Orchestral sting.
VOICEOVER: From the most trusted radio news source in The Kytler Peninsulae, this is NBO Radio News.
SOPHIE: This is Sophie Berry. The Olympic Games are to be officially opened tonight in a huge opening ceremony in Orean. Details have successfully been kept secret by organisers, with no reports of leaks as to the content of the show from a dress rehearsal last night. The Kytlerians will arrive midway through the parade of athletes, and will be one of the largest groups. Samantha McGinty, Lasft gold medallist in the 100m hurdles and the only Kytlerian to appear in three Games, will carry the flag into the stadium.
The Morality Party senator Steve Wilson has been accused of sexually harassing a male intern in his Zube office. Wilson, who recently planned a presidential bid, denies the claims by 24-year-old Adam Philpott, calling them "outrageous and shameful." He had recently tabled legislation to introduce a federal ban on same-sex marriage, which was defeated in the Senate.
(OOC, left out of the IC RP because of being assumed knowledge to the Kytlerian domestic audience; marriage equality is delegated to the eleven states and two city states that comprise The Kytler Peninsulae. At this point, same-sex marriage has been legalised in the city states of Zube and Bay City, and also in the state of Coven, but not in other states. Wilson's home state of Varn is deeply conservative, and will probably ban same-sex marriage unless and until it is federally mandated not to.)
BN has announced quarterly profits of Tk239m, up almost 11% year-on-year. Chief executive Alain Fontaine described the outlook for the bank as "broadly positive," and has announced that lending conditions for small businesses will be relaxed.
And in cricket, The Kytler Peninsulae lost their opening game in the T20 International Championship in Barunia by nine runs to Liventia, after narrowly failing to chase down a target of 139 despite Warren South's unbeaten 60.
Now we go over to Rhys Hancock for an extended edition of "Dive In."
The sound of a diver entering a pool.
RHYS: Welcome to a special extended edition of Dive In, the in-depth report into all things sport. With the Olympics now upon us, attention is focused on a huge number of sports that wouldn't normally gain attention to most of us, including some where Kytlerians are actually medal contenders. Modern pentathlon, anyone? We'll be talking to experts in the events you didn't know you didn't know about, and we'll also be talking about how even our small country has surprising local differences in popular sports. Plus, we'll be discussing the pre-Orean sexism row - a storm in a teacup, or something more fundamental? Finally, there'll be a look at body image in sport.
As always, we are joined by a panel of experts - athletes, academics, administrators, anyone - who are willing to take your questions. Email divein@nbo.kyp, send a text to 300984 beginning with "DIVEIN," that's one word, or you can use Blatter, we are @DiveInNBO. Our panel this evening are - and they really are a mixture tonight - Dr Kerry Carter, Professor of Gender Studies at Nuffield University, whose new book entitled "Sport Outside Patriarchy: A Comparison of Cassadaiguan and Zwangzugian Approaches" has just been published; Clive Parker, a modern pentathlete who competed for the Kytlerians in Emberton; Jane Cornelis, an ex-ballerina who also represented her country at Babbageball, now a musical theatre choreographer and Pilates instructor in Bay City; and Richard Davies, the media officer for the Kytlerian Strength Sports Association, which covers weightlifting, powerlifting, and strongman.
Splash sound again.
Several Kelssekian wrestlers pulled out of the Orean Games earlier this week in a protest over the lack of womens' Greco-Roman events as part of a streamlining of the Olympic schedule. The fans of the protest were further inflamed by the intervention of the Kelssekian Minister for Sport openly contemplating a withdrawal of the entire delegation, and also the comments of Royston French, chairman of the Orean organising committee, suggesting that the Greco-Roman wrestlers should have retrained in freestyle, as a Liventian Greco-Roman medallist did. There were small protests in many other countries, including The Kytler Peninsulae. Dr Kerry, we'll speak to you first - was this situation necessary?
