should unicycling be an olympic sport

[nimbus rider]

i was watching the olympic cycling and i had a thought should unicycling be a olympic sport.

[AEV D.]

yes it should..if unicycling would be an olympic sport i would watch the olympic games i think..:rolleyes:

[dtecum]

I agree. However I think the best way to introduce unicycling to the olympics is to have a unicyclists ride in the stadium during the opening ceremonies. I think if it's done surreptiously unicycling may have a foothold in future olympics. Check out Kaori Matsuzawa on YouTube. She would be great in a floor show on a uni.

[adjuggler]

maybe (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showthread.php?t=72256&highlight=olympic)

[Unicycle-Emele]

Not popular enough yet. Maybe in the future.

[stfn]

Good gods no. Just look at what's happened to other sports that are taken seriously by the huge masses.

[gnomerider]

Not popular enough yet. Maybe in the future.

i think there are sports in the olympic games that are less popular than unicycling.

[masterfulmoron]

I have been thinking that it should be part of the olympics since the opening cerimonies this year
but we would have to designate distance and wheelsize for races and stunt aperatious (however you spell that word) and scoring system

[tabler1010]

yes but in a way that the chinese would win all the time like diveing

[tabler1010]

yes but in a way that the chinese would win all the time like diveing
sry i ment yes but not in a way that the chinese would win all the time like diving

[1wheelwonder]

I don't really want uniing to be an olympic sport, because then heaps of people would do it and it wouldn't be as special!

[Hazmat]

I don't really want uniing to be an olympic sport, because then heaps of people would do it and it wouldn't be as special!
+1 on that.

Also, unicycling would become dull and would lose its uniqueness that makes people go :eek: everytime they see someone on the 1 wheel wonder. :p

[1wheelwonder]

thanks for the support hazmat. I think if we want to have a unilympics we don't need the normal olympics, we'll start our own with th uniroos (hockey roos) and unicycle tennis, basketball, trials ect ect...

[masterfulmoron]

I think if we want to have a unilympics we don't need the normal olympics, we'll start our own with th uniroos (hockey roos) and unicycle tennis, basketball, trials ect ect...
personally I like the idea of unilympics:)

[Unicycle-Emele]

Has anyone tried trampolining on their unicycle.

[1wheelwonder]

I can picture it but I prefer my face in one piece...

[Hazmat]

Has anyone tried trampolining on their unicycle.
I can picture it but I prefer my face in one piece...
1) Yep, but only on those really small and stiff ones that you find in department stores. :p
2) Well, maybe you should see this then. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKMGsHRc1d0) :D

[unicyclerperson]

The thing about that is unicycling isn't accepted as a sport by most non-unicyclists, they think it's a clown thing with juggling and tightropes and stuff like that and they wouldn't let a clown sport go through to the olympics. If unicycling loses its' clown reputation and more people acknowledge it as a sport then they might make it a olympic event(s) which would be by far the best event(s) in all of the olympics.

[mcnuggets300]

Good gods no. Just look at what's happened to other sports that are taken seriously by the huge masses.

^this
c'mon now, do we as a community really want to be taken THAT seriously?
not being laughed at would be nice, but a rigid sport would take the heart out of it i think. it is a past-time, a lifestyle, not a major competition

[The.Mars.Volta]

not at all. it def shouldn't be in the olympics. and i'm not being sarcastic.

[kidmuni]

It would be gay if it was in the olympic
people wouldnt go :eek: when they see us doing crazy things like riding rails and doing massive gaps.

[saskatchewanian]

If unicycling was to break into the Olympic scene it would need to be a demonstration sport first. I think that Muni has the best chance of gaining acceptance as a sport as it is extremely physically demanding and does not have the same "clown on one wheel" feel as seeing people race on standard 24" wheels or even trials. The Muni race could be after a MTB event on the same course.

Is bike trials an Olympic sport? If not we need to get that accepted first before getting unicycle trials in there.


I doubt that Unicycling would ever get past the stage of being a demonstration sport at the games unless someone puts a whole lot of effort into promoting it.

[Jerrick]

^this
c'mon now, do we as a community really want to be taken THAT seriously?
not being laughed at would be nice, but a rigid sport would take the heart out of it i think. it is a past-time, a lifestyle, not a major competition
Why would it take the heart out of it? I dont get why people think that.

And why cant it be more than just some hobby? If unicycling is in the olympics, dont you think tons of us will still just ride to ride? Its a choice to take it further, not some mandatory rule that will effect us all.

Look at swimming. Very competitive, yet at the same time how many of us can swim? How many of us just swim for fun or as a hobby, or to get in better shape?

