Now that the Olympics are over i would have thought i could Youtube some windsurfing racing , nothing , zip , doughnuts ! Does anyone know of any footage to watch ? I cant find a thing anywhere !

I imagine the IOC has got all all the footage tied up in some Olympics rights deal. They have lawyers, if you are careless how you arrange a few doughnuts on a plate the IOC will swoop in and demand compensation.

Channel 7 Olympic app.

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AUS4 said..
Channel 7 Olympic app.

That would have cost me $ 20.00 . Lucky i didnt do that because the reviews on that app were between really bad to even worse ! Is this true , has anyone watched any windsurfing ? Any ideas on how to watch a repeat ?

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GazMan said..
Get on YouTube, then type 'World Sailing TV'. Some short videos of Rio windsufing race action there but no full races.

Thanks GazMan ill give it a go

I caught some footage of the Olympic windsurfing on tv and it looked really bad. The camera angles were no good. The Laser classes had much better footage and seemed to get most of the attention, they zoomed in and got some good shots of them.

A few nights ago, I saw a winner crossing the finish line in the the highlights on Ch7 at dinner time. About 1-2sec of footage
At least they showed it and called it windsurfing, not RS:X or even worse kiting lol

This is very interesting when related to another recent thread on Olympic windsurfing.

There is all this jostling and negotiation to get (or keep) the sport in the olympics.

It is seen as a huge success that it is part of the games programme (especially instead of kitesurfing, for example).

However, if it is impossible for the average punter to follow the sport, then what's the point.

Is the Olympics really that important in promoting a sport if there is no coverage of it anyway?

Clarence

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Imax1 said..

AUS4 said..
Channel 7 Olympic app.

That would have cost me $ 20.00 . Lucky i didnt do that because the reviews on that app were between really bad to even worse ! Is this true , has anyone watched any windsurfing ? Any ideas on how to watch a repeat ?

I just told you.
I watched all the sailing including windsurfing and I just watched a repeat, they are all there. Find a friend with Telstra and it won't cost you anything.

I watched a video of the gold medal race for the RSX Women on facebook.

Yeah saw no windsurfing at all, wouldn't have known it was even in the olympics .?????
But I guess its all about ratings on tv, what will get the most aussie viewers watching,
so only the more exciting action packed sports to watch get air time like golf, equestrian and synchronized swimming.
Such a shame

I was as disappointed as y'all and wrote a little post about it

joewindsurfer.blogspot.com/2016/08/olympics-2016-windsurfing.html

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lotofwind said...
Yeah saw no windsurfing at all, wouldn't have known it was even in the olympics .?????
But I guess its all about ratings on tv, what will get the most aussie viewers watching,
so only the more exciting action packed sports to watch get air time like golf, equestrian and synchronized swimming.
Such a shame

Pretty sure if kitesurfing had got into the Olympics then it would have got plenty of airtime on TV as well as on Youtube and social media, unlike windsurfing did!!!! Sad fact is that IMO the general public are more excited about watching people kitesurfing than watching people windsurfing!!

/\

And your evidence is???????????

The IOC publishes information on ratings after each Games. The "fast exciting extreme" sports and disciplines rate poorly. The simple ones like running rate well.

People rowing and paddling in straight lines on flat water rates better than people bouncing down whitewater rapids or crashing 49ers at 25 knots. That's the facts. It's always been the facts. Therefore the claim that kiting would have been shown doesn't seem to have much basis.

It's apparently not actually very easy to televise kites. If you zoom out to show the kite, you can't see the sailor. If you zoom in to see the sailor, you can't see the kite. Actually talking to sports photogs about this stuff gives an interesting perspective.

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GazMan said..

Pretty sure if kitesurfing had got into the Olympics then it would have got plenty of airtime on TV as well as on Youtube and social media, unlike windsurfing did!!!! Sad fact is that IMO the general public are more excited about watching people kitesurfing than watching people windsurfing!!

NOPE.

The IOC spent a ton on software to go and scour the internet to find any unauthorised Olympic content and pull it; even threatening lawsuits. Any footage that got posted to YouTube, FB video etc was usually pulled within a few hours. They also had a social media blackout for everyone (including athletes) who would post video footage (even GIFs). Try finding a clip anywhere of the sport you want to watch the final of that happened in Rio in the past 2 weeks? You won't. Unless it's part of an authorised broadcaster package (ie, like the Ch 7 app as AUS4 mentioned).