DR KERRY: Well, it is certainly deeply unfortunate, because one of the great achievements of the Olympics in my opinion was that gender equalising - and it goes both ways, with things like mens' rhythmic gymnastics, which has also been removed from the Orean programme - and now we've seen an awful lot of that removed. But we have to remember that the core events are decided by the Olympic Council, and they do not dictate that gender equalising, and these additional events add to what is already a quite enormous burden on the host cities.
RHYS: But does that - well clearly it doesn't act as enough reassurance to prevent the protests we've seen, does it?
DR KERRY: No, and that is where perhaps communication further in advance, and maybe a changing of the bidding cycle, is necessary. We didn't even know the host city for these Games until some time after the Winter Games, and that's some way into a training cycle for these elite athletes - in sports like wrestling, with no real world championship, where the Olympics are really the only time it gets on the radar, everyone focuses on peaking for the Games, and that's planned years in advance in countries with rapid time dilation - and that's not an acceptable position.
RHYS: Although as you said, host cities are wary enough to bid already, won't more compulsory events make it worse?
DR KERRY: That is certainly a problem, and one that I think the Olympic Council will definitely need to give a good long thought about - although I think there is a sense that perhaps the same few countries will host continually, Paripana's off the radar in that regard now, Liventia can't keep hosting these events, I certainly don't think the Kytlerians can stage more than once an event of this magnitude - it's a circle that, I fear, might not be able to be squared.
RHYS: Turning to you, Richard, I know your governing body incorporates the sport of "strongman," and just the name of that sport suggests it's male-only, even though I understand it isn't - does it matter that these sports are only contested by men?
RICHARD: Firstly, you're right, strongman now has a female category, and it's the fastest-growing part of our sport, we've got twice as many competitors as we had even a year ago. Anyway, I would say it does, because in a lot of countries, there isn't the influence in culture that we have here, of strong women rather than merely decorative women - I know I'm pre-empting what we're going to be talking about later, I'm sorry -
RHYS: It's OK, go ahead.
RICHARD: - but yes, in a lot of countries the idea that a woman can compete in a combat sport, or a strength sport, or even any sport really - that's still quite a new thing. The Olympics inspires them -
RHYS: But there's many more events, like your own weightlifting, judo -
RICHARD: - absolutely, but the point is that this is marking a regression. I'm not comfortable with that as a process, especially once it becomes entrenched and keeps rolling, because that's how the big changes are made - progress happens incrementally, and so does reversing it.
DR KERRY: Although I don't disagree with you on that, Richard, I think we shouldn't have to worry on an Olympic level, because the Olympic Council have largely drawn the line in the sand here, and they don't change the event lists quickly at all, in fact the biggest change there was making some womens' boxing compulsory, albeit with a smaller number of weight divisions. It's an important consideration for less defined events like the Rushmori Games, I would say.
RHYS: Now we've got a blat in from Tizambuzon in Walliscombe, who says that the Olympics are the pinnacle of a sport, and if women aren't as good at a sport, why should the Olympics have womens' events in it?
DR KERRY: Well, if we use his argument more literally, that is actually a much better argument to get rid of several Olympic sports - certainly soccer - than it is to get - rid of womens' events. Even if they are not the best people - or ponies, or whatever - in the multiverse, if they're the best women in the multiverse, they're at the pinnacle of their sport, aren't they? You may as well argue that you shouldn't have lightweight rowing because they'll never beat a heavyweight crew. Sorry, Tizambuzon, but that really doesn't make sense.
RICHARD: Nor do ponies competing against humans - (there is laughter from the panel) - but yes, there is a very good reason for Olympic womens' competition. Everyone should be able to be - aspire to Olympic gold.
RHYS: Also an email from Tammy in Carroll Lewiston, she says here, "If the Olympics cannot stage all of these events, should there be another multisport event that does fill in these gaps?"
RICHARD: We did see this some time ago actually, with the World Games in Aeropag, but it never had the same level of attention - you'll never get the same attention in the event in terms of entrants and spectators when it would be seen as the poor relation, though - that's a big problem. It would be second-class treatment, still.
