Mailbag: You Ask, We Answer

Hello sports fans, and thank you for your interest in the Olympic mailbag! Let me tell you, my e-mailbox has been overflowing with your great questions, and the delay in posting responses is mostly due to the research that's gone into some of the answers. Rest assured, if you sent me a legitimate question, I will get to it. (If you sent me a request for tickets to Sydney, sorry, I can't help you there.)

First of all, let me start with this blanket response. Many, many of your questions center on the television schedule of your local station. They usually go something like this:

John says, "Looked at your broadcast schedule. The only reference to women's soccer I could find was Sept. 23 12:30am to 2:00am. When can we see more soccer (especially the women's team)??"

Hey John, I feel your pain buddy. You can bet that NBC will show highlights of games during prime-time, but more extended snippets of soccer coverage will be available on CNBC and MSNBC during their broadcast hours. Go to NBC's Olympics site for a full view of NBC, CNBC and MSNBC's broadcast schedules.

That goes ditto for Jerry from Houston, who wants to know if any taekwondo events will be televised, Ev from Ontario who likes mountain biking, Nancy who is a former swimming coach of U.S. Olympian Scott Tucker, and others who have written in with schedule questions.

And, if you have complaints or comments for NBC on their coverage, or which sports they choose to cover, there is an e-mail link on the NBC Olympics site that gives you a chance to submit your feedback.

OK, on to individual questions.

Nancy asks, "What's up with Sheila Hudson? Did she make it to Sydney?"

Yes, Sheila Hudson will participate in the women's triple jump for the U.S. on Friday, September 22.

Stephie wants to know, "What days will the gymnastics for men and women be on??"

Perhaps a better question is: When WON'T gymnastics be on? The only day of the games with no coverage of gymnastics is Wednesday, Sept 27.

Here's a more precise schedule, though there's no indication during what times in each programming block gymnastics will be on (all times Eastern and Pacific):

Men's Gymnastics
• Saturday, Sept. 16, 7 p.m.- Midnight, Team competition
• Monday, Sept. 18, 7 p.m. -Midnight, Team finals
• Wednesday, Sept. 20, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Individual all-around final
• Saturday, Sept. 23, Noon-6 p.m., Trampoline final
• Sunday, Sept. 24, 7 p.m.-Midnight, individual event preliminaries.
• Monday, Sept. 25, 7 p.m.-Midnight, individual event finals.
• Tuesday, Sept. 26, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Champions gala

  Women's Gymnastics

• Sunday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Team competition
• Tuesday, Sept. 19, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Team finals
• Thursday, Sept. 21, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Individual all-around final
• Friday, Sept. 22, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Trampoline preliminaries (MSNBC); 7 p.m. -Midnight, trampoline final
• Sunday, Sept. 24, 7 p.m.-Midnight, individual event preliminaries.
• Monday, Sept. 25, 7 p.m.-Midnight, individual event finals.
• Tuesday, Sept. 26, 7 p.m.-Midnight, Champions gala
• Thursday, Sept. 28, 10 a.m.-5 p.m, Rhythmic competition (MSNBC), 7 p.m. -Midnight, Rhythmic competition.
• Friday, Sept. 29, 10 a.m.-noon, Rhythmic competition.
• Saturday, Sept. 30, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Rhythmic finals.
• Sunday, Oct. 1, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Rhythmic finals.

Toma wants to know, "Who won medals in wrestling in 1996?"

Well sir, there are two types of Olympic wrestling: Freestyle and Greco-Roman. Here are the 1996 gold medallists in each:

Freestyle
• Up to 48 kg/105.5 lb -- Kim Il, North Korea
• Up to 52 kg/114.5 lb -- Valentin Jordanov, Bulgaria
• Up to 57 kg/125.5 lb -- Kendall Cross, United States
• Up to 62 kg/136.5 lb -- Tom Brands, United States
• Up to 68 kg/149.5 lb -- Vadim Bogiev, Russia
• Up to 74 kg/163 lb -- Bouvaisa Satiev, Russia
• Up to 82 kg/180.5 lb -- Khadzhimurad Mgomedov, Russia
• Up to 90 kg/198 lb -- Rasul Khadem, Iran
• Up to 100 kg/220 lb -- Kurt Angle, United States
• Up to 130 kg/286 lb -- Mahmut Demir, Turkey

