The Olympics

I’m sitting here watching the closing ceremonies and thinking.  Its funny, I am not a huge sports fan but I love the olumpics.  Of course I cheered when Michael Phelps won his medals and followed all the fun and tears of the games.  Well that comes with the memories of things like sitting in the office on campus 11 at night with a bunch of fellow students SCREAMING at the tv as he raced for his 8th gold. 

I’ve loved the incredible athletes that put the me aside and did it for their country.  People will remember Phelps but who will remember the name of the guy who raced in his place in the qualifying races?  I watched as the basketball players from the NBA and WNBA won gold for the USA.  The iconic images to me are Lisa Leslie with her 4 gold medals and the NBA players crying as the national anthem was played.  Then them thanking Coach K.

Watching the athletes enter the closing ceremony there was little Shawn Johnson getting cut off by one of the NBA players.  A high school student and a pro athlete both with the title of Olympic Champion.

Or the stories of the athletes who were out of the spotlight liek the pair from Somalia who came in dead last in their events but I was reading about how the spectators and fellow athletes at the Birds Nest cheered in one of them as she came in last.  True sportsmanship.

Someday I will get to attend the Olympics.  I will never be someone who can ever think about competing at their level but yeah I love it.