Olympics Afterglow

The Winter Olympics have finally come to a close tonight. If you didn’t watch the closing ceremonies you missed a really great show. It would have been such an experience to be there. This year, I followed the Olympics more so than in any other year and I have to admit I got a bit excited quite a few times. It’s amazing to me to watch some of these people who are teenagers compete and win against people from all over the world.

I watched Thursday night Sarah Hughes’s figure skating competition and was really pulling for her. The expression on her face as she landed her first jump was just unforgettable and really showed her emotions there. With each successive jump, twist, and turn she made, her face lit up as she knew she just gave the best performance she could possibly give. The burden placed on the remaining skaters that night must have been very heavy—each fell once during their performance. Even though Sarah was not expecting to win at all, it was very fitting for her to get the gold that night. Michelle Kwan is such a beautiful and talented skater and it was sad to see her lose the gold medal given her circumstances. But, as everyone said, she showed respect and grace to her competitors and accepted her medal—and that in itself is a sign of a good sport.

The closing ceremonies are off the TV now for the local news, but as soon as they come back on, I’m on it. I just had to crank my stereo up when Bon Jovi came on and played in the middle of the giant snowball fight and the ice that was splattered with fluorescent paint. Those dinosaurs were really neat, but could you imagine sitting in the stadium not knowing you had these huge creatures looming over your head and you turn around to see one of them looking you in the eye? Gesh! If I was athletic I would be inspired watching these guys. But I’m not. As athletic as I get is saying I’m going to buy a bike and start riding or that I’m going to start running. I used to run a lot and even thought of taking up track in high school, but for some reason I didn’t—probably because I figured I wasn’t good enough. Story of my life.

One thought still lingers on. I watched Sarah take the gold medal and knew she was not expecting to win it. She did, and she’s now the best. She worked 16 years to take the chance to go there, and she did and she won. But now what? It’s sad to me to think that you work for so long to accomplish something and then you’re suddenly beating everyone to it. What do you do then? She’s going to do tours around the country at local venues. But so young in life and already having achieved something that people work decades on—I wonder if she’ll be in Greece next time.