The debut of slopestyle snowboarding this year “took the Olympic world by storm, leaving the International Olympic Committee wanting more such changes,” according to Karolos Grohmann of REUTERS. IOC Sports Dir Christophe Dubi said that the event “showed the need to reshuffle the sports program quicker.” He added, "For the IOC what is at play is to review the program on a regular basis to make sure it remains relevant. Of course, we need to preserve our history. At the same time we have to remain relevant and make sure that we capture new audience as well." Grohmann reported the IOC will review "how many and how quickly sports can be added to the Games with a December 2014 session to decide on a string of changes, including scrapping a seven-year waiting period for new sports to join the Olympics.” Dubi said, "There is a desire for more flexibility. There is consensus that things will evolve and evolve for the better" (REUTERS, 2/10). In L.A., Steven Zeitchik wrote slopestyle is “culturally in tune.” Like a lot of new events, the popularity of slopestyle will “depend on how much coverage networks give it and what kind of profile these stars have once the Olympics die down.” But the “building blocks are there.” There are “likable, devil-may-care personalities,” and with its “soaring jumps against a backdrop of panoramic mountains, slopestyle is practically made for TV.” The best part, as with “a lot of young events, is that the sport itself is evolving.” If fans “tuned in to Sochi slopestyle it looked different than X-Games slopestyle, and if you tune in to the Pyeongchang Olympics in 2018 it may well look different than Sochi” (L.A. TIMES, 2/10).
X GAMES INFLUENCE HARD TO MISS: CBS' Gayle King noted the men's halfpipe competition began today, and that is "one of several competitions fans will recognize from the Winter X Games." While there are no snowmobile competitions yet in the Olympic program, the Games "do seem to be getting more extreme." CBS' Mark Phillips said, "We all know these Games are different -- different in where they are, different in what they cost, different in how they're being protected. But the Games themselves are also changing. The reason? Two words: TV." Traditional Olympic events like downhill skiing are the "stuff dreams are made of" for die-hard fans, but for many other people, it is "time to see what's on the other channel." The IOC hopes events like slopestyle are the "solution." The X Games are "taking over the Games," as the new events were added "all in the hope of keeping young eyes from drifting away." U.S. snowboarder Sage Kotsenburg, who won Gold in the Olympic debut of slopestyle on Saturday, said of the new disciplines, "It’s pretty cool they're in the Olympics because it's what everyone on the mountain is doing. The kids, they're getting into it ... and it's cool that the Olympics is showcasing it." Phillips noted adding new events is part of "desperate business," as the Olympics have become "just another professional multibillion dollar sport that has to grow its audience to survive" ("CBS This Morning," 2/11).
