So I might have only watched the best clips on Facebook or seen snippets of beach volleyball and soccer. But I realized this year that I love the Olympics.
I'm not really a fan of sports. I went to my brother's football, lacrosse, and basketball games because I had to. I don't choose to watch many sports on TV unless it's the Superbowl (for the commercials, obviously). But I realized as I saw photos of Michael Phelps with a young Joseph Schooling (Singaporean swimmer who won the 2016 gold medal for 100m butterfly) or I saw fellow swimmers congratulating Simone Manuel on her gold medal win in the 100m freestyle that I love what the Olympics does for sportsmanship around the world.
Everyone knows that Olympic athletes train their butts off for these games. There are some that have never had significant others, spouses, children, etc. because they are too busy with their training. And within the Olympics, these athletes find people that are just like themselves. This creates a camaraderie and makes the Olympics even better than who got the best time or who scored the most points. To see these athletes cheering each other on and being excited for one another, that makes me truly happier than any of the results could ever make me feel.
One of the most noted shows of camaraderie in the games was when a United States runner, Abbey D'Agostino, and runner from New Zealand, Nikki Hamblin, tripped over each other during the 5000m run. Though D'Agostino suffered from a nasty leg injury and fell back down, Hamblin stayed and they helped each other finish the race. If that isn't true sportsmanship, I don't know what is.
One of the lesser noted events from the Olympics was a selfie that was taken by a South Korean gymnast, Lee Eun-ju, with a North Korean gymnast, Hong Un-jong. The Olympics are one of the only places where North Koreans can interact with other countries' citizens as it is a non-political gathering. The photo shows how important it is that other cultures interact, even if it is only once every couple of years.
Occasionally, I would click an article from Facebook to see all of the different representatives of numerous countries hugging and congratulating one another, it provided a nice break from the politics. And even though I couldn't be bothered to watch any of the Olympics while they were on air, I still love the Olympic Games.