VOICEOVER: From the most trusted radio news source in The Kytler Peninsulae, this is NBO Radio News.
SOPHIE: This is Sophie Berry. The Olympic Games are to be officially opened tonight in a huge opening ceremony in Orean. Details have successfully been kept secret by organisers, with no reports of leaks as to the content of the show from a dress rehearsal last night. The Kytlerians will arrive midway through the parade of athletes, and will be one of the largest groups. Samantha McGinty, Lasft gold medallist in the 100m hurdles and the only Kytlerian to appear in three Games, will carry the flag into the stadium.
The Morality Party senator Steve Wilson has been accused of sexually harassing a male intern in his Zube office. Wilson, who recently planned a presidential bid, denies the claims by 24-year-old Adam Philpott, calling them "outrageous and shameful." He had recently tabled legislation to introduce a federal ban on same-sex marriage, which was defeated in the Senate.
(OOC, left out of the IC RP because of being assumed knowledge to the Kytlerian domestic audience; marriage equality is delegated to the eleven states and two city states that comprise The Kytler Peninsulae. At this point, same-sex marriage has been legalised in the city states of Zube and Bay City, and also in the state of Coven, but not in other states. Wilson's home state of Varn is deeply conservative, and will probably ban same-sex marriage unless and until it is federally mandated not to.)
BN has announced quarterly profits of Tk239m, up almost 11% year-on-year. Chief executive Alain Fontaine described the outlook for the bank as "broadly positive," and has announced that lending conditions for small businesses will be relaxed.
And in cricket, The Kytler Peninsulae lost their opening game in the T20 International Championship in Barunia by nine runs to Liventia, after narrowly failing to chase down a target of 139 despite Warren South's unbeaten 60.
Now we go over to Rhys Hancock for an extended edition of "Dive In."
The sound of a diver entering a pool.
RHYS: Welcome to a special extended edition of Dive In, the in-depth report into all things sport. With the Olympics now upon us, attention is focused on a huge number of sports that wouldn't normally gain attention to most of us, including some where Kytlerians are actually medal contenders. Modern pentathlon, anyone? We'll be talking to experts in the events you didn't know you didn't know about, and we'll also be talking about how even our small country has surprising local differences in popular sports. Plus, we'll be discussing the pre-Orean sexism row - a storm in a teacup, or something more fundamental? Finally, there'll be a look at body image in sport.
As always, we are joined by a panel of experts - athletes, academics, administrators, anyone - who are willing to take your questions. Email divein@nbo.kyp, send a text to 300984 beginning with "DIVEIN," that's one word, or you can use Blatter, we are @DiveInNBO. Our panel this evening are - and they really are a mixture tonight - Dr Kerry Carter, Professor of Gender Studies at Nuffield University, whose new book entitled "Sport Outside Patriarchy: A Comparison of Cassadaiguan and Zwangzugian Approaches" has just been published; Clive Parker, a modern pentathlete who competed for the Kytlerians in Emberton; Jane Cornelis, an ex-ballerina who also represented her country at Babbageball, now a musical theatre choreographer and Pilates instructor in Bay City; and Richard Davies, the media officer for the Kytlerian Strength Sports Association, which covers weightlifting, powerlifting, and strongman.
Splash sound again.
Several Kelssekian wrestlers pulled out of the Orean Games earlier this week in a protest over the lack of womens' Greco-Roman events as part of a streamlining of the Olympic schedule. The fans of the protest were further inflamed by the intervention of the Kelssekian Minister for Sport openly contemplating a withdrawal of the entire delegation, and also the comments of Royston French, chairman of the Orean organising committee, suggesting that the Greco-Roman wrestlers should have retrained in freestyle, as a Liventian Greco-Roman medallist did. There were small protests in many other countries, including The Kytler Peninsulae. Dr Kerry, we'll speak to you first - was this situation necessary?