Kinda sad. Hope Tokyo isn't so restrictive. Sucked for people like me living outside of AUS who want to watch a broadcast in English. Wasn't possible whatsoever unless you use a VPN to watch the NBC coverage in the US; which was usually delayed 4 hours and not even 'live'!! I think I saw about 30% of the sports I wanted to watch :-/

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Chris 249 said..
/\

And your evidence is???????????

The IOC publishes information on ratings after each Games. The "fast exciting extreme" sports and disciplines rate poorly. The simple ones like running rate well.

People rowing and paddling in straight lines on flat water rates better than people bouncing down whitewater rapids or crashing 49ers at 25 knots. That's the facts. It's always been the facts. Therefore the claim that kiting would have been shown doesn't seem to have much basis.

It's apparently not actually very easy to televise kites. If you zoom out to show the kite, you can't see the sailor. If you zoom in to see the sailor, you can't see the kite. Actually talking to sports photogs about this stuff gives an interesting perspective.

My observation is that the IOC predominately televised sports that already had a global television audience eg. Basketball, soccer, golf. Add to these the disciplines of swimming, athletics and gymnastics and you have a ratings winner. Beach volleyball got more airtime than indoor volleyball. I wondered about that one, so methinks that it has something to do with the cozy ( or lack of it) that wins the ratings. I am sorry to say that I saw more synchronised swimming than windsurfing. To an Australian male this is appalling, but my honest opinion is that the top women's synchro teams are amazing athletes. They combine dance and gymnastics, doing most of it underwater and upside down. But the best thing of all about the Olypicsmpics is that it only happens every four years. The New Zealanders thump us in rugby every year. Maybe we should let them do it to us only every three years. I think that they are better than the Dream Team, but they will never get much coverage at the Olympics unless the convert to Rugby Sevens. To a real All Black that would be like a windsurfer taking up Kitesurfing just to go to the Olympics.

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Imax1 said..

GazMan said..
Get on YouTube, then type 'World Sailing TV'. Some short videos of Rio windsufing race action there but no full races.

Thanks GazMan ill give it a go

Hmmm.......checked World Sailing TV out again and it didn't really have much olympic windsurfing action footage.

Try this web page for event highlights Imax1 - best viewed on a desktop or laptop pc: (same view as on Ch 7 smartphone app but less glitchy IMO)

7news.com.au:443/

- Enter postcode and click to start (you may need to install some basic software to get videos to work)
- Click bars to left of HOME (top left of screen)
- Click on SPORTS and select SAILING
- Click on 'View Calender' and then event date, or click on 'Previous Day' or 'Next Day' to find events
- Click on HIGHLIGHTS to watch short video of sailing events listed
- Watch full events with Premium Account (Telstra mobile customers, partner pass or pay $19.95 as mentioned previously)

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Chris 249 said..
/\

It's apparently not actually very easy to televise kites. If you zoom out to show the kite, you can't see the sailor. If you zoom in to see the sailor, you can't see the kite. Actually talking to sports photogs about this stuff gives an interesting perspective.

Chris I suggest you watch the youtube HydroFoil Pro Tour channel video's..... It may debunk your view-able status for racing????


Here's a guy with a second generation (I believe or could be current?) DJI Phantom 3 (or 4) who has filmed these races superbly IMHO. The commentator adds color (really cracks me up sometimes) to each race. The HydroFoil races were post processed but imagine with a couple drones and a live connection (a reality with Phantom 4 models) this is TV real-time broadcast-able. BTW a Phantom 4 can push upwind in 20+ knots.

I'm a windsurfer only and only wish an enterprising soul or souls could do the same for Formula or PWA/slalom type events with drones........

Cheers Peter

ps - Olympic sailing televised was again piss poor as has been every other Olympics.
pss - best vision was Fiji 7's celebration after winning, 2nd best was Pentathlon winner, Chloe Esposito - so proud of her dad:-)

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GazMan said..

Imax1 said..

GazMan said..
Get on YouTube, then type 'World Sailing TV'. Some short videos of Rio windsufing race action there but no full races.

Thanks GazMan ill give it a go

Hmmm.......checked World Sailing TV out again and it didn't really have much olympic windsurfing action footage.

