As a belly dancer, I can sympathize with the struggle for respect; however, I’m always suspicious of “sports” that have no objective measure. We’ve all seen those Russian figure skating fiascos.
In case you’re not familiar with the athleticism of this competitive dance form, below is a world champion pole dancer, Jenyne Butterfly. She starts with more interpretive dance elements, but after about a minute, she begins a genuinely amazing performance.
Blogs and Articles in No Particular OrderÂ
10 Junie B. Jones Titles That Were Rejected by the ever-hysterical Leanne Shirtliffe. My thanks to Leanne, as well, for the tip about the Olympic pole dancers.
The Bayard/Lamb 2012 Campaign Blog Tour stopped off at David Walker’s blog this week where we expounded on the role of tiddlywinks in foreign disputes and our stand on the mullet.
New York Times bestselling author Bob Mayer discusses Writing as the Only Art Form that isn’t Sensual.
Nigel Blackwell writes a blog about things that move. Cars, planes, rockets, submarines, etc. He’s been running an amazing series lately about the X-1 program, Chuck Yeager, Â and the race to break the sound barrier, including a link to the transcript of Yeager’s wild ride in the Bell X-1A. Beyond Glamorous GlennisÂ
A fond farewell to M*A*S*H star Harry Morgan. M*A*S*H Star Harry Morgan Dead at 96
My Warrior Writer Boot Camp teammate, Donna Newton, give an accurate account of Learning to Write the WWBC Way. It’s made all the difference in my own fiction endeavors.
Gene Lempp has a marvelous series called Designing from Bones wherein he explores ancient myths and archeological finds. This week, he tells us the legend of the Black Shuck. Designing from Bones – Demon, Protector, Patsy
Okay. Let’s be honest. We’ve all done or at least wanted to do these things. How to Brighten Your Day by Annoying Others by Amber West.
Bestselling author Larry Enright explores the trend of using nouns as verbs in a most entertaining way. For example, today I will be caking and cheese plating in preparation for Xmas partying. Verbalizing
Agricultural Bill Change Allows for Horse Slaughterhouses to Resume in US. I’m a horse lover so I was particularly horrified by this one.
Ellie Ann is running a great series right now about careers. She has some amazing interviews with everyone from a spook (our own Holmes), to a fashion photographer (Cody Bess), to a doctor and television host (Dr. Dorian). This week, she talks with a zookeeper, Callene Rapp. What I Want to be When I Grow Up – A Zookeeper
Fleet of Ferraris Ruined in Japan Sportscar Pileup This one had to hurt.
When an Adult Took Standardized Tests Forced on Kids. As someone who thinks standardized tests are pulverizing any semblance of education in our country, I found this article about a school board member flunking the 10th grade test particularly interesting, and not the least bit surprising.
Ever wonder where police came from? The Origin of Police in England by mystery writer and historian K.B. Owen.
And for a different kind of pole dancer, this fireman shows us that practicality and entertainment can mix to varying degrees of success in this very funny commercial.
So what do you think? Should pole dancing be an Olympic sport?Â
All the best to all of you for a week of amazing athletic feats.
Piper Bayard
I don’t know if pole dancing should be an Olympic sport, but the notion did make me smile. The second video you had was pretty amazing. The strength and coordination it takes to *really* pole dance does require a high level of fitness and skill. Perhaps it would add a little spice to the Olympics?
I must admit. It’s the only kind of dancing I’ve ever seen that my immediate response was not, “I can do that.” It certainly would spice up the Olympics. I’m thinking they can air it concurrently with curling on a split screen. Thanks for stopping by.
Man, you have to respect the sheer strength and conditioning to pole dance. I think it would make a great Olympic sport…but they’ve got to call it something else, lol. 🙂
They definitely need a new name. Perhaps “vertical gymnastics.” Thanks for stopping by, Angela.
Wow.
This is the first time I’ve seen competitive pole dancing. Jenyne Butterfly is an amazing athlete. Skip the “creative elements”, and there’s no reason why the vertical bar couldn’t be judged as objectively as the horizontal bars, the rings, or the pommel horse. The required level of strength, flexibility, and precision is the same.
Unless you’re the fireman. Owie.
This was the first competitive pole dancing I’ve seen, too. Perhaps if it was judged more like gymnastics than figure skating or ice dancing it could work. Thanks for stopping by, Diane.
I too have trouble with sports judged subjectively. I like a finish line or a scoreboard.
And thanks for the shout out. You should see the Junie B Jones titles my readers came up with in the comments. Hilarious!
Happy weekend!
How about Junie B. Jones and the Pole Dancing Competition? I did see those comments. I started to join in and then realized I would never get my blog posted. 🙂 Happy weekend to you, as well.
And look what else I found today: http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/746182/woman_arrested_for_cooking_meth_inside_a_walmart/
Thanks, Leanne. You make my job easy. 🙂
I’m not usually moved to using OMG, but OMG. Ms Butterfly’s performance is amazing. The pieces where she “walks” downwards have to required amazing strength and dexterity. I think her phone number should have a govt health warning with it, she could break guys in two.