And about the heart of the sport again. I think, the competitors in the olympics have the most love for their sport. The love of a sport doesn't change no matter how big the sport gets.

[forrestunifreak]

Should this thread be a Unicycling Article/Tutorial?

[uniqueunicycling]

Has anyone tried trampolining on their unicycle.

i tried it once, and it hurt like hell!

[Hazmat]

i tried it once, and it hurt like hell!
Were you wearing a "cup"??? :p

[Tjorning]

road track and MUni racing -sure, but wait at least one more olympic games
freestyle/artistic -maybe
trials/street -no

[uniqueunicycling]

no!

[arimane]

Good gods no. Just look at what's happened to other sports that are taken seriously by the huge masses.

I totally agree.Best things just get soo bad when they're taken by the masses.
Not only sports.


We have the unicon,why the olympics?

[masterfulmoron]

what an inturesting argument;)

[knighty]

im undersided altough it would be cool for us to watch i think it would bore regulars

[uniqueunicycling]

I think unicyclists should organise their own uni-olympics, with all the olympic sports, but somehow involving unicycles...not sure how the pole-vault would work though, and canoeing could be difficult too!

[1wheelwonder]

not the uni olympics, the unilympics

[streetcycalist]

i think that unicycling should be a sport in the x games because its smaller and less well known than the olympics but big enough to take away most of its clowning reputation, it would be more the size of skateboarding and things but still smaller because its still a young sport. I agree that the olympics would kind of take the heart and unique characteristic about unicycling out of the sport.

[Rezinha]

i tried it once, and it hurt like hell!

I'm gonna try that! Maybe I won't feel any pain... :p heheh

[Josefposef]

I don't really want uniing to be an olympic sport, because then heaps of people would do it and it wouldn't be as special!
I agree, but xtreme unicycling is growing right?

[polevaultinunicyclist]

No i dont think it should. it needs to be special. We already have big enough events like unicon. as far as the xgames go its a possibility cuz we all want to get away from the clown seen

[shappski]

Well I took my 29er to this year's Chap Olympiad if that counts (check out the last 3 shots):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sheridanclub/sets/72157624413986391/?page=6

[vijil]

I know this is a really old thread, but since it's been necro'd and nobody seems to mind I figure I'll add my 2c.

I come from the world of tournament paintball, and we've been trying to get it to a stage where it can become Olympic for a while now. You probably think that sounds ridiculous, but remember unicycling sounds equally ridiculous to most people so you can understand how they feel about unicycling.

There are a number of criteria for becoming an olympic sport. This isn't the full list but here's the gist of it:

1: Needs to have a decent number of participants worldwide
- Check, both paintball and unicycling fit this, though tournament paintball is probably bigger in my experience.

2: Needs to have international standard rules and regulations
- Paintball *sortof* has this. There are two or three competing standards of team size, field size and gun rules that mess with this.
- Unicycling also kindof has this, though it depends on the discipline and the people running it. It's probably still too haphazard in any one discipline.

3: Needs international governing body as well as national bodies
- Paintball fails at this, there are two or three major international ones than can't agree on anything, and national bodies are shaky at best.
- Unicycling is MUCH better on this front. Despite your smaller overall size, the efforts of the unicycle.com guys and the way unicon is run etc. mean you're far closer to filling this requirement.

4: Needs drug testing
- Paintball fails, and if it was implemented half of the athletes would be kicked out for weed!
- Unicycling has a better internal culture, it's less aggressive and doesn't have a bad case of "too many chiefs, not enough Indians" as paintball does. Given the good state of the sport in an organisational sense you'd be pretty well set up in this regard.

5: Needs strict conduct requirements
- see above.


As far as whether it should be in the olympics at all, that's a question we've discussed in paintball too. Generally speaking tournament players want to go upwards and onwards in terms of skill - the camaraderie side of the game is separate enough that losing it wouldn't be an issue. I suspect the same would be true of unicycling - any one discipline might be affected, but not likely the whole lot. Unicycling is also difficult enough that I can't see everyone deciding to take it up till it becomes commonplace!

Would the x-games suit unicycling better? Maybe. The problem with the x-games is that they're all about spectacle. Unicycle trials and flat just doesn't have the same instant visual appeal as bmx flat or jumps etc. - rather it's a very technical control sport. This sounds to me like it would be better off in the Olympics. The same applies to paintball. It sounds exciting to watch, but in reality unless you're familiar with the tactics and details involved it's quite boring as a spectacle. Again, it's not about flashy moves, it's about control, communication and tactics. Like unicycling it probably belongs in the Olympics more than the x-games.

Paintball does have one up on uni - we've been in the World Games, essentially a test platform for new Olympic sports which is run by the IOC. It'll be interesting to see where that goes! If unicycling is ever to make the Olympics, you also need to start at the World Games.

