Top 10 Funniest SNL Olympics Sketches
These "SNL" sketches are comedic gold. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best and funniest times “SNL” skewered, we mean, celebrated the Olympics.
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00:00I don't think I can teach you anything.
00:01I'd love to see something.
00:03Oh, I would love to see you try.
00:04Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:06And today, we're counting down our picks for the best and funniest times SNL skewered,
00:11we mean celebrated, the Olympics.
00:13Do you have any questions about the Olympic sports?
00:15No, no, we already know too much.
00:18Number 10, figure skating cold open.
00:22Jason Priestley plays Brian Deming, an Olympic figure skater going for the gold.
00:26Real Cinderella story.
00:28A man who was not expected to win a medal here in Albertville
00:31can, with an impressive performance tonight,
00:33vault himself into contention for the gold medal in men's figure skating.
00:38There's just one issue.
00:39He spends more time horizontally on the ice than on his skates.
00:43It's a hilarious send-up of those moments where a performance just goes really wrong.
00:47That'll cost him even the bronze.
00:49Really, just for that fall?
00:50Yes, it was just so totally out of control.
00:52But he's gotten up and is continuing on.
00:54You've got to hand it to Priestley for his commitment to the physical comedy here.
01:03It's really gold medal stuff.
01:05His routine looks more like that scene from Bambi,
01:07where the eponymous character tries to walk across the ice.
01:10Only Bambi looks more graceful and elegant.
01:13The commentary, often interrupted by an
01:16makes it all that much funnier.
01:18Poor Brian, he really should put some ice on that.
01:25His heroic performance here in Albertville, yes.
01:33This Weekend Update bit might be short, but it packs plenty of laughs.
01:38Gilda Radner plays Soviet gymnast Olga Korbut,
01:40who is being interviewed by John Belushi.
01:43Please say hello to Olga and welcome her to Update.
01:51She says she's very happy to be here.
01:53Well, John Belushi with an accent.
01:55Korbut competed in the 1972 and 1976 Olympics,
02:00and famously missed out on a gold medal to Romanian gymnast Nadia Komaneci after some slip-ups.
02:05Anyway, Chevy Chase's pointed questioning probably didn't help the spirit of good sportsmanship here.
02:11Olga must be terribly disappointed and crushed by Nadia's success.
02:14Olga was the favorite to win, and now out of nowhere,
02:17Nadia comes along, wins the medals, becomes the darling of everyone,
02:20and Olga is left alone and crushed.
02:22While the real Korbut likely accepted her silver medal with grace,
02:25Radner's take is anything but gracious.
02:28She hilariously says what many Olympians
02:30probably wish they could say when they fall short of the top spot.
02:33I would like to take that balance beam and stick it in her eye.
02:37She says she likes and admires Nadia very much.
02:49A few years before Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte became embroiled in a scandal,
02:53SNL was already lampooning him.
02:55I think you mean animal practice.
02:57Yeah, the monkey's so funny.
02:59It's not fair they give all the best lines to the monkey.
03:04I give it three swims.
03:06Seth MacFarlane took on the role, dropping by the Weekend Update desk
03:09to discuss some of Lochte's favorite shows from the fall TV lineup.
03:13Lochte's interviews are notoriously... how do we put this kindly?
03:17Well, they tend to be memorable, that's for sure.
03:20I like that show because I enjoy complex characters
03:23that use their powers of deduction to solve riddles.
03:26Really?
03:27No, I just like the shapes.
03:29Okay.
03:30MacFarlane briefly mentions the fact that
03:33MacFarlane brilliantly nails his slow drawl
03:36and delivers quips that often raise more questions than they answer.
03:39Hey, um, Seth, you want to know a secret?
03:42Sure.
03:43If you hold your ear up to my ear, you can hear the ocean.
03:46Yeah, I'm good. I'm good right now.
03:50Soup yourself.
03:51Okay.
03:52The real Lochte reportedly didn't love the impression
03:54and essentially responded by challenging MacFarlane to a swimming race.
03:58Come on, he's basically just pitching a sketch here, right?
04:01What about the new season of American Dad on Fox?
04:04Oh, I heard that's actually really good.
04:05All right.
04:06Number seven, synchronized swimming.
04:08Did you ever notice that before the Paris 2024 Olympics,
04:12you didn't really see men compete in artistic swimming?
04:15Well, back in the 80s, a pair of brothers campaigned to change that.
04:19Men's synchro wasn't even in the 88 Olympics yet.
04:22That's okay, because we could use the time,
04:26because I'm not that strong a swimmer.
