I have to confess to a hot-and-cold history of the Olympics. There have been certain Olympic games (like the games in Los Angeles, Seoul, and Atlanta) which were so important to me that I essentially scheduled my life around them. Other Olympic games (like the ones in Barcelona, Sydney and Beijing) received only my most casual, cursory attention. For whatever reason or reasons, I have been completely swept away by the 2012 Olympic Games, and it seems like a lot of other people are just as excited and obsessed as I am. I suspect that my fervent interest in this Olympics may have something to do with the ugly unpleasantness of our current political divide, plus the dismaying news of violence not only in places like Syria or Afghanistan, but in places like Aurora, Colorado and . . . right up the road from us . . . Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Who wouldn’t want to escape all of that awfulness? And what better way to do it than with a dazzling festival celebrating athletic greatness, the fun of play, the glory of excellence, and – most importantly – the highest standards of good sportsmanship.
Not that every single Olympian has lived up to the highest ideals of the Games. For instance, Ursain Bolt may indeed be the greatest sprinter in history, but for me his unrelenting self- promotion and dismissive attitude towards his competitors is roughly akin to piles of pigeon poop defacing what should be a glorious statute in the hall of fame of all-time greats. There were a lot of sterling role models for Mr. Bolt, and I would suggest he try emulating:
Kirani James & Oscar Pistorius, who provided one of the most inspiring moments of these or any Olympic games. Pistorius is of course the South African “blade runner” – competing with prosthetic legs against able-bodied competitors and holding his own. He ran wonderfully in the first round to earn a place in the semi’s, but ended up finishing last in his semi-final heat. But in a splendid demonstration of class and humility, the winner of that semi (and the eventual gold medalist in the event) Karani James asked Pistorius if the two of them could exchange name tags. Later, after decisively winning the final of the event and gaining Grenada its first Olympic medal ever, Karani James greeted each and every one of his competitors with a hug. And as for Pistorius, not only was he an inspiring competitor, he was also one of the most articulate athletes in these games, and the most inspirational. Only one of them finished first, but there’s no doubt that both of them were winners in London.
Misty-May Treanor and Kerri Walsh, the U.S. gold medal winners for the third Olympics in a row, whose spectacular play in grabbing their third gold medal was awe-inspiring, made an even deeper impression on me for the deep respect they extended to their various opponents. You can tell from the moment they embrace their vanquished foes- and can tell a little later when they would speak to the media. They’re not well-mannered in a tea-and-crumpets sort of way, but rather embody good old American graciousness . . . down-to-earth and completely authentic. And I say this as someone who has not been that big a fan of beach volleyball until this year- turned off by the rather overbearing efforts that have been made to make this particular sport more audience-friendly. There is almost always an announcer who yells over the P.A., rousing the audience to almost frenzied excitement. There is also the dancing which happens before and after each important match, right out on the same court where the athletic battle is waged. Puh-leaze! If anything was proven by this latest athletic endeavor, it’s that Beach Volleyball is plenty exciting without all of the extra bells and whistles. Anyway, it is really saying something that I was so taken by these two American playing in an Olympic event that I would call borderline obnoxious. That says a lot about how gracious they were, every step of the way – to say nothing of being so spectacularly skillful and incredibly passionate.
Michael & Missy & Just About All of the Swimmers seemed to epitomize what good sportsmanship is all about. I love to watch how competitors after a hard-fought race will exchange congratulations with each other in a way that seems entirely sincere and heartfelt. And beyond that, I want to single out Michael Phelps, who has always been a perfectly pleasant champion, but who experienced his successes this time around with more open-hearted joy and with an easier rapport with his competitors. Just as he became the greatest swimmer of all time and the most decorated Olympian of all time, Phelps also became even more likable and more impressive as a sportsman.
Male Gymnasts outshone their female counterparts, as usual, in their enjoyment of each other’s performances. The ladies like to give a perfunctory peck on the cheek to their competitors, and stiff hugs to their teammates, but it seems entirely by rote with hardly any heart in it at all. By contrast, the guys appear to be genuinely appreciative of each other’s performances. I think in particular of a succession of spectacular performances on the high bar; one gymnast would dazzle the crowd and the judges, only to see their marks bested by whoever came after them. . . and in almost every case, they would react with smiles, cheers, and hugs. As amazing as the gymnastics itself, I almost enjoyed the sportsmanship even more.
Decathletes are another group of athletes who deserve exceptional praise when it comes to sportsmanship. Everyone knows what a tough gauntlet this represents, with ten different events that represent the most severe test an athlete can face. When it was all done this time, with Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee finishing 1-2 for the U.S.A., all of the competitors were quick to congratulate each other, and even posing together for a group photograph. Can you picture that happening in any other event? I can’t. But these decathletes seem to appreciate that just finishing a decathlon is an achievement in and of itself, so they consider each other to be comrades in a most exclusive club – and with good reason.
This is as good a time as any to mention how frustrated I was with NBC’s relentless focus on the medal count, which they were announcing after the first day of competition! I know that McDonald’s sponsored it, so it had to be given a certain number of mentions, but I found it to be tacky. Of course, as an American it was neat to see our athletes finish first both in overall medals and in gold medals, but in trumpeting the triumph so incessantly, NBC seemed to be taking a page out of the Ursain Bolt Primer on Athletic Etiquette. But kudos to late night host Mary Carillo; when she would announce the medal count, she seemed to go out of her way to announce when some small nation might have just scored their first Olympic medal ever similar feats that Bob Costas tended to ignore in his focus on the U.S.A. vs. China. It seems to me that whoever telecasts the Olympics owes it to the viewers to celebrate the games as a whole – and what the spirit of the games is all about. NBC does that, but only in spurts. A little too much of the time, they have their “U.S.A.! U.S.A.!” poms poms swishing thru the air, IMO.
And towards that end, I would also criticize NBC for a choice that they seem to have made over the last several Olympic games. . . that with very few exceptions, they only show the end of medal ceremonies. . . that is, we might see the gold medalist(s) receive their medals, but not the silver or bronze recipients, and depending on camera angles we might not get so much as a glance at them. The unspoken implication of such a choice is that Gold is all that matters. I remember the good old days when there was time on these telecasts to show all of the medalists and to celebrate them properly.
But I do want to say that NBC has done a lot of things right with its Olympic telecasts. Bob Costas is a remarkably able anchor, and many of the announcers and commentators are superb. I do wish that those who are charged with interviewing athletes down on the track or poolside could figure out something to ask the competitors aside from “how does it feel?” But these games have been such a joy that I’m even willing to put up with that eternal frustration. It’s worth it for the sake of this amazing competition that pushes away the world’s darkness, albeit temporarily, and lights up our planet so splendidly.
pictured above: Kalani James and Oscar Pistorius, exchanging name tags after their semi-final leg of the 400 meters.