The swimming, cycling and running events have a fixed, round number distance and a variable time. They can't convert the time to FFU, because there is no FFU for time. Converting the distance, already a very round number, would be so obviously stupid that they don't do it. The only fixed distance they convert to FFU is the length of the Marathon.
For the events you cite, the variable is the height, length or distance -- easy to convert for the benefit of the dummies who can't see, for example, that 8.75 m represents a longer jump than 8.64 m. (It's easy because it is, no doubt, done by NBC's own computers, which are presumably receiving the results directly from the Olympic Games computers.) I remember members of this list complaining to NBC (I think it was NBC) about the same things with respect to the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. It didn't do any good then, either. Bill Potts, CMS Roseville, CA http://metric1.org [SI Navigator] >-----Original Message----- >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Behalf Of Carleton MacDonald >Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2004 19:34 >To: U.S. Metric Association >Subject: [USMA:30917] RE: thank you, Mr. Crumpacker > > >It is particularly annoying to hear the NBC announcers give the result of a >long jump, high jump, shotput or javelin toss in FFU when, right behind, is >an electronic sign with the result in meters. Why are these sports >different from the others? NBC has no trouble with swimming or running. > >Carleton > >-----Original Message----- >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Behalf Of Paul Trusten, R.Ph. >Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2004 19:06 >To: U.S. Metric Association >Subject: [USMA:30913] thank you, Mr. Crumpacker > > > "Slim margin: Osleidys Menendez of Cuba won the gold medal and came within >1 centimeter of tying her world record in the javelin when she >reached 71.53 >meters, which converts to 234 feet, 8 inches. Her world record is 71.54, >which converts to 234 feet, 8 inches. That proves the mathematical >superiority of the metric system because with imperial measurements of >throwing events greater than 100 feet, fractions of an inch are not used." > > --John Crumpacker, San Francisco >Chronicle, 2004-08-28 > >
