As the winter Olympics began to wind down this year, I started to think about all the conversations that I was having with friends and family regarding the games– or lack thereof.

It seemed to me that this year, many more people than I would have expected were a lot less interested and motivated to pay attention to the games, and that bothered me. What’s more, is that I was one of these individuals who somehow found myself incredibly disconnected from what was occurring in the Olympics, and that led to even more disappointment.

For many, the Olympics only serve as interesting when the sport that either the viewer or the viewers family have had prior experience or interest in. For example, I can speak to the fact that the summer Olympics are certainly a big area of interest for me and my sister as both of us spent our athletic careers participating in the sports of swimming and gymnastics.

However, although both my parents enjoy watching these sports as well, they tend to make it their goal to pay attention to the winter Olympics just as much as they are both very accomplished skiers.

So, when– if at– does it become our jobs as citizens to watch our fellow country inhabitants (who are the best at what they do) compete for the chance of winning a gold medal and representing our country?

It may seem like such a small thing, but the support we give to those athletes is a very big deal. It doesn’t just apply to those of us who are citizens of the United States, but to individuals who are members of any country.

Your job, as a citizen of that country, is to support those who have spent their entire life competing for the chance to represent your country and bestow a positive image upon it. You may not have ever been an athlete, but you should take pride in the fact that someone is attempting to positively represent the land which you both come from on the biggest athletic stage out there.

Now, that isn’t to say that you have to watch every single sporting event that is broadcasted. I will be the first to say that I personally do not find every sport to be equally as interesting, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have an immense amount of respect for those athletes or that I refuse to watch any of the sports because of my lack of interest in one.

In fact, these past Winter Olympics, I spent my time watching the events that I found most interesting and then talking to friends and family about what happened across all other sports, so I stayed informed.

Which brings me to my most important point: you need to stay informed. I’ll be honest, I had absolutely no idea that the United States Women’s Olympic Hockey Team won the gold medal for the first time in 20 years (congratulations ladies!)

This might not sound like a big deal on the surface, but the fact that I come from a family who eagerly supports the sport of hockey and completely missed a legendary moment in history for a United States team is disappointing.

You don’t have to be a former or current athlete to enjoy watching a few days of the Olympic Games. In fact, you don’t even have to be a sports fanatic. But as the citizen of a country that is being represented at the games, it is your job to support the athlete competing out there.

The truth is, they are not just supporting themselves, they are supporting you too, and as such, you owe it to them to watch them compete.

Huge shout-out to all the athletes who competed this year. I can’t wait to see what the next Games has to hold, with hopes that the viewership will be much larger.