Bowling, The Wright Way - September 30, 2000 by Don Wright
The Sydney 2000 Olympics Are Great, But Where Is Bowling?

I don't care if it's tape delayed, I'm hooked on the Olympics even though the television bureaucrats insist on only showing the high profile athletes. Track and Field, swimming and gymnastics are the television big three. Okay, if you channel surf enough you'll find some boxing, water polo and some other events buried on MSNBC, but they won't make prime time television other than for Bob Costas to casually tell us about it prior to a commercial. And, sadly, I believe that would be the fate of bowling if it were to become an Olympic sport.

I would love to see bowling as a medal sport in the Olympics and this is a highly debatable topic with pros and cons easily debated. I know many a bowling writer who believes we should give up our quest to get into the Olympics. And, there are many in the media who believe that bowling should be considered a recreation and not a sport. That's another column.

However, bowling meets all the criteria established by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC insists that the sport be played on all five continents; played in at least 75 countries and is played by both men and women. Bowling does all this. In fact, bowling could be a sport in which the men and women compete equally. At the present time equestrian is the only sport to have that.

But, bowling must compete with many others in an effort to make the Olympics and get the nod from the IOC. The Washington Post, on their web page, http://www.washingtonpost.com is currently running an unofficial poll to see what sports should be added to the Olympics. At this writing Extreme Frisbee was leading the voting. But, some of the other categories are laughable - Ballroom Dancing is one.

As I watch the Olympics I make mental comparisons between bowling and some of the other skills, or sports, currently being contested. Shooting, other than skeet, is a sport that because of technology isn't all that difficult. Scopes, glasses and equipment have replaced "Kentucky windage." When you look at the bow being used in Archery you can't help but wonder what Robin Hood could have done with such an apparatus.

I watched Trampoline, which is a medal sport for the first time this year. The announcer said, "They can bounce as many times as they want before they start. Once they make their first flip they have 60 seconds and the object is to stay as close to the middle of the trampoline as possible." Geez, my grandkids do that every day in the back yard and for a lot longer than 60 seconds.

Now before everyone who has aspirations of winning a gold in trampoline writes me hate mail, understand that I am not putting down anyone's sport. I am simply saying that bowling has as much right to be considered as the next sport.

Now having said all that, I believe that bowling would be relegated to those channels that you find by surfing and would be the comment by Bob Costas before the commercial. Why? Bowling simply doesn't have the commercial draw of the body beautiful track and field, gymnastic, swimming athlete. But, that's okay. Let's just get it on. I am a Master Surfer and the fastest remote in Texas.

If bowling does become an Olympic sport I would hope the United States would use their collegiate, non-professional bowlers. I can't think of anything duller than the U.S. basketball teams. We send million dollar professionals to humiliate others in the name of sportsmanship because we once lost a gold to the Russians. Big deal!

I appreciate the smiling faces of young Americans on the podium, tears in their eyes, singing our National Anthem and knowing the words. I enjoy seeing them being rewarded for the years of hard work, dedication and devotion to the sport they love. I love the exuberance of the amateur athlete more than the arrogance of the professional. That's what the Olympics are all about. The Olympics should be the stepping-stones to becoming a professional, not the stepping-stones for a professional to become an Olympian.

So, as I check my TV Guide, replace the batteries in my remote and ensure I have a cold Shiner Bock in the fridge, I grab my pen and paper and settle in for another night of Sydney 2000.

See you on the lanes.