Times Countries Have Hosted the Olympics

The Winter Olympics have gotten underway in Sochi, on the Black Sea, in the Oblast (state) of Krasnodar Krai, Russia.

Yet another chance for a dictator to use a sporting event for propaganda. And President Vladimir Putin of Russia is not the kind of dictator to let this kind of opportunity slip away.

Times Countries Have Hosted the Olympics

America, 8: Summer, 1904 in St. Louis, 1932 and 1984 in Los Angeles, 1996 in Atlanta; Winter, 1932 and 1980 in Lake Placid, New York; 1960 in Squaw Valley, California; and 2002 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Denver was supposed to host the 1976 Winter Olympics, but backed out due to cost overruns.

France, 5: Summer, Paris in 1900 and 1924; Winter, Chamonix in 1924, Grenoble in 1968, Albertville in 1992.

Japan, 4: Summer, Tokyo in 1964, and scheduled to host again in 2020; Winter, Sapporo in 1972, Nagano in 1998. Tokyo was supposed to host in 1940, but those games were canceled due to World War II. It's just as well, since Japan was one of the aggressors in that war.

Britain, 3: Summer, London in 1908, 1948 and 2012. London was supposed to host in 1944, but those games were pushed back to 1948 due to World War II.

Canada, 3: Summer, Montreal in 1976; Winter, Calgary in 1988, Vancouver in 2010.

Italy, 3: Summer, Rome in 1960; Winter, Cortina d'Ampezzo in 1956, Turin in 2006.

Germany, 3: Summer, Berlin in 1936, Munich in 1972; Winter, Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936. Berlin was supposed to host in 1916, but those games were canceled due to World War I. It's just as well, since Germany was the main aggressor in that war.

Russia, 2: Summer, Moscow in 1980; Winter, Sochi in 2014. As Bob Costas pointed out last night, because of the 1980 boycott, this is the 1st Olympics in Russia in which America has participated. And we got a nice hand from the Russian crowd. I wonder what Putin thought of that.

Greece, 2: Summer, Athens in 1896 and 2004. There was a 1906 "Olympic Games" in Athens, known as the "Intercalated Games," that sometimes gets counted, because it gets credit for restoring the "Olympic Movement" after the travesties of 1900 and 1904, but the IOC does not officially count it.

Australia, 2: Summer, Melbourne in 1956, Sydney in 2000.

Norway, 2: Winter, Oslo in 1952, Lillehammer in 1994.

Austria, 2: Winter, Innsbruck in 1964 and 1976.

Switzerland, 2: Winter, St. Moritz in 1928 and 1948.

Korea, 2: Summer, Seoul in 1988; Winter, Pyeongchang is scheduled to host in 2018.

China, 1: Summer, Beijing in 2008.

Spain, 1: Summer, Barcelona in 1992.

Yugoslavia, 1: Winter, Sarajevo in 1984 (now in Bosnia).

Mexico, 1: Summer, Mexico City in 1968.

Finland, 1: Summer, Helsinki in 1952. Oddly, despite Finland's reputation as a cold-weather nation, and its success in Winter events, it has never hosted the Winter Olympics.

Netherlands, 1: Summer, Amsterdam in 1928.

Belgium, 1: Summer, Antwerp in 1920.

Sweden, 1: Summer, Stockholm in 1912. Due to Australia's animal quarantine laws, Stockholm also hosted the equestrian events in 1956.

Brazil, 1: Scheduled to host the Summer Olympics in 2016.

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Last Time Hosted (either one):

2014 Russia

2012 Britain

2010 Canada

2008 China

2006 Italy

2004 Greece

2002 America

2000 Australia

1998 Japan

1994 Norway

1992 Spain

1992 France

1988 Korea

1984 Yugoslavia/Bosnia

1976 Austria

1972 Germany

1968 Mexico

1964 Japan

1952 Finland

1948 Switzerland

1928 Netherlands

1920 Belgium

1912 Sweden

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Hosted both an Olympics and a World Cup:

1. 1900 and 1924 Summer Olympics, 1924 and 1968 Winter Olympics, and 1938 and 1998 World Cups: France
2. 1928 and 1948 Winter Olympics and 1954 World Cup: Switzerland
3. 1934 and 1990 World Cups, 1956 and 2006 Winter Olympics, 1960 Summer Olympics: Italy
4. 1912 Summer Olympics and 1958 World Cup: Sweden
5. 1908 Summer Olympics and 1966 World Cup: Britain
6. 1968 Summer Olympics and 1970 and 1986 World Cups: Mexico
7. 1936 Winter Olympics, 1936 and 1972 Summer Olympics, 1974 and 2006 World Cups: Germany
8. 1982 World Cup, 1992 Summer Olympics: Spain
9. 1904, 1932, 1984 and 1996 Summer Olympics; 1932, 1960, 1980 and 2002 Winter Olympics; and 1994 World Cup: America
10. 1964 Summer Olympics, 1972 and 1998 Winter Olympics, and 2002 World Cup: Japan
11. 1988 Summer Olympics and 2002 World Cup: Korea (co-hosted with Japan)

Upcoming: 1950 and again in 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics, Brazil; 1980 Summer Olympics and 2014 Winter Olympics and 2018 World Cup, Russia.

France, Italy, Germany, America and Japan are the only countries to host a Winter Olympics, a Summer Olympics, and a World Cup. Korea (Winter Olympics) and Russia (World Cup) will both join them in 2018.

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Europe 30
North America 12
Asia 8
South America 1 (in 2016)
Africa, so far, never

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In an English-speaking country: 16
German: 7 (both Swiss Olympics were held in the German part of the country)
French: 5 (6, if you count Quebec)
Spanish: 2
Dutch: 2 (Antwerp is on the Dutch side of Belgium)

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Nations that, at the time, were...

Democracies: 45 (presuming Brazil stays democratic through 2016, South Korea does so through 2018, and Japan does through 2020)

Dictatorships: 8: Germany, both of 1936's Games; Mexico, 1968, they had elections but who was kidding who; Russia, 1980 and 2014, I mean Russia has elections, but who's kidding who; Yugoslavia 1984, China 2008

Why I Won't Be Watching the Winter Olympics

The Winter Olympics begin in 2 days, in Sochi, Russia.

There are 2 reasons for me to watch the Winter Olympics:

1. The Parade of Nations at the Opening Ceremonies.
2. Hockey.

That's it.

Here are some reasons for me to not watch the Winter Olympics:

1. Vladimir Putin. He's acting like an old-style dictator, and these are his Olympics, just as 1936's were Hitler's, 1980's were Brezhnev's, and 2008's were the that of the old men of China. Frankly, I don't know why he's so ticked off at gay people, but even if he weren't being (if you'll pardon the choice of words) an asshole about it, he's still acting more like a dictator than President Obama is in the Republicans' wildest fantasies.

Speaking of which, Mitt Romney is so bitter about losing to Obama in 2012 that he's begun fawning over Putin, to the point where, if he's true to his antigay principles, Putin might not even want to let Romney into the country (if, that is, Mitt wants to go).

I am, however, impressed with the reaction, thus far, to Russia's antigay hysteria. But I wonder when the "Olympic flame" jokes will start.

2. NBC. They can't do the Olympics! They've proven this time and time again since 1988. ABC did them so much better. At least they've stopped screwing up the Parade of Nations: At least twice, they went to commercial and missed Poland. Now, this might not concern you, unless you happen to be someone of Polish descent. I am.

Bob Costas may be short, intelligent, and love sports, but he's no Jim McKay, who was also those things. Costas does baseball very well, but he does not do the Olympics well. And he still covers it better than anybody else at the Peacock Network. Stick to sitcoms, cop shows and medical dramas, 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

3. The Time Difference. Sochi is 9 hours ahead of us, meaning that everything that airs in North American prime time is going to be tape-delayed, giving NBC plenty of time to screw things up with spoilers. And our group stage hockey games will start at 7:30 Eastern Time. That's 7:30 in the morning. To adapt an old saying, I only recognize one 7:30 per day, and that isn't it!

4. American Representation. There's no other sport in these games, besides hockey at which America excels. None worth watching, anyway.

Figure skating? That is not a sport. Athletic, yes. A competition, certainly. A sport, no way. You might as well call dancing a sport. You might as well call calisthenics a sport.

Speed skating? Unlike figure skating, you actually do see the competitors competing alongside one another, although they can't "play defense" -- that is, there is no way, within the rules of the competition, for them to prevent their opponent from doing what he/she has to do.

