It seems there’s usually little build-up to the Olympic Games, especially this time. The only reason it seemed to be in the news was because of the effect Covid might have on it. The occasional story about athletes getting on a plane or preparing for the games, but nothing that really gets anyone excited.
The Opening Ceremonies are always a spectacle, but as soon as that’s over, what happens? I’ll tell you what happens, I become a slave to the TV, glued to every event, every competition, every medal. I don’t know what it is, I am an Olympics junkie. And I admit it.
At other times, I’d rather watch paint dry than rowing, swimming, water polo or diving. I’m not too interested in watching track or even soccer. But put a Canadian flag on the uniform, and I’m glued to the screen. What makes it worse is when it’s on the other side of the world - I work all day, and stay up all night watching the competition. I haven’t slept for weeks.
This time was even worse! There were at least 5 channels - Canadian channels - with coverage. There’s only so much room on my PVR, and one can only switch between 2 channels at a time. Then there’s the daily replays that I recorded. There was no shortage of opportunity to see Canadians, and other elite athletes from around the world, give the performance of their lives in pursuit of a place on the podium.
Canadians walked away with 24 medals, finishing in 11th place. To put that in perspective, the US has 10 times the population, and won the most medals with 113. Look at any other country above us in the standings, we produced more medals per capita, with the exception of Australia and the Netherlands. Gotta hand it to those Netherlandians, they really punched above their weight.
I have the honour of working with some exceptional athletes who will never make it past organized sports. The work they put in with the hopes of getting into a higher level is admirable. For someone to make the Olympic Games is completely different. For them, it’s years of preparation and dedication for a short moment in time.
I saw an athlete post on social media, apologizing for not being on the podium, and it broke my heart. To make it to the Olympics, to wear the Canadian flag, to represent us with pride and honour in fair competition never requires an apology. You will forever be an Olympian.
And I will forever be glued to my TV, cheering you on.
