Every two years, the world does its best to forget all that is bad and comes together to celebrate global citizens’ athletic accomplishments during the Olympic Games. Regardless of whether the winter or summer games are in action, the people of the world watch in amazement as the globe’s greatest athletes compete for international fame in the name of pride for one’s country. The Opening Ceremony marks the beginning of each Olympiad, and the spectacle drums up excitement through colorful displays, celebrity appearances, and the Parade of Nations. Of all that went on during the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony, one thing in particular caught my attention.
I am referring to a particular flag-bearer. No, not the oiled-up Tongan that the internet drooled over, but Panama’s. Who carried it? A sprinter named Alonso Edward. Here he is.
I have a bit of a history with Alonso, so when I saw him prance across the TV screen I snapped out of my groggy state, my jaw hit the floor, and I jumped up off of the couch to cheer. Let me explain. I consider myself extremely lucky to have grown up in Des Moines for many reasons. One of which is the fact that Drake Stadium has hosted the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2008, 2011, and 2012 and the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2010 and 2013. Being raised in a state with no major professional sports teams, I was able to watch some of the greatest athletes in the country, and thus the world, at an extremely high level of competition on numerous occasions.
Given Drake University’s proximity to my high school, Roosevelt, paired with the fact that winter AND summer Olympian Lolo Jones attended the fine institution, many track athletes make their way to the Roosevelt track during their stay in Des Moines. The NCAA and USATF events fell in mid-June, which coincided with baseball season. The school’s track and baseball field are only separated by a fence, so I have had the pleasure of witnessing Olympic legends and world champions (Tyson Gay, Walter Dix, Allyson Felix, Wallace Spearmon, etc.) move faster than I have ever seen humans move a mere toss from playing catch.
Most of these all-world athletes, intensely focused on their training, would smile and wave upon my baseball squad’s hoots and hollers, but Alonso Edward was different. After jogging a few warmup laps, he sauntered over [to my buddy and I waiting by the fence] with an electric smile. We shared introductions and began to exchange pleasantries. We learned that he had grown up playing baseball in Panama, but gave up the game after being beaned in the chest, which knocked the wind out of him. He was running track for a community college somewhere in Kansas, and was in town competing in the Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
We continued to chat, sharing our season’s athletic exploits and discussing plans for the rest of the summer. Somehow, the topic of a friendly race was brought up, and Alonso happily obliged. My teammate and I jogged excitedly to the track entrance and lined up on the start line. Mr. Edward asked us if we would like a head start, which we turned down. All I wanted out of the race was to see how badly he would beat us. He gave us the ready-set, and we were off.
I would like to think that I stuck with Alonso for a good ten meters, but that would give me too much credit. After two steps, he left us in the dust, and was soon laughing his heart out. After about sixty meters, he glided to a halt and jogged to meet us. We thanked him for giving us the time, and he thanked us for being his temporary training partners. Alonso Edward left us with the message to look out for him in the coming years, which we each promised to do.
I followed him on social media, but had not kept track of his progress all that closely since that day. You can imagine my surprise when I saw him proudly leading Panama’s Olympians down the Parade of nations on the world’s biggest stage. As is evident, he seems to have excelled since that scalding June day in Des Moines, and I now have a favorite Olympian to cheer for.
