Friday morning I eagerly came in the house from my run, and quickly flipped the channel (much to my siblings dismay) to the Women’s Olympic 10,000m race. I sat down, rattling off trivia that they could not have cared less about.
As the race progressed, I was surprised when my sister was still sitting there, watching, after nearly 30 minutes of watching these women race around the track. As they started to finish, I was eagerly watching for the first American (Molly Huddle) to finish.
Out of the corner of my ear, I heard my sister say:
“Come on, Molly! Where are you?!”
I smiled, surprised that she was actually listening to my trivia, and pleased that she had taken an interest in the race.
I have written https://www.theodysseyonline.com/girlsruntheworld before about what I believe to be the importance of strong women. With the Olympics happening this summer, there are so many strong women on display.
I believe that sports are a huge contributor to strength in women. The strength displayed by these women is a huge lesson to our young girls. I can’t think of a better role model for young girls.
It is a lesson to never give up and to have the mindset to succeed at whatever they are choosing to do.
Watching women compete in the olympics has been a privilege. It is amazing to me to watch people work so hard and have the ability to show it off on a world class stage.
One day, when I have a daughter (not in the foreseeable future, don’t worry Dad), I want her to look up to these types of women. Strong, resilient, and proud. I don’t want her to aspire to be like some Kardashian or supermodel. The values these Olympians portray are what strong women are made of.
These women are relatable. There is a range and someone for everyone to embody. There is 19-year-old, 4 foot 8 Simone Biles, 22-year-old comeback-kid Aly Raisman, swimmer Maya Dirado, headed to an illustrious career, and mom’s Dana Vollmer and Kerri Walsh-Jennings.
These women are strong, for reasons that are unique to each of them.
This https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqunxCjbMaIvideo, put out by NBC Sports, highlights many of these women. I think it is an incredible video, and encourage all of you to watch it.
It is also incredible that we have these types of women to look up to, and that they are showcased in a video like this. This is the type of video worth watching. The strength these women show is something that I, and all women should want to embody.
It is an honor to get to watch strong women compete in the Olympics every four years. If you haven’t, start watching. And encourage your daughter, sister, Mom, Aunt, and Grandma to watch as well.
We all have the potential within us to be strong.