04:30Martin Short and Harry Shearer star in a mockumentary about their journey
04:33to become the first men to break into the sport.
04:36Their trainer, played by Christopher Guest,
04:38brings an energy that we'd like to believe
04:40accurately replicates what preparing for the event might look like.
04:43You're underwater, and I am too, but I'm talking,
04:45but this is just pretend, two, three, four.
04:47Look at the fish going by.
04:48You see people's feet.
04:49Can you hold it any longer?
04:51No, so burst out of the water.
04:53And aren't you glad to be out of the water?
04:55We're not saying these two were responsible for the Olympics
04:58officially allowing men into the sport,
05:00but just look at them.
05:01Who wouldn't tune in to watch this?
05:03We have the opportunity to do something that no one has ever done before,
05:08and we're going for it.
05:19Choosing Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics stirred up a lot of controversy,
05:24partly because of Russia's human rights record,
05:26especially with the LGBTQIA plus community.
05:29While the figure skating championship is fun to watch,
05:32Kate McKinnon's portrayal of Russian correspondent Olya Pavlotsky
05:36is absolutely hilarious.
05:38But the Olympics are in Sochi,
05:40which, as I understood, is sort of a resort town, right?
05:43A last resort, sir.
05:45Olya takes jabs at her village and country
05:47with sharp, funny comments about the issues,
05:49all under the guise of her own experiences.
05:52My sister and I were athletes as children.
05:55Our favorite sport was running away from angry wolf.
06:00I won gold.
06:01She won silver.
06:02God rest her soul.
06:04McKinnon hits every joke with perfect timing,
06:07making each one funnier than the last.
06:09Even Seth can't resist cracking up.
06:12If you were planning to travel for the Olympics that year,
06:14she definitely gave you a vivid picture of her hometown.
06:18Sochi has a warmer climate than most of Russia,
06:19so a lot of the Olympic budget has gone toward buying snow.
06:22Buying snow?
06:25What the hell?
06:27All I own is snow.
06:30Number five.
06:31Weekend update.
06:32Leslie Jones on the 2018 Winter Olympics.
06:35You may have caught Jones interviewing swimmer Katie Ledecky
06:38at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
06:40We'd like to believe that this was essentially the audition
06:43that landed her that gig.
06:45Jones admits that before the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang,
06:49she wasn't all that invested in the games.
06:51But it turned out that my favorite event was hockey.
06:55How come nobody told me about hockey?
06:57It's violence on ice.
06:59However, she became a major fan after watching them in person.
07:03In this segment, she shares her experiences with so much enthusiasm
07:07that it could be an Olympic sport in itself.
07:09They won the gold medal on a shootout,
07:11and this woman who did a straight potluck move was like,
07:15Clown, clown, clown.
07:16I was like, I didn't know you could do that.
07:19At one point, ice hockey gold medalist Hillary Knight even joins the fun,
07:23daring Colin to show off some moves.
07:26Honestly, every event would be better with Leslie Jones as a commentator.
07:30Hillary, do this with me.
07:32Who run the world?
07:33Girls.
07:34That's right.
07:35Who run this mother?
07:37Girls.
07:38Number four.
07:39Space Olympics.
07:41It's 3022, and the Olympics have gone intergalactic.
07:45Welcome to the Space Olympics, the year 3022.
07:50Take part in a grand tradition.
07:55It promises to be an epic event,
07:57but hosting the games in space comes with its own set of issues.
08:01Events are canceled, others are pending,
08:03and there's a short supply of oxygen.
08:06To make matters worse,
08:07someone has hit the big red self-destruct button,
08:10and safety is just an alien horde away.
08:15Accidentally hit self-destruct.
08:18As you file to your escape pods,
08:20I'll distract the alien hordes.
08:22As doom looms,
08:24Andy Samberg wraps up his space talk and reflects on his own life instead.
08:28He also ends the song with a line that seems to borrow
08:30from Justin Timberlake's,
08:31My Love.
08:33You do it for the love, my love.
08:39And there ain't no woman that can take yours by my love.
08:43We hope that when Zargon eventually wins their bid to host the Olympics,
08:47it goes better than this.
08:52Have you ever dreamed of having a swimmer's body?
08:55It's never been easier.
08:56Just follow the Michael Phelps diet.
08:58Introducing the Michael Phelps diet.
09:00It's the only diet that lets you eat whatever Michael Phelps eats.
09:05And as you can tell,
09:06it works wonders for me.
09:09Fancy a CarbFest breakfast top with a gallon of coffee ice cream?
