Olympic challenges, much like the athletes themselves, come in every conceivable measure and magnitude. But in terms of the medals, it’s definitely one size fits all. With the Beijing Games now history, The Tempo Subcommittee on Hardware Dimensions suggests that medal size relate to event difficulty. Here are eight examples, ranked from easiest to hardest:
100-meter sprint
You’re in. You’re off. You’re out. Took you that long to read this sentence, right?
10-meter air pistol
Sure it takes great vision and steady nerves, but so does needlepoint.
Rhythmic gymnastics
As opposed to the non-rhythmic, ungraceful kind? This event makes prominent use of ribbons. To which we say: Ribbons should be saved for wrapping presents … and draping medals.
Team equestrian dressage
Essentially, this is horses performing ballet. So let’s get this straight: The horse does all the hard work while the rider gets to wear cool riding togs and $900 boots?
Trampoline
We don’t doubt that doing somersaults and the like requires skill. It just looks like too much fun to be that much work.
Weightlifting
Some of the guys may look like pro wrestlers, but there’s nothing fake about it. As for the gals, even the smallest gold medalist (China’s Chen Xiexia) lifted about 470 pounds — more than four times her weight.
Decathlon
OK, so it includes the 100 meters. But it also requires skill at long jump, shot put, high jump, 400 meters, 100-meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500 meters. The true marathon of Olympic events.
Balance beam
The field measures a stingy 10-centimeters wide and is obscured by your feet. Every movement counts — and is scrutinized under a spotlight with thousands of spectators staring down at you. One slip of the pinky toe and …