DR KERRY: Well, it is certainly deeply unfortunate, because one of the great achievements of the Olympics in my opinion was that gender equalising - and it goes both ways, with things like mens' rhythmic gymnastics, which has also been removed from the Orean programme - and now we've seen an awful lot of that removed. But we have to remember that the core events are decided by the Olympic Council, and they do not dictate that gender equalising, and these additional events add to what is already a quite enormous burden on the host cities.
RHYS: But does that - well clearly it doesn't act as enough reassurance to prevent the protests we've seen, does it?
DR KERRY: No, and that is where perhaps communication further in advance, and maybe a changing of the bidding cycle, is necessary. We didn't even know the host city for these Games until some time after the Winter Games, and that's some way into a training cycle for these elite athletes - in sports like wrestling, with no real world championship, where the Olympics are really the only time it gets on the radar, everyone focuses on peaking for the Games, and that's planned years in advance in countries with rapid time dilation - and that's not an acceptable position.
RHYS: Although as you said, host cities are wary enough to bid already, won't more compulsory events make it worse?
DR KERRY: That is certainly a problem, and one that I think the Olympic Council will definitely need to give a good long thought about - although I think there is a sense that perhaps the same few countries will host continually, Paripana's off the radar in that regard now, Liventia can't keep hosting these events, I certainly don't think the Kytlerians can stage more than once an event of this magnitude - it's a circle that, I fear, might not be able to be squared.
RHYS: Turning to you, Richard, I know your governing body incorporates the sport of "strongman," and just the name of that sport suggests it's male-only, even though I understand it isn't - does it matter that these sports are only contested by men?
RICHARD: Firstly, you're right, strongman now has a female category, and it's the fastest-growing part of our sport, we've got twice as many competitors as we had even a year ago. Anyway, I would say it does, because in a lot of countries, there isn't the influence in culture that we have here, of strong women rather than merely decorative women - I know I'm pre-empting what we're going to be talking about later, I'm sorry -
RHYS: It's OK, go ahead.
RICHARD: - but yes, in a lot of countries the idea that a woman can compete in a combat sport, or a strength sport, or even any sport really - that's still quite a new thing. The Olympics inspires them -
RHYS: But there's many more events, like your own weightlifting, judo -
RICHARD: - absolutely, but the point is that this is marking a regression. I'm not comfortable with that as a process, especially once it becomes entrenched and keeps rolling, because that's how the big changes are made - progress happens incrementally, and so does reversing it.
DR KERRY: Although I don't disagree with you on that, Richard, I think we shouldn't have to worry on an Olympic level, because the Olympic Council have largely drawn the line in the sand here, and they don't change the event lists quickly at all, in fact the biggest change there was making some womens' boxing compulsory, albeit with a smaller number of weight divisions. It's an important consideration for less defined events like the Rushmori Games, I would say.
RHYS: Now we've got a blat in from Tizambuzon in Walliscombe, who says that the Olympics are the pinnacle of a sport, and if women aren't as good at a sport, why should the Olympics have womens' events in it?
DR KERRY: Well, if we use his argument more literally, that is actually a much better argument to get rid of several Olympic sports - certainly soccer - than it is to get - rid of womens' events. Even if they are not the best people - or ponies, or whatever - in the multiverse, if they're the best women in the multiverse, they're at the pinnacle of their sport, aren't they? You may as well argue that you shouldn't have lightweight rowing because they'll never beat a heavyweight crew. Sorry, Tizambuzon, but that really doesn't make sense.
RICHARD: Nor do ponies competing against humans - (there is laughter from the panel) - but yes, there is a very good reason for Olympic womens' competition. Everyone should be able to be - aspire to Olympic gold.
RHYS: Also an email from Tammy in Carroll Lewiston, she says here, "If the Olympics cannot stage all of these events, should there be another multisport event that does fill in these gaps?"
RICHARD: We did see this some time ago actually, with the World Games in Aeropag, but it never had the same level of attention - you'll never get the same attention in the event in terms of entrants and spectators when it would be seen as the poor relation, though - that's a big problem. It would be second-class treatment, still.