But how often does an American do especially well in it? There was Eric Heiden in 1980, and there was Bonnie Blair in 1994, and the gripping story of Dan Jansen. But Apolo Anton Ohno? I'd never even heard of short-track speed skating until he came along. And it looked like roller derby on ice. It looked like a good way to get yourself killed. And his 1st Gold Medal only came because the guy who actually won the race got caught cheating. That's not an inspiring story.

Skiing? Bobsledding? Luge? Skeleton? I admit, these are fun to watch, but how many competitors in each event do you have to sit through until the American performers start their runs? Look, I have nothing against most countries in these games (although I still, as both an American and a Pole, have no love for the Germans or the Russians), but do I really want to sit through the Austrian and Swedish skiers, and the German and Swiss bobsledders?

So, no, aside from the Parade of Nations and the U.S.' hockey games -- and maybe the Gold Medal Game if Canada makes it and we don't -- I won't be watching the Winter Olympics.

It's been a long time since the Olympics were, as NBC used to put it, "Must-See TV."

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Days until the Super Bowl returns to the New York Tri-State Area: Probably never, and if that turns out to be true, I'm fine with it. Even a Seahawks fan, who had his team's parade today, has to admit that, however thrilling the event was for them, competitively speaking, it was a horrible game.

Days until the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia: 2.

Days until the Devils play again: 2, Friday night, home to the Edmonton Oilers.

Days until Arsenal play again: 3, Saturday afternoon (7:45 AM our time), away to Liverpool.

Days until the Devils next play a local rival: 24, on Saturday afternoon, March 1, away to the New York Islanders. We play away to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night, March 11; home to the Rangers on Saturday night, March 22; away to the Islanders a week after that; and home to the Islanders on Friday night, April 11.

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 28, on Wednesday, March 5, a "friendly" (exhibition game) vs. the Ukraine in Kharkiv. Just 4 weeks. I suspect that there will be another tuneup match or two between the end of the European club season in May and the start of the World Cup in June.

Days until the Red Bulls play again: 31, on Saturday, March 8, 7:30 PM, away to the Vancouver Whitecaps.  Just 1 month.

Days until the next North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham: 39, a Premier League match, on Sunday, March 16, at White Hart Lane. Under 6 weeks. It had been scheduled for Saturday, March 15, but was moved back for TV reasons.

Days until the Yankees play again: 55, on Tuesday, April 1, at 7:10 PM, away to the Houston Astros.  Just 8 weeks.

Days until the Yankees' home opener: 61, on Monday, April 7, at 1:00 PM (well, 1:07 or so), vs. the Baltimore Orioles.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 64, on Thursday, April 10, at 7:00 PM (well, 7:07 or so), at Yankee Stadium II.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": 66, on Saturday, April 12, 2:30 PM, vs. D.C. United, at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington.
Days until Arsenal could win the Premier League title, presuming it goes to the final game of the season: 95, on Sunday, May 11, with a 10:00 AM (our time) start, away to Norwich City, of East Anglia.

Days until the FA Cup Final, for which Arsenal is still eligible, at the new Wembley Stadium in London: 101, on Saturday, May 17.

Days until the UEFA Champions League Final, for which Arsenal is still eligible, at the Stadium of Light in Lisbon, Portugal: 108, on Saturday, May 24.

Days until the 2014 World Cup in Brazil: 127, on Thursday, June 12. A little over 4 months.

Days until Rutgers plays football again: 206, on Saturday, August 30, away to Washington State, at whatever the Seattle Seahawks' stadium is going to end up being called next fall.  Under 7 months.  Why we're playing "Wazzu" in the University of Washington's territory, I don't know.  Maybe WSU, in the eastern part of the State in Pullman, wants to boost their recruiting in the Western part.  Either way, it will be Rutgers' first game since losing the 2013 Pinstripe Bowl to Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium II, finishing the season at 6-7.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: Unknown, as the schedule has yet to be released.  Most likely, it will be on the 2nd Friday night in September.  If so, that will be September 12, therefore 220 days.

Days until Rutgers makes its Big Ten Conference debut: 221 days, on Saturday, September 13, time to be determined, against old enemy Penn State.

Days until the next East Brunswick vs. Old Bridge Thanksgiving game: 296, on Thursday morning, November 27, 10:00 AM. Under 10 months.

Days until the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 944, on Friday, August 5, 2016. Just 2 1/2 years.