In trying to come up with an idea for my last column (CityBeat has set me free of internship duties as of last Friday — and with no cupcake-laden sendoff, either), I turned to an event that may not have been quite as popular four years ago, but is back on the world’s radar as it currently tops all the sports headlines. I have never really been a huge fan of the Olympics. I believed, for the most part, that a lot of the sports were irrelevant. I mean, seriously who wants to sit down and watch handball, synchronized swimming or badminton (though I have to admit badminton, after watching a few matches, is awesome).
It just always felt like flag waving and dancing around — check highlights of the opening ceremony and all the crazy shit that went on for confirmation of an event meant more for spectacle than sport and competition. But this summer my thoughts have changed, as I have actually watched much of the Games, and with much sadness I say this: I’ve gotten into the lure of the Olympics. I could blame the media hype for this sudden change of heart, but I would rather chalk it up to a few other reasons.
Number one, USA basketball once again kicks ass. After embarrassing themselves in not taking home the gold in Athens and again losing in the World Championships, the “Redeem Team” (I feel so stupid for using that lame nickname, but whatever) has righted the ship and is back to crushing these pathetic excuses for basketball teams. It brightens my day to turn on highlights of Olympic men’s basketball winning by an average of 20 points and seeing Lebron or Kobe dunking on some European guy. So thank you Team USA and Coach K for bringing life back into the Olympics.
Also thank you Michael Phelps. Yes I admit it, I was hypnotized by NBC’s constant coverage of Phelps and his journey to make history. So much so that I almost watched every race (thank god I didn’t because I would feel pretty lame). Having said this, I’d like to think it was my love of witnessing history that drew me to watch. It was pretty cool watching a guy who said he was going to win eight gold medals actually go out there and win eight gold medals.
Now the debate can begin, as countless journalists will argue whether or not Phelps is the greatest Olympian of all time, blah blah blah. (For the record he is definitely top three, maybe two.) And don’t forget about all the doping charges that are sure to arise. (Again, for the record ,I think he’s clean.) But for me, it was just cool to see history made and records broken in my generation before my eyes so I can say when I get older, “Yeah I saw Michael Phelps break Spitz’s record, no big deal.” So go collect your million dollars Michael and thanks for making the Olympics memorable.
Finally, a big thank you is in order for the host country China. Because of all the controversy that has risen in the country politically, environmentally and morally, coupled with a U.S. presidential election on the horizon, the Olympics is back to being relevant for everyone, sports fans and alike. Also, and maybe most importantly, China has given us an enemy to cheer against during the games and a suitable opponent to measure ourselves against. That was what was so great about the Olympics of past — we had huge world powers to pin ourselves against. It was the U.S. versus Hitler, or the U.S. versus the Commies. Now it’s the U.S. against China, and the abuse of civil rights and pollution. We even get to track the how much better we are with how many medals we win. Right now we are up by three. (Even though China is kicking our ass in gold medals, but who cares about that).
So that sums up some reasons why I have been watching the Olympics and maybe why you should tune into the last couple weeks.
— Chris Boyer
Image: Michael Phelps with his gold medal and a crown of thorns.
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