  Greco-Roman

• Up to 48 kg/105.5 lb -- Sim Kwon-Ho, South Korea
• Up to 52 kg/114.5 lb -- Armen Nazaryan, Armenia
• Up to 57 kg/125.5 lb -- Yuri Melnichenko, Kazakhstan
• Up to 62 kg/136.5 lb -- Wlodzimierz Zawadzki, Poland
• Up to 68 kg/149.5 lb -- Ryszard Wolny, Poland
• Up to 74 kg/163 lb -- Feliberto Ascuy, Cuba
• Up to 82 kg/180.5 lb -- Hamza Yerlikaya, Turkey
• Up to 90 kg/198 lb -- Vyacheslav Oleynyk, Ukraine
• Up to 100 kg/220 lb -- Andrzej Wronski, Poland
• Up to 130 kg/286 lb -- Aleksandr Karelin, Russia

Julia asks us,"How many events are the Americans participating in this year?"

According to the Sydney 2000 site, there are U.S. athletes participating in each of the Olympic sports, though there may be an individual event here and there where no American qualified. The U.S. team includes 670 athletes, 382 men and 288 women.

Judy poses this geographical brain-teaser: "If it is 8:00 p.m. here, what time is it in Australia?"

I don't know where you are Judy, but I'm here. In Minnesota, that is. And in Sydney is 16 hours ahead of us. So, if it's 8 p.m. Tuesday in Minnesota, it's noon Wednesday in Australia.

Patricia of Dublin, Ireland (have a pint for me, will you?), asks, "In what country was the 1988 Olympics held?"

Patricia, the summer games of 1988 were held in Seoul, South Korea. The Winter Games were in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Lilibet asks us, "What events are the members of the group from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (ex-Zaire) competing in?"

According to the Sydney 2000 site, there are five member of the Congo competing in the Olympics -- two in "Athletics" (we call that Track & Field), one in judo and two in swimming.

Mallory Z. says, "I know when they first held the Olympics that women were not allowed to participate, or even watch. I would like to know when women were first allowed to compete."

That's a fantastic question Mallory. Again, the Sydney 2000 site tells us that women first participated in tennis and golf in the 1900 Olympics in Paris. So this is the 100th anniversary of women being allowed to compete.

"How many countries will be participating?" --Juan Carlos Ferrero, Cincinnati

Ah, good, an easy one. There will be approximately 200 countries participating -- give or take a few.

Will the Olympic games be televised or will it be a tape-delayed broadcast, like the Olympic trials with NBC? If so, which channels will be televising with no interruptions, besides commercials.

Because of the time differences, this year's Olympic games will be tape-delayed. NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC are teaming up to offer 441½ hours of coverage. You can download an NBC broadcasting schedule here.

"How many events are there? How many gold medals? Is there a minimum age for the competitors?" --Derek of Greer, South Carolina

There are 35 events ranging from archery to wrestling. There are 300 (yes, 300 even) events; that is, 300 different events in which gold medals will be presented. That's up from 272 in Atlanta. Some events have a minimum age for competitors, like boxing (which is 17), while others do not.

"I am a teacher who is looking for a list of all the countries that will participate in the 2000 summer games for a graphing activity for our school. The students will be able to watch the medal count each day. So I would like a list of all the countries." --Tracy of Minneola, Fla.

You can check out the official site of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and click on "Countries" to see which countries are participating.

"How many medals do you think the USA will win at this Olympics? Better or worse than past Olympics?" --Bryce

This will be a tougher year for Team USA simply because the Americans are not the "home squad" this time around. In Atlanta, our native sons and daughters definitely gained some momentum from the raucous crowds and national pride that was swirling throughout the Olympic venues. This time around, they'll have to deal with anti-American sentiment -- in most international sports competitions, the fans would rather see anybody win than the good old U.S. of A.

"Of Marion Jones' 5 events, which one will be toughest for her to win the gold medal?" --Anne of Orlando

Probably the long jump. At the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials, she nearly failed to qualify for Sydney in the event after scratching on a couple of early jumps. She clearly has the talent to win the event though, and if she can keep from scratching, she's got a shot.