Try this web page for event highlights Imax1 - best viewed on a desktop or laptop pc: (same view as on Ch 7 smartphone app but less glitchy IMO)

7news.com.au:443/

- Enter postcode and click to start (you may need to install some basic software to get videos to work)
- Click bars to left of HOME (top left of screen)
- Click on SPORTS and select SAILING
- Click on 'View Calender' and then event date, or click on 'Previous Day' or 'Next Day' to find events
- Click on HIGHLIGHTS to watch short video of sailing events listed
- Watch full events with Premium Account (Telstra mobile customers, partner pass or pay $19.95 as mentioned previously)

website not available from my country
like NBC NOT available outside USA
WTF = WHY ??

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Peter Ciesa said..

Chris 249 said..
/\

It's apparently not actually very easy to televise kites. If you zoom out to show the kite, you can't see the sailor. If you zoom in to see the sailor, you can't see the kite. Actually talking to sports photogs about this stuff gives an interesting perspective.

Chris I suggest you watch the youtube HydroFoil Pro Tour channel video's..... It may debunk your view-able status for racing????

Here's a guy with a second generation (I believe or could be current?) DJI Phantom 3 (or 4) who has filmed these races superbly IMHO. The commentator adds color (really cracks me up sometimes) to each race. The HydroFoil races were post processed but imagine with a couple drones and a live connection (a reality with Phantom 4 models) this is TV real-time broadcast-able. BTW a Phantom 4 can push upwind in 20+ knots.

I'm a windsurfer only and only wish an enterprising soul or souls could do the same for Formula or PWA/slalom type events with drones........

Cheers Peter

ps - Olympic sailing televised was again piss poor as has been every other Olympics.
pss - best vision was Fiji 7's celebration after winning, 2nd best was Pentathlon winner, Chloe Esposito - so proud of her dad:-)

Sorry Peter, but that seems to confirm that all you see of the sailor is a minute black dot, a couple of mm high, from hundreds of metres away. You or I might like it, but if we look at the sports that attract higher ratings it seems that they are very different to watch.

Here's the list of cumulative TV ratings from the 2008 Games. I'm using them because the 2012 Games report didn't provide as much detail about separate disciplines.

Athletics 206 hours broadcast / 65 mill spectators each minute
Road cycling 121 / 23.8
Swimming 120 hours broadcast/ 58.8 mill spectators each minute
Artistic gymnastics 106 / 53.3
Volleyball 103 / 38.5
Triathlon 68 /. 19.4
Beach volleyball 59 / 23.6
Rhythmic gymnastics 49/ 30.4
MTB 45 / 16.4
BMX 44 / 23.2
Table tennis 41 / 40.8
Track cycling 37/32.8
Diving 31 / 43.5
Rowing 24 / 40.8
Water polo 24 / 17.4
Sprint (flat water) kayak/canoe – 24 / 32.4
Slalom (whitewater) canoe – 22 / 22.3
Sync Swimming 17 / 25.7
Shooting 12 /28
Trampolining 11 / 41.6
Sailing – 11 / 24.5

These show that "boring" rowing and paddling in a straight line on a flat lake outrated "extreme" images like the kayaks bouncing and zig-zagging down rocky rapids, and the 49ers crashing at 25+ knots in the extreme last race. Road cycling, with a bunch of guys riding pretty much in a straight line in a bunch, outrated "extreme" MTBs and BMXs bouncing over jumps and rocks, and the faster track cycling on 42 degree banks. In the pool. people swimming in a straight line at about 6 knots rates its socks off, and people twisting and tumbling in an amazing way as they dive down 10m or so doesn't rate that well.

So the actual stats seem to show that "extreme" sports don't rate well - what really counts is being able to get in close and see things like the athletes close-up and see who is winning. Given that, kiting or windsurfing may always be problematic.

One thing I find interesting is that (AFAIK) no one from sailing has ever sat down and discussed with the TV companies what makes for good viewing. When you talk to professional photographers and art directors you find that they often have completely different ideas than many sailors do.

I think you'll find that the tv rights and indeed even advertising rights for an Olympic Games is worth a fortune and therefore the vision is protected accordingly. You can see the power of the Olympic litigation dollar when Telstra can have an advert during the Olympics showing an old bloke rowing a scull and then have to put a disclaimer at the bottom of the screen to say that they are not an Olympic sponsor??????

Fascinating info Chris249, thanks for sharing!!!

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Chris 249 said..

Peter Ciesa said..

Chris 249 said..
/\

It's apparently not actually very easy to televise kites. If you zoom out to show the kite, you can't see the sailor. If you zoom in to see the sailor, you can't see the kite. Actually talking to sports photogs about this stuff gives an interesting perspective.