In my opinion unicycling really needs to develop more before it can get to an Olympic level anyway. Technology and standards are still on the way especially in terms of distance racing - people are still experimenting with things like aero bars and geared hubs and such. Nothing has really been settled on in that regard like it has in, say, b!cycling.

[UniChick4Ever]

If unicycling where to be a olympic sport it would lose it's flare. I would have to say I'd probally not even bother doing it anymore. The main reason I started unicycling is because I've always been and odd kid, doing things others don't, and that is why I started in the first place, it's different. How many people do you know that can actually ride one? Not many, and because I am a girl, how many girls do you know that ride one? Probally none.


UC4Ever
First Post:P

[unireed]

welcome to the website unichick4ever

[Salamious]

Look at the culture around cycling now. Can you imagine doing Trials in those tight uniforms? Oucchhh. For the guys, anyways.

[SmellyGeekBoy]

"Unicycling" probably wouldn't work as an olympic sport, but maybe one of the disciplines of unicycling? I think freestyle would work very well, a lot of non-unicyclists would enjoy the spectacle of it all.

MUni might be pretty good too.

[knoxuni]

Some one put in a request

[danechka]

The olympics have become a sad political joke. I'd consider it a step backwards for unicycling.
They have adopted so many ridiculous "sports" over recent years, I wouldn't want to be associated. Rhythmic Gymnastics is basically high-speed strip-tease. Synchronized diving?? No thanks.

[extremeacres]

I think unicon is better than the olympics....
unicon would be better than the olympics , cause the Spectators (unicyclist) would UNDERSTAND the feats being accomplished .... non-unicyclists just see it as a talent...but dont know the different levels or how much practice and skill are really involved..

go watch some of these vids....and You'll want to go to the next unicon (or the next "close" one) ...and wont care about the olympics anymore.

just my opinion

[extremeacres]

ooops....lol

here's the link

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&ds=yt&sugexp=ldymls&pq=unicon%20youtube&xhr=t&q=unicon&cp=7&qe=dW5pY29uIA&qesig=P8EnCsuBqLnMYXC0OKBWcw&pkc=AFgZ2tktRqEuNrDfvUloCh-OtQzNBwvAgoxaF4iirsUH88E7RZPnqoZA4-N-E6mLgtrwWKFhjbUjoBMWEonhv8hOze3iiFwnxA&pf=p&sclient=psy&tbs=vid:1&aq=0p&aqi=&aql=&oq=unicon+&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=18f4867fc01d73e6&bs=1

[padst3r]

shouldnt be in the olympics,unicon is enough

[unilars]

First yeah with posts way back in like 2008 people I unicycle with thinkk a treyflip is just a rolling 360 the problem is it would take a long time for people to understand the talent and work that is put into rolling tricks, muni, flips, freestyle and street. also I kind of like to think of unicycling as an "underground" sport. i like that its unique and not like skateboarding which has gotten so serious and you get criticized if you do a trick a certain way.
unicycling is more laid back and I fear that sometime if it got more famous..that laid back sort of style would not be there.

and yeah unicon and other competitions are good enough.

[UniCroatia]

There is too many disciplines..and you should chouse one or two for olimpics

[jmille2788]

Unicycle racing would be easier for the Olympic committee to understand. Off road, road racing and hillclimb might make for interesting demonstration sports.

There is a huge expense in getting the Olympics interested and I don't see the unicycle manufacturers getting behind it. If we could get Bill Gates, T. Boone Pickens, or Warren Buffett interested in the sport. Gates has a couple of kids . . . maybe if someone left a couple of unicycles on his door step.

JD

[UniCroatia]

Hahaha, great idea about bill gates XD

[knoxuni]

someone do it hint hint terry!

[padst3r]

find out where Bill Gates lives and i will go there and leave him 2 unicycles :cool:

[knoxuni]

Deal!! Here ya go!
http://www.billiondollarincome.com/bill-gates-house.html

[Jt00]

No i dont think it should. it needs to be special. We already have big enough events like unicon. as far as the xgames go its a possibility cuz we all want to get away from the clown seen

+1.
I would definitely watch the X games if there were unicycling events.
Not sure how you would go about the mega ramp though... you know, the one everyone COASTS down?
Still, you could do grinds and drop ins. We could make a whole new discipline of unicycling that deals especially w/ ramps and jumps.

[knoxuni]

you could BC the mega ramp

[SmellyGeekBoy]

you could BC the mega ramp

:eek:

[gohabsgo333]

+1.
Still, you could do grinds and drop ins. We could make a whole new discipline of unicycling that deals especially w/ ramps and jumps.

That already exists ;)

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