Cheers!
I know. Is that “walk” amazing or what? Thanks for stopping by, Nigel.
Pole Dancing. As it stands currently, no.
However, there are three ways I could see this becoming an Olympic sport.
First, merge it with gymnastics. The athlete vaults onto the pole, does their routine and then dismounts by flipping through the air.
Second, multi-competitor. Two (or more, say, eight) pole dancers all in a row, like runners, that do their routines until only one remains attached to their pole with a zamboni-like device “assisting” the non-winners off the stage.
Third, merge it with kickboxing to create pole boxing. The two pole dancers must stay attached to their poles and fight until only one or both fall off. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon did something like this only they used bamboo sprouts.
Just a few Olympic suggestions.
Thanks for the linkage, Piper 🙂
Gene, those are some great suggestions. I especially like the zamboni clearing and the pole boxing competition. What would Mohammed Ali have done with that one? Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
I liked the second one, that was more like gymnastics. Loved the fireman version so funny! I think if they want to be taken more seriously they should look more like gymnasts and wear a full one piece. We’ll still know they’ve got nice abs 🙂
That’s a great point, Catherine, about them wearing gymnastic one piece outfits to be taken more seriously. Perhaps that will catch on. Thanks for stopping by.
Thx for the blog shout-out, Piper! I would seriously hurt myself trying to pole dance, lol. 🙂
Lol. I think I would, too. Especially the upside down parts. Thanks for stopping by.
O.M.G. I was ahhmazed by Jenyne Butterfly’s pole dancing performance. And I agree, I don’t think there’s any reason why the vertical bar couldn’t be judged in some format like the horizontal bars. It’s just about setting out the criteria etc. I’d love to see it as part of the Olympics but my guess is it’ll take some time for the sport to gain a more solid reputation before it’s taken serious but heck…who knows!?! Thanks for the FAB videos!!
Now…looks like I have a bit of reading to do. Bang up line-up and I am off to check out these fab peeps!
Happy weekend Piper!
When I first posted this, I was thinking no way. But you folks mentioning the gymnastics, the vertical bar, and the one piece are convincing me this could be possible. It’s certainly athletic. Thanks for dropping by. A great weekend to you, too, Natalie.
To quote Butthead, “Uhhhhhhhh…what?” I don’t remember what just happened because I made the clicky with the play button on your video. That was, uhhh, like unforgettable and stuff?
I know. She’s amazing. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
I’m still laughing at the list of ways to annoy others…
Lol. Isn’t that a hoot? I confess to doing a bit of that to entertain myself when I worked in an office. Thanks for stopping by, Emily.
Jenyne is so strong! I can’t believe what she did–legs parallel to the ground, sideways push up…or whatever you call it…it was amazing!
But geez. No. No pole dancing in the Olympics. A girl dancing on a pole. Just a bit too sexual. Not to mention the very career oriented nature of the “sport.”
What a great mash-up, as usual! And thanks so much for the shout out!
You make a good point about the career nature of the sport. The Olympics is, after all, supposed to be for amateurs. Thanks for stopping by.
What an incredible performance! Makes me think I should finally take the pole dancing fitness class I’ve seen offered… Hmm…
While I think pole dancing is cool and potentially empowering (for the dancer ;)), I don’t think it pairs well with traditional sports. Can’t they have a dance olympics? Or maybe sexy ones?
Great post and links, Piper. (Heartbreaking regarding horses!)
I like your idea of a Dance Olympics. It would recognize the althleticism without trying to pair it up with weight lifting, pole vaulting and luge. Perhaps when I’m president, I will request that the UN address that. God knows they need something to do besides appoint despotic dictators to human rights commissions. Thanks for stopping by, August. Let me know how your pole dancing endeavors turn out. Perhaps you’ll be competing with Jenyne in the first Dance Olympics. 🙂
I don’t know, Piper. Knee-jerk is to say pole-dancing isn’t a sport because there are no teams, no goals, no finish lines. But, there are performance-based Olympic competitions in gymnastics. How is the strength, balance, coordination, skill and training of the parallel bars any different from pole dancing?
(Not that I’ll be donning my belly dancing jingly belt and figure-eighting my way into Olympic competition any time soon!)
Cool clips, thanks for sharing.
I think you’re right. The words “pole dancing” do tend to bring out a strong response when it’s suggested it could be called a sport, but remove the words, and you’ve got some amazing gymnastics. They will definitely need a new name to be taken seriously, and perhaps they should be taken seriously. As for the belly dancing, I’m with you. I know there are belly dancing competitions out there, but I’ve never viewed them as being relevant or an accurate reflection of dance ability so I’m thinking a belly dance Olympics, while sparkly, would be pretty meaningless. Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Sherry. 🙂