09:13Hey, coffee beans, grow on plants.
09:15Sounds pretty balanced to us.
09:17Already thinking about lunch?
09:18Go wild.
09:19Just make sure you stop at 12,000 calories.
09:22Just listen to the people who have tried it and made it work.
09:25I've been on the Michael Phelps diet for almost two weeks,
09:28and people are already coming up to me and saying congratulations,
09:32because they know I found the perfect diet.
09:35Yes, there's a cameo that hasn't aged well,
09:38but let's just move past that.
09:40Oh, also, disclaimer,
09:41do not attempt the Michael Phelps diet
09:43unless you are training for at least five to six hours a day
09:46and preparing for Olympic-level competition.
09:49Because you don't have to train like an Olympic athlete
09:51to have a body like an Olympic athlete.
09:57Yum, cake frosting.
09:59Are you gonna finish that?
10:00Hey, gutteral, I'm on a diet.
10:04Number two, Telemundo Winter Olympics.
10:07In this sketch, Jennifer Lopez and Fred Armisen
10:10play Telemundo presenters baffled by the Winter Olympics in Canada.
10:13They can't fathom the cold weather or understand the sports there.
10:17Come on, Canada, couldn't you finish building that ramp?
10:21You will not believe this.
10:22The ramp was supposed to be like that.
10:27You either finish building a ramp or you do not build it at all.
10:30This is the madness that happens when a country has no beaches.
10:34But we guess that's what you get from a country
10:36that apparently doesn't have any beaches.
10:38All their field correspondents are equally shocked by what they witness.
10:42Shuffleboard on ice?
10:44Yeah, we're not buying it either.
10:45They've been forced to play shuffleboard with their rocks.
10:50What are they doing?
10:51I believe these poor men are trying to melt ice with their brooms,
10:54sweeping and sweeping, but it does no good.
10:57The entire cast sells the bit convincingly, making it absolutely hilarious.
11:02That said, we're putting on our mitts so we can proudly wave the Canadian flag
11:06in celebration of our beautiful beaches up here.
11:09Do you know that there are places with sunshine and dancing?
11:13And not just ice dancing, fun dancing.
11:16With shoes and even bare feet.
11:18Do you have any questions about the Olympic sports?
11:20No, no, we already know too much.
11:22Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
11:26Weekend Update.
11:27Carrie Strug and Kippy Strug on winning Olympic gold.
11:31So Carrie Strug still won gold with her brother Kippy by her side?
11:34Could she have another gold medal for that?
11:36Are you coming, Kippy?
11:37Yeah, I guess I'm coming.
11:39Oh my god!
11:42What?
11:42My foot's asleep.
11:44It's all tingling.
11:46Mormons on the Slopes.
11:47Taking their mission to new and snowy heights.
11:50Have you been to Salt Lake City before?
11:53No, but I can't talk now.
11:55Do you know about the Church of Latter-day Saints?
11:59Swimming Instructor.
12:01A swimming lesson to never forget, even if you really want to.
12:05Oh yeah, right there.
12:06Good swimming.
12:08Don't we need to get into the pool?
12:10No, no, before I take the ship out to sea, I like to dry dock it for a little bit, check out the hull.
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12:31Number 1.
12:32Little Chocolate Donuts
12:34Maybe the Michael Phelps diet isn't quite your thing.
12:37How about trying the Belushi approach?
12:39Here's his approach.
12:44And he's got it!
12:46Belushi's won the gold, now he's going for the world's record!
12:50You might not see the comedian as your typical athlete, but with the right sugary treat,
12:54you too can gain energy for all kinds of athletics.
12:57Let's be honest, who hasn't eaten a chocolatey donut and felt ready to smoke out the competition?
13:03I logged a lot of miles training for that day, and I downed a lot of donuts.
13:08Little chocolate donuts.
13:10They taste good, and they've got the sugar I need to get me going in the morning.
13:13The premise is simple, and the execution is spot on.
13:17Just seeing a box of those donuts probably makes you think of the sketch in Crack a Smile.
13:21That's why little chocolate donuts have been on my training table since I was a kid.
13:25Another disclaimer.
13:26While it worked for Belushi, we wouldn't recommend trying it yourself.
13:30However, you might just score a six-pack from laughing through this sketch.
13:33Little chocolate donuts.
13:35The donuts of champions.
13:38Which SNL Olympic sketch would you award a gold medal to?
13:41Let us know in the comments.
13:44Well, that's too bad.
13:45That'll cost him the gold.
13:46Do you agree with our picks?
13:48Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.
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