a respected sport and that the participants have all worked hard to earn their places on their country’s Olympic team, but did anybody else get as bored as I did with the endless airings of volleyball events? Certainly, we all got the chance to see enough rock solid abs to make us envious, but once that was over, all you did, basically, was watch the players spiking the ball back and forth and back and forth, until you were lulled into a catatonic state.

Diving

Unlike the swimming competitions, which were propelled to popularity because of Michael Phelps, diving  was a far less interesting sport to watch.  Just how many times can you watch guys dive into a pool?  The only way I could drum up any degree of enthusiasm with this was to watch to see if any of the divers had a “wedgie” from those tiny, skin tight little trunks they were wearing.

Fencing

Unless you are Zorro, fencing is not something that stirs most people’s passion. It’s usually something you connect with old swashbuckler movies or pretentious Ivy Leaguers.

Discus Throwing

The only thing that would make this sport fun to watch is if they accidentally hit somebody in the head.

Table Tennis

I’ve seen them play more exciting games down at the local “Y.”  Doesn’t exactly keep you on the edge of your seat.

Equestrian Events

The sports world’s equivalent to constipation.

Canoeing

Canoeing  reminds me too much of the summers your parents made you go to camp, where you were forced to participate in “special activities” like this and listen to the counselors laugh when you fell into the water.

Archery

I don’t know of anybody who actually looks at the archery competitions.  Even Robin Hood would fall asleep watching this.

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