Chris I suggest you watch the youtube HydroFoil Pro Tour channel video's..... It may debunk your view-able status for racing????

Here's a guy with a second generation (I believe or could be current?) DJI Phantom 3 (or 4) who has filmed these races superbly IMHO. The commentator adds color (really cracks me up sometimes) to each race. The HydroFoil races were post processed but imagine with a couple drones and a live connection (a reality with Phantom 4 models) this is TV real-time broadcast-able. BTW a Phantom 4 can push upwind in 20+ knots.

I'm a windsurfer only and only wish an enterprising soul or souls could do the same for Formula or PWA/slalom type events with drones........

Cheers Peter

ps - Olympic sailing televised was again piss poor as has been every other Olympics.
pss - best vision was Fiji 7's celebration after winning, 2nd best was Pentathlon winner, Chloe Esposito - so proud of her dad:-)

Sorry Peter, but that seems to confirm that all you see of the sailor is a minute black dot, a couple of mm high, from hundreds of metres away. You or I might like it, but if we look at the sports that attract higher ratings it seems that they are very different to watch.

Here's the list of cumulative TV ratings from the 2008 Games. I'm using them because the 2012 Games report didn't provide as much detail about separate disciplines.

Athletics 206 hours broadcast / 65 mill spectators each minute
Road cycling 121 / 23.8
Swimming 120 hours broadcast/ 58.8 mill spectators each minute
Artistic gymnastics 106 / 53.3
Volleyball 103 / 38.5
Triathlon 68 /. 19.4
Beach volleyball 59 / 23.6
Rhythmic gymnastics 49/ 30.4
MTB 45 / 16.4
BMX 44 / 23.2
Table tennis 41 / 40.8
Track cycling 37/32.8
Diving 31 / 43.5
Rowing 24 / 40.8
Water polo 24 / 17.4
Sprint (flat water) kayak/canoe – 24 / 32.4
Slalom (whitewater) canoe – 22 / 22.3
Sync Swimming 17 / 25.7
Shooting 12 /28
Trampolining 11 / 41.6
Sailing – 11 / 24.5

These show that "boring" rowing and paddling in a straight line on a flat lake outrated "extreme" images like the kayaks bouncing and zig-zagging down rocky rapids, and the 49ers crashing at 25+ knots in the extreme last race. Road cycling, with a bunch of guys riding pretty much in a straight line in a bunch, outrated "extreme" MTBs and BMXs bouncing over jumps and rocks, and the faster track cycling on 42 degree banks. In the pool. people swimming in a straight line at about 6 knots rates its socks off, and people twisting and tumbling in an amazing way as they dive down 10m or so doesn't rate that well.

So the actual stats seem to show that "extreme" sports don't rate well - what really counts is being able to get in close and see things like the athletes close-up and see who is winning. Given that, kiting or windsurfing may always be problematic.

One thing I find interesting is that (AFAIK) no one from sailing has ever sat down and discussed with the TV companies what makes for good viewing. When you talk to professional photographers and art directors you find that they often have completely different ideas than many sailors do.

Questions for those in the know about broadcasting and Olympic content rights:

Q1: What do you think is the probability of there being videos of full windsurfing races from Rio Olympics being freely available on Youtube or social media in the near future considering that full replays of London 2012 Olympics windsurfing events are available on Youtube?

Q2: Has there been a major lockdown on releasing this content to the general (i.e. non-paying) public since the 2008 or 2012 games, or is it par for the course?

Highlights of mens medal race;

What a workout!!!

Well spotted Ezric! May only be highlights but a lot more footage than I've seen so far!!!

I think some of the problem is it is called "yachting RS:X"
Nobody knows what that means. "Normal"people might be more likely to watch if they saw "windsurf racing"in the TV guide.
I dunno what a 49'er vs a Moth is, nor do i care.
So what hope do we have of "normal" people picking up on it? They see "RS:X" and don't know so don't watch. That's IF it is on...

If they called BMX "cyclingtype2" and MTB was"cycletype3 suspension bikes" how many people would think 'yeah I will watch that'?

This is where the IYF / IOC relationship supports us a bit, but also fks us over I think.

I wanted to watch shooting and archery on free to air at a reasonable hour and had no chance. Even when it was the first time we ever won a medal in team archery!!! So I sure as hell won't get windsurfing when we didn't field an entrant

The telly coverage, over 3 channels, was weak as piss with 10 sports shown heaps and the others on at 3am if you are lucky.